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Battery posts corrosion

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Old Apr 12, 2011 | 02:50 PM
  #1  
poocher pup's Avatar
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Battery posts corrosion

Hello new to this part of the site but, my question is that my '04 positive battery posts will corrode within days of cleaning and coating them. Even went old-school and tried grease to no effect. Seems worse on primary battery than backup. If this has been asked before please forgive me as i searched and came up empty. Thanks in advance for any help.
 
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Old Apr 12, 2011 | 06:30 PM
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Verify all the battery grounds are in good shape.
Charge the batteries and then load test them individually.

Do you have a voltage gauge to watch when the alternator kicks on? If so, what is it?
Consider testing the alternator as well.
 
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Old Apr 13, 2011 | 08:28 AM
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Has this been happening for a while or did it only recently start?

Have you recently replaced your batteries?

From what I understand corrosion occurs due to acidic gas reacting with the lead in the battery post. A certain amount of gas is normally vented when the battery is in use, however you might be venting too much gas. Also sometimes there is a slight acid leak. The leak can be almost undetectable but can be enough to cause the situation you are describing.

Edit -- The red and green donuts that go under the cable connectors are treated with a chemical to slow the normal corrosion reaction.
 
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Old Apr 13, 2011 | 08:40 AM
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Well, there are a couple things you can try. It could be that the primary battery is failing and getting overcharged/ofgassing. Check the water levels. If you can park the truck for a couple days, disconnect both batteries, clean all the cable and terminal ends with a terminal cleaner, rinse everything with a mild baking soda/water wash. Assuming both batteries are charged the same prior to starting, measure the voltage and or have a load test done on each. They need to be very close, 0.2 volts of each other. Apply a little green loctite around the joint between the case and battery post if leakage of acid is suspected. If the batteries are 2004, it may be time to head down and get a new pair of motorcraft batteries. (Ford parts have been super competitive on prices)
 
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Old Apr 16, 2011 | 06:11 PM
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Thanks i will check on batteries and alt.
 
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