Maintenance Free Battery

Anyone have a suggestion on a maintenance free type battery for my 78 KZ1000A2? Mine is shot, and I want something that may last longer than the typical Wal-mart battery does.

I used a Yuasa one time. Part # is YTX14AHL-BS for the KZ1000. The main advantage to me was no more removing the battery daily on long trips to add water. It didn't last any longer than a standard battery though and for twice the price or so after it went bad I just went back conventional type.

I put a maint free in the 900 this year. It's a little taller than the stock so you have to do a little mod (not bad really). So far so good but time will tell. Was about $90 so they are not cheap. I'm going to leave it in and the storage shed gets pretty cold. It will have a tender on it so we'll see.

the stock battery for a 1000 is a yb14l-a2, the measurements are l 5 5/16 w 3 1/2 h 6 9/16 the battery ive been using is an a.g.m battery the one ive got is sold by napa the number on it is etx14 thedimensions are l 5 13/16 w 3 5/16 h 5 5/8 i've gone over to that style of battery in all my bikes that get ridden, ive got 20 amp in my drag bike that gets charged up after every pass and it has never failed me wear as the maintence free batterys have caused problems for me in the past.

RonKZ650 wrote:

I just went back conventional type.

+1. So did the auto industry. For a while, "maintenance free" batteries were all the rage, but now the new cars I see all come with caps on top that can be pried off. The sealed batteries are supposed to use so little water that they don't need it over a normal operating life... and the bad news is, when they need it you can't add water. I like the ones that allow adding water.

i bought a $100 DEKA glass-mat battery for my BMW several years ago, it was junk in 1.5 years, then bought a $19 lawn tractor battery been going strong for three years. my experiance they are not worth the money.

the a.g.m batteries[ absorbed glass mat] dont use any water and are totally sealed. the major bike companies are starting to go to this style because you can mount them in any postion and they won't leak on any body parts or frames.

my job involves changing batteries for the local power co.
the boxes on poles with switchgear on top
we use lead acid, gell cell, agm and ni-cad
i find lead acid lasts the longest,maybe 5 years, agm's sometimes last a long time,3 years, sometimes only a year
gell cell and ni-cad 2 years max
none of them fit in a bike

Since my “maintenance free” battery warns against adding water to it, can I add battery acid to it?

The reason I ask, is that the electrolyte level is now low and if it continues to get any lower, the lead plates will be exposed.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

hmondo wrote:

Since my “maintenance free” battery warns against adding water to it, can I add battery acid to it?

The reason I ask, is that the electrolyte level is now low and if it continues to get any lower, the lead plates will be exposed.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Imo, distilled water would be best to bring the cell levels back up to specs. If the fluid level has lowered due to evaporation over time (not spilled or leaked out), the acid component has not evaporated (acid doesn't evaporate). Only the water component has evaporated, leaving a stronger acid concentration in the remaining fluid. So adding pure water is supposed to dilute the fluid and thereby return the acid concentration back to where it started.

Would also perform a specific gravity test (little floating balls) after bringing the levels back to specs.

Know some fellas who do indeed add the same "acid" (as used to initially fill a new battery) to raise the fluid level when servicing the battery. But have never understood why a stronger acid concentration might possibly be beneficial. Maybe they think a stronger solution produces more power. But I think they are just mistaken or have bad information. Perhaps in an old highly sulfated battery, but I wouldn't do it in this case.

Good Luck!

I will add some distilled water to get it back to the correct level.

Good info! Thank you for the help!

Usually there are two fluid level lines on the battery exterior (upper and lower). And it's sometimes helpful to shine a flashlight through from the backside while refilling to better see the fluid level inside.

When adding distilled water, would keep level a tad under the top line, because charging tends to raise the level.

Also, I believe the battery should be fully charged before doing the specific gravity test.

Good Luck!