The last two month's have been so cold single digits for days on end. I dont use my pickup that much (once a week) since i have a company vehicle. So, i wanted a battery tender in order to keep the batteries up. Any suggestions would be appreciated. 2002 f-350 ,  7.3 powerstroke, 2 batteries. Thanks.

wally world sell shumaker tenders.
if you buy online and pickup in store it is a few bucks cheaper than walking in.
I got 2 of the under 15 dollar ones running right now.

for agm batteries however I own a ctek. but that was near 100 bucks. worth it when the battery is 200, but not for a regular one imo.

I won't buy battery tender ones anymore since their warranty is worthless. you pay shipping both ways if it is under warranty. costs as much as a new one at that point. so not worth the hassle.

had the ctek for 2 years now I think.
one of the shumakers about the same time and the other less than a year.

the battery tender lasted about 3 years before it puked.

I also have, but don't use anymore one of the harbor freight ones for about 4 bucks. I didn't like it because if you unplugged it from the wall, it backfed from the car.

Thanks. You are running one per battery, i assumed the truck's battery set up was parallel and one unit should maintain  both, am i incorrect?

Even in single digit temps you should be able to go a week between uses without any problems. If not, I'd start checking for draws with the ignition off, or load test the batteries. How's your charging system? Charge the batteries with a charger, turn the headlights on for a couple minutes to drain the surface charge, then read the batteries' resting voltage. It should be right around 12.6V, and your alternator output should be 1.5-2V above that. Don't forget to check amp output as well. Do you plug the block heater in? That alone should make for easy starting after a week. A couple hours before you need the truck is all you need.  Get a couple battery warmers - I used ZeroStart 280-0063, $50ish each from Amazon - and wire them in parallel with your block heater. They're only 80W each so you'll still be able to run everything off a 15A outlet.

I'm using a BatteryMinder plus model 12117 on my Backhoe. Which is left outside all year. 2 batteries one charger.

BatteryMinder

I've got the Schumacher SE-1-12S 1.3 amp trickle charger on my F-350 PSD as we speak.  I hardwired it in back in '06.  Fom my investigation back then, it was one of the few trickle chargers that could left on a battery for long periods without it being powered and it won't discharge the battery.



Good luck.

sorry, one per battery, per car.
not a dual battery truck.

yes one will charge both, BUT, it is limited on amps it can charge back. So be aware if you deeply discharge them for some reason, it might not take it back to full charge overnight.

And yes you put a tender on it to help with the cold, not just to maintain charge. freezing temps can do damage to the battery and a tender will help maintain temp in the battery as well as charge it.

I too have all mine hardwired in so I can just unplug it as I walk up to the car and go. so I don't have to pop the hood each time I want to charge it.

Just wanted to keep the batteries up. I agree they should hold up in the cold temps for a week. Back story, when the bitter cold set in, the truck would not start and i ASSumed the fuel was gelled and kept messing with that all the while cranking the batts dead. Not to mention i allowed crud and dirt build up on the harnesses and terminals. Turns out the glow plug relay was bad, charged up the batts and with new relay its like new again.
Still not sure what battery maintainer to get, keep the suggestions coming.. Thanks for the advice gents..

Thanks.  Will check it out.