How Often Do I Have to Turn On Car To Take Care of Battery

[FIBy30]

I recently have switched to bike commuting and, as a result rarely use my car.  The first thing that happened because of this, is that my car had to be jumped after it sat for a week or two.  This had to happen a couple more times, and finally I replaced the battery tonight and the thing is back to working like a champ.  My question would be, how long can the car sit before I have to turn it on and take it for a spin so that I don't adversely affect the battery? 

A couple of details:
 
2003 Honda Civic
I believe this is the first time the battery has been replaced.
195k miles
The guy at Les Schwab said the worst thing you can do for your battery is let it sit, and he said to let it sit for no more than 2 weeks.

Thanks for all your help!

[worms]

I used to work overseas for up to a year at a time, leaving the old Saab garaged until I came back on leave.  Simply left it with the battery earth terminal disconnected and it would start first time.  It only takes  a couple of minutes to reconnect the battery when you need it. 

Modern cars probably have all sorts of electrical stuff going on even when it is not in use which drains the battery if it is still connected.  If your car radio has an anti-theft code, then you will need to re-enter that when you reconnect the battery, so note it down somewhere for easy access.

[gooki]

Once a week or do as worms said and disconnect the battery.

[Rural]

Or you could get a solar battery charger (Harbor Freight) and plug it into the cigarette lighter/ leave on the dash. We did this for our Jeep when we were living in our trailer and working on the house, because it went up and down the mountain ferrying supplies, just over a quarter mile each time, so not enough to charge the battery. But it also works in mostly parked situations (in our case, it's now been redeployed on the backhoe).

They run forty or fifty bucks, so unhooking the terminal is cheaper.

[Micheal]

The reason to start it every week or so has more to do with fluids than the battery.  When a car sits for a while all the oil and coolant and such tends to pool to the lowest point, leaving areas of the engine entirely unprotected and easier to damage on first start after a period of inactivity.  Add a bottle of Lucas Oil to the engine to extend this time.  Also be sure to actually move the car every few weeks to keep the tires from going bad if it's going to be 6 months or more put the car on jack stands remove all the wheels and deflate them.  You can buy a switch called a cut-off switch to place in line with the positive cable that you can flip to disconnect the battery entirely so you don't have to monkey around with the terminals constantly and this is a good thing if as with most newer cars (yes 2003 is new to me ^^) it's in an awkward place to access like behind the passenger tire.  We used to put these in old trucks all the time, the only drawback is that if your electronics require programming and anti-theft codes you will need to know these things before you disconnect and reconnect the battery.

[prodarwin]

I've used solar chargers on dedicated race cars in the past that have very tiny batteries, they work well.  If you park in the garage, use a battery tender.

[Rural]

I've used solar chargers on dedicated race cars in the past that have very tiny batteries, they work well.

Yes, there's a noticeable difference in how much good the charger does on the backhoe vs. the Jeep, and I'm sure the difference is battery size. But with a standard car battery, it seemed to fix our Jeep problem. With the backhoe, it helps some; we need to jump it off less often on starting up. Still have to sometimes, so I wouldn't have bought the thing for the backhoe, but since we have it anyway and weren't using it for anything else....

[nawhite]

I use a battery maintainer: http://www.amazon.com/Save-Battery-2365-12-Volt-Maintainer/dp/B002HG8890 It works the same way as the solar ones but I keep my car in a garage so the solar ones wouldn't help. When it is just maintaining, it only draws about 0.5 watts on the kill-a-watt.

I originally bought it to charge Electric bike batteries but the maintainer functionality works great on the car battery. But what others have been saying about the fluids is important. My car only gets used for long drives so I'll idle it for a few minutes to let the fluids move around and warm up, then pull out of the drive way, drive a quarter mile to the highway and then go for 60-100 miles.

[Spork]

In addition to what folks have already said:
* you don't just need to start it, you probably need to drive it.  I know that may go against your mustacian grain, but in addition to exercising the battery and fluids, rubber does not like to sit in one place.  Shocks like to move.  Things that are designed to expand/contract with heat like to expand/contract.  Cars that sit will eventually just fall apart.  Take it from a guy with a 40ish year old car that sits a lot.
* If your car is going to sit a while... boat batteries are an option.  Assuming you can find one that fits in your car, these guys have reinforced plates.  This keeps them from warping when the battery cycles through excessive low/high charges.
* You can also put a battery cut-off switch in line.  This will kill the trickle of battery that the car uses.  The downsides to this is that you'll lose things like radio presets... and if you have a modern car, this resets the computer every single time you cut it on/off.  (This means it will have to figure out things like optimal fuel mixture over time instead of just using it's last setting.)

[ketchup]

* You can also put a battery cut-off switch in line.  This will kill the trickle of battery that the car uses.  The downsides to this is that you'll lose things like radio presets... and if you have a modern car, this resets the computer every single time you cut it on/off.  (This means it will have to figure out things like optimal fuel mixture over time instead of just using it's last setting.)

Or if you drive a 1995 VW GTI, your odometer will somehow get reset to 16000 every time you disconnect the battery.  90s VWs...

[George_PA]

thanks worms for the advice, I too have been using the bike and bike trailer so often now my car just sits around; I disconnected the battery terminal this afternoon; 

honest I prefer the bike now for my traveling; its just more fun and exciting;

My wifes car gets used a lot more as we have a 9 month old and need to transport him places; my car just seems to sit around taking up space in the garage

[BlueMR2]

Another issue with letting engines sit unused is rust.  If you're in a more humid area of the country it only takes a week for the cylinder bores to lose the oil and start to form surface rust.  You'll often hear recommendations to drive once a week for that reason, to make sure that you keep oil on the cylinder walls.  The surface rust scrapes off fine when you run the car (not like it's going to blow up or anything), but it causes extra wear on the piston rings and your engine will start to use oil sooner than if you drive it regularly.  If you're able to do a lot of biking, you may never drive it enough in the future to care.  :-)

[Matte]

I use battery maintainers, saves lots of agrivation, even if you have to run an extension cord.  Solar could work too but they cost way more. 

[Lans Holman]

I'm surprised nobody has suggested just selling the thing yet.

[Rural]

I use battery maintainers, saves lots of agrivation, even if you have to run an extension cord.  Solar could work too but they cost way more.

$19.99 at Home Depot:
http://www.homedepot.com/p/t/202218716?productId=202218716&storeId=10051&langId=-1&catalogId=10053&ci_sku=202218716&cm_mmc=shopping-_-googleads-_-pla-_-202218716&ci_gpa=pla#.UeHrokHNYqE

[GoStumpy]

Just starting the car does not help, you need to continually top-up the battery.  Starting a car drains a lot, and requires the engine to run for probably 30 minutes minimum to recharge that loss..

I suggest unhooking the battery when sitting, and make sure to top it up with a decent battery charger once every 1-3 months if disconnected.

[Matte]

19.99 at home depot is top buck, mine was 7.99 at harbor freight.

[Rural]

19.99 at home depot is top buck, mine was 7.99 at harbor freight.

Mine was Harbor Freight, too,but years ago, enough so I don't remember. But I'm still using it and not sill paying for it, since the power is free.

[Vilx-]

I'm surprised nobody has suggested just selling the thing yet.

Indeed, this was my first thought too. If you use it so rarely that battery discharge becomes a problem, maybe you don't need it at all? Just use a taxi/rental car for the few occasions? It could even be cheaper in the end.

[MrMoneyPinch]

A couple of details:
 
2003 Honda Civic
I believe this is the first time the battery has been replaced.
195k miles
The guy at Les Schwab said the worst thing you can do for your battery is let it sit, and he said to let it sit for no more than 2 weeks.

Thanks for all your help!

Don't worry, your battery was on it's last legs anyway.  Batteries lose capacity over time (basically they're a vat of acid with lead plates floating in) and at some point they can't hold enough energy for a start.  Moreover, letting a battery completely discharge damage them, so the first time it went down probably killed it.

I have a car I regularly leave alone for a few weeks at a time, and I would recommend going for a ride at least once a month.  30-45 mins should do it.

As for the fluids, if you use synthetic oils you should be OK since they stick better to the parts.  Moreover, if you choose wisely, some are warranted for 1 year lifespans so you save yourself that 3 month/5k interval by not driving much :)