Flat battery

[fairy!]

I have a Y reg Renault Clio. It lives outside my house on the road. I drive it about 3 times a week & generally only for 15 mins to the gym & then 15 mins back. I know this doesn't give it long enough to re-charge the battery, so I try & do a longer run whenever I can.

The past few mornings have been very cold & the battery has been flat, but starts on the first attempt with revving the accellerator.

Can I do anything to stop it going flat? Put a blanket under the bonnet to keeo the battery warm...??

[Panic Button]

How old is the battery?
Possibly worth investing in a new one if it is failing to hold charge.
Also use your heated rear window as little as possible. They use a quite a bit of power, stopping the battery charging

[homer75]

Any autoshop will do a free test on your battery and tell you if it is nearing the end of its useful life - they put a high load tester on it and will check for any dead cells. If it's original battery probably just about time for a new one. Get a decent quality one - the cheap ones don't last much beyond the guarantee period.

[bob57]

I would say the battery will need changing especially if it is 2 years old or over
and if you put a blanket over the engine there is a good chance of forgetting to take the blanket off causing more damage and expense to yourself

[fairy!]

How long is a long run? 10 miles? More?

[DGR]

Might be worth looking into a solar powered trickle charger - they plug into the cigarette lighter socket. Don't know how effective they are but might just give the battery a bit of sparkle. If it is the original battery it may well have had it, but if you have it checked, have the alternator output checked as well. Presumably the alternator drive belt doesn't need tightening?