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blackwolf



Member Since: 03 Nov 2009
Location: South West England
Posts: 16877

United Kingdom 2007 Defender 110 Puma 2.4 DCPU Stornoway Grey
The 10% ROT says that the optimum rate of charge for a lead acid battery is approx 10% of its Ah capacity, but it is rare that you're charging from flat and modern batteries are more forgiving. It's better to charge at a lower rate than optimal than a faster rate.

The only reason for favouring the 5.0 over the 10.0 is that IMO the 5 is entirely sufficient and is a bit cheaper. All the CTEK chargers are so good that you won't damage a battery with them, but a 10 or even a 25 probably won't charge the battery any quicker. The great virtue of the smart charger is you can leave it charging for weeks or even years. In the old days you'd boil out the electrolyte.
Post #836875 12th Jun 2020 9:17pm
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excossack



Member Since: 22 Feb 2012
Location: North West
Posts: 5743

United Kingdom 1999 Defender 110 Td5 SW Caledonian Blue
Thanks BW, 1999 Defender TD5 110

Regards
John M0VAZ
Econet Station 48 no clock
Post #836887 12th Jun 2020 10:25pm
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macfrank



Member Since: 05 Nov 2015
Location: somewhere in the north
Posts: 993

Germany 2015 Defender 110 Puma 2.2 SW Keswick Green
Does the 5 come with a temperature sensor? The 10 does.
Post #836889 12th Jun 2020 10:31pm
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blackwolf



Member Since: 03 Nov 2009
Location: South West England
Posts: 16877

United Kingdom 2007 Defender 110 Puma 2.4 DCPU Stornoway Grey
No, CTEK reckons no external temp sensor is needed on the 5. The ten is a plug-in and the charger will run without it, the 25 it's permanently attached and should be used. I guess the theory is a 5A charge rate is unlikely to overheat the battery.

The downside of the temp sensor is you can't extend the lead from the charger to the battery, or plug the charger into a prewired socket on the car, so it is in many cases a disadvantage.
Post #836920 13th Jun 2020 6:55am
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macfrank



Member Since: 05 Nov 2015
Location: somewhere in the north
Posts: 993

Germany 2015 Defender 110 Puma 2.2 SW Keswick Green
„ I guess the theory is a 5A charge rate is unlikely to overheat the battery.“

Sounds plausible. I always thought (may have read in the manual?) voltage would be higher in low temperatures? As the CTEK gets warm the sensor is external I thought, but temperature near the charger should be the same as in the battery box, no?
Post #836928 13th Jun 2020 7:36am
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blackwolf



Member Since: 03 Nov 2009
Location: South West England
Posts: 16877

United Kingdom 2007 Defender 110 Puma 2.4 DCPU Stornoway Grey
I think the temp sensor is supposed to measure the approx battery temp, not ambient, but I'd have to check the CTEK book of words to be sure. I'm pretty certain that the 25 says the sensor must be placed on the battery.
Post #836933 13th Jun 2020 8:17am
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macfrank



Member Since: 05 Nov 2015
Location: somewhere in the north
Posts: 993

Germany 2015 Defender 110 Puma 2.2 SW Keswick Green
Just checked the 10's manual, but only says "adapts voltage to ambient temperature". Nothing on how it's adapted or where to place the sensor :-/

Oh, when I was at the local LR dealer the other day I spotted some CTEKs lying underneath New "Defenders". I think they were the smaller ones (the CTEKs, not the Defenders). So, should be good then Laughing
Post #836998 13th Jun 2020 4:51pm
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siglo



Member Since: 07 Aug 2015
Location: Kuwait
Posts: 50

Kuwait 2015 Defender 90 Puma 2.2 SW Corris Grey
Joe the Plumber wrote:
I've got various NOCOs and CTEKs, mainly for our boat's batteries, but the CTEKs seem that bit better made and less plastic-y

Both work fine, but the CTEKs are my favourites.


Hi Joe,

I would appreciate if you can elaborate further of your experince between the Cteks and NOCOs. You see, I've been using Ctek Chargers for a very long time and last month got my first NOCO 10 amp charger (new version). I currently have a 5, 10, & 25 amp Cteks plugged to charge different vehicles. I also happen to have two Ctek chargers that went bad that I will try to have repaired (5 & 25 amp versions). It might have been operator error but I don't think I've done anything unusual. The 5 amp one went bad after I kept it connected to the battery and unplugged from the wall. The 25 stopped working after I tried using it to charge a vehicle with a dual battery setup.

So I got a NOCO to try out and my first impression was the opposite of yours. The plastic of the NOCO feels much more solid in my hand and the charger seemed heavier than the equivalent Ctek. It also seems that the connectors are beefier on the NOCO (not beefier than the Ctek 25 amp though). So I guess my question is, do you have the new or old versions of the NOCO's? I think the old is grey and larger and the new ones are black and smaller. And did any of the chargers you have (Ctek or NOCO) go bad on you?

I like that Ctek has more accessories, cables, connectors etc which can be useful. But after trying out the noco I'm leaning towards replacing my Ctek's which noco's if any of them stops working.
Post #837054 13th Jun 2020 10:28pm
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ericvv



Member Since: 02 Jun 2011
Location: Near the Jet d'Eau
Posts: 5816

Switzerland 2009 Defender 110 Puma 2.4 SVX Station Wagon Santorini Black
Amazon UK are a ripoff. Ctek MXS5.0 at 85 or even 95£? You guys can order the same on the German Amazon site (amazon.de) for 61.50€ plus less than 5.00€ shipping to UK. That is the equivalent of totally about 60£ delivered. And that includes the German VAT which I think until end of this year takes care of everything, also post-Brexit now. No further UK VAT or import duties due. Worth a check I think.
Eric You never actually own a Defender. You merely look after it for the next generation.
http://youtu.be/yVRlSsJwD0o
https://youtu.be/vmPr3oTHndg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_GtzTT9Pdl0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ABqKPz28e6A
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rLZ49Jce_n0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvAsz_ilQYU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8tMHiX9lSw
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=dxwjPuHIV7I
https://vimeo.com/201482507
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZSixqL0iyHw
Post #837064 14th Jun 2020 5:18am
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mikeh501



Member Since: 07 Jan 2013
Location: United Kingdom
Posts: 1142

United Kingdom 
Ive got a 5 and 7. Use the 5 on my car, and the 7 is on the landie with its dual batteries.

I think the rule of thumb is the relationship between the Amp hours in the batter(ies) an the amp rating of the charger.

I think unless the battery is completely flat then a ctek5 will be fine for topups and conditioning.
Post #837284 15th Jun 2020 10:12am
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blackwolf



Member Since: 03 Nov 2009
Location: South West England
Posts: 16877

United Kingdom 2007 Defender 110 Puma 2.4 DCPU Stornoway Grey
ericvv wrote:
Amazon UK are a ripoff. Ctek MXS5.0 at 85 or even 95£? You guys can order the same on the German Amazon site (amazon.de) for 61.50€ plus less than 5.00€ shipping to UK. That is the equivalent of totally about 60£ delivered. And that includes the German VAT which I think until end of this year takes care of everything, also post-Brexit now. No further UK VAT or import duties due. Worth a check I think.
Eric


Presumably this would not have a UK mains plug but some strange European plug (a shaver plug sort of thing)?
Post #837293 15th Jun 2020 10:59am
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X4SKP



Member Since: 29 Nov 2013
Location: Berkshire
Posts: 2287

United Kingdom 2010 Defender 90 Puma 2.4 SW Stornoway Grey
Hello excossack

CTEK 5 or 7 will be a good purchase.

I went for the 5 and love it, CTEK looks to constantly review well.

What really makes it a simple plug in (considering a Defenders Battery position) is Martin's 'smart plug'
for either the 7 Pin 12S or 13 Pin Towing Electrics.

https://www.disco3.co.uk/shop/tow-electric...c-p45.html

https://www.defender2.net/forum/topic70607.html SKIP
https://www.defender2.net/forum/topic83242.html
Post #837297 15th Jun 2020 11:16am
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excossack



Member Since: 22 Feb 2012
Location: North West
Posts: 5743

United Kingdom 1999 Defender 110 Td5 SW Caledonian Blue
I was going to go for the 7 but out of stock/not available.
I took the plunge and ordered the 10.

I shall take a look at the adapters from Martin. I have the 7s socket (no 12).

** I only have the 12N socket with the black cap. Sad ** 1999 Defender TD5 110

Regards
John M0VAZ
Econet Station 48 no clock
Post #837300 15th Jun 2020 11:30am
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ericvv



Member Since: 02 Jun 2011
Location: Near the Jet d'Eau
Posts: 5816

Switzerland 2009 Defender 110 Puma 2.4 SVX Station Wagon Santorini Black
blackwolf wrote:
ericvv wrote:
Amazon UK are a ripoff. Ctek MXS5.0 at 85 or even 95£? You guys can order the same on the German Amazon site (amazon.de) for 61.50€ plus less than 5.00€ shipping to UK. That is the equivalent of totally about 60£ delivered. And that includes the German VAT which I think until end of this year takes care of everything, also post-Brexit now. No further UK VAT or import duties due. Worth a check I think.
Eric


Presumably this would not have a UK mains plug but some strange European plug (a shaver plug sort of thing)?


I would say luckily it has no UK plug.Shocked Speaking of something weird. Laughing Laughing
But, we in Switzerland have different plugs too. Just cut the German off, and replace by a UK version you buy at your local do it yourself store. Thumbs Up
Eric You never actually own a Defender. You merely look after it for the next generation.
http://youtu.be/yVRlSsJwD0o
https://youtu.be/vmPr3oTHndg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_GtzTT9Pdl0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ABqKPz28e6A
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rLZ49Jce_n0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvAsz_ilQYU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8tMHiX9lSw
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=dxwjPuHIV7I
https://vimeo.com/201482507
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZSixqL0iyHw
Post #837308 15th Jun 2020 12:03pm
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Joe the Plumber



Member Since: 18 Dec 2013
Location: Midlands
Posts: 907

2014 Defender 110 Puma 2.2 HT Fuji White
I have three CTEKs, a MXS 5.0, a 'Powersport' 2.3A and a 'Start/Stop' 3.8A, all the same physical size.

I've two NOKOs, a Genius G1100 1.1A and a Genius 2 2.0A.

The earlier NOKO is certainly cheaper looking than the G2 and the G2 seems to have caught up with the CTEKs in terms of the quality of the casing.

I'd agree that the crocodile clips on both NOKOs are better than the CTEKs, but I've had no problems with any of them.

I did have a couple of other higher output first generation NOKOs which, to my irritation in hindsight, I gave away. That was before I had five boat batteries to keep charged up though.

I perhaps should explain I'm lucky enough to be an Amazon 'Vine Voice', which means I get offered free samples to review (although the virus has stopped that at present), so the MXS 5.0 is the only one I've had to buy.

If I ever need to buy another, I'd probably stick with the CTEKs purely through being pleased with the 5.0 over many years, but the NOKOs are still great bits of kit.

All, of course, are made in China.
Post #837326 15th Jun 2020 2:14pm
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