I bought a 12 volt battery 3 years ago that I never used. It has sat on the shelf for 3 years and is dead. I'm now installing it in the Cherokee and need to charge it. The battery is an EverStart Maxx 24FS. Cranking Amps 875, Cold Cranking Amps 700. Couldnt find any other info on the battery except that I bought it 05-08. My charger is a 6 amp manual charger...Can someone please tell me how long it should take to charge the battery? The water level was pretty low so I added distilled water to about 1/2 inch above the plates...Your help is appreciated...Thanks

 

Low and slow is the key to charging a completely dead battery.

 

A decent automatic charger could bring some life to it. Its actually not very good at all to let a battery set like that, its even worse when it sits dead. Im my experience you might bring it back to life but it may not be very powerful or last very long.

Im not sure on the warranty of that battery but you might still have some left, most warranties really drop off after 2-3 years. Even if you have to pay a pro-rated amount, it might be worth having them test it and exchange it.

 

VERY true. Not sure I would trust it even if it takes a charge.

 

It can take a charge, but the charger will probably never say it's fully charged. It might get up to a 75% charge, but I wouldn't bet on it holding that charge.

 

if it is discharged deep you may not be able to recover it.

i bought a solar panel in 40watts rating 12 volts. (it gives 17.6 volts open circuit volts) i charge batteries with a 3 amps controller, in my garage with it. it takes long time. two days but it works. output rating of typical panel is about 2 amps. plus you can carry it with you anywhere offroad too. it can power a netbook too

 

I would put a multimeter (dc volt range) on it and put the charger on it for afew hours....take the charger off and see how long it holds voltage...if it goes way back down it is time for a new battery...I agree with earlier posts about not trusting it, but as it is a new battery there shouldn't be much stuff in the bottom to cause a dead cell....good luck

 

Take it to Advance or Auto Zone. They will charge it for free and can
load test it afterwards.