# GEM car 2001 with old gel batteries 72V total **URL:** \ **Category:** GEM Forum\ **Created:** [July 27, 2021, 9:03pm UTC](https://community.electricforum.com/t/gem-car-2001-with-old-gel-batteries-72v-total/22010 "2021-07-27T21:03:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![moonbeam2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ecccb3/32.png) [@moonbeam2](https://community.electricforum.com/u/moonbeam2)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2021, 9:03pm UTC](https://community.electricforum.com/t/gem-car-2001-with-old-gel-batteries-72v-total/22010/1 "2021-07-27T21:03:06Z")
Leaving for 7 months out of state. What should I do for my 5 year old gel dry batteries? I will set the lever to “OFF” for the batteries. Should I have a someone here plug the cord in every month? Does the off position preserve storage in the batteries at all? Can I charge the batteries with the lever to "OFF? or does it have to be in the “ON” position? ---
**Author:** ![JarJarJava](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/community.electricforum.com/jarjarjava/32/15158_2.png) [@JarJarJava](https://community.electricforum.com/u/JarJarJava)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 12:48am UTC](https://community.electricforum.com/t/gem-car-2001-with-old-gel-batteries-72v-total/22010/2 "2021-07-28T00:48:16Z")
Buy a heavy duty plug in electric timer. 15amp. Set it to turn on for 8-10 hours once every 7 days. Plug the cart in to it and it into the wall outlet. Leave the disconnect in the ON position. If you set it to off, the batteries can’t charge. ---
**Author:** ![Inwo](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/community.electricforum.com/inwo/32/1067_2.png) [@Inwo](https://community.electricforum.com/u/Inwo)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 1:16am UTC](https://community.electricforum.com/t/gem-car-2001-with-old-gel-batteries-72v-total/22010/3 "2021-07-28T01:16:44Z")
My opinion. If batteries (any) won’t hold a charge with switch off for a year, they need to be replaced. ---
**Author:** ![moonbeam2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ecccb3/32.png) [@moonbeam2](https://community.electricforum.com/u/moonbeam2)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 3:46am UTC](https://community.electricforum.com/t/gem-car-2001-with-old-gel-batteries-72v-total/22010/4 "2021-07-28T03:46:54Z")
Great Idea. Beats having my relatives plug it in every so often. ---
**Author:** ![bandit1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/73ab20/32.png) [@bandit1](https://community.electricforum.com/u/bandit1)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2021, 12:35am UTC](https://community.electricforum.com/t/gem-car-2001-with-old-gel-batteries-72v-total/22010/5 "2021-08-03T00:35:35Z")
I use 2 timers. A one week timer set for one day of a week. I then plug A 1 day timer into that timer and set it for 8 hours. Then plug the Gem into that timer .That will run the charger for 8 hours every 3 weeks. ---
**Author:** ![bandit1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/73ab20/32.png) [@bandit1](https://community.electricforum.com/u/bandit1)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2021, 12:38am UTC](https://community.electricforum.com/t/gem-car-2001-with-old-gel-batteries-72v-total/22010/6 "2021-08-03T00:38:52Z")
Forgot to tell you to set the 1 week timer to run 8 hours on that 1 day a week. ---
**Author:** ![moonbeam2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ecccb3/32.png) [@moonbeam2](https://community.electricforum.com/u/moonbeam2)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2021, 4:05pm UTC](https://community.electricforum.com/t/gem-car-2001-with-old-gel-batteries-72v-total/22010/7 "2021-08-03T16:05:31Z")
Great tip because I wouldn’t know the amount of time. Thanks