12v portable jump starter issues?

[Martinjmpr]

I bought one of those portable "jump starters" a few years back (Dec 2019.) The exact one I bought is this one:


The exact one I bought is no longer available but of course these are almost all produced overseas (China) and there are similar products out there now.

I never actually used the jump starter until a few months ago. Our letter carrier's truck died in front of our house and she couldn't get it started due to a bad battery. She was about to call her supervisor for a tow and I happened to be outside and said "let me try my jump starter." We hooked it up and it worked great, she was able to start her vehicle and continue her route.

I do periodically take it into the house or garage to re-start it, but the rest of the time it "lives" in the cab of my F-150.

Yesterday on a long motorcycle ride, I started having electrical problems with the bike. Dead battery after a long ride. I was able to get a bump start and rode home. I figured i'd troubleshoot the battery on the bike.

When I got home, even after a long ride, the battery was still too dead to start the bike. No problem, I think, I'll just grab my little portable jump starter, attach it to the bike and fire it right up.

Nope. Didn't work. Would not provide enough charge to start the bike. What was distressing to me was that the little display on the jump starter still showed "89% charge" which should have been more than enough to crank over a 790cc motorcycle (2002 Triumph Bonneville.)

Curious, I put the clamps of the jump starter on my volt meter and it barely read 8 volts! (while still showing over 80% charged.)

Now, I'll admit I don't know much about the electronics of these little Lithium (presumably) batteries. Who knows, maybe there is some kind of sensor in there that turns the power on and off and that's why it wasn't showing a full 12v on my volt meter. Does anyone here have any ideas? Any similar issues?

OR, could it be that at nearly 2 1/2 years, the usable life of the battery is gone just from being stored in my truck? Temperatures over the past 2 years have gotten as low as -20f (-30c) during the winter. Could it be that extended exposure to cold temperatures has damaged the battery?

Assuming the thing is no longer good as a jump starter, it is at least useful as a back up phone charger, since I do seem to have power from the USB ports.

But if I decide to replace it, should I stick with one that has an AGM battery? Those are bigger, bulkier and require a 120vAC source to charge, but I would think at least they can sit in my truck during cold weather without being damaged.

Anyone else have a similar experience with these little lithium "Jump Starters?"

 

[jbaucom]

I had a similar experience with my booster pack last week. My wife called to ask if she had jumper cables, because one of her coworkers needed a boost. I hadn't put them in her new car after we traded and cleaned out her old car. So I offered to swing by with my booster pack, which I reliably charge every 3 months or whenever it's used, whichever comes first. Mine is a NAPA BlueFuel, which was made by Schumacher. I hooked it to her battery and turned it on, waited for it to say "Ready to start" and she tried to start her car. It turned over a couple of times and then clicked. My booster pack said it had a 99% charge, and her car was a little 4 cylinder import, so it should have started it. I've used it to start engines as large as a 4.3 V6 without problems. I think the issue in my case is that her battery was DEAD. She said her husband accidentally left the interior lights on the day before. Plus, her terminals were horribly corroded and difficult to reach, buried back under the cowl, so I don't think I was able to make a really good connection. If I had it to do over, I'd let the booster sit there for a few minutes while hooked up before trying to start her car, in hopes that it'd transfer a bit more charge to her battery. The moral of the story is, I put the jumper cables in my wife's car that evening and ordered a new set of cables for my truck. I also added a battery terminal cleaner/brush to my truck kit. I suspect that my booster would've worked if I could've cleaned the corrosion from her terminals before I hooked it up. I still trust that my booster pack will work for the purpose for which I bought it, which is to jump myself if my truck won't start in some remote location with no one else around, but now I carry my own jumper cables as a backup plan - someone is bound to come along sooner or later.

 

[WOODY2]

Some require that the battery being jump started have a certain voltage present. The appliance cannot act as a battery replacement by it's self.

 

[Cabrito]

These little jump packs are nothing short of amazing, but certainly have limitations and aren't all created equal.

I started with an AntiGravity $140 one in 2014 and it never seamed to work when I needed it. Maybe I was using it wrong. I don't even know what happened to it.

In 2016 I got a $40 cheapie on Amaz*n that still worked last weekend to jump the FJ when I was camping. I was surprized, and relieved. I've been carrying it in my pack since I bought it and use it regularly to charge a phone, and try to keep it charged up. I actually thought it was not working very well charging phones recently and was going to replace it. I've used it to jump many cars, trucks, and motorcycles over the years.

I've since purchased three Tusk brand ones for $50 and keep them in the Miata, and in my motorcycle pack. One died but the other two have been solid.

I think the care and feeding of these things is important. I try to used them and keep them charged up and that seems to prolong their lives. The Tusk one that died was neglected and Mrs Cabrito never charged it and would use it multiple times without re-charging. I always charge them after jumping a vehicle.

They are finnicky, and need certain conditions to work, but can be super handy when needed.

The pic has the specs of my 2016 $40 KMASHI jumper that still worked as of last week

 

[Martinjmpr]

Some require that the battery being jump started have a certain voltage present. The appliance cannot act as a battery replacement by it's self.

That's a definite possibility.

But the saga continues! Last night I decided to go ahead and pull the jump starter out of my truck. I figured, if it's not working there's no reason for me to carry it. It still shows as being "charged" and since it has 2 USB ports it will absolutely function as a way to keep cell phones/etc charged or powered. So I took it into the garage.



Now I should point out that this type of charger has the battery (of course) and it also has some kind of transformer or controller that connects to the battery and has the jumper cables on it. This module has a voltage sensor that is there to protect the battery in the event that you accidentally connect to the wrong terminals on the battery. There is a little LED light that flashes on the module, which you can see in this picture:



When I checked the voltage on the clamps with the jump starter powered up, it was all over the place: 4v, 9v, 6v etc. So I think you are right: the "brain" in the connecting module was trying to "sense" the voltage (it probably sensed the voltage of the 9v battery in my voltmeter.)

So instead, I pulled the module out, and connected the volt meter directly to the battery. This was the result:



Showing 16.5v! So clearly the battery seems to be able to hold it's charge (which is impressive to me, since the charger sat in my truck all Winter, and there were a number of times the temperatures got well below freezing and stayed that way for days.)

What I'm thinking now is that the connector module has a little "brain" in it that is seeking a specific voltage, and it may not be sensing enough voltage from the motorcycle battery to charge it up. I'm not sure.

However, I WILL be keeping the Beattit charger in the garage from now on, and not in the truck, unless we are going on a trip somewhere.

But it also makes me think that for a longer trip, it might be a good idea if, instead of this small, lightweight "smart" charger and lithium battery, I bring a bigger, heavier, 'dumb' jump starter with a simple AGM battery setup. Yes it would be bulky and take up more room but it seems it'd likely be more reliable as well.

 

[MuckSavage]

I had been carrying an "All-Start" brand jump starter for a few years. It performed well when I last used it. Recently, in an attempt to jump start a truck at work, The little jumper did nothing even though 4 out of 4 LED's were lit. I thought the All-Start was at the end of it's life. I ordered a NoCo GB40 & while reading thru the O&M manual, I read the following;

"Low Voltage Batteries & Manual Override The GB40 is designed to jump start 12-volt lead-acid batteries down to 2-volts. If your battery is below 2-volts, the Boost LED will be “Off”. This is an indication that the GB40 can not detect a battery. If you need to jump start a battery below 2-volts there is a Manual Override feature, which allows you to force “On” the jump start function."

and.......

"Manual Override Button To enable, push and hold for three (3) seconds. WARNING: Disables safety protection and manually forces Boost “On”. Only for use when a battery is too low to be detected."

It seems the little jumpers need to see a certain voltage to work.

 

[rubonik]

I have had the XP-1 Antigravity boosters since 2014. They have worked great, other than the one that had a cell fail after about 6 years. Bought a WP-10 for work that was used occasionally to start a backhoe. My only complaint about them is that you need a tool to press the jump button on the jumper cable attachment. The tool could have been pretty much anything, but I was never able to get it to work using a finger.

 

[Buddha.]

I’ve had those little play alligator clips come apart a few times but I think they’ve always worked, just needed a few tries.

 

[jonyjoe101]

On the clamps assembly that connects to the jumpstarter, there is a little button that will override the safety features and allow you to jumpstart a completely dead battery. Just make sure the cables are hooked up correctly since it overrides the wrong polarity safety feature. The button is sometimes called the "boost" button, all it does is manually activate the relay on the clamps. If the battery you are trying to start has at least 9 volts and polarity is correct, the 9 volts is enough to activate the relay and pressing the boost button is not necessary.
The older jumpstarters lithium battery maxed out at 12.6 volts (3s lipo battery) , the newer jumpstarters are in the 16 volts range (4s lipo) and will crank over the biggest engines. Inside the clamp assembly is a 12 volt relay which has to be activated to allow the jumpstarter and the car battery to join together.
I have two different lithium jumpstarters but have yet to use them in anger. I also carry a small 12 volt 16ah odyssey agm battery which can work as a starter replacement battery.

 

[dstefan]

There’s also these non-battery super capacitors. Maybe not as finicky as LiOn battery.

AUTOWIT SUPERCAP 2 jump starter..

Hi guys.. In a previous tread i was exploring the possibilities of using my DIY LIFEPO4 pack as a back up for jump starting a car: https://expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/jump-starting-from-diy-lifepo4-battery-pack-need-help.220633/ And came to the conclusion that a small portable jump...

expeditionportal.com

No direct personal experience, but my nephew has one that he's used multiple times with good success on his failing battery. They can take up to 20-30 mins I think to power up if your battery is really low. I carry a 4 yo Antigravity XP-10, which seems in good health, but never used to jump, so who knows …

 

[pith helmet]

I’ve had this NoCO for about 2 years. Iys been great he little I’ve actually needed it.
I just pulled it out of the truck after looking at this thread. Was happy to see its full charge after many months. I am going to put my mult meter on it and see if it’s putting out what it’s supposed to.

 

[jonyjoe101]

This is a picture of 2 jumpstarter I have the tacklife is a 3s and the gooloo gp2000 is a 4s, also I took a picture of the inside of the clamp assembly, it has some circuitry and a 70 amp relay.

 

[ThundahBeagle]

I’ve had this NoCO for about 2 years. Iys been great he little I’ve actually needed it.
I just pulled it out of the truck after looking at this thread. Was happy to see its full charge after many months. I am going to put my mult meter on it and see if it’s putting out what it’s supposed to.

Pith do you drive a full size pickup and will that NoCo GB40 start it?

 

[pith helmet]

Pith do you drive a full size pickup and will that NoCo GB40 start it?

Not at the moment, but I did and it will.
There was a video on YT that I watched before I got it. It was a guy in MN who had a bunch of auction cars that had dead batteries and covered in snow. He went from one to the other cranking them, 6 I think before it ran out of juice.

 

[ThundahBeagle]

Not at the moment, but I did and it will.
There was a video on YT that I watched before I got it. It was a guy in MN who had a bunch of auction cars that had dead batteries and covered in snow. He went from one to the other cranking them, 6 I think before it ran out of juice.

Thank you sir. I'll have a look