For much of North America, the school season has ended or is about to end. And we all know what that means – summer road trip time! There are many different things that go into planning the ideal summer road trip. Picking your destination, choosing your route, making reservations… for foodies, maybe it’s planning the key meals… for adventure seekers, maybe it’s finding the highest peak or some serious whitewater. We’d also suggest performing a quick vehicle preventive check, especially as it relates to your battery. The good news is that battery management can be quick and easy with Clore Automotive products. In fact, it’s as easy as 1-2-3.
STEP 1 – Assess and Monitor
It always helps to start by knowing exactly where you’re at before you can track your progress toward where you want to be, and this is very true when it comes to battery management. And that means periodic testing of your battery(ies). Of course, you could rely on your service provider to let you know how each of your vehicles’ batteries are doing. That would be a reasonable course of action. The only issue there is that your last service instance might have been in February, which might leave you wondering where you stand today, at the end of May. What if your battery’s condition has changed? You could also head down to your local auto parts store for a quick check. That’s a very useful service that they provide. But, it can be a hassle as in, “I meant to go last week, but life got in the way, and now we’re leaving after work tomorrow.”
For sure, there’s a better option. That’s owning and deploying your own battery tester, allowing you to perform battery assessment when and where it works best for you. Plus, it’s easy. For the vehicle owner, we recommend using our SOLAR Model BA9 Digital Battery and System Tester. It is super easy to use – the tester almost walks you through the entire testing process. It can properly assess the condition of six different battery types: Flooded, AGM, Spiral Wound, Gel Cell, Start-Stop AGM and Enhanced Flooded batteries. Plus, it can test batteries from 40 CCA to 1200 CCA, covering everything from small powersports and lawn and garden batteries up to large Group 31 Heavy-Duty batteries.
After connecting, you simply choose the type of battery you’re testing, the rating system you’re testing against (almost always CCA here in North America), the nominal rating of the battery under test (e.g., 600 CCA) and hit go. The tester will come back with the battery’s open circuit voltage, a numeric result, the internal resistance of the battery and a pass/fail judgement based on the values entered during set-up. The whole process, including making the connection, takes about three minutes. You can even continue your testing process by assessing the vehicle’s starting system and alternator output and function.
Quick. Easy. Cost-effective. You’re in control. The BA9 lets you know if you have a potential problem lurking long before you head out on that road trip and allows you to have a solid handle on battery health all year long.
It makes STEP 1 in your battery road trip prep process a breeze.
Model BA9 Digital Battery and System Tester
- 6/12 Volt Operation
- 4 Amp Output
- Beneficial, Multi-Phase Automatic Charging
- Charges multiple battery types, including LiFePO4 lithium
- Enhanced Maintenance Mode
- Overcomes power outages
- Services a wide range of battery sizes
- Multiple output options, including clamps, rings and 12V male adapter
Here’s what just a few of our customers had to say about how the BA9 makes their life easier:
Gary in California
Michael in Florida
Mark in Florida
STEP 2 – Charge, Maintain and Condition
You know what they say: “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” This is true almost everywhere and is absolutely the case when it comes to battery service. All vehicle batteries are perishable. In other words, they have a finite useful life and are marching toward their last day of service starting on the day they’re installed in a vehicle. But, the length of time it takes to get to that last day can vary widely, based on many different factors. One of the key factors is keeping your battery(ies) charged – nothing is worse for a lead acid battery than spending extended periods of time in a discharged state. To a lesser extent, this is true of LiFePO4 (LFP) lithium batteries as well.
So, as you move into STEP 2, we’d recommend implementing a regular charging routine for the batteries in your life. Of course, charging could be needed based on the result of your STEP 1 assessment. If your tester tells you that the battery’s State of Charge (SoC) is low, we’d recommend charging that battery immediately. Separate of such reactive charging events, we recommend proactively charging your batteries at regular intervals, so much so that we published an entire piece on just this topic. It is by taking steps such as this that you can maximize the return on your battery investment by extending the life of your batteries.
Similarly to STEP 1, waiting until your next visit to your service shop is not a great strategy when it comes to keeping your batteries in top condition. It is, frankly, too random, and is not as likely to provide as significant a benefit as implementing a regular routine. Plus, when it comes to prepping for that road trip, the timing is probably not going to synch up. So, we’d suggest that, one week to ten days prior to your trip, perform STEP 1 and then STEP 2, even if your battery tester says that the battery is looking good. That’s the nature of preventive maintenance. You’re looking to avoid a problem by keeping several steps ahead of Murphy.
PRO-LOGIX battery chargers and maintainers make STEP 2 very easy. For the vehicle owner, we recommend using our Model PL2140 6/12V 4.0A Battery Charger/Maintainer. It is super easy to use – pick your operating voltage (default is 12V), pick your battery type (Flooded, AGM or LiFePO4) and hit Start. The charger will run its automatic charging routine, bring the battery to full charge and turn off until it enters its enhanced maintenance routine. Particularly if your vehicle contains an AGM or Spiral Wound battery, periodic preventive maintenance charging with a quality battery charger is very beneficial for its long-term health. Plus, following such a routine prior to your road trip provides the peace of mind that your battery is fully charged and ready to go.
Model PL2140 - 6/12 Volt 4 Amp Battery Charger/Maintainer
- 6/12 Volt Operation
- 4 Amp Output
- Beneficial, Multi-Phase Automatic Charging
- Charges multiple battery types, including LiFePO4 lithiumEnhanced Maintenance Mode
- Overcomes power outages
- Services a wide range of battery sizes
- Multiple output options, including clamps, rings and 12V male adapter
Here’s what just a few of our customers had to say about their PRO-LOGIX battery chargers:
Dan in New Jersey
Michael in Vermont
STEP 3 – Prepare for the Unexpected
Ok, you’ve done your prep work in STEPS 1 and 2. You are ready to hit the road with confidence. But, there’s one last thing you can do to really put you over the top. That’s where STEP 3 comes in. You can arm yourself with a tool that can help you overcome bad surprises, turning what could have been a disaster that knocked you off your scheduled and resulted in a bunch of unhappy campers into nothing more than a blip on your radar screen. That, of course, is to pack your trusty Clore Automotive jump starter.
The reality of life is that, despite all possible planning and preparedness, surprises and mistakes happen. In this case, it could be something as simple as a member of your family leaving a light on in the vehicle. Uh oh – car won’t start. It could also be a lurking parasitic drain in your vehicle’s electrical system that decides to surface during your trip. Same result. Packing a quality jump starter can be the difference between misery and happiness. In some cases, it can be as simple as getting you started to get to the next town so you can get some assistance. In others, it’s a matter of quickly getting the car started, knocking out a couple hundred miles and the alternator making everyone forget that Johnny left a light on.
For the ultimate road trip companion and hedge against the unknown, we recommend using our Jump-N-Carry JNC325 12V 450 Start Assist Amp Lithium Jump Starter. This unit combines a lightweight, compact design (since we all have tons of extra space in the road trip vehicle) with serious starting power and a host of safety features to make that gotcha moment less stressful. Again, as is a common theme, it is super easy to use. Just make a proper connection, get a green boost status indicator and turn the key. The JNC325 is powerful enough to start virtually any passenger vehicle. Plus, it features two USB ports and can be used to charge phones, tablets and more, on the go and in the car.
Model JNC325 - 12 Volt 450 Start Assist Amps Jump Starter
- 450 Start Assist Amps
- 24” Cable Reach
- #6 AWG Cable Leads
- Automatic Recharging (QC3.0)
- Includes Wall Charger and Charging Cable
- Dual USB outlets to power devices
- DC outlet with adapter to power 12V accessories
- Repair Service Coupon
- Storage Pouch
Lead acid or lithium, our customers love their JNC jump starters. Here are a few road trip examples:
Wilmin in Mass.
Bill in Texas
Brian in Nevada
Mike in Florida
The summer road trip is a great opportunity to make wonderful, lasting memories with the people you care about most. A little bit of planning can help you ensure that a problem battery doesn’t end up creating the wrong memories that the family will be recounting for the next three decades. Following the STEPS outlined above can help you avoid many pitfalls, all for about the cost of a single battery. That’s smart spending and smart planning.
How about you? What is your routine for preparing for a summer road trip? How much does your vehicle’s battery enter into your planning routine? Ever had a crazy vehicle-related experience while trying to see the world through the windshield with the family in tow? We’d love to hear about it in the comments below.
