I have recovered several "dead" batteries with the Viking charger. This is not a rapid process and takes much more time than one might think. I've had a few other "smart" chargers but they never recovered batteries like this! You need to give it enough time and stop basing results on charging a "good" battery. I threw my other "smart" chargers in the trash when I saw what the Viking could do!
I do not think anything was wrong with the first unit. The maintainer side of this unit is going to condition the battery which is why you were seeing the voltage moving around. Once the unit goes through the charging/conditioning mode it should go green into maintenance or give you a bad battery indication. Also a 4 amp charger is more of a trickle charger so it is going to take awhile. If you want a quick charge you need a 10 or 12 amp charger and then apply the conditioner/maintainer.
I took the car out for over a two hour drive before parking. The battery would be 80% if it started out as dead, and it wasn't. It shouldn't take 12 hours for an 80% charged battery, even at 4 amps. I have a 2/35/200 amp charger as well.
One thing I noticed is that you didn't read the manual. It specifically say do not plug in the AC until ready meaning hooking up the battery first. Under Operation step 1 it again restates hook up battery first then plug in charger. When disconnecting charger unplug AC first then then battery. Don't know if that would change your outcome but it's worth a try. Also I read somewhere that Winter Mode will occur automatically when the temperature sensor in the charger indicates to the microprocessor that the ambient temperature is at or near freezing.
I bought one of these, I use it to maintain my motorcycle battery and car battery. I’ve had no issues. Did take hours for it to stop glowing red when charging my car.
Thanks for sharing this info on this Battery Charger. My inlaw gave me his Craftsman Battery Charger in 1986 that finally went out. ..It had a simple meter plus the technology today wasn't even close to the generic Craftsman. Ill take a look at others probably a bit more for the price and reviews before committing. Thx Again for sharing!
It's only a 4 amp charger. I think it may be possible that the first charger simply needed more time on the battery. As the second charger already had a lead on the charge process from the first charger, it still appeared to take a few more hours. Sometimes you need to have more patience.
It ramps up voltage as it charges and gives the voltage on the screen. The issue with the first one was the software for the charging cycle. It regular charged fully, then pulse charged again, but the battery should have already had a full charge
All that is happening is normal. Sometimes my Avalon needs 5 days to stabilize and stay green. Whenever the charger is in red it is conditioning battery.
If you're trying to charge the battery through 10 foot cables, maybe that is why it doesn't function properly? I have a Charger as well. The battery is in the trunk. I doubt these battery charges are designed to do that.
I had 2 hooked up at the farm on tractors. I went over today and both were not working. I did have 110 at both plug ins. I assume there was a voltage surge from the power company. Is there a internal fuse ? Thanks, Mike
If you used the set of leads that weren't the clamps there is an in series fuse. I am not sure on the internal circuity of the unit itself, as I have not seen a schematic. You can call the support number printed in the manual (-888-866-5797) you can call and ask
The car doesn't have the draw, it's the security/camera system. It has a 24 hour battery, but it does out if it stays on. I can unplug the system and let the car sit a few weeks and the battery would be fine
I'm no electrical or auto expert and am learning as I go along. From what I gather a car battery has 48 amp hour capacity so that if the electric flow is 1 amp per hour that it would take 48 hours to drain. 2 amp pull> 24 hrs. 6 amp, 8 hrs. etc. If that works in reverse, at 4 amps in, it would take 12 hrs. to charge from nothing. The 1st one may have been bad but didn't you say there was some drain which necessitated a trickle charger? It seems you have power going two 2 places. One to accessories & one to storage. Not knowing where things started or the pull, I wonder if the 1st one was bad. But I'm no expert on all this. I'm using one for the 1st time now & wanted to know kind of what to expect which your video did. Thanks!
@@futon02 For what it's worth, I finally finished charging a battery for a BMW 328i. I would not let it sit overnight not knowing what it would do. It took a good 11 hours to charge the car battery. I don't know why that was. It says on the side of the box that it will restore some batteries, but I'm not clear at all on whether or not the display would ever tell me that it was doing so. It says it's a Maxx-H6 12V 730 cold cranking amps or 900 cranking amps at 32°. A separate voltmeter reads 13.07V.
@@SharpTuskWorld It's a 4 AMP charger/maintainer. That means it's not a fast charger , it does not mean it's a bad charger. Won't hurt to put it on overnight either. The voltage fluctuations are part of the process , the charger puts out what the battery will take and draws back , it's part of the charging cycle. I have had this charger for a year now and have used it on 3 motorcycle batteries , 2 deep cycle RV batteries an a couple of regular car batteries. It will try to repair weak cells but it will also let you know when it cannot. The biggest thing with this charger is to give it time and let it do it's thing. It WILL go green when it's finished. I love mine !
Technically it doesn't matter. I would have followed that if anything was done to the car, but there was no maintenance or anything moved. It is an important process with any electrical maintenance / unknown issues where there could be a short
@@96LS1S10 Go ahead and explain why that matters with a connected system. Give a technical explanation, not your opinion. I want to understand what your trying to say.
@@wookongninja7461 if you connect the negative first, and accidentally touch the positive to metal, you will understand why it is safer to connect the positive first and negative last.
It has a fuse inside on its circuit board. The one I have did not work and the fuse was blown. I soldered a car 5 amp fuse underside of the board and it came alive.
Planning to use this (1st time) over the winter on my car battery. Car is parked in a detached no-heat garage with door closed. OK? @once a week car will be started (not driven) for @ 10+ minutes. When doing this I will disconnect the electrical wall connection. OK? Thanks.
Of you're going to start the car every week you may not need a charger. Unless the battery dies off quickly for some reason, you should be okay not using it. That said, if you are going to start the car I would disconnect it from the wall and the car
I wonder if the heat had anything to do with your initial results. Once the weather cooled off, you got the results you were looking for. Thanks for the review futon.
There were a bad batch that got flooded out, according to the reviews. Not sure exactly what the fault was, but am happy with it overall, over a month in.
I could never get either one of 2 I bought to go into maintenance mode . I don’t think it’s worth ruining a battery to save money buying this junk from Viking . Poor quality and the performance of these units reflect that .
Steven, It looks like you got x2 dudes. When I bought mine (which goes into maintenance mode properly), there were x4 total on the shelf; one was opened & poorly resealed with the round tape seal, one was completely opened and obviously a return. and one that had part of the end flap opened but the original seal was intact, and mine, a completely sealed package. It has worked properly and has brought my Twin Turbo & Supercharged, 1000+HP Hellsqueeeeert Nitrous Dodge Fiat Valiant's Battery ..........errr I mean my BMW X3's AGM back a reasonable amount, considering it's 5 years old. Keep returning them until you get a good one. $40 is a decent price for such a versatile charger. When I return something to HF that is non-op, , I write on the unit/item that it's DOA to warn others and so they can't just restock it (although be aware they might anyway). Moral; Always look closely at the packaging for factory seals. Good Luck. cheers Boots Langley La Mesa, Ca
ruclips.net/video/m9CU2z1KwjY/видео.html left a light on which drained my car agm battery down to 3v!! hooked up an old style battery charger to bring the voltage up to 10.5v then switched to the viking. after 30+ hours it finally turned green and showed 12.7v. during charging it had red lit screen, voltage & charge bars would reach 14.6v and blinking 5th bar and then drop down to 2 bars and 13v...it cycled like this several times. i pray that the viking repaired the deep discharge damage.
It stays red while charging. Once charging is done it goes green. The red in maintenance mode doesn't seem to be correct. I called the number in the manual and that's what they told me, but I did not observe that at all
A Hellcat mated to a Harbor Freight charger, what's wrong with this picture? Hint....it's not the Hellcat. Buy a CTEK and stop worrying, your car is worth it.
Thanks for the video. Question, should I connect both alligator clip to the battery terminal. I want to keep it trickle charge when my car sit in the garage. The manual said: For negative-grounded vehicle, connect POSITIVE (RED) clip from battery charger to POSITIVE (POS, P, +) ungrounded post of battery. Connect NEGATIVE (BLACK) clip to vehicle chassis or engine block away from battery.
Do you still have the battery connected in the car? If the battery is connected follow the steps in the manual. The reason it says don't go terminal to terminal is for safety, it could spark. Electrically, the negative terminal and chassis ground are the same for negative grounded vehicles
@@futon02 Thanks for the reply. It sure help. Now I understand better. I have not connected yet to the car, this is the first time I bought the viking, I want to charge it on the weekday and let it trickle charge if not in use. make sense that you can either clip on the negative thermal (that is grounded) or to the chassis ground.
@@kkchain with a microprocessor controlled charger, all you have to do it hook it up with the correct settings. It will figure out where it is/needs to be and will charge the battery and maintain it by itself. No need to change anything. Let it do its thing
Incorrect information on that comment. Hellcat battery part number is BB0H7730AB, which was superseded by BBH7F001AA. It's not AGM. Mopar doesn't make AGM batteries
Not 100% sure, but my understanding is that it kicks on below a certain temperature and pulses to maintain a higher temp inside the battery. The website also says "Winter mode for specialized battery charging in winter weather conditions"
On know the terminals on the Hellcat are different but for a standard battery, should you remove the car's terminal connectors to the battery before hooking up the maintainer clips to the car?
You can hook up to the terminals of a standard battery without removing the leads. Be sure to hook up positive then negative, then remove negative then positive when done, for personal safety. Follow your owners manual, as the order may not be the same for all cars and batteries.
I’ve had mine on for several days, and it still is red and looks like it jumps from 11vdc to 12. The battery bar shows 1 to 2 bars….does this seem normal?
The battery is probably damaged. Leave it on and it will try to desulfate and fix the battery. From that voltage (assuming it is not a deep cycle battery), the voltage got too low from discharge or age if the battery is several years old. You battery should never get below 12.3 volts. Any less than that and you are ruining the battery. Left long enough, the battery can no longer be charged back to full voltage.
Both do the job, the Viking is about a quarter of the price (with coupon). CTEK definitely has a better manual. Maybe I'll do a compare/contrast video.
I bought this a while ago and finally got around to taking my battery out of my car to charge it, but I wanted to ask, the operation section in the manual tells me to attack a 24 inch long, 6 gauge AWG insulated battery cable to the negative battery post, and then plugging in the actual negative clamp to the free end of the cable after connecting the positive clamp to its post on the battery. Does this mean I have to go out and buy the battery cable it mentioned or can I charge it without? I tried leaving it charging without for a while and it would jump around voltage levels and after a while displayed 7.5v and full battery icon with a red screen, then it only displayed the "bad battery" icon.
The reason it says 2 foot lead is to get you farther away when making the connection. You should evaluate how safe you feel doing it if you deviate from the procedure
I think these are junk. Like fishing reels, they work good initially, and deteriorate thereafter. I bought 2 of these 2 years ago. They worked well as maintainers for 1 season. When I plugged them in this fall, no function. One had a blown 74 microfarad capacitor, and the other had no obvious fault, but didn't work. I'm back to the battery tender brand, albeit, at three times the price. Kind, Regards, Craig
This "charger" is probably best used as a maintainer for a car battery; best to use a 10/2 A charger for a battery of that size that isn't near full charge. I've used this charger for smaller batteries like you'd see in a scooter, UPS or alarm system, and that's a much better application for using this to both charge and maintain.
If you look around 1:53 you can see my big charger. It's 2/35/200 amp. Works great for a fast charge or quick start if needed the remote leads (battery is in the trunk, circuit capacity is 20A) but the 2 amp takes forever. Wanted to get something intermediate that wouldn't take as long as the 2 amp, and maintain without overcharging. Before I put this on I drove the car for 2 hours. The battery wasn't dead, there was something wrong with that first charger
I just got one. Think it’s bad. It won’t go in maintenance mode. Got to 14.5 then down to 13. Then kept charging. Until I notice top of battery wet. Means it’s over charging and boiling the battery. Will return it for a new one and see if it works. Just my luck.
What was initial voltage? If it started at 12.4V or less it will also try and desulfate the battery, which can take over 12 hours with the finishing charge on it
futon02 it was at 7.5 when I put the charger on. So I let it charge for 11 hrs. And took it off. When I put it on this morning battery was at 12.6 let it charge for 4 more hours waiting for it to go into maintenance mode. Once I saw the top of battery wet I took it off.
futon02 tried the unit on a newer battery that’s in my current running vehicle and it never entered maintenance mode. Lots of people having same issue with these chargers not entering maintenance mode and will keep charging.
futon02 picked up a new one and I finally got the maintenance green light.there was no bubbling in the battery. So something was wrong with the old charging unit.
It depends on your initial voltage the battery has from the store. It should be fully charged, but voltage can decay over time. It shouldn't take more than 2-3 hours max (if any time) if the battery is new and good, if the voltage has dropped. It may take no time at all
I use it for the maintaining function. The big charger is 200/35/2 amps. It can trickle charge, but I want the battery maintained and charged back up without overcharging, like the big one would do if left unattended
It would be on the manual/website. If it's only 250w it won't make enough amps for this charger (power = voltage * current). 250 / 120 = 2.1 amps. This charger is 4 amps
@@futon02 so agms dont have valves and lead and acid? Does this charger also not equalize flooded wet cell batteries? On wikipedia it says "There are two primary types of VRLA batteries, absorbent glass mat (AGM) and gel cell (gel battery)."
It's vernacular. If it's called a gel battery, it's normally a VRLA that's normal lead acid. Glass mats can have have gel, but are called AGM. Page 9 of the manual has a note that says to use STD.
@@futon02 weird .. agm are actually different then gel. Gel batteries are so named because the electrolyte is gelled because silica is added to gel the electrolyte which immobilized the electrolyte which is why gel batteries are allowed to be mounted at different angles. AGM or absorbent glass Mat has is electrolyte absorbed in the glass Mat inside which also immobilizes the electrolyte and isnt gelled but also allows it to be mounted in various ways. Do you have a link that shows an agm that is both gelled and made with absorbent glass mat all in the same battery?
Guy you have a Dodge Hellcat and your wasting your time with a $30 Harbor Freight charger. Get out and hit the road in that bad boy and don't look back.
I came to the comments to say **exactly** that. Get a nice battery charger. This is for people who can't afford a better brand. Probably useful, but higher risk of manufacturing defects, bad design, and poor features. A big hassle for someone who can afford a Hellcat.
Aside from the strange fluctuations of voltage, so you don't know what is going on, there is vague statement in the owner's manual.It says that it adjusts current according to battery state of charge and capacity. The rule of thumb for sizing chargers is to never charge higher than 10% of the battery's rated A/hr capacity. That would normally nean that this charger is too big for anything under 40A/hr. That would eliminate all kinds of garden, sports and motorcycles that use batteries smaller than that. There is nothing in the manual about minimum size battery except the vague statement that suggests it might be able to charge at less than 4A. From past experience, I know better than to call the HFT help line . They will read the owner's manual to you and they have no technical info or expertise beyond that. As this reviewer only had a 50% success rate getting a good charger, the up and down cycling of battery voltage made no sense to me and I can probably only use it on my truck and cars, I will pass. Thanks for the review. It served it's purpose to help me make a buying decision. No Sale!! The normal multi stage charger charges at constant current until a battery reaches a certain voltage and then charges at constant voltage until full charge Then it goes into float or maintainence mode. I haven't a clue as to what this one was doing.
The fluctuating voltage is for pulse charging, that allows for a higher current and less heat than constant current. Pulse charging also reduces electrolysis , which is good for a sealed battery, as you can't refill it with water if it is broken down to H2 and 02. Pulse charging also supposed to break up the lead sulfides, which should lead to a healthier battery (no sulfation/mossing) and longer life (in theory). What I didn't understand while watching it cycle is why it went through a charge again after bringing the battery voltage up. It didn't seem like a finish (topping) charge to me (it could have been, but you can't confirm with the indications given). After that cycle it goes into maintenance mode.
This thing is a total piece of crap do not buy this, I purchased one hooked it up and it drains batteries instead of charging them for a drains them to 0 V, what a pile of crap
Dennis Lin Mine did the same thing last week. I hooked it up for a charge (hadn’t driven my car in a few days) and at one point I went to check it and the voltage was spiking to 15 volts and I could hear my battery beginning to boil. This is going back tomorrow.
I have recovered several "dead" batteries with the Viking charger. This is not a rapid process and takes much more time than one might think. I've had a few other "smart" chargers but they never recovered batteries like this! You need to give it enough time and stop basing results on charging a "good" battery. I threw my other "smart" chargers in the trash when I saw what the Viking could do!
I do not think anything was wrong with the first unit. The maintainer side of this unit is going to condition the battery which is why you were seeing the voltage moving around. Once the unit goes through the charging/conditioning mode it should go green into maintenance or give you a bad battery indication. Also a 4 amp charger is more of a trickle charger so it is going to take awhile. If you want a quick charge you need a 10 or 12 amp charger and then apply the conditioner/maintainer.
I took the car out for over a two hour drive before parking. The battery would be 80% if it started out as dead, and it wasn't. It shouldn't take 12 hours for an 80% charged battery, even at 4 amps. I have a 2/35/200 amp charger as well.
One thing I noticed is that you didn't read the manual. It specifically say do not plug in the AC until ready meaning hooking up the battery first. Under Operation step 1 it again restates hook up battery first then plug in charger. When disconnecting charger unplug AC first then then battery. Don't know if that would change your outcome but it's worth a try. Also I read somewhere that Winter Mode will occur automatically when the temperature sensor in the charger indicates to the microprocessor that the ambient temperature is at or near freezing.
13 minutes and you told me what about this unit? Wow thanks for the weather forecast
I bought one of these, I use it to maintain my motorcycle battery and car battery. I’ve had no issues. Did take hours for it to stop glowing red when charging my car.
Thanks for sharing this info on this Battery Charger. My inlaw gave me his Craftsman Battery Charger in 1986 that finally went out. ..It had a simple meter plus the technology today wasn't even close to the generic Craftsman. Ill take a look at others probably a bit more for the price and reviews before committing.
Thx Again for sharing!
It's only a 4 amp charger. I think it may be possible that the first charger simply needed more time on the battery. As the second charger already had a lead on the charge process from the first charger, it still appeared to take a few more hours. Sometimes you need to have more patience.
I had run the car (road trip) for 2.5 hours prior to this. Worst case it should have been at 80% charge
@@futon02😂
My battery took over 12 hours to charge fully
I would verify that the battery is reaching 14.5 volts with a digital meter, thereby checking the status of the battery.
It ramps up voltage as it charges and gives the voltage on the screen. The issue with the first one was the software for the charging cycle. It regular charged fully, then pulse charged again, but the battery should have already had a full charge
@@futon02 Based on your review I would not buy this maintainer. Many of the products from Harbor are in question.
All that is happening is normal. Sometimes my Avalon needs 5 days to stabilize and stay green. Whenever the charger is in red it is conditioning battery.
I hate the coolest looking battery. Never seen a hellcat engine bay. Really digging it
LOL. I've had it work 14+ hours before it would stay green. That particular battery is 8 years old.
Cool car
If you're trying to charge the battery through 10 foot cables,
maybe that is why it doesn't function properly?
I have a Charger as well. The battery is in the trunk.
I doubt these battery charges are designed to do that.
I was having the same problem you were having, until my brother told me to unplug the battery then it worked fine..
After the replacement of the first unit, I haven't had any issues with it.
I had 2 hooked up at the farm on tractors. I went over today and both were not working. I did have 110 at both plug ins. I assume there was a voltage surge from the power company. Is there a internal fuse ? Thanks, Mike
If you used the set of leads that weren't the clamps there is an in series fuse. I am not sure on the internal circuity of the unit itself, as I have not seen a schematic. You can call the support number printed in the manual (-888-866-5797) you can call and ask
OMFG, you are obsessed with the temp of the battery charger. I got it. I got it. It's warm. It's warm.
Warm is normal, hot is not.
This product is absolutely a piece of s***
I'm glad I didn't ask you what time it was you would tell me how to build a f****** watch
Is your vehicle on in anyway ? Your battery is connected. I wounder if it wóuld change if it was disconnected.
The car doesn't have the draw, it's the security/camera system. It has a 24 hour battery, but it does out if it stays on. I can unplug the system and let the car sit a few weeks and the battery would be fine
I'm no electrical or auto expert and am learning as I go along. From what I gather a car battery has 48 amp hour capacity so that if the electric flow is 1 amp per hour that it would take 48 hours to drain. 2 amp pull> 24 hrs. 6 amp, 8 hrs. etc. If that works in reverse, at 4 amps in, it would take 12 hrs. to charge from nothing. The 1st one may have been bad but didn't you say there was some drain which necessitated a trickle charger? It seems you have power going two 2 places. One to accessories & one to storage. Not knowing where things started or the pull, I wonder if the 1st one was bad. But I'm no expert on all this. I'm using one for the 1st time now & wanted to know kind of what to expect which your video did. Thanks!
Thank you. I ran the car for 2 hours before I parked it and put the charger/maintainer on. It should not have been dead (or even close)
@@futon02 For what it's worth, I finally finished charging a battery for a BMW 328i. I would not let it sit overnight not knowing what it would do. It took a good 11 hours to charge the car battery. I don't know why that was. It says on the side of the box that it will restore some batteries, but I'm not clear at all on whether or not the display would ever tell me that it was doing so. It says it's a Maxx-H6 12V 730 cold cranking amps or 900 cranking amps at 32°. A separate voltmeter reads 13.07V.
@@SharpTuskWorld It's a 4 AMP charger/maintainer. That means it's not a fast charger , it does not mean it's a bad charger. Won't hurt to put it on overnight either. The voltage fluctuations are part of the process , the charger puts out what the battery will take and draws back , it's part of the charging cycle. I have had this charger for a year now and have used it on 3 motorcycle batteries , 2 deep cycle RV batteries an a couple of regular car batteries. It will try to repair weak cells but it will also let you know when it cannot. The biggest thing with this charger is to give it time and let it do it's thing. It WILL go green when it's finished. I love mine !
@@futon02 unless your alternator is bad.. or the battery its self its self is bad
@@j5892000 I've had no issues since I received the second one. It's been two years, alternator is fine
Positive gets connected first then ground. This is the most basic point of car safety.
Technically it doesn't matter. I would have followed that if anything was done to the car, but there was no maintenance or anything moved. It is an important process with any electrical maintenance / unknown issues where there could be a short
Technically it actually does matter. Ground always first off, last on. Also, your battery is an AGM, not a "standard" lead acid.
@@96LS1S10 Go ahead and explain why that matters with a connected system. Give a technical explanation, not your opinion. I want to understand what your trying to say.
@@96LS1S10 MOPAR doesn't offer an AGM battery as standard equipment in automobiles. Where are you getting your misinformation?
@@wookongninja7461 if you connect the negative first, and accidentally touch the positive to metal, you will understand why it is safer to connect the positive first and negative last.
It has a fuse inside on its circuit board. The one I have did not work and the fuse was blown. I soldered a car 5 amp fuse underside of the board and it came alive.
Planning to use this (1st time) over the winter on my car battery. Car is parked in a detached no-heat garage with door closed. OK? @once a week car will be started (not driven) for @ 10+ minutes. When doing this I will disconnect the electrical wall connection. OK? Thanks.
Of you're going to start the car every week you may not need a charger. Unless the battery dies off quickly for some reason, you should be okay not using it. That said, if you are going to start the car I would disconnect it from the wall and the car
What's the purpose of starting the car weekly?
I wonder if the heat had anything to do with your initial results. Once the weather cooled off, you got the results you were looking for.
Thanks for the review futon.
There were a bad batch that got flooded out, according to the reviews. Not sure exactly what the fault was, but am happy with it overall, over a month in.
I could never get either one of 2 I bought to go into maintenance mode . I don’t think it’s worth ruining a battery to save money buying this junk from Viking . Poor quality and the performance of these units reflect that .
Yep, WHY RISK overcharging a perfectly good battery when there are DOZENS of cheap chargers out there that work very well.
Steven,
It looks like you got x2 dudes. When I bought mine (which goes into maintenance mode properly), there were x4 total on the shelf; one was opened & poorly resealed with the round tape seal, one was completely opened and obviously a return. and one that had part of the end flap opened but the original seal was intact, and mine, a completely sealed package.
It has worked properly and has brought my Twin Turbo & Supercharged, 1000+HP Hellsqueeeeert Nitrous Dodge Fiat Valiant's Battery ..........errr I mean my BMW X3's AGM back a reasonable amount, considering it's 5 years old.
Keep returning them until you get a good one.
$40 is a decent price for such a versatile charger.
When I return something to HF that is non-op, , I write on the unit/item that it's DOA to warn others and so they can't just restock it (although be aware they might anyway).
Moral; Always look closely at the packaging for factory seals.
Good Luck.
cheers
Boots Langley
La Mesa, Ca
ruclips.net/video/m9CU2z1KwjY/видео.html left a light on which drained my car agm battery down to 3v!! hooked up an old style battery charger to bring the voltage up to 10.5v then switched to the viking. after 30+ hours it finally turned green and showed 12.7v.
during charging it had red lit screen, voltage & charge bars would reach 14.6v and blinking 5th bar and then drop down to 2 bars and 13v...it cycled like this several times. i pray that the viking repaired the deep discharge damage.
You said it went green after full charge and goes into maintenance mode. Then you said it stays red in maintenance mode. I’m confused
It stays red while charging. Once charging is done it goes green. The red in maintenance mode doesn't seem to be correct. I called the number in the manual and that's what they told me, but I did not observe that at all
A Hellcat mated to a Harbor Freight charger, what's wrong with this picture? Hint....it's not the Hellcat. Buy a CTEK and stop worrying, your car is worth it.
Thanks for the video. Question, should I connect both alligator clip to the battery terminal. I want to keep it trickle charge when my car sit in the garage. The manual said: For negative-grounded vehicle, connect POSITIVE (RED) clip from battery charger to POSITIVE (POS, P, +) ungrounded post of battery. Connect NEGATIVE (BLACK) clip to vehicle chassis or engine block away from battery.
Do you still have the battery connected in the car? If the battery is connected follow the steps in the manual. The reason it says don't go terminal to terminal is for safety, it could spark. Electrically, the negative terminal and chassis ground are the same for negative grounded vehicles
I should add if it's not connected you should charge it out of the car
@@futon02 Thanks for the reply. It sure help. Now I understand better. I have not connected yet to the car, this is the first time I bought the viking, I want to charge it on the weekday and let it trickle charge if not in use.
make sense that you can either clip on the negative thermal (that is grounded) or to the chassis ground.
@@kkchain with a microprocessor controlled charger, all you have to do it hook it up with the correct settings. It will figure out where it is/needs to be and will charge the battery and maintain it by itself. No need to change anything. Let it do its thing
Someone commented that you do not have standard batteries in the Hellcat. Could the issues be that you have the wrong mode set?
Incorrect information on that comment. Hellcat battery part number is BB0H7730AB, which was superseded by BBH7F001AA. It's not AGM. Mopar doesn't make AGM batteries
There's also the BA94R765AA battery which is also not AGM
Thanks for clarifying. I’m contemplating this charger for a deep cycle battery.
The manual that comes with it is about useless, do you know what winter mode does ?
Not 100% sure, but my understanding is that it kicks on below a certain temperature and pulses to maintain a higher temp inside the battery. The website also says "Winter mode for specialized battery charging in winter weather conditions"
On know the terminals on the Hellcat are different but for a standard battery, should you remove the car's terminal connectors to the battery before hooking up the maintainer clips to the car?
You can hook up to the terminals of a standard battery without removing the leads. Be sure to hook up positive then negative, then remove negative then positive when done, for personal safety. Follow your owners manual, as the order may not be the same for all cars and batteries.
I hope your hellcat wasn't offended
I’ve had mine on for several days, and it still is red and looks like it jumps from 11vdc to 12. The battery bar shows 1 to 2 bars….does this seem normal?
It's not normal to charge for that long, with it showing the voltage
The battery is probably damaged. Leave it on and it will try to desulfate and fix the battery. From that voltage (assuming it is not a deep cycle battery), the voltage got too low from discharge or age if the battery is several years old. You battery should never get below 12.3 volts. Any less than that and you are ruining the battery. Left long enough, the battery can no longer be charged back to full voltage.
I see you have a CTEK charger video now. How do the two chargers compare?
Both do the job, the Viking is about a quarter of the price (with coupon). CTEK definitely has a better manual. Maybe I'll do a compare/contrast video.
I bought this a while ago and finally got around to taking my battery out of my car to charge it, but I wanted to ask, the operation section in the manual tells me to attack a 24 inch long, 6 gauge AWG insulated battery cable to the negative battery post, and then plugging in the actual negative clamp to the free end of the cable after connecting the positive clamp to its post on the battery. Does this mean I have to go out and buy the battery cable it mentioned or can I charge it without? I tried leaving it charging without for a while and it would jump around voltage levels and after a while displayed 7.5v and full battery icon with a red screen, then it only displayed the "bad battery" icon.
If it's out of the car you can charge post to post.
I see what you're saying. Step 15. What they are asking you to do is electrically the same, but can be more safe than connecting post to post.
The reason it says 2 foot lead is to get you farther away when making the connection. You should evaluate how safe you feel doing it if you deviate from the procedure
I think these are junk. Like fishing reels, they work good initially, and deteriorate thereafter. I bought 2 of these 2 years ago. They worked well as maintainers for 1 season. When I plugged them in this fall, no function. One had a blown 74 microfarad capacitor, and the other had no obvious fault, but didn't work. I'm back to the battery tender brand, albeit, at three times the price. Kind, Regards, Craig
When charging the battery does the Viking need to be plugged up ?
The charger/maintainer needs to be plugged in during use
This "charger" is probably best used as a maintainer for a car battery; best to use a 10/2 A charger for a battery of that size that isn't near full charge. I've used this charger for smaller batteries like you'd see in a scooter, UPS or alarm system, and that's a much better application for using this to both charge and maintain.
If you look around 1:53 you can see my big charger. It's 2/35/200 amp. Works great for a fast charge or quick start if needed the remote leads (battery is in the trunk, circuit capacity is 20A) but the 2 amp takes forever. Wanted to get something intermediate that wouldn't take as long as the 2 amp, and maintain without overcharging. Before I put this on I drove the car for 2 hours. The battery wasn't dead, there was something wrong with that first charger
Agreed.
I just got one. Think it’s bad. It won’t go in maintenance mode. Got to 14.5 then down to 13. Then kept charging. Until I notice top of battery wet. Means it’s over charging and boiling the battery. Will return it for a new one and see if it works. Just my luck.
What was initial voltage? If it started at 12.4V or less it will also try and desulfate the battery, which can take over 12 hours with the finishing charge on it
futon02 it was at 7.5 when I put the charger on. So I let it charge for 11 hrs. And took it off. When I put it on this morning battery was at 12.6 let it charge for 4 more hours waiting for it to go into maintenance mode. Once I saw the top of battery wet I took it off.
Less than 10.5v on a 12v is a bad battery. I wouldn't necessarily blame the outcome on the charger
futon02 tried the unit on a newer battery that’s in my current running vehicle and it never entered maintenance mode. Lots of people having same issue with these chargers not entering maintenance mode and will keep charging.
futon02 picked up a new one and I finally got the maintenance green light.there was no bubbling in the battery. So something was wrong with the old charging unit.
Maintaining a hellcat with harbor freight???
I'm not the first, won't be the last.
www.hotrod.com/articles/beat-old-man-winter-charging-system-tools-ride/
A sitting battery with 14.5 volts! indicates a bad battery
How long to charge this unit from zero/new?
It depends on your initial voltage the battery has from the store. It should be fully charged, but voltage can decay over time. It shouldn't take more than 2-3 hours max (if any time) if the battery is new and good, if the voltage has dropped. It may take no time at all
@@futon02 thanks! Mine flashes 0.0 V plugged in. Nothing when unplugged. Going to try to exchange it.
Check the connections if it is reading zero
Give it time first one was hood
Why are you even using that toy when in the background of your video their is a 200.00+ battery charger???
I use it for the maintaining function. The big charger is 200/35/2 amps. It can trickle charge, but I want the battery maintained and charged back up without overcharging, like the big one would do if left unattended
Anyone know if I can run this charger off of a lithium “ solar generator” that can do up to 250 watts?
Most likely not. The input needs to be 120vac and 60hz to the charger
@@futon02 The DB Power solar generator has a 110 volt receptacle that I will plug the charger into.. How can I figure out the hertz?
It would be on the manual/website. If it's only 250w it won't make enough amps for this charger (power = voltage * current). 250 / 120 = 2.1 amps. This charger is 4 amps
For its price, this thing has helped me a great deal in saving marginal bats. Your "review" seems shallow and ill-informed.
Says gel but no gel setting
Gel batteries are VRLA (valve regulated lead acid). It says in the manual to use 12V STD (or 6V STD if a 6 volt battery)
@@futon02 so agms dont have valves and lead and acid? Does this charger also not equalize flooded wet cell batteries? On wikipedia it says "There are two primary types of VRLA batteries, absorbent glass mat (AGM) and gel cell (gel battery)."
It's vernacular. If it's called a gel battery, it's normally a VRLA that's normal lead acid. Glass mats can have have gel, but are called AGM. Page 9 of the manual has a note that says to use STD.
@@futon02 weird .. agm are actually different then gel. Gel batteries are so named because the electrolyte is gelled because silica is added to gel the electrolyte which immobilized the electrolyte which is why gel batteries are allowed to be mounted at different angles. AGM or absorbent glass Mat has is electrolyte absorbed in the glass Mat inside which also immobilizes the electrolyte and isnt gelled but also allows it to be mounted in various ways. Do you have a link that shows an agm that is both gelled and made with absorbent glass mat all in the same battery?
I see you're learning some battery tech. Look at hybrid gel batteries. Companies like LIvEN make them
Guy you have a Dodge Hellcat and your wasting your time with a $30 Harbor Freight charger. Get out and hit the road in that bad boy and don't look back.
I came to the comments to say **exactly** that. Get a nice battery charger. This is for people who can't afford a better brand. Probably useful, but higher risk of manufacturing defects, bad design, and poor features. A big hassle for someone who can afford a Hellcat.
$30? Expensive, I used a $9.95 battery charger and maintainer!
you could of bought a new battery with all you spent on this video. just saying buy you a new battery
75k car and a 24 dollar charger. Hmm.
That’s fine?
I have a marine 12v deep cycle battery, do I charge it on regular mode or agm
Is it glass mat? If it's lead acid, then you do regular mode. AGM is for glass mat batteries
Aside from the strange fluctuations of voltage, so you don't know what is going on, there is vague statement in the owner's manual.It says that it adjusts current according to battery state of charge and capacity. The rule of thumb for sizing chargers is to never charge higher than 10% of the battery's rated A/hr capacity. That would normally nean that this charger is too big for anything under 40A/hr. That would eliminate all kinds of garden, sports and motorcycles that use batteries smaller than that. There is nothing in the manual about minimum size battery except the vague statement that suggests it might be able to charge at less than 4A. From past experience, I know better than to call the HFT help line . They will read the owner's manual to you and they have no technical info or expertise beyond that. As this reviewer only had a 50% success rate getting a good charger, the up and down cycling of battery voltage made no sense to me and I can probably only use it on my truck and cars, I will pass. Thanks for the review. It served it's purpose to help me make a buying decision. No Sale!! The normal multi stage charger charges at constant current until a battery reaches a certain voltage and then charges at constant voltage until full charge Then it goes into float or maintainence mode. I haven't a clue as to what this one was doing.
The fluctuating voltage is for pulse charging, that allows for a higher current and less heat than constant current. Pulse charging also reduces electrolysis , which is good for a sealed battery, as you can't refill it with water if it is broken down to H2 and 02. Pulse charging also supposed to break up the lead sulfides, which should lead to a healthier battery (no sulfation/mossing) and longer life (in theory). What I didn't understand while watching it cycle is why it went through a charge again after bringing the battery voltage up. It didn't seem like a finish (topping) charge to me (it could have been, but you can't confirm with the indications given). After that cycle it goes into maintenance mode.
Why you breathing so hard? Your hardly moving.
Allergies.
Too many cheeseburgers
This thing is a total piece of crap do not buy this, I purchased one hooked it up and it drains batteries instead of charging them for a drains them to 0 V, what a pile of crap
Im on my way to harbor freight to return it
Dennis Lin why?
Velo -Mik3 I got mine open box, and it was taking forever to charge. I saw the voltage jump to 15volts at some points.
Dennis Lin it’s a 4 amp and not a fast charger
Dennis Lin Mine did the same thing last week. I hooked it up for a charge (hadn’t driven my car in a few days) and at one point I went to check it and the voltage was spiking to 15 volts and I could hear my battery beginning to boil. This is going back tomorrow.
Well that was about a waste of time
This rally bad video see black the screen