Can You Leave a Trickle Charger on a Motorcycle All the Time?

Motorbike battery charging is one of the crucial aspects of making the motorbike battery charged and healthy during winter storage. And that’s why the question arises: Can You Leave a Trickle Charger on a Motorcycle All the Time?

The trickle charger only charges your motorbike battery. It doesn’t come with any charger maintainer properties, which means it doesn’t maintain the current and voltage when you leave it connected to the battery. If you leave the trickle charger connected all the time, then it will overcharge your motorbike battery. 

Let’s consider what it means and what you can do about it. 

While writing this post, I leave no stone unturned so you can know everything about the trickle charger connecting to your motorbike all the time. 

Can You Leave a Trickle Charger on a Motorcycle All the Time?

Charging motorbike batteries during winter is a really confusing topic among riders, especially when it comes to trickle chargers. And that’s why the question arises: can you always leave a trike charger on a motorcycle?

The trickle charger only charges your motorbike battery. It doesn’t come with any charger maintainer properties, which means it doesn’t maintain the current and voltage when you leave it connected to the battery. If you leave the trickle charger connected all the time, then it will overcharge your motorbike battery. 

In the worst case, it can destroy your motorbike battery and may cause a fire while charging. 

Are All Trickle Chargers the Same? 

Indeed it would be best if you didn’t leave the battery connected to the trickle charger all the time. Now the question arises, are all trickle chargers the same? 

All trickle chargers aren’t the same as some come with maintenance properties which means it stops charging when your motorbike battery is fully charged and starts changing when the battery loses its charge. This charger has an auto cut OFF feature, which prevents your motorbike battery from overcharging. 

These motorbike trickle chargers don’t cause any harm to your motorbike battery.  

What if You Leave the Trickle Charger Connected? 

So far, you understand that all trickle chargers aren’t the same as some that come with maintainer properties. Now the question arises, what if you leave the trickle charger connected? 

Suppose you leave the trike charger connected during winter. In that case, your motorbike battery will suffer from overcharging, which causes abnormally high battery temperature. Even worse, your motorbike battery will die permanently because of overcharging and may catch fire. 

However, if your motorbike trickle charger comes with maintainer properties, nothing would happen badly, and it doesn’t cause any significant damage to the motorbike battery. 

What’s the Difference Between Trickle Chargers and Motorbike Maintainers? 

Indeed it would be best if your trickle charger has motorbike maintainer properties; now the question arises, what’s the difference between trickle chargers and motorbike maintainers? 

Trickle charger only charges your motorbike battery and can’t maintain charge and voltage throughout storage. Motorbike maintainers are made to preserve charge and voltage throughout the storage period. 

There won’t be any harm in leaving the motorbike battery connected to the maintainer as long as the maintainer doesn’t have any faults. But there would be permanent harm if you leave the trickle charger connected to the motorbike battery. 

However, suppose the trickle charger comes with maintainer features. In that case, there won’t be any harm in leaving the battery connected to it. 

Trickle Charger or Motorbike Maintainer for Winter Storage? 

So far, you understand that a trickle charger could destroy your motorbike battery; now the question arises, should you choose a trickle charger or motorbike maintainer for winter storage? 

Suppose you’re planning to store your motorbike for more than 7 weeks during winter. In that case, you should go with the motorbike maintainer as it will maintain your motorbike battery throughout the storage period. It will also prevent your motorbike battery from getting dead and will increase the lifespan of the motorbike battery. 

But suppose you don’t have any plan to store your motorbike and want to charge the motorbike battery a single time for a limited period, in that case, you should go with the trickle charger. 

However, suppose your motorbike trickle charger has maintainer properties or auto-cut OFF features. In that case, you can also use it during storage. 

How Long Should You Connect the Motorbike Trickle Charger? 

Indeed it would be best if you didn’t choose a trickle charger when storing the motorbike for an extended period. Now the question arises, for how long should you choose the trickle charger? 

The amp unit of the charger totally influences the usage period of the trickle charger; for example, if the trickle charger comes with a 1 amp capacity, then you can leave the charger connected for 48 hours. But if your charger comes with a 2amp power, then you can leave the charger connected for 24 hours. 

For an accurate answer, you shouldn’t let the trickle charger connect for more than 24 hours if it has a 2 amp capacity. Leaving it connected would destroy your motorbike battery permanently. 

Can Trickle Charger Charge Dead Motorcycle Battery?

So far, you understand that you shouldn’t leave the motorbike trickle charger connected for more than 24 hours. Now the question arises, does the cam trickle charger charge the dead motorbike battery? 

Your trickle charger can quickly charge the dead motorbike battery, still, it would take some extra time to charge your dead motorbike battery. But if your motorbike battery is faulty, then a trickle charger can’t charge your motorbike battery. 

And that’s why experts recommend checking whether your motorbike battery is healthy or damaged before charging it through a trickle charger. 

You can even use a motorbike maintainer to keep charging your dead motorbike battery safely without any short circuits and damage. 

When to Disconnect the Motorbike Battery? 

Indeed you don’t need to disconnect the motorbike battery when not in use; now the question arises when to disconnect the motorbike battery. 

It would be best if you disconnect the motorbike battery if you don’t have any plans to ride the motorbike anytime soon in the upcoming six months and if you don’t have any motorbike maintainer or tender to connect the motorbike battery. 

However, disconnecting the motorbike battery will prevent your motorbike from entering into the parasitic discharge state in which your motorbike starts to lose all the current automatically. 

But doing this would require extra space and care. You’ll even have to store the motorbike in a waterproof and fire-resistant condition so your motorbike can remain healthy. 

What Happens if You Don’t Disconnect the Motorbike Battery? 

So far, you understand that you should disconnect the motorbike battery; now, what happens if you don’t disconnect the motorbike battery? 

Suppose you don’t plan to ride the motorbike anytime soon. In that case, it’s better to disconnect the motorbike battery, as doing this would prevent your motorbike from entering the parasitic drain. 

The parasitic drain is the condition in which your motorbike battery will automatically start to discharge even without starting any electrical equipment. And the several parasitic discharges will begin to decrease overall battery health. 

And that’s why experts recommend either connecting the motorbike battery with the maintainer or disconnecting the motorbike battery. 

If you’re confused about whether you should store your motorbike battery in winter or not then you should read my previous post where I discussed why you shouldn’t remove the motorbike battery during the winter 👉🏾👉🏾CLICK HERE 👈🏾👈🏾 to read.

Frequently Asked Questions:

Final Verdict: 

Can You Leave a Trickle Charger on a Motorcycle All the Time? The trickle charger only charges your motorbike battery. It doesn’t come with any charger maintainer properties, which means it doesn’t maintain the current and voltage when you leave it connected to the battery. If you leave the trickle charger connected all the time, then it will overcharge your motorbike battery. 

For long periods of storage and charging, it would be best to leave your motorbike battery connected to the maintainer as it would increase and maintain the health of your motorbike battery.