Wizbang Battery Desulfator Solar Wind EV Marine Storage

My neighbor gave me the old 12V group 65 battery from his truck. He had replaced the battery, thinking it was no good. But the problem was the alternator on his truck. The battery sat in his storage building, without being charged, for over a year. When I got the battery, the terminal voltage was 4.4 volts (measured with a Fluke multimeter) and most of the cells were very low on electrolyte. I filled the cells with distilled water, placed a small charger on it, discovering that the battery voltage would come up to 12 volts, which indicated that none of the cells were shorted out. However, there was an extreme amount of sulfation in the battery. I used a floating ball hydrometer to indicate the level of charge. To begin with, none of the balls would float. I placed the Wizbang unit on the battery, in conjunction with an inexpensive float charger, purchased from Harbor Freight. After a week, most of the cells had at least one ball floating. After a month, all but two cells had 4 balls floating. The other two cells took another three weeks for all four hydrometer balls to float. I plan to leave it on for at least another week to do a thorough job of desulfating.I have used other desulfators in the past, purchased from Northern Tool. These desulfating chargers appeared to work, however, I discovered that if the power went off, they would stop charging and discharge the battery. I also had several of them fail over several years. It is a little disheartening when you buy a device that is supposed to recondition a battery, and it ends up destroying it because the power went off.I have been very pleased with the performance of the Wizbang. So much so, that I just ordered a second unit. I have numerous batteries in boats, vehicles, and tractors that often sit for a while without being charged. I will be using the Wizbang desulfator to recondition them on a maintenance schedule.If you are looking to purchase the Wizbang desulfator, there are several things you should keep in mind. Place distilled water in the cells, making sure the plates are covered. Do not overfill the cells with water. Always check your battery terminal voltage, after charging for short time (with a small charger), to determine that you have 12 volts, indicating no cells are shorted. If you are not using the battery in a vehicle or piece of equipment that gets run/charged daily, then DON'T use the Wizbang without a small charger. The Wizbang, by itself, draws power to operate and will discharge a battery if there is no means of charging. I recommend a small, inexpensive float charger, such as those sold by Harbor Freight. Always check your float charger to make sure the charging voltage is appropriate. When dealing with inexpensive float chargers, some may be too low of a voltage to charge or too high. I personally like to use a float charger around 13-13.25 volts I have seen some YouTube videos and comments by people that knock this product because they used it improperly, without a charger. Always use a hydrometer instead of a voltmeter to check the charge level of your battery. Specific gravity of the electrolyte gives you the real story. Terminal voltage can be misleading. Never place new acid in the battery. Just use distilled water. Finally, if you are an impatient person, go buy a new battery. Desulfating a heavily sulfated battery can take between one to two months for the full process to take place.

I chose only three stars for now because this device takes a lot of time to work. Short of chopping your battery open and looking at the plates, only time will tell if this device works as advertised. The instructions indicate that it may take a month or more to desulphate the battery this is connected to. I do like the fact that the device is made here in the US rather than overseas. The price is reasonable and connecting the device to the battery is fairly simple. I do wish the device came with larger ring connectors that would slip over the posts of top terminal batteries, but that is a minor criticism and something that I can easily change myself. The green light on the device may take some getting used to as I am not used to any light other than the hood light in the engine bay. It took me a few times of "what the hell is that light" before I remembered it was the desulfator on the battery. I have three of these now for each of the daily drivers and the family mobile. Time will tell if the batteries last longer because of this device or not. Supposedly a desulfator will extend the life of the battery; some claim as much as five times longer lifespan. I hooked the three I purchased to a brand new battery, one battery that is four years old and one battery that is six years old. We will see how battery life fairs, but for the price compared to a new battery I figured why not try it.

I got the Wizbang on May 10 and decided to do a little experiment. I own a Mercedes Slk and A Dodge Caravan both with batteries that are marginal. I took hydrometer readings of both batteries. The SLK battery lowest reading was 1180, the highest 1285. On the Caravan the lowest was 1180 and the highest 1205. I put the Wizbang on the SLK battery and on the Caravan I put a Battery Tender charger. I left them on till July 3, and took new readings. The SLK with the Wizbang there was no change on any of the cells. Still 1180 low, 1285 high. The Caravan with the Battery Tender reading was low 1230 and the high 1280. There was improvement in every cell of that battery. So I have to conclude that the Wizbang just humms and that's it.