Battery Woes
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Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 19,055
Likes: 235
From: Saratoga Springs,UT
Battery Woes
Hey Guys so I have this Battery I want to Experiment with it has 1 BAD Cell
I can see inside the Bad cell is the negative Post cell
All the Other Cells charged Perfict
Its Covered in white junk
I know its Probably a Lost Cause and I will end up getting a New one
But I wanted to play with it and see if theres any way to clean it and bring it back to life
Don't have nothing to Lose with it at this point so Lets Experiment
I can see inside the Bad cell is the negative Post cell
All the Other Cells charged Perfict
Its Covered in white junk
I know its Probably a Lost Cause and I will end up getting a New one
But I wanted to play with it and see if theres any way to clean it and bring it back to life
Don't have nothing to Lose with it at this point so Lets Experiment
Postmaster
Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 3,263
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From: Houston, TX
Hey Guys so I have this Battery I want to Experiment with it has 1 BAD Cell I can see inside the Bad cell is the negative Post cell All the Other Cells charged Perfict Its Covered in white junk I know its Probably a Lost Cause and I will end up getting a New one But I wanted to play with it and see if theres any way to clean it and bring it back to life Don't have nothing to Lose with it at this point so Lets Experiment
In my younger days. Ahhhh, I miss it sometimes.
But ur right Benny. It wouldn't hurt to experiment. U could empty everything out, clean it up good and refill with battery fluid. It might resurrect tat battery.
Dom
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Joined: Apr 2010
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From: Saratoga Springs,UT
Yes a Cleaner
I think the white junk is Sulfate crap
I mean that Battery Hydro tested Great 5 Cells still as good as new BUT 1 was Compeatly Dead
But I sure was surprised at the 5 cells for a Battery that's atleast 6 Years Old and just sat for 3 Years
It was at 9.25volts yesterday when I threw it on the charger I just charged it for 24hours @ 2 amps all cells revived but that 1
But I want to drain the one cell and put something in there to clean it then I will refill it
Might try and Pop the top off it
Need some Acid or something to Clean it
Maybe CLR LOL IDK
I think the white junk is Sulfate crap
I mean that Battery Hydro tested Great 5 Cells still as good as new BUT 1 was Compeatly Dead
But I sure was surprised at the 5 cells for a Battery that's atleast 6 Years Old and just sat for 3 Years
It was at 9.25volts yesterday when I threw it on the charger I just charged it for 24hours @ 2 amps all cells revived but that 1
But I want to drain the one cell and put something in there to clean it then I will refill it
Might try and Pop the top off it
Need some Acid or something to Clean it
Maybe CLR LOL IDK
Fleet Owner
Joined: Apr 2012
Posts: 27,307
Likes: 549
From: Spanaway
It's worth a shot. You can still get the core charge out of it
if you happen to kill it. Lead is LEAD
Sean
if you happen to kill it. Lead is LEAD
Sean
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Senior User
Joined: Sep 2011
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From: Riverton UT.
I played around with this on the batteries in the boat takes 4 of them and eats them quickly, I didn't have much luck so let me know if you do.
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Joined: Apr 2010
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From: Saratoga Springs,UT
well from what I gather is the Epsom salt causes corrosion so you can maybe get past the Sulfate and get to some fresh lead
I watched a bunch of videos on it
Some said they had better luck if they took the battery thru a bunch of Charge and discharge cycles
the Other videos I watched was on electronic Desulfaters Some ran electronic desulfaters for a month at a Time shocking the suklfate off the cells
Still doing research so will post back
I watched a bunch of videos on it
Some said they had better luck if they took the battery thru a bunch of Charge and discharge cycles
the Other videos I watched was on electronic Desulfaters Some ran electronic desulfaters for a month at a Time shocking the suklfate off the cells
Still doing research so will post back
Mountain Pass
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 183
Likes: 12
I used the epsom salts as well. It basically corodes the build up and causes it to disolve off the plates.
I did it on my boat batteries (2). One wouldn't take a charge at all, and the other wouldn't hold a charge, and it's load capacity was crap.
That was two years ago, and even though I don't believe they are 100%, I would say that they are still a good 80%.
If you can get the battery open, it's worth it.
I did it on my boat batteries (2). One wouldn't take a charge at all, and the other wouldn't hold a charge, and it's load capacity was crap.
That was two years ago, and even though I don't believe they are 100%, I would say that they are still a good 80%.
If you can get the battery open, it's worth it.
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Joined: Apr 2010
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From: Saratoga Springs,UT
I can ALREADY see the Plates are a little cleaner since I put the Epson salt in it
For Kicks I Took my battery Hydrometer and Tested the Water/Epsom salt solution It tested at the TOP of the Scale on the Battery Hydrometer LOL
But I put a Epson Rich Load in the Bad Cell and a little in Each Cell and mixed it Good threw the Battery in the car and Turned the Headlights on for 1.5-2 hours and Drained it. Got it Hooked back up to the Charger and the Bad cell is Showing Sign of Recovering it has a Few Bubbles coming up as it charges it had ABSOLUTLY NO BUBBLES Before when I charged it
So How well it recovers well see
Wish I had a Battery Desulfater to
But will update 24 hours after it gets a Good Slow Trickle charge
For Kicks I Took my battery Hydrometer and Tested the Water/Epsom salt solution It tested at the TOP of the Scale on the Battery Hydrometer LOL
But I put a Epson Rich Load in the Bad Cell and a little in Each Cell and mixed it Good threw the Battery in the car and Turned the Headlights on for 1.5-2 hours and Drained it. Got it Hooked back up to the Charger and the Bad cell is Showing Sign of Recovering it has a Few Bubbles coming up as it charges it had ABSOLUTLY NO BUBBLES Before when I charged it
So How well it recovers well see
Wish I had a Battery Desulfater to
But will update 24 hours after it gets a Good Slow Trickle charge
Tuned
Joined: Oct 2009
Posts: 425
Likes: 4
I give credit for good service from batteries to connecting a Battery Tender to them on a regular basis. The 2 Motorcrafts that was on my 2004 F-250 from the factory are presently on a tractor and a gasoline truck. The origional 2003 Kasakai Mule battery lasted until 2012. Before I started routinly using the Tender I was lucky to get 18 to 24 months out of lawn tractor batteries. The last 2 batteries went 36+ months. The 2 tenders are on something all the time.
If you connect a maintainer charger after a long trip,you will notice it topping off for a long period before switching over to maintainance mode.
Keep us posted on your rehab experiment.
If you connect a maintainer charger after a long trip,you will notice it topping off for a long period before switching over to maintainance mode.
Keep us posted on your rehab experiment.
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Hotshot
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 19,055
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From: Saratoga Springs,UT
well guys it was a Failure
this battery had sat for 3 years and was discharged to 9.17volts when I started to play with it
I had it charging for about 3 dAYS at first it would turn off my charger after 10 hrs or so then I discharged it some with the headlights on and had it on the charger for about 36hrs at 2 amps and it was still in the 10 volts range unless you think its going to take a few days of charging????
I hear ya on the battery minder I need to get one going
this battery had sat for 3 years and was discharged to 9.17volts when I started to play with it
I had it charging for about 3 dAYS at first it would turn off my charger after 10 hrs or so then I discharged it some with the headlights on and had it on the charger for about 36hrs at 2 amps and it was still in the 10 volts range unless you think its going to take a few days of charging????
I hear ya on the battery minder I need to get one going
Lead Driver
Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 8,241
Likes: 155
From: L.A. (Lower Alabama)
My Grandpa was a big fan of this stuff (VX-6) and I remember using it successfully a couple of times. Lee Petty can't be wrong...right? Anyway, the fourth item down is a modern equivalent that might be worth a shot.
vx-6 battery additive | eBay
A couple of other issues are a heavy handed mechanic, banging on the terminals or twisting hard when they aren't loose, or (most common) hammering the terminals on can break the weld inside the battery. No amount of cleaning is gonna fix that. Also, a battery that's been overheated can have warped plates that eventually wear through the separators enough to allow them to touch. No fixing that at home either.
vx-6 battery additive | eBay
A couple of other issues are a heavy handed mechanic, banging on the terminals or twisting hard when they aren't loose, or (most common) hammering the terminals on can break the weld inside the battery. No amount of cleaning is gonna fix that. Also, a battery that's been overheated can have warped plates that eventually wear through the separators enough to allow them to touch. No fixing that at home either.