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***EDIT May 9, 2013***
Contacted VDC Electronics yesterday to obtain information on the suitability of the 12117 for use with deep cycle batteries and learned that the model # for which the results in this review were obtained were actually for a Model# 12112, the predecessor to the 12117. The 12117 wasn't introduced until 2006. I had misread the model # on my unit when I wrote the review in 2009. I apologize for the error. That said, the 12112 and the 12117 are virtually the same technology with the 12117 having increase in output of about 30%. That would seem to speak fairly favorably of the results I obtained with the lesser powered unit.
VDC Electronics has confirmed that the 12117 "can be used with deep cycle batteries as a maintainer/desulfator", contrary to what the Amazon specifications might say. However, the 12117 is NOT certified for use with AVIATION batteries. The remainder of the original review continues below.
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The RV park where we were staying used these deep cycle batteries in their golf carts. They were going toss them in the dumpster because they were having to recharge them too often. These batteries were in bad shape as evidenced by the constant 6 amps being drawn after being hooked up to their "super" charger for many hours. Essentially, these batteries were so sulphated that they would not accept any more charge. With many chargers the charge current will drop to "0" as battery resistance increases when fully charged.
I mentioned tossing the batteries in the dumpster might be illegal. If they let me have them to do some tests and possibly recover them, I would dispose of them properly if I had no luck. I had just installed a solar panel system with a 2500 watt inverter on my 5th wheel and had only 1 pair of golf cart batteries that was already at least 2 years old. I needed more reserve battery power and calculated that I would need at least 6 of these batteries for the inverter to be of any real use to me. When using batteries in this manner, it is best to use batteries that are in similar condition and ideally from the same lot. Six new batteries were going to cost about $520 with tax.
I got them back to my rig and baselined the charge they would accept on my 10 amp charger. Indeed, they were not accepting any more charge. I paired these old batteries in series to get four 12 volt configurations and spent the next 4 weeks (1 week per pair) on this desulphator. I continued this process until my charger's ammeter would go to zero when the batteries were full, an indication that they were now in good shape. Ultimately, 2 of the batteries would prove to be unrecoverable, but the other 4 plus the 2 I already owned eventually recovered about 90% of their original amp hour capacity based on some standard tests I ran.
My inverter, combined with these recovered batteries, would run my 15,000 BTU air conditioner for nearly an hour, more than enough time to cool our 5th wheel while preparing and consuming lunch in 106 temps in Ca. deserts. The batteries would be nearly fully recharged by the solar panels and charge line from the tow vehicle by the time we reached our destination for the evening. With loving maintenance and care, they had lasted another 5 years providing countless hours of dry camping service! Finally, in 2006, I replaced them with new ones before an extended camping trip.
This charger/desulphator requires 115 vac and a minimum of 11 volts in the battery before you connect to it. So, if your battery is dead, be sure to bring it up the 11 volt minimum before hooking the unit up or it could overheat and be ruined. Also, most of the cheaper old style battery chargers don't have any voltage regulation. Consequently, the voltage these chargers supply to a fully charged battery can exceed well over 14 volts and will eventually "cook" the electrolyte out if you leave them hooked up. They can also overheat the battery, permanently damaging the thinner plate structure of automotive (starting batteries). The VDC model I bought in 2001 can be left on to maintain the charge in lead acid batteries. Check your operator instructions to be sure.
Shortly after recovering these batteries, I bought another desulphator from an Arizona solar supplier capable of desulphating a 1600 a/h battery bank that operates only off of the battery bank. This constant desulphating process along with proper battery maintenance is probably what helped sustain these batteries for an additonal 5 years. In the absence of a desulphator, deep cycle batteries should be "equalized". The interval depends on usage. I was doing it monthly. The equalization process requires a special charger and can be hard on batteries. Desulphation performs a similar function without the harshness of equalization. Desulphation plus judicial use of equalization can extract maximum life out of your deep cycle batteries. I wouldn't be without either one of these desulphators or a 3 or 4 stage battery charger.
A final note: Never let your batteries sit in a discharged condition. As a battery discharges, the sulphate that forms will be easier to return to solution whn prmptly recharged. If you let it sit, the sulphate can harden and be nearly impossible to return to solution.
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Excellent Product; does what it's advertised to do. Comes with lugs/rings and alligator(battery) clamps and a long cord. Works like a cell phone charger, just connect it & plug it in. WILL NOT WORK ON A COMPLETELY DEAD BATTERY!! (If the battery is dead, use your bulk charger to boost it for a couple of hours and then connect the maintainer.) Once the maintainer reaches full charge, it goes into conditioner mode (green flashing light)which is desulphating the battery, exentending its life. Worth the $$$.Best Deals for BatteryMINDer Model 12117: 12 Volt 1.33 Amp (12V 1.33A)
This is something that any guy with a garage and a car should have...especially if you have more than one car. I was more than impressed with this little desulphator/charger's ability to revive a battery that would have otherwise been junked. I have an e34M5 that is notorious for slowly killing batteries. After the battery was dead for over a month, I charged with my "big" battery charger as this cannot help batteries that are on the brink of death without being charged with a larger charger, then I put this on it for two weeks and it was nothing short of a miracle.If you have a car that sits for long periods, you should get one of these little fellas.
Honest reviews on BatteryMINDer Model 12117: 12 Volt 1.33 Amp (12V 1.33A)
I purchased the Battery Minder Plus to restore my boat battery. I am an electronics engineer and had researched what happens to a lead acid battery that causes it to loose its capacity. Though there are other causes, the most common one is sulphation, a coating that forms on the lead plates that is non-conductive reducing their ability to conduct electricity. My battery was so bad that even after many hours of charging on my charger's highest setting, it couldn't hold enough charge to operate the radio, much less engage the starter. I ordered the Battery Minder Plus (at roughly half the price of a new battery). It arrived this past Monday evening. Five days ago. Before I could begin charging, I had to force the Battery Minder into "Maintenance Mode" to start de-sulphating it. Basically zapping the battery with pulses of power that forces the sulphate to disolve. Eventually the battery began to take and hold a charge. This morning I was able to easily start the boat with only the battery. I'm very impressed. Very happy with the product. The manual that comes with it is a bit disorganized and quite redundant but most of the information you need is in there.Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for BatteryMINDer Model 12117: 12 Volt 1.33 Amp (12V 1.33A)
I have one of each of these battery maintainers. Both of these can be connected to a battery indefinitely without boiling it dry. Both come with a set of battery clips and a set of fuse-protected ring terminals for permanent installation. Both have reverse polarity protection(hook them up to the wrong terminals, and nothing happens). The Ctek US 800 has a power cord; the BatteryMINDer 12117 plugs directly into a socket. The BatteryMINDer has a button that allows you to select maintenance mode; the Ctek has no buttons.Some reviewers say the Ctek gets very hot; it does. The BatteryMINDer gets equally hot, and is always hot when plugged in, whether it is in the charging phase or maintenance phase. When the Ctek is in maintenance phase, it is only warm.
The BatteryMINDer 12117 manual states that it desulphates in all modes. One reviewer stated the Ctek also continually desulphates, but the Ctek manual mentions desulphation only in the first stage of battery charging. It could be continuous, but an oscilloscope would be necessary to test that, and I do not have one.
The BatteryMINDer 12117 charges a battery to about 14.1 volts; the Ctek, 14.4. After the initial charge, both go into maintenance mode. The BatteryMINDer allows the battery to drop to 13.4 volts and then keeps it there exactly. The Ctek allows the voltage to drop to about 12.95 volts, gives it a pulse up to 13.05 volts, lets it drop to 12.95 volts, gives it a pulse up to 13.05 volts, etc. If the battery being charged by the BatteryMINDer does not get up to 14.1 volts, it will not switch into maintenance mode. If it does not switch within three days, the instructions state you should manually select that with the button. The Ctek will automatically go into maintenance mode after 18 hours, if the battery has not already reached 14.4 volts and changed over.
The BatteryMINDer maintainer will eventually drain your battery(in about a week) if it is connected and the power goes off or it is accidentally unplugged, etc. The Ctek draws less than 1mA(an insignificant amount)in this scenario.
The Ctek unit is weatherproof with very weatherproof, molded-on connectors. Because the connectors are unique and no extension is available, the only way to increase the distance between the main unit and the battery you are charging is to cut the wire and splice in more. This can be avoided by mounting the charger in a vehicle's engine compartment and using an extension cord, but my engine compartment is so crowded I chose not to do this.
The BatteryMINDer is not weatherproof(they offer a more expensive unitBatteryMINDer 12 Volt OnBoard Battery Restorer/Conditioner Model# OBD-12 that is weatherproof). The connectors are molded-on and weatherproof, but they do not seal out the elements as well as the Ctek ones. BatteryMINDer also does not offer an extension, but I purchased a BatteryTender extensionBattery Tender 081-0148-25 25' Quick Disconnect Extension Cable that works perfectly.
The Ctek will push a maximum of 0.8A at 12 volts, while the BatteryMINDer is 1A at 12 volts(1.3A is what it delivers when a battery is at about 10.5 volts), making the BatteryMINDer a little faster.
At the time I am writing this, the BatteryMINDer is about $8.50 more than the Ctek.
I have given both of these five stars, and I have no preference between the two.
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