NOCO Genius 10 Charger Failed Quick - Warranty Not Worth It - Recommendations?

If you're in the market for a battery charger, I would strongly advise against buying NOCO products. My experience has been extremely disappointing, especially with their so-called warranty process.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07W3QT226/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1

I purchased this NOCO Genius 10 charger about nine months ago, and have used it maybe three or four times. Recently, when I tried to use it again, all the lights started flashing in error. I thought it might be a fluke, so I tried multiple other batteries, but I kept getting the same error. 9 months, 4 uses, dead.

I reached out to NOCO Support and, after jumping through all the hoops of providing serial numbers, model details, purchase date, etc., they finally agreed to look at it—but only if I shipped it back at my own cost. It's infuriating that a warranty, which should provide confidence in the product, ends up being nothing more than a way for them to dodge responsibility. They know that the steep cost of shipping will deter most people from following through.

Despite all those positive Amazon reviews, I can't in good conscience recommend this charger or this company. The product failed with minimal use, and their warranty process is designed to be as inconvenient as possible, making it feel like they don't actually stand by their products at all.

Can anyone give me a recommendation on a better brand?

The only experience I have with NOCO stuff is a 1000 amp jump pack I bought this summer. Its worked fine the handful of times I used it. I needed a jump a couple times trying to figure out a friends truck problems, two different people had the small jump packs, I took that as a clue.... ot needing aother vehicle/person is a huge step up from dealing with jumper cables. Id say keep the cables after getting a jump pack, but I doubt Ill ever be without a jump pack again.

My experience with chargers in general is so-so to poor, they basically sort of work, most of the time, until they dont. Mess with them and they may work again, or maybe not.

My thoughts on things like this is buy one at a local store and deal with them on warranty, if they do that. I got the NOCO jump pack at a local Auto Zone, by their recommendation as to what they sell the most of and have the least trouble with. The person that was helping me had already indicated a interest in problem solving rather than just selling stuff.

In a discussion elsewhere, someone mentioned that NOCO was one of the more used brand by people doing mechanical work for a living. I dont know any more than that, though would say a company's customer service is a factor in choosing to deal with them. In their defense, they cant do anything without seeing it, if they reimburse for the shipping that would be good. This is one reason I prefer to buy many things from local stores, they often handle such issues on the spot.

If you buy a lot from Amazon like I do I'd lean on them. You have to be tough & threaten to close your acct but it's always worked for me. At least get them to replace or refund it or pay the shipping to the mfg. Good luck!

I have a Gooloo that has worked great...except I didn'tknow it was not to be used as a daily phone, etc. charger. It stopped taking a charge after about a year. I contacted Gooloo, they explained it is best used for BIG draws, like starting a dead battery. Even without a receipt, they sent me a new one! That's the kind of service we nomads need! I have had to start my van with it only once since then, and it was flawless, quick, and easy.

Picked up a Lokithor J401 in March, 2023. It was one of the tests that the projectfarm YouTube guy did, and was one of highest ranking models.

https://www.amazon.com/LOKITHOR-J401-20000mAh-Charging-Portable/dp/B0B1V2262G

I'm not normally one to buy the Asian "off brands" for stuff like this, and was dubious of the claim that it would fire off a 6.5L diesel. At the time, I had a 2010 Ram with a 6.7L Cummins that would drain the batteries flat if I didn't use the truck at least every 3 days. I went on a 2 week vacation, and when I came back, the dome light wouldn't even come on.

Usually, I jump it off my other truck, turn the RAM key to on, let the grid heater and fuel pumps cycle, then have to let the jump truck run at high idle for about 3-4 minutes to get enough juice to fire up the RAM.

This time I connected just the jump pack, immediately turned the key to start, and the truck immediately fired right up. I was impressed.

I've since used it about a few dozen times in other vehicles, and it still fires the big diesels right up with zero issue. I also had several of the bigger Clore/JNC commercial jump boxes in the shop, and they don't work nearly as well as this thing does. And as cheap as they are (relatively speaking), even if I only get 2-3 years out of it, I'll keep buying more of them

Southbound said:

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If you're in the market for a battery charger, I would strongly advise against buying NOCO products. My experience has been extremely disappointing, especially with their so-called warranty process.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07W3QT226/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1

I purchased this NOCO Genius 10 charger about nine months ago, and have used it maybe three or four times. Recently, when I tried to use it again, all the lights started flashing in error. I thought it might be a fluke, so I tried multiple other batteries, but I kept getting the same error. 9 months, 4 uses, dead.

I reached out to NOCO Support and, after jumping through all the hoops of providing serial numbers, model details, purchase date, etc., they finally agreed to look at it—but only if I shipped it back at my own cost. It's infuriating that a warranty, which should provide confidence in the product, ends up being nothing more than a way for them to dodge responsibility. They know that the steep cost of shipping will deter most people from following through.

Despite all those positive Amazon reviews, I can't in good conscience recommend this charger or this company. The product failed with minimal use, and their warranty process is designed to be as inconvenient as possible, making it feel like they don't actually stand by their products at all.

Can anyone give me a recommendation on a better brand?

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I use the victron 30 amp mains battery charger. I've had no problems with that one. Just make sure you set the settings to the correct charge rate for your batteries.

Southbound said:

Can anyone give me a recommendation on a better brand?

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Schumacher or victron maybe; they’re rated up there with NOCO.

NOCO as a product is highly rated by everyone as a general purpose charger but if service sucks well there’s too many quality charging products out there.

INTJohn

I have a question about your particular use situation:

Was this charger plugged into normal household or good stable campground shore power?

Or was it being used on a generator or inverter of some type? Or was it hit by a voltage transient due to lightning in the area?

Reason I ask is that these things are usually reliable UNLESS they are subjected to voltage pulses or transients, and in that case, a failure could occur that would probably involve the errors you saw.

With due respect for Southbound's frustrating problem, I have an entirely different viewpoint. NOCO has a pretty good reputation for their products. The warranty procedure is stated, is accessible prior to purchase, and I think paying for the return is the only way for a company to try to properly settle a claim like this one. I also think it is very unfair, at this point, to bash NOCO. Yes, I do have one NOCO product that I have been pleased with.

Electronic items can be vulnerable to all sorts of issues, some are known to us at the time, some issues are unknown.

Generally speaking, battery chargers are pretty robust, although like Southbound, I have had a few that failed.

One of those was online during a heavy thunderstorm with nearby lightning in the area that took out some expensive electronics. Ouch.

Some generators put out some poor quality sine waves, some, such as inverter generators, do better at this.

But in either case, a genset running out of fuel can cause spikes on the AC line. These can affect sensitive electronics and usually there is a notation in the genset manual about unplugging your items before starting or stopping the generator.

On the other hand, the NOCO in question might have been on perfectly good AC power and just bit the dust. It happens.

Southbound said:

Can anyone give me a recommendation on a better brand?

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What are you charging with it? Starter battery? House bank? If the latter, what is the chemistry and capacity of the bank?

I do not have any form of starter battery charger. It's a FLA so once a year I open it up and water it. It was installed at the factory in late 2016 and is not noticeably degraded. I do have a VSR with a combine button, so if I'm boondocking somewhere and happen to be working in the area of the button I might push it. I think it times out after two minutes, but during that period it's treated to LiFePO4 voltage.

My shore power setup is unorthodox but fully functional. I bought my first FLA bank before the solar was sourced so I needed to keep them on shore power charging. The multistage converter/chargers were $$ at that time and all larger than I needed, so I bought a 24v power supply (meanwell or similar), Set it to 22.0v (peak efficiency voltage for the MPPT mentioned next) and fed that into a spare 10A MPPT I had in a box. Thus fully-configurable 10A shore power charging for ~$65.

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rant follows, you have been warned

My general take on NOCO is that their chargers are rated highly by folks in the general population that don't know much about charging batteries. "OMG it has 27 charging stages and other buzzwords so it must be good!" Perhaps I am old and grouchy but I prefer manufacturers that lead with the specs rather than marketing jazz.

I do not necessarily take issue with the requirement to return the product for warranty service/inspection.

Yes, a warranty claim should be considered but sometimes...stuff happens.

Hey frater it's good to see you on the forum again. Now and then I review the lists of members and I had not seen you in awhile.

Thanks for stopping by.

frater secessus said:

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rant follows, you have been warned

My general take on NOCO is that their chargers are rated highly by folks in the general population that don't know much about charging batteries. "OMG it has 27 charging stages and other buzzwords so it must be good!" Perhaps I am old and grouchy but I prefer manufacturers that lead with the specs rather than marketing jazz.

I do not necessarily take issue with the requirement to return the product for warranty service/inspection.

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I'm wondering what specs you refer to. The manual indicates everything necessary to charge the unit. I am being loyal to NOCO just because I have a GB150 for jumpstarting diesel trucks. I have used it to jump several cars, a lawnmower, to power and test 12v cameras, etc. It has smart circuitry to safeguard against abnormal situations. What more could you need? It holds a charge a very long time and is always ready. I am a folk in the general population and I don't know much about charging batteries but I can follow instructions. If a folk knows more than the manufacturer does they can disregard the instructions.
Did anyone bother to read the warranty? NOCO doesn't require a receipt - they can proceed with the serial number.

minanimal said:

The manual indicates everything necessary to charge the unit.

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It may appear to be sufficient for a member of the general public. IMO, this description of a charging profile in the manual for OP's charger is insufficient for a person living in their van and dependent on battery banks:

"12v -AGM. For charging 12-volt AGM batteries. When selected, the 12V AGM white LED will illuminate. 14.8V | 10A | Up To 230AH Batteries."

minanimal said:

I'm wondering what specs you refer to

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Absorption duration, method of Absorption termination, Float voltage, rebulk voltage, temp coefficient, etc.

On the Li profile I want to know what happens after Absorption is terminated. Charge and stop? Quasi-float?

minanimal said:

I am being loyal to NOCO

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I am pleased you have found gear that meets your needs and has earned your loyalty.

I'm a pragmatist without loyalty to any brand or or particular approach. Horses for courses.

minanimal said:

I have a GB150 .... What more could you need?

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What I need is immaterial to the use case of others. But I do not need and will not pay for a $300 jump pack; I press the override button on my $45 VSR, reachable from the driver's seat. We are both satisfied with our choices so all is well.

minanimal said:

If a folk knows more than the manufacturer does they can disregard the instructions.

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It is common for well-informed and motivated users to know more than the manual reveals, or more than tech support's phone script allows them to say.

I'm at another side of the field with this one. It's installed in the van. I also have the same unit in a 15a in the garage for spare battery(ies) or when topping off new ones. I'm still an AGM guy so it works perfect on a few levels. ymmv
https://samlexamerica.com/products/12-volt-30-amp-battery-charger-safety-listed/

I am a little more of a preparer on this. I do have a jump pack & a small battery pack that I got as a gift and they will both jump-start my tow vehicle. I get them out periodically and make sure they are charged. The bigger jump pack is quite a few years old but about twice a month I hook it up to my solar system in my tow vehicle to keep it topped up. The last time I actually had my starter battery go dead because I left the dome light on, I got out my spare 100Watt solar panel and charge controller and put it on my starker battery for about an hour and it brought it right back to life.
This is not a viable situation for cloudy days or at night so I don't suggest it for emergencies, but it is a great idea for preparedness. I use it to top up my starter battery on a fairly regular basis when I am in Quartzsite. Even if I have driven my toe vehicle quite a few hours during that day, it still takes 3 to 5 amp hours when I Hook this up. Lead acid batteries like to be at 100% as much as possible.

What I use is a 45A Vevor RV converter/charger GS800RV-45. I have the adjustable voltage set at a constant 13.7v (LiFePO4 batteries) while I get my new used van kitted out at a campground & solar unhooked. When I take off in the new rig I'll slide the switch over to lead acid or LiFePO4 charging & use it as a portable 45A charger.

I have no suggestions with regard to chargers. My advice is next time get an extended warranty. I usually buy 3rd party warranties to cover my products. For stuff purchased on Amazon, that's Asurion. I've filled half a dozen claims with them over the years and they've always handled it satisfactory.

Is the sole purpose to plug it into shore power to charge your starter battery?

The tech for these chargers is pretty standard fare these days. So buying the more expensive one might just be paying for a name on some products.

Consider something inexpensive on Amazon. I have a relatively cheap one that works well for my Jeep batteries.

If you want someone decent that has a good warranty pick one up from harbor freight and pay a few bucks for the extended warranty.

Instead of buying a battery charger.. why not get a better battery instead.. Optima..