Great point Randy. For those following the thread, let’s look at the differences between a “trickle charger” and a “maintainer”. A low amperage charge being applied to a battery is known as “trickle charging”, and the typical trickle charger just lets that low charge process continue 24/7. This is not an issue for a few days, but not so good for extended periods.

In this way, we keep voltage at optimum level, remove the likelihood of sulphation of the plates, the charging process raises the battery temperature (a good thing if the battery is still in your bike in an unheated garage all winter) and as a result, you get the most possible life out of the battery. Battery Tender is just one manufacturer. In my experience, the Optimate III or IV units.

Hi “Gerry”,

The V-Star 1100 does not come stock with a centre stand. So I will assume you might be asking about a hydraulic stand / lift often available from Canadian Tire or Costco for about $100.00 . The most important thing with this type of stand is to make sure the bike is sitting flat on the stand and is absolutely stable. Often the motorcycle’s exhaust system will not allow the bike to sit flat on the stand and in turn the bike is quite wobbly. If this is the case, I would not recommend the stand … the last thing you want is your bike to fall over. One solution is to remove the exhaust but that is a fair bit of work. The other is to slip pieces of wood under the bike to make it more stable. Whatever you do, make sure the bike is stable or forget the stand. Many of these stands now feature tie down mounting rings on the side of the stand … if the bike is stable, it is a good idea to tie it down as well. The final comment about these stands is they can be raised by stepping on a pedal that operates a hydraulic ram. If there is a locking device to prevent the stand from “sinking” as the hydraulic pressure slowly releases … use it !! Good luck.

Hi John,

I double checked with our motorcycle tech specialist about this issue. He says that the biggest concern is how cold the concrete floor will get. The colder the floor, the more cold will be transferred into the battery. The colder the battery gets, the greater the chance of discharge and in turn this will effect the electrolyte as the internal voltage drops. If the specific gravity of the electrolyte gets too low, the battery could freeze and it will be toast. It seems that a battery left on a warm concrete floor may be OK . The bottom line is keeping a battery warm and charged over the winter. The worst case is a battery freezes and splits … nobody wants acid running onto their pride and joy.

Hi Aaron,

You are right. It is best to try to elevate the wheels off the ground and even better if you can let the suspension “hang” free. However, I steered clear of this issue because the majority of today’s bikes do not come with a centre stand, and the last thing I would want is for somebody’s bike to fall over trying to get the wheels off the ground. If your bike has a centre stand or you use a race type rear stand, it is a good idea to get the both wheels off the ground … but please be careful and make sure the bike is very secure … it has to stay that way all winter. I have few bikes and I have not had an issue with flat spotted tires … but my bikes are kept in a garage that only gets down to about -5 C.

Hi Virgie,

There will still be some fuel left over in the float bowl, even after the units runs out of gas. It is best to drain this small amount of remaining gas. If you do decide to leave it, it is even more important that you put a good quality stabilizer in the fuel. I know sometimes the float bowl drain screws can be a pain to get at, but it is a lot more work to have to pull the carb or carbs. Better to be safe than sorry. Careful not to round the screw heads … sometimes they can be seized in place. If this is the case, make sure you put a bit of anti-seize on them before re-installing.