I retired a couple of years ago. We have two vehicles and my wife does most of the driving (she has a 2015 Rav4 :-) ). During the pandemic lockdown we drive even less. So my 4Runner mostly just sits in the garage. I only drive it about once every other week or so. A few months ago I tried starting it and I just heard click click click click click etc. I borrowed my neighbor's Road Proof Jump Starter, used it and it started. I went to Les Schwab where I had purchased my battery about a year earlier. They tested the battery and found it had a bad cell so replaced it for $39 (I was just past the full replacement interval). Four days ago the same thing happened. In the meantime I had purchased my own jump starter so I used it and it started right up. I drove it on a loop around the local area for about 7 miles to make sure the battery was charged up. Today I tried it and it started up ok.
My question is this. If I have a good battery (the new one Les Schwab put in a few months ago) and I am not seeing any starting problems otherwise, is it normal for an auto battery to discharge over a period of a few weeks while the vehicle is sitting in the garage?
If so, then should I get one of those trickle chargers similar to this?
Battery Tender Jr. 12V 0.75 Amp Charger - DBT021-0123 at Batteries Plus Bulbs
Thanks,
Don