Cold Weather Killing Truck Battery

[Jaker_cc]

For everyone that hunts late season tags in cold weather where temps are below freezing. Does the freezing temps affect your truck battery and the ability to start your truck after days of hunting. I don’t have any experience with this and was wondering if anyone has had issues after getting back to your vehicle. If so what kind of preventative maintenance do you do to winterize your truck.

 

[black dawg]

With a healthy battery and no parasitic draws, not enough that you will notice

 

[WCB]

Can it affect the ability to start definitely.

Make sure you have a quality battery...Lived in MN my whole life. In general with a battery that is in good shape I've had no issues even leaving a truck sitting for a few days in below zero weather and high winds. If you are parking it try to make sure the front end is pointed downwind and not into it. In the cold and high winds I have seen grills become a block of ice from parking into the wind not good. Make sure you have plenty of gas in the tank. It maybe worth just for preparedness to buy or borrow a booster pack just in case.

 

[hflier]

Always have one of these in the truck. Lifesaver.

NOCO - Lithium Jump Starters

Discover portable lithium battery jump starter packs. Powerful battery booster jump box for jump starting cars, trucks, boats, motorcycles and more.

no.co

 

[muddydogs]

A weak battery will work just fine in warmer temps but the first night below 25 degrees can kill it off, there are no real warning signs until the vehicle won't start. I start worrying when my battery gets to be around 7 years old and if I know I'm going someplace remote and cold I will replace it. I hate to do it because the battery could last a few more years but having a dead battery miles from no place isn't fun, been there and done that.

I will keep the old battery, charge it up good and test it after it sets a week or so. If the battery test out good after the hunt I will put it back into my vehicle and run it some more while keeping the new battery charged up. My pickup is a daily driver so I can't let it set without a battery for more then a few hours. One of these days I just might have to get a load tester to test my batterys.

 

[jhm2023]

Have your battery tested. If it's a good battery then it will be just fine. I do several winter hunts a year here and I never have issues. Once it starts getting -20 and colder and I plan to be away from the truck for days at a time I'll set my truck's smart start to start it for 15 minutes every 4 hours just as a precaution. Obviously don't leave anything turned on that can draw power. A small bag of match light charcoal in a metal pan placed under the engine (after the flames are gone and make sure you don't have any leaks), and a large insulated blanket draped over the hood can help in a pinch during that really hurts your face kind of cold weather.

 

[Clifford]

Make sure the battery isn’t super old and it should be fine. Those new lithium jump starters and pretty slick though .

 

[toadmeister]

My 2012 RAM was starting weak these last few days in sub freezing morning temps. Still original OEM battery.

Time for a new one. How much cold cranking Amps do you guys recommend? I live in NE Iowa and winter's be plenty cold

Sent from my Pixel 3 using Tapatalk

 

[Clifford]

The batteries sized to fit the truck will have enough CCA. I’m kinda fond of Deka batteries. Most auto parts stores will have a couple options in the popular sizes with the higher CCA batteries costing slightly more.

 

[ODB]

My battery just recently showed me how this works. It was 10 years old and has been run dead at least once. When the temps dropped here to 40 overnight, it was dead. The next day, it was dead in the morning, then I tried again when the temp hit 60. Worked fine after that. I replaced the battery.

 

[*zap*]

I have a diesel engine jump starter with a 12 volt plug in for my air compressor. Shit happens.

 

[Missahba]

Not sure where you guys live and batteries last 8 to 10 years. In Michigan 4 to 5 if you’re lucky. An Optima might go 6-7. Based on winter experience here, I wouldn’t go into mountains with a battery older than these ranges. Load testing is fine, but keep something in mind. The load test at mild temp doesn’t predict how it will act at sub freezing temps. Get an Optima rated for your vehicle. Have your alternator tested. Clean and inspect your battery and starter cables and terminals.

 

[boom]

bare minimum have the battery load tested.

GREAT REMINDER for me. i need to do this or buy a new battery. mine (Interstate) battery is remarkable but old. i bet it is 10 years old. i never had to jump it.

 

[DarkArcher]

I recently replaced my battery in my truck and the guy recommended that I spend the extra $30 on a battery if i'm spending a lot of time in the mountains (Colorado). It has 1000 cranking amps at 32* and 800 at 0* and I keep a jump box in my truck as well since I do a lot of solo hunting.

 

[JG358]

Always have one of these in the truck. Lifesaver.

NOCO - Lithium Jump Starters

Discover portable lithium battery jump starter packs. Powerful battery booster jump box for jump starting cars, trucks, boats, motorcycles and more.

no.co

They're great to have and work most the time but my lithium jump starter fully charged shows half charge at at best when its -5 out. Works to jump the gasser but it wouldn't do crap to jump my diesel when the batteries crapped out a couple winters ago.

 

[dirtclod Az.]

Every oil change top battery of with distilled water.
I was an auto parts manager for years. 3yrs. is old for
a battery in Az. Date code is stamped into battery or
there will be a round sticker on the side.Letter tells Month A-B-C
and # is year.We always sold old batteries first.Always check age of
battery when purchasing.Marine batteries can sit for years
before being sold.

 

[wilydawg]

With a new battery and one of these: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01JRDV81K/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Your worries are over...

 

[skyler_2010]

My 2012 RAM was starting weak these last few days in sub freezing morning temps. Still original OEM battery.

Time for a new one. How much cold cranking Amps do you guys recommend? I live in NE Iowa and winter's be plenty cold

Sent from my Pixel 3 using Tapatalk

Just go with the stock 730 that it is supposed to have. If you go with more cca they have to put more plates in the battery and to do that while still allowing the battery to fit in the same spot they have to make them thinner which also makes them more susceptible to cracking while going down the trails we tend to drive our pickups down. Also if you have a volt meter make sure your alternator is putting out around 14.5v with load (high beams on blower motor on high and rear defrost on). Also it takes 30 minutes to charge your battery, with the alternator, back to where it was when you STARTED cranking the engine over, just food for thought when you are starting your engine when it's cold to keep the battery "charged" or warm.

 

[isu22andy]

If Swarovski made a battery half the forum would tell ya to buy that the rest are junk .


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[BeaverHunter]

If Swarovski made a battery half the forum would tell ya to buy that the rest are junk .


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If Swarovski made batteries as good as their binoculars, I’d be 1st in line.