My issues with the toad battery that started in December worsened to the point that I could no longer get a full charge and the battery was going flat every few days. Today, I finally had enough time to a) charge the battery enough to get the car started and b) get to the battery place.
Three people told me to that the car to All-Tra Battery on 3rd Avenue South, so that’s what I did. Service was very speedy! I came in and said I needed a new battery. A tech came out, determined what kind I needed, and went inside to get the new one. He told the person at the till what I was getting and I was able to pay immediately ($89.20, including taxes and installation). When I went back outside, the work was half completed. Sum total, I was out in less than five minutes!
I probably could have gotten a cheaper battery at Canadian Tire or Walmart, but when three people who don’t know each other and are in the automotive industry recommend a local business, I prefer to go there. I also know that going to a place that only deals in batteries, I’m going to get a fresh battery.
I thought of inquiring about prices for a couple of 12 volts for Miranda’s house battery bank, but decided to wait until the fall. I’m going to monitor how my new solar panel works over the course of a month’s travel to see if I have I have any surplus charging that I could apply to a second battery. This won’t even have to be scientific; I can just make note of how many mornings my battery is fully charged before noon and whether or not its overcast (if it’s overcast and I get a full charge, then I’ll know for sure I have a lot of waste!).
I can’t believe I only have two to three weekends left in Lethbridge and that before I know it, I’ll have to worry about things like battery and holding tank capacities again. Can’t wait!
Hi Rae. Looks like the preparations are well underway. It’s nice to be able to ask around and get good recommendations.
Your battery story reminded me of what happened to me last month. Drove home from work, had a quick supper and jumped back in the car to head out. Click, click, click. Not much life in the car; wouldn’t start. Tried again, still no luck. The lights, radio and fan were working, so shut everything up and tried again to no avail. The next day, had a few of the construction guys help me push the car so it would be convenient for the tow truck. They all told me it was probably the battery but because I still had power, I wanted to make sure it wasn’t something else like the starter or worse, the alternator. Had the car towed to the garage and low and behold, my battery was dead. Who could of thought that after 11 years, it would just drop dead like that. Lucky for me, I made it home before it croaked. It would of been a real pain in traffic.
Hope the solar panels work well for you.
J
Hey girl! I miss you! The construction is still going on?!
Honda obviously puts better batteries in their cars than does Hyundai. The one in my ’04 went dead at about the same amount of mileage.
Not promising anything, but I’d love to make it out to the Maritimes at the end of the summer…