6 volt battery

47topless, Your idea of connectiing a good charged battery with a flat battery to allow a modern automatic charger to get some charge into the flat battery is the way to do it but NOT connected in series. The two batteries need to be connected in parallel which still allows the 12 volt charger to charge. A series connection will give you 24 volts which will not allow your 12 volt charger to charge. Regards, Kevin.
 
Please excuse my ignorance but I don't know the difference between parallel and series. I know that Optima suggested using jumper cables for the connection of the two batteries.
This is a 6V battery, but the concept should be the same as a 12V.
I did not mean to highjack this thread. However, I hope this information will prove beneficial
 
There are a lot of false stories around about optima batteries. Optima is still a lead acid battery the same as a flooded flat plate automotive battery except its construction is quite different. The plates for any given cell have a far greater surface area than a flat plate cell . The optima plates are rolled up like a swiss roll cake and stand vertical in the battery case with no waste space inside the case with the electrolyte (acid mix) inside the plates which gives the optima a far greater cranking amp capacity (about 800 amps) than a normal flat plate automotive battery. Their internal resistance is less so they charge up much more quickly and have a longer sitting around shelf life. Optima do not require a special charger but like any battery dont like to be overcharged. Ask me how I know all this. I looked after a large city fire department and we used Optima in all of our fire trucks from when Optima first became available many years ago. To test any automotive battery a carbon pile load tester is required which most people dont have.
Optima generally lasts longer than a normal battery. About 10 years is standard provided they are treated correctly. I had 18 years out of one in my 1988 Toyota ute. Regards, Kevin.
 
47topless said:
Please excuse my ignorance but I don't know the difference between parallel and series. I know that Optima suggested using jumper cables for the connection of the two batteries.
This is a 6V battery, but the concept should be the same as a 12V.
I did not mean to highjack this thread. However, I hope this information will prove beneficial[/QUOTE
Rather than me explain series and parallel to you ,you can look it up on the net. I guess Optimas instructions only referred to 12 volt batteries. Most people dont talk 6 volts these days. Regards, Kevin.
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Here you go.
 

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For 6v Optimas, at full charge they should read 6.3 to 6.4 volts. If they start losing voltage after maybe a few hours to a day, they say that is a sign of a bad battery. I’ve also had mine load tested before at Interstate Battery.

Frank, how are your battery and ground cables? Any of them getting hot while cranking? There may not be enough juice left for the ignition with old/bad cables. They would also not give the starter it’s needed power.
 
47topless said:
I found out that deeply discharged Optima batteries, are read by a normal charger as "BAD" and the charger will not turn on to the charging mode. BUT, You can fool the charger by hooking up a good, "normal" battery and the discharged Optima in series. Then hook the "normal" battery up to the charger and turn it on. The charger will read the "normal" battery and will then give it a charge. Meanwhile, it will also be charging the Optima. Once the Optima is recharged enough to be read properly by the charger, you can eliminate the "normal"battery and just recharge the Optima.
I will give this a shot.
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================================================


Thanks for getting back to us, with a good detailed explanation on how
to excite a discharged Optima battery to get it to take a charge...;)





.
 
Fritz said:
For 6v Optimas, at full charge they should read 6.3 to 6.4 volts. If they start losing voltage after maybe a few hours to a day, they say that is a sign of a bad battery. I’ve also had mine load tested before at Interstate Battery.

Frank, how are your battery and ground cables? Any of them getting hot while cranking? There may not be enough juice left for the ignition with old/bad cables. They would also not give the starter it’s needed power.
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Thanks. I will try a brand new battery...Maybe the old batteries just don't have enough anymore. If I wasn't getting false full charge indicators, I would have bought a new batter before trying everything else. Hope the fresh battery cures the problem.
 
Thanks for your help guys.
I ordered the optima red top battery from amazon, the cheapest.
The optima redtop is the only battery that will fit inside my hollowed out ford signature battery case. I remember spending days years ago grinding out the ford signature battery case so that it would fit the optima battery.
anyway....I hope a fresh battery will solve my engine woes or its back to troubleshooting.
 
So, my 6v Optima is now reading 5.8. It is a year old. I have a 6v alternator on the engine. Most of my engine running is at idle, or under 25mph. I stay in the neighborhood because my outlet is on to a local highway at 55mph.
The alternator starts putting out 6.5 - 6.8 at 1000rpm, so I set the idle between 750 & 800rpm to try to keep it from discharging the battery. Doesn't appear that I am being successful. Is there anything I can do to get it to recharge back to 6.2 ( the original new reading ). JP
 
jplutz said:
So, my 6v Optima is now reading 5.8. It is a year old. I have a 6v alternator on the engine. Most of my engine running is at idle, or under 25mph. I stay in the neighborhood because my outlet is on to a local highway at 55mph.
The alternator starts putting out 6.5 - 6.8 at 1000rpm, so I set the idle between 750 & 800rpm to try to keep it from discharging the battery. Doesn't appear that I am being successful. Is there anything I can do to get it to recharge back to 6.2 ( the original new reading ). JP
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If you push on the alternator fan can you make it slip on the belt with finger pressure?
Why can’t the car go fast enough to drive 55? I regularly drive the model A over 60, the generator has no problem with halogen lights or keeping the optima charged ( optima 10 years old, never on maintainer )and 50% night headlights on driving.
If your belt is slipping it can cause low charging, if the pulley ratio is wrong you may not be spinning the alternator fast enough, perhaps you need the original slow speed generator version.
 
47topless said:
It is important to have the proper size battery cables. Big is better.
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my negative battery cable is so thick you can't bend it. almost an inch thick.
howver, my positive is a mesh.
 

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FrankWest said:
my negative battery cable is so thick you can't bend it. almost an inch thick.
howver, my positive is a mesh.
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Looks like you have the cables set up well.
I like the idea, just posted, about making sure your belts are tight enough to provide the correct recharging current back to your battery.
 
jplutz said:
So, my 6v Optima is now reading 5.8. It is a year old. I have a 6v alternator on the engine. Most of my engine running is at idle, or under 25mph. I stay in the neighborhood because my outlet is on to a local highway at 55mph.
The alternator starts putting out 6.5 - 6.8 at 1000rpm, so I set the idle between 750 & 800rpm to try to keep it from discharging the battery. Doesn't appear that I am being successful. Is there anything I can do to get it to recharge back to 6.2 ( the original new reading ). JP
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This is a totally different topic than the original thread, but if you only drive your car around the block under 25mph and your battery is (no surprise) getting worn down, put a trickle charger or a 6v AGM charger on it. Your driving isn’t getting charge back to the battery.

6.2 is low, but the cheap voltmeters will say that for a full charge. My professional volt meter indicates 6.4 when my cheap one says 6.2. I’ll bet your battery will come back full after a charge.

I’d recommend the NOCO Genius 10 charger. It has a 6V AGM setting for these batteries.
 
Just replaced my Optima with a battery from Farm and Fleet. Mfr Date was 7/24 and was $87 with a 2 year warranty. If I have to replace it every 3 years I'm still ahead.
 
That's about half of the cost of an Optima at NAPA. If you can get 5 years and can live with the lower CCA, go for it.
 
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