Car Battery Care.

[pop3]

Just a thought about topping up a battery. As Thailand is such a hot place and under bonnet temperature here can get very high I find myself having to top up my battery quite often. Although I top up with distilled water I wonder if all this topping up is in fact diluting the acid content of my battery ?

What would be the outcome of topping my battery up with the bottles of acid like they use when the battery is new ? would it keep the battery acid level up, or is it dangerous ?

[intumult]

Just a thought about topping up a battery. As Thailand is such a hot place and under bonnet temperature here can get very high I find myself having to top up my battery quite often. Although I top up with distilled water I wonder if all this topping up is in fact diluting the acid content of my battery ?

What would be the outcome of topping my battery up with the bottles of acid like they use when the battery is new ? would it keep the battery acid level up, or is it dangerous ?

Never had a problem when filling up with acid in the uk. Had to go to a chemist to buy the acid though and be asked why I wanted it.

AFAIK topping up with distilled water does no harm and does not dilute the acid.

I doubt if your battery will last that much longer anyway and I recently bought a 120 amp battery for 2,500 Baht (seems the jokers that sold the car took the original battery out and replaced it with a 20 amp)!!!

TiT after all.

[Crossy]

It is very unusual to have to add acid to a battery, unless you're using a hydrometer to check the cells you should only ever add distilled water. Adding acid without checking the specific gravity of the cells is not good practice.

If you're topping up often have the charging system checked, you could be overcharging which will wreck the battery.

Useful info here http://men.msn.com/articlepm.aspx?cp-documentid=702625

Edited December 13, 2007 by Crossy

[thedivezone]

Just a thought about topping up a battery. As Thailand is such a hot place and under bonnet temperature here can get very high I find myself having to top up my battery quite often. Although I top up with distilled water I wonder if all this topping up is in fact diluting the acid content of my battery ?

What would be the outcome of topping my battery up with the bottles of acid like they use when the battery is new ? would it keep the battery acid level up, or is it dangerous ?

You're topping up your battery because liquid has been lost through condensation. It's only the water in your battery that condensates and not the acid, that's why you're topping up with distilled water.

Hope that helps.

Mike

[elkangorito]

In actual fact, overcharging & extended hot climates (conditions) can cause the evaporation of acid, albeit quite a small amount. In any case & as Crossy said, a Hydrometer must be used to check this condition (people laughed at me in the past when I mentioned this very helpful & cheap tool). The electrolyte solution should be a 36% Sulphuric Acid dilution (with water).

[Flatouthruthefog]

In actual fact, overcharging & extended hot climates (conditions) can cause the evaporation of acid, albeit quite a small amount. In any case & as Crossy said, a Hydrometer must be used to check this condition (people laughed at me in the past when I mentioned this very helpful & cheap tool). The electrolyte solution should be a 36% Sulphuric Acid dilution (with water).

All this is a bit high tech for me but I'd like to offer a little related info.

a) The best and cheapest source of distilled water for your battery is melt water from de-frosting your fridge and/or feezer. Or just let a tray of ice cubes melt in the sun.

NEVER buy a cheap Thai-made battery, especially if you do not use your car every day. Cars do like to be used regularly, but if you only use yours 2-3 days a week, your cheap Thai battery won't last a year. And forget about those "guarantees"! Any well known Japanese make of battery should be OK and the Rolls Royce of the market for me is Vata from Germany, all available in Thailand.

c) If you use your car very infrequently (in and out of the realm every few months?), disconnect the battery before you go to stop it running flat. Or, if like me you hurt yourself every time you pick up tools, buy a low cost battery cut-off switch (as mandatorily used in motor sport) from US or UK (never seen them on sale here). Isolates the battery at the flick of a switch or turn of a small screw, and when you re-connect weeks or months later all should be well. dam_n good anti-theft device too!

[pop3]

Thank's, A lot of good advice there. I think I will try to find a hydrometer somewhere ? as was suggested. I used to own one years ago and it was useful to find out if you had a dead cell.

The battery cut off switch that was mentioned can be bought in this country from a boat yard or boat shop but you will unfortunately be paying boat prices !