Car Battery Reconditioning
Modern cars are much more complex than cars built twenty or thirty years ago. Manufacturers build advanced cars and include more and more accessories and features in their cars, and all these features are based on electricity to run. In addition, in some cases, people install after market accessories into their cars (such as more powerful audio systems) and it should come to no surprise that a car’s battery is very heavily loaded.
You may use the car’s electric systems to excess or you may forget you left your car’s headlights on over night. So batteries problems are quite common and frequent and if you know what to do in such scenarios, reconditioning an old battery or reviving an apparent dead battery is quite easy.
The most important of these actions can be performed by anyone with the proper equipment and the necessary accessories and best of all it will not cost you over $40. In fact, these tips can be put into practice when it comes to various batteries reconditioning, from car batteries to cell phone and even iPod batteries.
You can even take things further, because if you learn how to recondition batteries, you may even find it to be a profitable business venture on a small scale. There are several things you have to take into consideration when reconditioning a battery.
First, batteries of all sorts, car batteries included, are filled with dangerous acid and proper handling is vital to avoid any accidents. If you injure yourself while reconditioning a battery, consult a medic at once, as many dangerous chemical elements are included in a modern car battery. Batteries nowadays are more environmental friendly than a couple years ago, but they still have components that are dangerous to the environment so dead batteries and batteries’ parts should be disposed of in their proper places.
So let us get started and you will see how easy battery reconditioning really is. Modern rechargeable batteries allow users to forget about annoying power cables that hinder the manipulation of power tools and that restrict movement of any device to length of the cable from a power source. Many electric devices are portable and their batteries are very compact as well. When reconditioning batteries, it is important to take on board that an unhealthy battery can have its causes in the chargers that malfunction.
However, more frequently, it is the battery, which is killing the charger. People will go and buy new chargers all the time, without knowing that the problem is in the battery itself.
Every battery has a determined lifespan in which it functions properly and once this period has passed, a battery will require reconditioning. Car batteries are no different. They are charged while the car is moving, but after some years, a car battery will require maintenance as well. New batteries develop a memory effect but reconditioning a battery properly should remove this effect completely.
Another important thing when reconditioning a battery is to know how to accurately measure the charge capacity of the battery in question. This will vary from battery to battery, but once you know precisely how much energy a battery can store at a given time, you can start assessing the amount of improvement you have to do to the battery. Knowing how to revert a reversed cell cannot be overstated as you will not be able to recondition the battery until you have fixed the reversed cell.
Help answer the question about car battery maintenance
Can I replace a car battery cable?
I’m very inexperienced when it comes to car maintenance. I need to replace the positive battery cable on a 1999 Camry. Is this a job for a mechanic or is it D.I.Y. for a novice?
About Author
Dennis runs Car Dealer Check which has independent Car Dealer Reviews written by the car dealerships customers and information on Car Buying Tips.
9 Comments to “Car Battery Reconditioning”
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By CrashKillaThaDon, November 14, 2009 @ 4:59 am
your the guy who buys all that crap by ronco , all that is junk ! forget the snake oil salesman, all they do is take your hard earned money, now for the facts, any and all batteries and I'm talking about car, boat , airplane etc. only have a life spans of 4, 5 years, that's it ! if your battery is anywhere this age, replace it , or your be sitting on the side of the road.
By mann, November 14, 2009 @ 5:31 am
Car batteries lose charge over time due to sulfation. It's possible to reverse some of this by using a charger that sends a high current through the battery.
This cleans up the lead plates and extends the lifespan of your car battery. I've tried it with my own battery and it works.
By punch1234, November 14, 2009 @ 9:12 pm
check your alternator and battery for loose cables. make sure the terminals on the battery properly secured and not able to slip.
for the alternator, check the cables and make sure each bolt is tightened to it's maximum.
By vistal1, November 15, 2009 @ 3:18 am
a cell is like a D cell for your flash light , it only becomes a battery when 2 or more cells are hooked together. car battery's are 6-2 volt cells hooked together, usually what kills a battery is the vibration or poor maintaining. in order to refurbish it you have to go inside and re-connect the loose joints and its only worth doing that if your doing it as a Business, not if you want to save a few bucks as a home project, other than that its just a flush, new acid and a slow trickle charge.
By deansbelief99, November 15, 2009 @ 1:11 pm
With your filter mask, gloves,face sheild, and apron on with no body parts exposed, remove the plates and clean them off, then refill it with fresh acid. The waste material is considered toxic waste so then you must find a battery shop to dispose of it.
In other words, go get a new one.
By The Pastor, November 15, 2009 @ 3:42 pm
I'm sure that it's on the web somewhere already. Or perhaps you can create a website yourself.
By J B, November 15, 2009 @ 4:13 pm
If a battery fails for any of these reasons, no chemicals will fix it:
* broken case
* broken terminal post
* open cell (a connection to a plate breaks off)
* short circuited by sludge build up (pieces of the plates that slough off and fall to the bottom of the case during the normal discharge/recharge process — this is the normal way for a battery to wear out).
If the electrolyte levels are low, the chemical you need is "distilled water" — water evaporates but sulphuric acid does not. The minerals in tap water adhere to the plates and interfere with discharging & recharging. Add enough to cover the top of the plates.
If you've managed to spill the electrolyte, you'll need sulfuric acid to replace it. Mix it with distilled water — use a hydrometer to get the mixture right.
If a battery fails due to sulfation (caused by storage at less than 100% charge, or by letting the electrolyte level stay low), rumor has it you can restore it with high-voltage pulses. I have a charger with "desulfate" mode, tried it on a couple batteries, it didn't help — that doesn't mean it won't work on the right battery.
Far as I know, that's all the ways batteries can fail — and I don't know of any chemicals that can "recondition" 'em.
By clearmindpro, November 15, 2009 @ 10:17 pm
If they have pop off caps. pop them off and look into battery cells and see if acid is about 1/4 inch below rim of hole, check all cells. if they are full, then place them on battery charger and charge, for at least 12 hours, or until charger says it is fully charged. If their is not enough acid in each cell,DO NOT FILL WITH WATER! this reduces the acid content and the battery will not live long,. Go to Advance auto parts store and purchase Battery acid refill bottles.They contain pure battery acid which is what you need for optimal performance
By Info_Newbie_Seeker_Dummy, November 16, 2009 @ 12:18 pm
not a dime. since doing this is hardly worth my time to repair/ vs buying a new better performing batt, and it is so simple to do so for the initiated. Plus most of this is readily available on the web. Further I would not risk voiding my warranty on my consumer electronics, by the actions you describe you will be doing.
P.S. You are not supposed to ask about locations!