CTEK US 800 12V Smart Battery Charger

• Includes two interchangeable connection leads, one with clamps, and one with eyelet terminals; 5 year limited warranty
• Four step, automatic switch charging, that allows for easy, convenient, no-watch battery charging
• Charges 12-volt lead-acid batteries (Wet, MF, Gel and AGM) from 12Ah to 32Ah (charging), 12-100Ah (maintenance)
• Maintenance pulse charging increases battery life and gives superb performance, and patented desulphation functionality allows for the recovery of slightly sulphated batteries
• Compact design with mounting holes allows for permanent assembly, and the charger to be connected for months, makes this charger ideal for motorcycles, cars, lawn mowers, jet skis and any other vehicle with batteries up to 100Ah

I have one of each of these battery maintainers. Both of these can be connected to a battery indefinitely without boiling it dry. Both come with a set of battery clips and a set of fuse-protected ring terminals for permanent installation. Both have reverse polarity protection(hook them up to the wrong terminals, and nothing happens). The Ctek has a power cord; the BatteryMINDer 12117 plugs directly into a socket. The BatteryMINDer has a button that allows you to select maintenance mode; the Ctek has no buttons.

Some reviewers say the Ctek gets very hot; it does. The BatteryMINDer gets equally hot, and is always hot when plugged in, whether it is in the charging phase or maintenance phase. When the Ctek is in maintenance phase, it is only warm.

The BatteryMINDer 12117 manual states that it desulphates in all modes. One reviewer stated the Ctek also continually desulphates, but the Ctek manual mentions desulphation only in the first stage of battery charging. It could be continuous, but an oscilloscope would be necessary to test that, and I do not have one.

The BatteryMINDer 12117 charges a battery to about 14.1 volts; the Ctek, 14.4. After the initial charge, both go into maintenance mode. The BatteryMINDer allows the battery to drop to 13.4 volts and then keeps it there exactly. The Ctek allows the voltage to drop to about 12.95 volts, gives it a pulse up to 13.05 volts, lets it drop to 12.95 volts, gives it a pulse up to 13.05 volts, etc. If the battery being charged by the BatteryMINDer does not get up to 14.1 volts, it will not switch into maintenance mode. If it does not switch within three days, the instructions state you should manually select that with the button. The Ctek will automatically go into maintenance mode after 18 hours, if the battery has not already reached 14.4 volts and changed over.

The BatteryMINDer maintainer will eventually drain your battery(in about a week) if it is connected and the power goes off or it is accidentally unplugged, etc. The Ctek draws less than 1mA(an insignificant amount)in this scenario.

The Ctek unit is weatherproof with very weatherproof, molded-on connectors. Because the connectors are unique and no extension is available, the only way to increase the distance between the main unit and the battery you are charging is to cut the wire and splice in more. This can be avoided by mounting the charger in a vehicle's engine compartment and using an extension cord, but my engine compartment is so crowded I chose not to do this.

The BatteryMINDer is not weatherproof(they offer a more expensive unitBatteryMINDer 12 Volt OnBoard Battery Restorer/Conditioner Model# OBD-12 that is weatherproof). The connectors are molded-on and weatherproof, but they do not seal out the elements as well as the Ctek ones. BatteryMINDer also does not offer an extension, but I purchased a BatteryTender extensionBattery Tender 081-0148-25 25' Quick Disconnect Extension Cable that works perfectly.

The Ctek will push a maximum of 0.8A at 12 volts, while the BatteryMINDer is 1A at 12 volts(1.3A is what it delivers when a battery is at about 10.5 volts), making the BatteryMINDer a little faster.

At the time I am writing this, the BatteryMINDer is about $8.50 more than the Ctek.

I have given both of these five stars, and I have no preference between the two.

Buy CTEK US 800 12V Smart Battery Charger Now

In a few words, this is the one 12V battery charger even I can use as in me being more computer technical than automotive technical person :).

So, before I say anything else, here are the specs so you do need to read further if this is not what you are looking for:

100-115VAC, 50-60Hz voltage AC

130mA rms at full charging current

2-32Ah battery size

0.8 A charging current

14.4 V charging voltage

5.5" x 2" x 1.5" size

Developed in Sweden

Made in China

The charger should work with nearly all 12V lead-acid batteries: MF, Wet, AGM, open and most GEL-batteries.

What you get for your money is:

the charger body (see dimensions above) with the AC cord permanently attached to it

set of battery cables with battery terminal clips

set of battery cables with eyelet terminals

a nice, velcro-sealed nylon black pouch with a transparent pocket for the manual

a very well written manual

According to the manual, the charger should be maintenance free and it's covered by a 5-year limited warranty (void if you abuse it or try to fix it yourself after it breaks) and you get CTEK's exact address, Web site and FAX number but no 'voice' number.

I am very happy with this device because it charged our little tractor's battery in no time overnight, actually following a very long winter that had the battery totally drained. The charger operates in 4 main phases:

desulphation takes care of sulphated batteries

bulk charges up to 80%, delivers constant current until the terminal voltage reaches the set level

absorbtion completes to near-100%

maintenance battery is monitored and it receives a pulse when the voltage drops (can keep it connected indefinitely)

Feedback is provided by the charge indicator, when it's in one of the first 3 phases and the maintenance charge indicator showing that you are now in 'maintenance' mode. And, very nicely, there is an alarm light which lights up whenever your battery is connected to reverse polarity.

As far as charging times, according to the manual it varies with the size of the battery, from 1.5 hours on a 2Ah, to 6 hours on an 8Ah, 20 hours on a 20Ah and 36 hours on a 36Ah battery. Like I said, ours was done overnight.

My impression so far is of a well built, complete battery charging set that's easy to use and comes with a well-written manual that can make even non-professionals like me look like 'experts'.

Read Best Reviews of CTEK US 800 12V Smart Battery Charger Here

I bought this after reading about it on the Ferrari forums. This is the same maintainer Ferrari provides with a new car, only without the Ferrari logo. It is compact and fits nicely in the supplied carrying pouch. I use it on my Alfa Romeo which is not driven very often. I was tired of a dead battery from the car sitting for a few months at at time. I keep the car plugged in all the time when I am not driving it. It s easy to unplug right before I drive the car and I just plug it in after I am done driving. No more dead battery. It is really nice, because when I use my car the battery is at full power and I don't worry if I go somewhere if my car will start because the battery is never low anymore. I would highly reccomend the charger for your battery charging (slow charging) and maintaining needs.

Want CTEK US 800 12V Smart Battery Charger Discount?

Have an 08 Corvette Z06 whose battery has gone dead in as little as 10 days of sitting. Using this battery minder is easy and reliable. I have had the car parked in the garage for 6 weeks at a stretch this winter and have had absolutely no battery issues! Very pleased.

Save 11% Off

This charger came recommended by a friend, I was very surprised at the quality of this unit, the cables are very high quality and it does it's job without hum or buzz.