Battery Charge Question - 1992 R100GS

[zagoren]

Hiya all,

The battery on my airhead died. After some research, I purchased a Dry Charge Yuasa Lead-Acid Battery. I filled the battery with the acid according to the instructions and connected my BMW Advanced Battery Charging System (Programmed for BMW Gel Batteries...of course ). MY SETUP:



It's been hooked up 24 hours. The green light is flashing. and the red "Charge" light is on. With the charger connected, i get a reading of ~13.85 Volts with my multimeter. When I disconnect the charger, i get a reading of about ~13.0 volts.

My question(s) are as follows (and most stem from a youtube video where the charge read 13.7 volts disconnected...albeit from a different model battery):

1. Is this an acceptable reading?
2. If yes, can i snap the fluid caps tight and install it or should i detach from the charger and retest after a set amt of time?
3. If no, could you suggest something i may be doing wrong

...I shoulda just bought a gel battery i suppose? man....electrical kills me. doesn't help that have no garage.

Thanks!

[melville]

12.6V is a full charge. Anything above that is a 'flash' charge that will dissipate overnight or when a modest load is connected to the battery.

Hook it up and go riding!

[Major Softie]

As Melville says: everything is fine.

Gel batteries are more picky about charge rates. You didn't harm your more robust battery by using a charger designed for a gel.

[zagoren]

Thanks guys!

[barryh]

That's not a Gel Battery it's a VRLA (Valve regulated Lead acid) but I guess you know that. I'd use whatever charging regime Yuasa suggest. That would normally mean charging to a terminal voltage of at least 14.4 volts. The lower voltage will have done no harm and the battery will still get charged up eventually. The surface charge will dissipate overnight but it should sit a couple of tenths higher than 12.6 volts especially on a new battery and if it does it will be fully charged.

Real GEL batteries are more sensitive to being overcharged and it might be that your charger is putting out a lower voltage than a VRLA needs. Just to cause confusion there are some new GEL batteries (and I've got one) that accept a higher voltage so the best recourse is to check the manufacturers guidance.