Maintain & Check Your Lead Acid Battery With Removable Caps

[LibertyTC]

What is the most neglected fluid in your Jeep? Answer: The electrolyte.
Even after you run around town with your lights on, Park, and then have your interior lights or stereo in use, is your battery really fully charged?
I will demonstrate how to charge & maintain & test the specific gravity of your lead acid battery with removable caps. This will keep your battery in top condition and should extend the life of your battery greatly!
I would recommend that everyone regardless of battery type, charge the battery & then have a load test done on your battery every fall. Volts multiplied by amps is important! One day soon, I hope to own a decent load tester!

Lead acid batteries with removable caps are recommended for those in warm to hot regions as you can add distilled water.(Rubber gloves & Eye protection, absolutely required when working around electrolyte)
The Chrysler stock battery is this type.
How does temperature effect batteries? Even with a new battery at 32F the cranking power is reduced by 35%.
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In chart above the "extreme cold folks" use battery blankets plugged in/block heaters/synthetic oils & or park inside!
As the temperature drops if you keep your battery charged & maintained, you wont be left in the cold.
Lead-acid batteries must be maintained at or near full charge to prevent deterioration of the lead plates inside READ! :http://www.aa1car.com/library/2003/us20310.htm

Inspect your Battery terminals to ensure they are free from corrosion and tight.
2.5 years later mine are clean cause they were coated in Vaseline!
In the am I check the voltage after sitting all night at 46F 12.82 Volts.
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12.82V is ok however, lets top it up, and use a manual charger, from 2 to 6 amps once a week for cooler temps(late fall/winter) & once a month in spring/summer temps.
Please read "Knowing Your Output Voltages" on the thread below for BCM (body control module) cautions,
If you are not going to remove the Jeep's Pos/Neg cables before charging.
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Charged 3 hours@ 6amps, Now Disconnected- off for 10 minutes, I have a great reading..a good sign of a strong battery!
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I suppose I should have started with this, I knew My electrolyte level was up, but lets see inside and check the level:
Wear eye protection and use rubber gloves around here. The electrolyte is highly corrosive and vapors flammable.
Have a gallon of water and baking soda ready near the Jeep, should a spill occur.
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And then lets see how that battery charge, improved the actual state of charge, by reading the specific gravity of the Electrolyte!
A strong battery should read well above 1.275 (mine is off the scale!)
Note:Check each cell ! If one is weak, it will show right away and may indicate it is time for a new battery!
Hydrometer Info Link: http://ezgo.smartmanual.biz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=35&Itemid=127
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Now it is time to start the Jeep and check the Voltage going into the battery.
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I hope this helps....looks like my battery/charge is good.
Even after all of this..Load test your battery once a year in the fall. Many battery shops will perform this test for free.
In closing, I would like to add that if you have ever have found your battery dead, the best course of action is to check electrolyte level, & trickle charge that battery for 24 hours ASAP @ 2 amps. Then perform all the tests.
:favorites13:

 

[Dave]

Nice TC. That tester looks like a Harbor Freight el-cheapo but seems like it is reading ok.

I have a scangauge that reads charging system voltage and it reads real close to your 14.68 reading. Actually around 14.2-14.6 ideling.

I just replaced my OEM battery so it is sitting on the bench and reading full charge but I had a couple of slow cranks and reading 11.8v or something like that after the jeep sat 2 days. I didn't trust it for the winter as it gets cold here. The jeep was sitting in the garage too. I'll bet a load test would kill it.

Dave

 

[LibertyTC]

Thanks Dave...I also have an OBDII ****-trip 4 in -1 and it reads 14.6 to 14.9 at idle.
Take a Hydrometer to your stock bench battery after charging, you might be surprised!
Only with a hydrometer can you see the state of charge on each cell through the actual specific gravity readings.
Cold weather as indicated on the chart I posted, tells the story.
Keep your battery charged especially as the weather gets colder and hopefully you will not experience a no start condition. Cheers.
Note: Only driving 20 minutes per day does not qualify for a decent charge on your battery. All vehicle batteries appreciate a good charge from a manual charger!
The average reading of your battery left overnight at 50 degrees, should be a minimum of 12.5 volts. (based on interior lights off at stalk) and only quick drain from drivers door to unlock and get the hood open.
If it is below that..your battery is in need of a good charge and a load test should then be performed. Manually charging a weaker battery at 2 amps for 24 hours is a longer lasting charge.
A stronger (newer) battery like mine likes the higher voltage provided by the 6amp charge at 3 hours.
I leave the battery in Kj and to avoid sparks, I have no power going to the charger, make the positive connection first, then the negative connection from the charger, then I plug the charger in to house current.
Manually charging a battery warms the battery, but never charge a frozen battery.

 

[LibertyTC]

Knowing your output voltages for older manual Chargers !

It would be recommended that you remove the Jeep's positive and negative cables off the battery posts before charging.
Then you can simply disregard most ....of the next comments.

If you are going to hook up like lazy me, with the Jeep's pos/neg still connected to the battery, (saving stored settings without a battery saver) be sure you know from your charger, what the output voltage is! and read on..
I am pretty careful before I charge the jeep, knowing the BCM might not like the extra juice if your charger is putting out much more than a normal alternator voltage output.
To avoid sparks, I have no power going to the charger, make the positive connection first, then the negative connection from the charger, then I plug the charger in to house current.

Photos below:
You can see at a 2 amp charge rate ,it is within a normal alternator output range 14.54 volts.This is acceptable. Consider 12hr(just to top up) to 24 hours(weak battery) @ 2amp, a quality charge.

In the 6 amp mode (3 hours) the charger is over 2 volts above the alternator range at 17.12 volts! I have not had any problems at 6 amp but still I take some steps to be on the safe side.
Leave the hood open for ventilation, use multifunction switch to turn the interior lights off, close the doors, and ensure the mileage is no longer showing on odometer. Now jeep has mainly turned itself off, then you can begin the charge.
So after unplugging the charger, I ensure that I wait 5 minutes or so before I open the door, or use the FOB for instance, to allow the battery voltage to settle down to within it's normal range.


Every charger varies in output voltages. The boat battery below is the same as Jeep a group 34.
This is how I monitored & created a base line for "MY" charger of voltages, before I ever directly hooked up to the jeep.
You must be (under a load) connected to a battery to correctly obtain the charger's voltage output.
Note: This is a 7 year old more manual type Charger, but NOT a new "Intelligent type" so expect higher outputs from this type of charger.
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Motorcycle & smaller batteries should only be charged at 2 amp trickle, as higher amps cause the battery to really boil,(extreme venting) and can overheat the cells and melt case.
If you must add distilled water to any type of battery, here is a gradutaed way, & assists you in adding to the cells.(see last photo below)
Wear eye protection and use rubber gloves when removing the caps and filling. I always have baking soda & 1 Gallon of water ready at hand.
The electrolyte is highly corrosive, baking soda & water neutralizes the mixture should a surface/skin come in contact with the electrolyte.
If you had electrolyte touch your skin, flush with luke warm water /baking soda, then use a soap wash immediately, continue flushing with water for 10 minutes.
If it gets in your eyes, immediate continuous water flush & call 911. Neutral saline solution is required!
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Have good ventilation when charging, avoid sparks ! & Occasionally Battery Needs a "SHOT" of this !

Choice re Battery Chargers!-Lets Take a Look at the "Intelligent" modern fully automatic,weatherproof, Lead Acid & AGM/Gel 3.3 amp charger.
These types of chargers should remain within a normal Alternator's voltage output(under 14.9volts) but still occasionally check them.
This is a top of the line, that includes pulse & Desulphation. (brings back a weak battery better) IT can safely be left attached 24/7 and came with ring terminals & top post clamps.
These modern chargers are great for leaving them connected, and not worry about having to time your connections.
In the photos below you can see that on the boat battery that was close to fully charged, it does NOT initially want to charge. It will turn on once voltage drops automatically.
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I had to disconnect the terminals 3 times, to force it to begin a decent charge. It only charged for 5 minutes and then read fully charged. Normal.
It responded normally to the motorcycle battery and began a charge immediately.
Personally I like my larger manual charger that has 2 & 6 amp capabilities with higher output voltages.
Then you can really top up a battery, and be guaranteed a decent continuous output. Manual timing..you hook up and take off the connections based on time.
AGM can be charged this way, within a normal alternator output, like stated above at 2 amps.
Either charger will work ok, I leave the choice up to you. Any manual charging is better than none.
Since I have both types now, I have installed the modern charger's permanent ring terminal connector. This makes connections easy and can easily move & connect to another vehicle with the supplied terminal clamps.
The modern charger also has a AGM/snowflake mode. This is the multi setting when battery remains outside in 41F or 5 Celsius or below, will automatically trickle & takes care of business on it's own.
You also can permanently mount this type of charger in The Jeep as well.
The Final Shootout
For this article I bought another new Lead acid/ AGM "Intelligent" battery charger in 2-4-6 amp similar to the older 2-6 amp to compare! (OK..it was $30 on sale -Reg $60)
No it is not waterproof, no you can't mount it on the Jeep, but for overall use, I really like it! It is quite compact and has a built in cooling fan, it stays cool (unlike the old one)
I had some reservations knowing the smaller transformer would not have quite the output, but can it charge even close...lets see.
First off I drained the boat battery pretty good, by attaching a 60 watt trouble light for 30 minutes.
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In 2 amp mode it provided 13.3 volts, and was climbing slowly. In 6 amp mode it provided 14.29 volts which is very good, and as intelligent, stayed within a normal alternator output.
The old charger did have more output at 16.80 volts so it can charge a battery faster, but above a normal alternator output.(Ok for lead acid but not good for AGM)
In the last photo by placing a good draw on the battery with the 60 watt trouble light on, the intelligent compact does very well by keeping up, and charging at 13.62 volts in 6 amp mode.
In this particular situation 6 amp mode works very well and would charge your battery quickly and in safe efficient manor.
This new charger has a basic led light to tell you when it's on and charging, and took 45 minutes to when it was fully charged, with the charge/maintaining light now on.
Conclusion: This newer style "intelligent" charger works as promised. They will maintain both lead acid and AGM batteries very well. You do not have to spend lots to have one either.

 

[Dave]

I stickied this thread. Is that ok with you, TC? I can always un-sticky it if you want.

Dave

 

[LibertyTC]

That's Cool Dave..appreciated!:happy160:
Follow as above and you will get 2 years more from your batteries!! :icon_biggrin:
Besides who wants to turn the key in the middle of winter and hear..CLICK!:disgust:

 

[LibertyTC]

A decade later, I wanted to add some modern battery information to this thread.
Even though lead acid batteries with removable caps may still have an advantage in very hot regions, the concern has always been venting & corrosion to battery terminals.
Many manufactures have moved into maintenance free starting batteries. It's also good to hear that many come with reasonable warranties.

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Here is a group 34 as an example, with 700 CCA & 900 CA. Warranty is 42 months.

The next modern deep cycle batteries are now called AGM- (Abosrb glass Mat) and are better sealed. (No terminal corrosion)
Very powerful long lasting, & perform excellent in hot or cold weather.
Yes they are bit more expensive. I think they are worth it when it comes to reliability, longevity, with very good value!
NAPA - Bosch- Exide- Dekka are some that provide good AGM batteries to consider as well. Some available in top/side post versions (dual terminals)

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Of course if you buy the very best, it won't die like the rest. & never suffer from any type of catastrophic failure..It only slowly degrades over time...
Then a "Virgin Lead" Odyssey Pc1500-34/78 that has a service life of 10 to 12 years may be for you !

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My Odyssey is approaching 10 years soon & with charging occasionally, I expect to get 12 years from it.
Today it's still at 70% state of charge, & continues to easily start the Jeep. Amazing battery but expensive.

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AGM PowerSport/ Motorcyle batteries are now also available. I hope this information is somewhat helpful.