flat battery/ very old charger

[tomsneade]

Hi, Ive just tried to start my old van and its totally dead. Im attempting to recharge the battey on what must be a 25 yr old charger! (same as the van!)....The dial on the charger reads from 0 to 5 amp. The battery is reading 2.5... Is that a good or bad reading?? What should it read when fully recharged? and how long will it take? Many thanks in advance. Tom.

[horns]

The amp reading tells you how much current you're putting into the battery - its not an indicator of battery charge or condition particularly. You need volts for that.

It's pretty hard to say how long it will take without knowing what kind of battery it is, what condition its in, etc etc...

[VWCamperfan]

Should read zero when fully charged and a higher ampeage when discharged.

[Plasticman]

Er you say the battery is reading 2.5? have you had a voltmeter across it to find this out or is this the reading on the charger
mike

[tomsneade]

Cheers for all replies. Mike, the meter now reads 1.1 after 24 hrs but has not moved in the past 12 hrs...the reading is taken from the charger itself. Is it good to go, or should I leave it lomger? Cheers. Tom.

[VWCamperfan]

If it's not moving then I would say the battery is internally shorting and it's probably time for a new one.
I take it the meter on the charger does go to zero when not in use? If so then as above!
Give it a bit longer but I don't think it's going to go down much further if it hasn't moved for a while.

[Plasticman]

Id nip to maplins or wilkos etc and buy a cheap multimeter(£5ish), then leave the battery off charge for a few hours and check the votage, 12.5 volt or more is a start for you,
mike