Is this the best charger to jump start a dead SUV/car battery? It would only need to be used periodically, or is there another recommendation?
2070245
No. There are other chargers that provide a "jump start" option if the battery is dead. This CTEK charger will prevent a battery from becoming dead. And, unlike other "float chargers", you can leave this one attached ALL the time - it won't over charge. The CTEK is a "smart charger", perhaps one of the smartest ones a consumer like you and I can get.
2070246
This isNOT a jump starter. It's a maintainer and a darn good one. It puts out a max of 4.3 amps. You need 30 amps to jump start. If you put this unit on your TV all the time you won't need a jumper, and your battery will last a lot longer.
2070247
No, this is a great battery maintainer. What your looking for is a jump start pack.
1274033
I agree with what's been posted. I'd like to get it for a gift for someone, but have several unanswered questions. How long does it retain it's charge? How many times can it be used before being recharged (ie, can it jump start your car twice on the same day)? Does it have to be recharged by plugging it into a wall outlet, or can it be recharged though the car's cigarette lighter when the car is running normally (ie, the reverse of what it does to jump start the car)? Anyone know this stuff? :)
1692778
They don't make that point clear in their advertisement which is why I bought it. The paper work included with the charger states that is does NOT work on a drained or dead battery. Save your money and get AAA instead. They are always able to start the car for you when your battery is dead!
1750077
I had the same problem. Used this unit as portable power during power outages, to charge phones etc., and it works fine for that. First time I tried jumping my car (with the unit fully charged) it didn't come close to turning over the engine. Jump-started the dead car from my other car with no problem, though. Yes, the power was switched on. Very disappointed that I can't keep it in the trunk and rely on it to get me out of a jam.
1647779
If you're going to have a battery not used for months at a time then disconnect it. I don't think this charger would be good as a trickle charger. The smart charging features I think would be too aggressive for long durations even on a 2A setting. I've kept it plugged in overnight to charge it and I think it only works well for something like that because of the frequency with which it monitors the battery. I would hope a trickle charger would only need to kick on every couple of hours or even days. This thing will monitor the charge every second and can even sometimes fully cycle the battery due to glitches in the smart charger. I've put a minor drained 12v battery of 10v and it wanted to deep cycle it. You can manually bypass that. Maybe now you can see why a trickle charge wouldn't be a good idea. This is an excellent recharger for any home (an I love it for what it's meant to do) but a trickle charger no.
1275389
No, this (G750) unit is only going to charge smaller batteries. Notice all the comments about jetskis, lawnmowers, etc. A dead car battery needs a more powerful charger and, if you actually want to start up the car, a boost capability. But as you suggest, it will keep a stored car battery from going dead.
1230124
This is not a jump starter, it is a trickle charger. You can attach it to any 12 volt battery and let it charge for several hours or overnight. If the battery will hold a charge it will likely charge it up. Also if you leave it connected it will maintain a battery with a full charge. You can buy a battery type jump starter for somewhere between $40 and a $200 dollars.
888531
I recently gave this bad reviews only to find out that my battery was on its way out. What I have found is that if you have a good battery that has gone dead for some reason and is not totally drained this will jump your car off. It has also jumped of my Acura Mdx. If your battery is suspect and drained more than likely this will not jump the car off. You only get a couple of shots because with each try the schumcher drains pretty quickly. I hope this helped.
1969916
Yes, this is a 12VDC battery. It won't jump start your car, but will charge the car battery enough so your car will start. You leave it connected to the car battery for about 20 minutes then disconnect the Power Tank before starting your car, or it could damage the Power Tank. It doesn't have enough starting amps to jump start a car. It is great to use to charge your phones when the power goes out. It will run 2 telescopes for many hours when your out in the middle of nowhere. The led flashlight is awesome, but never use at a star party, or you won't be invited back, it is so bright.
521645
That is a really good question and I'm not sure I can give you an answer for it. I have used my device strictly to jump start my car death battery so I don't really test it real well.Sorry that I can't be of real help, hopefully you'll find someone who can give you a real answer!!!
1086930
This could "jump start" any car, but beware that the battery in this is very small (like rated at 5 amp/hour). I have another brands "jump-start" that has a 18 amp/hour battery and just to experiment, I disconnected my car battery and hooked mine up. It started the car (a ford festiva 4 cyl), but the starter was barely turning the engine. If that's what happens on a small car with a much bigger battery than this, I'd be very surprised if this would be able to start a V6 or bigger engine with a fully drained battery (like from leaving the lights on all night). If you left on some lights while in a movie for 2 hours it may have a chance, but that's all I'd expect. Feel free to look at reviews of this and similar priced ones (that have a similar battery) to see if there are a fair number of others saying the same thing I am.
2225638
Yes it will jump start a deep cycle battery just as easily as any other 12 volt battery. In fact deep cycle batteries are used on boats and I always take this unit on my boat, just in case. I know it will start me easily if I need it. Deep cycle batteries are made to be discharged a lot more than car batteries and still charge back up to full without damage. Car batteries dont like to be discharged like that, they like to stay more fully charged.
1053707
If I had a car I'd use a higher ah battery stand alone and attach an inverter... Or a regular back up car battery with inverter if I never needed to use jumpstart feature.
1438760
I have doubts on this (or similar devices) being that reliable for jump-starting any car with a fully drained battery. The battery in this is about 20% the size/weight of most car batteries, so I don't expect but that much power out of them. Most manuals for these say things like "Don't try cranking the engine over 5 seconds or the battery will be damaged". The reason for that is because it's so small a battery and you're expecting so much power from it that cranking the engine seems like creating a short circuit (which could make the battery explode if kept in that state for over a minute). Although the sales people like to put the "400 amp" labels on these to make it seem big, I doubt you can really get 100 amps for cranking an engine. I've seen a fair number of reviews on units like this saying "It didn't work for me", so feel free to look at those (sometimes the negative reviews give more info than a "Works great" one where that's all they say). Also feel free to see my review of the Peak 1 450 jump starter (and that one has a 18 amp/hour battery, this one is only 5 amp/hour). I'm not trying to make you go after a brand (several brands sell virtually the same thing like Clore, Stanley, Black & Decker and more), but realize it's limitations since it's not a full size car battery.
1470194
Yes. I haven't had it very, but I have used it 3 times so far. Jump started my car, charged my other car battery and used it on my lawn mower battery to charge it as well. So far I love it. Very easy to use.
721723
You could do that, sure, but the idea of the charger is to maintain, not recharge. They should call it a maintainer instead! It won't charge a dead battery; rather, it'll keep a live battery from going dead. So--if you know the battery is live, you might do as you've said, but if your trailer was mine, I'd keep the battery attached to the charger full time. That's what I do, and it works. Eric
248245
Smart chargers need a trickle of power left in the battery to charge it. It's simple enough to jump start them. Why smart chargers never have a "jump start" button is beyond me. To jump start a dead dead battery that won't charge, get another charged battery of the same size. Hold the batteries together so that both of their negative (flat) ends are touching. Then take a wire, or some other conductive device such as metal tongs, and make a connection between the two positive ends. Keep the positive ends connected for 5-10 seconds. That will add enough juice to the dead dead battery for a smart charger to recognize and charge it. Smart chargers need a trickle of power left in the battery to charge it. It's simple enough to jump start them. Why smart chargers never have a "jump start" button is beyond me. To jump start a dead dead battery that won't charge, get another charged battery of the same size. Hold the batteries together so that both of their negative (flat) ends are touching. Then take a wire, or some other conductive device such as metal tongs, and make a connection between the two positive ends. Keep the positive ends connected for 5-10 seconds. That will add enough juice to the dead dead... » Read More Smart chargers need a trickle of power left in the battery to charge it. It's simple enough to jump start them. Why smart chargers never have a "jump start" button is beyond me. To jump start a dead dead battery that won't charge, get another charged battery of the same size. Hold the batteries together so that both of their negative (flat) ends are touching. Then take a wire, or some other conductive device such as metal tongs, and make a connection between the two positive ends. Keep the positive ends connected for 5-10 seconds. That will add enough juice to the dead dead battery for a smart charger to recognize and charge it. « Show Less