A dead or discharged car battery is a very common issue, especially in the winter when your vehicle&#;s battery is working extra hard to power your car, wipers, lights, and electronics.
When faced with a dead or failing battery, a car battery charger or a jump starter can get you back on the road, however, each of these devices has its advantages, limitations, and purpose to consider.
Drivers often get confused between these two devices or simply think that they are the same but in fact, besides helping get your car started, they are quite different.
After reading this resource, you&#;ll understand the difference between a car battery charger and a jump starter, how they work and the pros and cons of each device.
A car battery charger is exactly like a cellphone or laptop charger but for a car or truck battery. These devices plug into an electrical outlet on one end (source of power) and connect to a car&#;s battery terminals with cables that resemble jumper/booster cables.
Like cellphone/electronics chargers, a car battery charger provides a consistent flow of power, recharging or maintaining the charge of a vehicle&#;s battery when discharged or fully charged, respectively.
One caveat is that car batteries are not directly compatible with normal electrical outlets in terms of both voltage and type of current nor do they come with your average charging port. This is where car battery chargers come in.
Cellphones and other electronics have charging ports designed specifically for chargers that plug into a normal household electrical outlet.
Car batteries require 12-volt DC type current to charge and electrical outlets put out 120-vol AC type current. Battery chargers convert the 120-volt AC current drawn from an electrical outlet to a 12-volt DC outlet. Further, they come with special cables (similar to jumper cables) which connect to the battery terminals since they don&#;t have dedicated charging ports.
Car battery chargers come in a variety of amp-hour (Ah) ratings, which reflects their strength and how quickly they can charge a battery. Amp rating typically range from as little as 0.75 Amp to over 100 Amp.
A car battery typically has 48-amp hour rating while smaller vehicles like motorcycles, jet skis, and snowmobile have 20 Ah or lower. So, if a car battery charger is rated 2, 6 or 12 amps, it would take 24, 8 or 4 hours, respectively, to fully charge the battery. You simply divide the battery&#;s amp rating by the car battery charger&#;s amp-hour rating to see how many hours it would take to fully charge a battery (example: 48A/2Ah = 24 hours).
Car battery chargers also vary with respect to voltage since vehicle batteries also vary in terms of voltage, typically ranging from 6-volt to 24-volt. The vast majority of cars have 12-volt batteries. You&#;ll need a car battery charger that matches your car battery&#;s voltage as you may permanently damage the battery or even cause an explosion.
A car battery charger is ideal to maintain a car&#;s battery charge on a vehicle that is stored away or for a vehicle with a weak battery, for example. If your car battery is consistently failing and discharged, it is likely time to replace it altogether.
Since car battery chargers normally take several hours to charge a battery, they are not ideal for emergency or time-sensitive situations like when your car won&#;t start in the morning before work. This is usually due to cold weather or leaving something on in your car that drained the battery overnight.
In these situations, a portable jump starter, jumper cables or a roadside assistance service is your best bet. Continue reading to learn more about how jump starters work and when to use one.
A jump starter is a portable battery pack designed to jump-start a car without the help of another car or source of power.
These awesome devices have a 12-volt DC output to which specialized jumper cables connect to. The specialized jumper cables connect to a car battery&#;s terminals and draw power directly from the jump starter&#;s battery.
Unlike a car battery charger that actually charges a battery, a jump starter helps kick-start the battery without providing it any charge through a quick burst of power. Once the car is turned on, the alternator kicks in and starts charging the battery.
Visit our extensive guide to learn more about jump starters, how they work, their key features and the different types.
A jump starter is the perfect car accessory to get you back on the road when faced with a dead car battery on the go, in a time-sensitive or emergency situation. These devices are very small and lightweight, so you can store them under your seat, in your glove box or in the trunk of your car.
Being multifunction devices, jump starters can be used in a wide range of situations. For example, you can use them to charge your electronics on the go thanks to their USB charging ports or you can take advantage of their powerful LED flashlights when you need some extra light while on the road.
Check out our article on why you should always have a jump starter in your car.
A battery charger cannot be used to jumpstart a car. It can only be used to recharge a car battery, which typically takes from a few hours to several days depending on the size of the battery and the power of the car charger being used.
A portable jump starter cannot charge a battery. It is designed to give an instant powerful flow of current sufficient to get the battery working, after which the vehicle&#;s alternator proceeds to actually charge the battery.
Yes, a car battery can be charged using a car battery charger while still connected to a car. It can also be charged if disconnected from the vehicle.
Yes, a car battery can be charged using a car battery charger without removing the battery from the car. It can also be charged if removed from the vehicle.
This depends on your car battery and the charging device as you may risk overcharging your battery. Some batteries have the technology to handle overcharging while others do not. Some premium car battery chargers turn off automatically once the battery is fully charged or reduce the supply of current to maintain a charge once full.
Yes, a car can be turned on while the battery is charging.
This depends on the car battery and the car battery charger that is being used.
Some batteries can handle overcharging while others cannot. Batteries that cannot handle overcharging risk permanent damage and in some extreme cases may explode.
Certain car battery chargers turn off automatically once the battery is fully charged and/or reduce the supply of current to maintain a charge once full. When using one of these chargers, nothing risks happening if you leave your car battery charger on past a full charge.
The time it takes to charge a car battery depends on the size of the battery and the power of the car battery charger. You simply divide the battery&#;s amp rating by the car battery charger&#;s amp-hour rating to see how many hours it would take to fully charge a battery.
For example, a normal 48 amp car battery would take 24 hours to charge using a 2 amp-hour car battery charger (48 / 2 = 24).
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All you need to know to find, maintain, and jump-start with an emergency battery booster pack.
Photo by Justin Pritchard
It doesn&#;t matter what car I&#;m driving: come the dead of a Sudbury winter, I rarely leave home without a booster pack.
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Even the batteries in a brand new car aren&#;t always safe from the ravages of extreme cold or sitting parked for long periods. Nobody wants to return from their February beach vacation with a suitcase full of Jamaican rum, only to find their car or truck&#;s battery has kicked the bucket while waiting in the Park &#;N Fly.
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If you&#;re running an older battery this winter, or if you&#;ve neglected battery maintenance and care for the past several years, the odds of battery failure are increasingly stacked against you. If you&#;ve had to jump-start your car a few times in the recent past, chances are its battery needs to be replaced and that it may leave you stranded when you can least afford it.
These are some of the key reasons to consider travelling with a booster pack or jump-starter this winter.
Most units are affordably priced and equipped with safety features and add-ons that make them easier and safer to use, while adding value. Not only can a fully charged booster pack store enough electricity to jump-start multiple dead vehicles without having to call roadside assistance or track down a donor vehicle to connect via jumper cables, but they can also rapidly recharge a smartphone or flashlight, and many include built-in lighting functionality that&#;s handy if you&#;re stranded.
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If your car&#;s battery is dead, connecting a booster pack takes just seconds. The devices are small and portable. Most can fit in your glovebox, but pack a lot of power. Following the device instructions, you&#;ll connect its cables to your battery terminals, power the device on, and go fire up your engine.
You&#;ll be on your way in no time.
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A few important factors are worth considering when it comes time to select, use, and care for your booster pack. A few tips can also help extend the life and performance of its integrated battery to save you money in the long run.
Let&#;s start by understanding the differences between a jump-starter, a battery charger, and a trickle charger.
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Numerous devices are available to charge, maintain, or even jump-start your car&#;s battery. To help you make a better purchase decision, it&#;s important to understand how each one works.
A jump-starter or booster pack is designed to provide auxiliary power that can fire up a car&#;s engine when its battery is dead. The larger your engine, the more power you&#;ll need to fire it up. That&#;s why many booster packs provide a rating related to engine displacement &#; for instance, &#;up to a 6-litre gasoline engine&#;.
Check this rating to ensure your booster pack is sized adequately for the job. Some booster packs are available in multiple sizes and outputs, with smaller models available for smaller cars and crossovers, and a more powerful versions intended for use on trucks and SUVs with bigger engines.
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A booster pack can jump start a car with a weak battery, but can&#;t recharge it.
The engine&#;s alternator does this once the engine is running, provided that the battery and alternator are healthy. If you need to jump-start your car regularly, there&#;s likely a problem with one of these components, and you&#;ll want to have a technician investigate.
Photo by Noco
A trickle-charger is another device that intends to help your battery. Unlike a booster pack or jump-starter, trickle chargers tend to stay at home. You connect a trickle charger to your healthy battery when you won&#;t be driving for an extended period. While you&#;re away, the trickle charger maintains the charge of your battery and conditions it, extending its lifespan and improving reliability.
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A trickle charger is designed to keep healthy batteries healthy, and they aren&#;t useful or timely solutions to deal with a dead battery or no-start situation.
A battery charger powers up empty car batteries that have become drained. Once connected to a battery, this tool fully charges the battery over time, and most automatically shut off once the process is complete.
Drivers can use a trickle charger at home to keep their battery healthy and extend its life, or a battery charger to fully recharge a weakened or drained battery.
Note that a trickle charger generally won&#;t bring a dead battery back to life. A battery charger can, though they&#;re typically heavy and not very portable. Both trickle chargers and battery chargers need to be plugged into a power outlet.
This makes the booster pack or jump starter the fastest-acting solution for a dead battery, and the only one that doesn&#;t need to be connected to a plug.
If you want to learn more, please visit our website Jixin Auto.
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Jump starters generally come in two flavours: compact and lightweight, or bigger, heavier and more fully-functioned.
Larger booster packs might be about the size of a small toolbox and feature additional handy features like an air compressor to inflate flat tires, multiple USB charging ports, supplemental lighting, and more. You&#;ll also find a larger booster pack like this to be a handy accessory for camping or boating. Larger booster packs have larger batteries, making them much heavier &#; though they&#;re still portable and designed to live in your back seat or trunk.
In extreme cold, I&#;ve typically found the performance of the air compressor on larger booster packs to be fairly poor, though it could get you out of a sticky situation. Ultimately, I prefer the smaller, lighter, and more easily transported alternative of a compact lithium booster pack when I travel in winter.
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A more compact booster pack uses a compact battery, ditches the air compressor hardware, and generally come in weighing just a few pounds and sized small enough to carry in your hand (or purse, backpack, or glovebox). With built-in SOS and safety strobe lighting features, you can even use it to make the area around your vehicle safer at night for nearby motorists by engaging the lighting function you like and placing the pack on your roof or the road behind your car.
Photo by Justin Pritchard
When shopping for a jump starter, look for a few key features that make it easier and safer to use. Consider anyone who may need to use the booster pack, including less experienced drivers in your family.
Using advanced circuitry, the best jump starters have connector cables that are spark proof, and protect from over voltage, over current, short circuits and over discharge. Some models monitor the clamp connection and don&#;t allow power to flow until the clamps are seated securely.
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Reverse-polarity protection is another must-have, as it stops power from flowing if the cables are hooked up backwards &#; a situation that can cause electronic damage to your vehicle, or even a dangerous fire.
By shopping for a booster pack or jump-starter with these safety features, the booster pack will be safer and more straightforward to use for you, and your family. If you&#;ve got a phobia of being zapped by electricity, these features take away the worry.
Photo by Justin Pritchard
Batteries degrade over time.
The rate at which this happens is affected by a multitude of factors, and you&#;ve got control over at least two of those when it comes to your new jump starter or booster pack.
First: temperature.
Extreme heat and cold are two enemies of battery life and performance. Keep this in mind when using and storing your booster pack. Avoid leaving your booster pack in a cold (or hot) car where possible, and you&#;ll extend the life of its battery. Where possible, bring your booster pack indoors and store it at room temperature while you&#;re not using it, instead of leaving it in your car to freeze or broil.
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Over time, this tends to slow the degradation of the battery.
Second: storage charge level.
Remember how your new smartphone came with a half-charged battery? There&#;s a reason for that.
Many booster packs can store a charge for a year before they need plugging in, though most can be recharged from empty in just a few hours when required. Be aware that many batteries (and especially the lithium-ion battery packs commonly used in jump-starters) will experience a longer lifespan if users avoid storage with a full or empty battery.
If you won&#;t be using your booster pack or jump starter for an extended period, take steps to store it with a charge level around half, and it&#;ll repay you with a longer and more reliable life. When it&#;s time to bring your booster pack back into action, just plug it in for a recharge the night before.
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Justin Pritchard is a Sudbury, Ontario based automotive journalist and award-winning presenter, photographer, videographer and technical writer. Every week, Justin uses his keyboard, voice and cameras to share his latest automotive reviews and discoveries with his audience, via multiple Canadian television programs, print and online publications.Technical Writer, Videographer, Presenter, Producer, Driving.ca Contributor, Host of EastLink Community TV's 'AutoPilot', Award-Winning PhotographerLaurentian University, B.Comm Summary · 18 years of weekly automotive reviews with over 900 published road tests · 1,000,000 kilometers of road testing and counting · Award-winning videographer, photographer, technical writer and presenter · Award-winning road safety journalist and winter driving expert.
Justin Pritchard is an experienced motoring expert whose work is read and watched by Canadians across the country on a weekly basis. Starting his career at Auto123.com back in (while finishing his final year of studies at Laurentian University in Sudbury, Ontario), Justin quickly applied his passion for writing, presenting, and photography, working under some of the most recognized editors in the Canadian motoring scene.
Justin has written one of the largest collections of used car buyer guides on the internet, and his TV program, AutoPilot, has aired over 600 episodes across 16 seasons. Presently, AutoPilot is the only English-language motoring program on Canadian cable TV, though he's lent his informative style and easy-to-identify voice to video features for Youtube, Driving.ca, Autotrader.ca, Motoring TV, and elsewhere. With 4 years as co-chair of the Canadian Car of the Year Awards (CCOTY) program, a passion for vehicle testing shines though in all of his work.
A passion for photography from a young age makes Justin as comfortable behind the camera as in front of it, and capturing motoring memories from the scenery of beautiful Northern Ontario is a priority in much of his work. The particularly harsh winter climate in this part of Canada makes Justin a particular expert on winter driving, winter tires, and extreme-weather safety.
Justin earned a Bachelor of Commerce (Hons) from Laurentian University in . AJAC Video Journalism Award (Winner) AJAC Road Safety Journalism Award (Runner-Up) AJAC Automotive Writing (vehicle review topics) (Winner) AJAC Automotive Writing (technical topics) (Winner) AJAC Journalist of the Year
Instagram: @mr2pritch
Youtube: @JustinPritchard
Learn more about Author AddressIf you want to learn more, please visit our website Wholesale Car Jump Starter.