Keeping Your Car Battery in Good Condition.

Car battery care tips

Many car owners these days tend to neglect their oil and water levels, these days and this includes the car battery. Like anything else in this life things will work better if they are looked after. Being a garage owner myself I see the amount of neglect on the cars that come into the garage for minor things, such as to top up the cars washer bottles, or check their oil level for them.

When we lift the bonnet (hood) you can see that the battery terminals are all corroded with the white powder and the battery is generally filthy and dirty. This is a sure sign that the battery has not been checked in ages.

Car battery types

The ratio of sealed batteries and open ended types with a screw top are about 60/40 these days. This means that about 40% of cars should have the tops removed and the batteries water/acid levels checked and topped up if required. The 60% of batteries that are sealed lead acid batteries cannot have their water/acid levels checked, because obviously they are sealed and you cannot gain access to the cells.

The sealed ones have a different type of material to make the cell plates out of. The plates are made of lead alloys and do not gas as much as the screw top type of battery that are made of lead antimony and this will tend to give off more gasses, thus reducing the amount of liquid in the battery. The acid/water mix is known as electrolyte and should be just covering the tops of the plates inside each battery cell.

 It is not a good idea to top your battery up with tap water as it may contain other chemicals. You can buy electrolyte from a motor accessory store or if you have a condenser type of spin dryer, then the water that it produces in the plastic reservoir, is in fact distilled water and can be used to top up battery. Your car battery will need more checking up in hot weather because of a higher rate of evaporation. Also if you have to constantly top one particular cell up, then the cell could be shorting out and boiling up the acid, if this is the case, than a cheap car batteries are the answer.

Car battery terminals

This is one of the commonest problems that can occur with your car battery is the gradual erosion of the

Terminals like these require a really good cleaning

battery terminals. The white powder is caused by a mixture of hydrogen crystals and sulphuric acid. This comes from the escaping hydrogen gases from the battery vents mixing with the acid and forming crystals onto the steel bolts that fasten the terminals to the battery and also the battery terminal wire which is usually made of copper. This can eventually cover the complete terminal and looks a real mess; eventually it will completely corrode the terminal wire and break the batteries circuit.

This mess needs cleaning off, as it does no good at all. The best way to do this is to pore some hot water onto the terminal slowly, remember this is acid and you should not let it touch your body, eyes or cloths. Some people use a mixture of water and baking powder, which neutralises the acid and you, can then give the whole terminal a rub down with a cloth and a wire brush. The terminal should then be protected by coating the terminal with a good smothering of petroleum jelly. Here in the UK we use a brand name called Vaseline.

Keep a car battery charger handy

In the winter time when the days are short and the nights long and cold it is always a good idea to charge your battery every now and then. If you keep your car in a garage then it would be easy to hook the car battery up to a charger, from say your work bench, but if you leave the car outside you should probably

Ring smart battery charger suitable for cars

remove the battery and charge it indoors. This sounds like a bit of a chore but it will keep your battery in good condition much longer, than if you just neglected it.

Battery chargers are now very cheap to buy. You can now buy what they call smart chargers, and all you do is connect them up and leave them, the charger will take care of your battery without you touching it again.

Before you charge the battery up, make sure that you unscrew the tops. This allows for the gases to escape while the battery is being charged up due to the acid heating up and evaporating, then top the battery up to the correct level after the charging has finished.

Checking the specific gravity of your car battery

If you want to take testing your battery a little further then I suggest that you invest in a hydrometer. They are not very expensive and will determine the state of charge of your caravan battery. The hydrometer measures the specific gravity of the electrolyte in your battery. If you place the rubber tube into the battery then

A simple hydrometer will show you the state of you battery

squeeze and then let go, then the electrolyte will enter the glass bowl. In the glass bowl is a float similar to a fishing float. This float has markings on it to determine the state of the battery. If the marking that is level with the liquid reads 1.27 or higher the battery is in good condition, if the reading is below 1.13 then the battery is flat. You then squeeze the liquid back into the cell and check the other cells. Simple?

You can also use a simple voltmeter set at 20 volts or above. The reading for a fully charged car battery should be 13.5 volts or above, if it is below 11 volts then the battery will need replacing.

Disclaimer

Please note these are the words and opinion of the author (Eric Roberts) only. Neither the author nor the website can be held responsible for any errors or omissions. You should seek professional assistance if in doubt about your choice of battery. The article may contain a link to Batteriesontheweb where you can buy battery products online.

|This article is also posted on..http://www.batteriesontheweb.co.uk/blog/

Your car battery keeps running down –Tips and information

Your car battery keeps running down 

As a person who has been selling car batteries almost all his working life, they are a thing that I think about every day of the year. It is probably the same about the things that most people do for a job. I realize that the rest of the population only thing they think about to do with a car battery, is when their car won’t start.

The first thing they then think is where I can buy cheap BMW batteries, or a battery for whatever make and model of car that they might own. It is one of those things that haunt you when you first notice that it may let you down. The first sign is usually when the battery is slow to turn your car’s engine over, first thing in the

morning.

You first think that it is only a one off and it will be all right the next time you try to start the car. And if it is later on in the day then the car will probably start first time, because the engine may still be warm and therefore easier to start the car, but the next morning, when the car is cold ,the same happens, the car battery is struggling to start the engine. But just at the last minute, the battery kicks in, and the car starts, Wow that was close?

You decide to look for car battery suppliers 

This is now on your mind, what if I can’t get home tonight? Am I still in the AA? What times are the trains? All these little things start to nag your mind. What if it’s not the battery but a bigger problem, did you leave the lights on? No it must be the battery because I have had the car regularly serviced and it is only five years old, so it must be car battery problems.

At lunch time you were telling a friend of yours about the problem and fortunately for you he always carried a smart battery charger in his cars toolkit. He suggested that you took your battery off the car and tried charging it up until you sourced a new battery; after all, you did not have a clue where to buy a new car battery from. This was a good idea and relieved the worries about getting home.

The smart charger was a Ring automotive charger and the battery was removed, with a little help from your friend and the battery took enough charge to top up the battery. The problem when the car battery keeps dying overnight is that drivers think it was just a blimp and it will be OK the next time. Some drivers keep car battery jump leads in the car boot and are forever jump starting their car. This is not recommended on today’s modern cars because of their intricate electrical systems.

With the car battery charged up your friend advises you of a  good garage to call in at and have a battery check carried out, on your way home that evening. The mechanic who tested the battery, lifted the hood and did a car battery health check. He then used a car battery load tester and soon discovered that there was a faulty cell due the cell bubbling and gassing under load from the tester.

 car battery not holding charge

This dead cell was the reason for the car battery not holding charge. The battery size was a 110, for his particular BMW and the mechanic did not have one in. The guy had remembered what his work friend had said and that we knew where he could buy cheap batteries free shipping. In fact because it was a Tuesday he could get the battery the next day if he ordered that evening. He agreed to leave his car with the mechanic who would fit his new battery when it arrived. He gave the delivery address the same as the mechanics garage, so that when it arrived it could be fitted on the car and all would be well.

Ring Automotive Smart battery charger

His wife picked him up in her Vauxhall Corsa and he left the car at the garage overnight. When he arrived home he was able to buy a car battery next day delivery from a leading battery website and chose a more upmarket battery made by Tungstone batteries. The next day the battery arrived at the garage as promised online and the mechanic fitted it onto his BMW for a small fitting fee. The guys friend picked him up for work and dropped him off at the garage for his car on the way home.

It all ended up a happy situation, but if your car struggles to start, get the battery checked straight away and fit a new one if you are not sure, this guy messed about and dithered costing him stress if nothing else, just over his cars faulty battery.

My name is Eric Roberts

Hi I would like to introduce myself. I have worked in the Garage and tyre and I am MD for online battery company www.batteriesontheweb.co.uk. I have worked for a couple for national tyre companies in my younger days, before starting my first business. I now own a garage and MOT testing centre, here in the UK called Pellon Tyre and Auto-centre, and I am a keen blogger about anything to do with cars and their related products that will help my business. We are members of Point-S and Motor-Codes and are also a Unipart Car Care Centre and of course Tyre-safe.

   

What Can Cause Your CAR BATTERY to go Flat-Advice for New Drivers

There are a few things to write about here that some drivers will know about and others, perhaps newer drivers will not know about. Some of this information is basic stuff, but you would be surprised at the number of customers that we get calling into our garage for their battery testing, who know nothing at all about their battery and how to look after it.

Car battery may not be used enough.

This is one of the commonest problems especially with the older drivers. These are the drivers that do not drive their cars very often, especially over the winter months. What they don’t realise is that modern cars are fitted with electrical devices that use small amounts of electricity 24 hours a day and slowly but surely discharge the battery over a period of time. When the driver tries to start the car then the battery will be flat and will not start the car.  

The vehicle is fitted with the wrong Car Battery

This is a problem that we can get on two different occasions. The first is when a customer comes to collect a battery without his car and gives us the wrong information about the car. The most common piece of wrong information is whether the car battery is for petrol or a diesel car. They always want a cheap battery for some reason and not the best one for their car. They always say that they think it is a petrol car or they “don’t know” it’s the “wife’s car”. The diesel battery is much stronger than the one for the petrol engine car, but is more expensive. The second one is the customers who buy a smaller battery on the internet, because the battery is a cheap battery. They always go for the 063 battery, because it is usually the best priced battery on all the websites, but is only suitable for small petrol driven cars. 

Short Journeys can flatten your Car Battery 

This really comes into the category of the battery not being used enough. There is enough power to start the car but on short journeys the car alternator does not have enough time to recharge the battery. If this continues the battery will be flattened beyond recovery and the battery will have to be replaced.

Leaving the Lights on will flatten your Car Battery

This is another common problem, drivers leave headlights on, either after a journey or perhaps when they go to the theatre in winter, if the side lights are left on then the battery will probably cope with that for a few hours, but on long winter nights the battery will be flattened.

Cold Winter weather will kill your Car Battery

This is the battery problem that most drivers will know about, and is the biggest killer of batteries fitted to anything and not just car batteries. What happens is that a cold spell will affect the chemical action of the

batteries, which results in a lack of power to start up the car. This affects the cars with older batteries, but the result is usually a new battery. The other thing is that in winter time you will be using all your electrics at once, and this will put strain on a week or old battery, which will have to be changed. This winter has been a very mild winter here in the UK and it has led to very weak car battery sales.

Very Hot weather can also kill off your Car Battery  

This is a problem that not many drivers will know about. Here in the UK he very seldom get very hot weather, but when we do then battery sales can rocket. What the heat does is to BOIL the acid in the battery. The engine heat is always very high and this combined with the heat of the outside weather can boil the battery and all the acid evaporates and leaves the battery without acid and kills the battery.

Mechanical failure can kill your Car Battery

This is what a typical car alternator looks like

This is the final thing that I think is important. You will buy a new battery for your car because your old battery is dead. Then a couple of weeks later, your new battery lets you down. This is a sure sign that you

Freezing nights like this will kill the older car battery

have a problem with your car’s alternator. The good thing is that most garages can carry out a simple test that will show whether or not the alternator has failed you. Other than the alternator there is really nothing much else can cause you battery problems, that are of the mechanical nature.

I hope this post is of use to you.

Eric Roberts

Hi I would like to introduce myself. I have worked in the Garage and tyre and I am MD for online battery company www.batteriesontheweb.co.uk. I have worked for a couple for national tyre companies in my younger days, before starting my first business. I now own a garage and MOT testing centre, here in the UK called Pellon Tyre and Auto-centre, and I am a keen blogger about anything to do with cars and their related products that will help my business. We are members of Point-S and Motor-Codes and are also a Unipart Car Care Centre and of course Tyre-safe.