Starting Batteries

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Starting Batteries

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How do batteries work? Each cell has a number of positive plates made of lead (sponge lead? ... the lead and sponge lead plates turn to Lead sulfate and... – PowerPoint PPT presentation

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Title: Starting Batteries

1
Starting Batteries

How do batteries work?
Each cell has a number of positive plates made of
lead (sponge lead?)
And negative plates of ???

2
How do batteries work?

When the two dissimilar metal plates are immersed
in acid they create a voltage
This voltage is created by the concentrating
Negative Ions on the negative plates and Positive
Ions on the positive plates

3
How do batteries work?

As batteries discharge the acid is turned to
water and the lead plates are turned into lead
sulfate
When both plates are turned to lead sulfate the
battery is discharged or dead

4
How many volts does one battery cell produce?

2.1 volts
How many cells in a 12 volt battery?
6 cells
How many volts in a 12 volt battery?
12.6
How can you get 12.6 volts out of a bunch of 2.1
volt cells?
wire them in series

5
What comes out of a battery?

Electrical POWER
what is power?
Watts volts X Amps
How do you get more volts out of a battery?
add more cells in series
How do diesel vehicles get 24 volts for starting
wiring 2-12 volt, or 4-6 volt batteries in
series

6
What happens as all the amps get used up?

The electolyte turns to water and...
...the lead and sponge lead plates turn to Lead
sulfate and...
...the acid will no longer strip electrons from
the positive plates
...and add them to the negative plates
The battery will go DEAD

7
How can we build a battery to supply more amps?

add more lead plates to each individual cell
more lead plates in a cell will increase?
...cranking amps
amp hour rating

8
So what battery should I use?

1) A battery with the proper voltage
...6 volt, 12 volt, 24 volt
2) A battery with enough amp capacity...
Cold Cranking Amps, or amp hour rating
3) A battery with that will fit in the carrier
...BCI Group rating

9
BCI Group rating

How tall is the battery
How wide is the battery
How long is the battery
Where are the terminals located

10
If the battery is the correct BCI Group...

is it correct battery?
NO! it must meet vehicle specific capacity
Manufacturer will specify a minimum CCA... or
Amp hour rating
Adding plates to a cell increases the amp
capacity
Adding plates (surface area) will lengthen the
service life of the battery
Adding plates increases price.

11
Deep Cycle batteries

Some RV and Marine batteries are different
They are intended to operate smaller electrical
loads (lights, 12 volt accessories, trolling
motors etc.) for long periods of time without
being recharged.
They are called Deep Cycle batteries as they can
withstand many cycles of long slow discharging
followed by long slow charging.

12
Deep Cycle batteries

Rapid discharging (like the hundreds of amps
pulled by a starter motor) will ruin a Deep Cycle
battery
...it will overheat the plates.

13
Starting Batteries

The function of the battery is to start the
engine
Then the generator will run all electrical
loads.
Some Recreational Vehicles use both a starting
battery and a deep cycle battery.
The deep cycle battery is not hooked to the
starter motor.

14
Starting Batteries

If you allow a starting battery to slowly go dead
it will SULFATE
This happens when lead sulfate (formed when a
battery discharges) crystallizes on the surface
of the lead plates.
This will not allow the battery to fully
recharge
Sometimes a sulfated battery will not recharge
at all.

15
What type of battery do I sell to the customer?

Proper BCI Group number
So it will fit in the vehicle
The proper type battery
Cranking or Deep Cycle
The more CCA the better
Make sure it meets the minimum
required by the manufacturer

16
When do I add battery Acid?

Only for filling dry charged batteries
Do not add acid to a battery already in service
Some batteries are assembled but the acid is
left out until it is ready for sale (Dry
Charged)
The acid is added just before it is installed in
the vehicle

17
Storing Batteries

When a battery is new the lead and acid will
begin to react and it will slowly discharge.
Any battery that sits unused for several months
will slowly go dead and begin to sulfate.
This will ruin the battery..
All batteries be periodically recharged.
New batteries, awaiting sale, are given a
trickle charge on a regular schedule

18
What do I add to a battery with low electrolyte?

Distilled (or de-mineralized) water.
Adding tap water will encourage electrolysis
This will speed up the loss of that water when
charging and discharging
It will also encourage corrosion on the battery
cables

19
How full do I fill the battery

Fill until the electrolyte just touches the fill
ring
Practice thisYou can see just when it touches
If you overfillYou can pull the extra out
it your syringe is clean (use a hydrometer)

20
CLEAN CLEAN CLEAN

Be sure any item that touches the electrolyte is
washed
Clean battery hydrometer with plenty of water
after each use

21
How can I make the battery live longer?

1) make sure the battery hold down is solid
vibration will knock material off the lead
plates, lower the amp capacity, and short out
cells.
2) keep the battery clean
as the battery cycles acid gets all over the
case,
this will corrode the cables
...and also provides a path for current to slowly
discharge the battery between terminals
(this can be measured with a volt meter)

22
2) Keep the battery clean

Always clean the battery with the vent caps on to
avoid contaminating the cells.
Baking soda and water works well to neutralize
any battery acid as do battery cleaning spray
cans.
Rinse with lots of water after neutralizing the
acid
Soap and water works great to clean a battery

23
How can I make the battery live longer?

3) keep the battery full...use distilled water
and do not over fill.
If the battery is extra low check the charging
system for overcharging
If low electrolyte with no removable vent
caps...
...replace the battery after double checking the
charging system.

24
How can I make the battery live longer?

4) Keep the battery fully charged
...make sure the cables are not corroded
5) Check for parasitic drains .....A parasitic
draw of up to .050 amps is acceptable.
6) Do not allow the battery to freeze
...a dead battery can freeze at 15 ?F
a fully charged battery will survive 50?F

25
Frozen Batteries

DO NOT ATTEMPT TO JUMP START OR CHARGE A FROZEN
BATTERY
A charging battery forms Hydrogen gas that will
be trapped by the ice and can cause the battery
to explode.
A frozen battery is ruined due to the ice
breaking up the sponge lead plates
Once thawed out it will soon fail.

26
Frozen Batteries

Replace frozen batteries.
A frozen battery will have a bulged out case that
will not reform
An overcharged battery can also cause the case to
bulge or distort.
If the case looks distorted test the battery and
the charging system

27
How can I test the battery?

1) you can only accurately test a fully charged
battery
An undercharged battery might fail the load test
Load testing an undercharged battery may lead to
unnecessary battery replacement

28
How do I determine the battery State of charge?

Use a hydrometer and compensate for the
temperature of the battery
As a battery discharges the acid turns to water
Acid is thicker and will float the hydrometer
scale higher
A fully charged battery cell has a specific
gravity of 1.265 at 80 degrees

29
Hydrometer Testing

A colder battery will measure higher as cold
liquid is thicker
A cold battery may look charged actually be
undercharged
Check each cell
If the lowest cell is .050 points lower than the
highest cell the battery is defective
If water has just been added to the battery it
will give a false hydrometer reading

30
What if there are no removable vent caps?

Some batteries include a built in hydrometer.
This checks one cell only
Indicates the battery is at least 75 charged
when green (or not black/clear)
You can also test a battery state of charge with
a volt meter

31
Testing the battery state of charge with a volt
meter

12.6 V a fully charged battery
12.4 V 75 charged
12.2 V 50 charged

32
My battery reads 13.2 Volts...Is it overcharged?

Some recombinant batteries maintain a slightly
higher open circuit voltage
Normal batteries will also register a surface
charge.
This is not an accurate reading of the state of
charge

33
How do I accurately get an open circuit voltage
reading ?

To remove the surface charge place a 250 amp load
on the battery, or crank the engine (without
starting) for 15 seconds,
Let the battery recover for five minutes, with
the key off and all accessories turned off.
A vehicle that has not been run for several hours
will have an accurate open circuit voltage
reading

34
Do I really have to do all this before testing
the battery?

Only if the battery fails the load test
If the battery passes the capacity or load test
...the battery is good.
If the battery fails the load (or capacity)
test
...let it sit for five minutes
...recheck the open circuit voltage.
If voltage is below 12.6 volts, recharge the
battery and run a second load test

35
How do I recharge the battery?

The best way is with a slow (or trickle) charge.
Leave the charger unplugged when connecting the
battery, to avoid sparks and potential explosion
Batteries are most prone to explosion after load
testing, jump starting, or cranking th engine
Trickle charging will give the most complete
charge and is easiest on the battery

36
I dont have time for a slow charge!Whats wrong
with quick charging?

Nothing
... IF YOU FOLLOW SAFETY PRECAUTIONS
to protect the battery and the vehicle
To protect vehicle computers from high voltage...
...you should unhook the vehicle ground before
turning on the charger

37
What can go wrong when I unhook the battery
ground cable?

Insure the ignition key is turned off.
This will protect the computers from a voltage
spike when power is unexpectedly interrupted
Be sure to supply an additional power source to
the vehicle to protect the computers learned
operation strategy

38
Back to fast charging

Once the battery is isolated
... you can turn the charger on high
...after connecting the charging leads.

39
How long do I leave it on fast charge?

Leaving a battery on high charge is risky.
If it is sulfated the voltage will quickly rise
above 15 volts and overheat the battery.
Also if the battery has a shorted cell the
voltage may stay low it will begin to gas
excessively
This will create hydrogen gas that may explode.

40
I take vent caps off when charging, Is this O.K.?

Vent caps have built in flame arrestors
These can keep a battery from exploding should
sparks or flames come close
Leave the caps ON while charging
MONITOR the battery during a fast charge

41
How do I monitor the battery?

Check the voltage across the terminals with the
charger on.
If it gets over 15 volts turn off the charger or
slow the rate of charge.
Feel the case of the battery,
if it gets hot it is overcharging
all batteries will get warm,
practice to know hot from warm

42
How do I monitor the battery?

Look listen and smell for gassing.
If you see lots of bubbles through the battery
case (white case) turn down the charger.
If you smell the gas, turn down the charger.
Leave the vent caps on.
Turn off and unplug the charger BEFORE removing
the charging cables from the battery.

43
Do I need to monitor the battery if my charger
has a voltage regulator?

Yes
A shorted cell in the battery will fool the
voltage regulator and may lead to damage

44
O.K. Now I have a charged batteryHow do I tell
if its any good?

The best test is the load or capacity test.
To perform this test you must measure battery
volts and amps

45
Load Testing orBattery Capacity Testing

1 hook up the test leads
2 look up the capacity of the battery...
...that should be placed in that vehicle
It will be in Cold Cranking Amps
...or in Amp Hours

46
Load Testing orBattery Capacity Testing

3 Place a load (high drain) on the battery
the load should be ½ the Cold Cranking Amp
rating
...or three times the Amp Hour Rating of the
battery
...look it up to be sure

47
Load Testing orBattery Capacity Testing

4 Watch the voltage of the battery.
It should not go below 9.6 volts within 15
seconds
do not load the battery longer than 15 seconds.
A strong battery will maintain 10 volts.

48
Load Testing orBattery Capacity Testing

5 If battery barely passes or fails the test
...leave everything off for 5 minutes or longer.
Recheck the open circuit voltage,
if it is under 12.5 volts recharge and test
again.

49
Load Testing orBattery Capacity Testing

If the battery recovers up to 12.6 volts
...and it barely passed the load test
It is O.K., but close to the end of its service
life
Recommend replacement if in a cold climate.

50
Load Testing orBattery Capacity Testing

If the battery recovered to 12.6 volts
... but dropped below 9.6 volts during the load
test
Recommend a new battery

51
Load Test the Battery
52
Amp probe around either test cable
53
When must you isolate the battery?
Only when batteries are in parallel
54
How many volts for fully charged battery?
Is this battery over charged?
No! This is a surface charge.
How do you remove the surface charge?
55
Load battery to about 250 amps for 15 seconds
56
After loading, wait one or two full minutes for
the battery to recover
Is this battery fully charged?
57
Volt readings are not accurate without External
Leads
58
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59
Load Battery to ½ CCA
60
Is this a bad battery?
61
Same test with Volts External
What tells you this is a good battery?
½ Cold Cranking Amps, Over 9.6 Volts, 15
seconds, Load is still ON
62
What do I do with the old, junk battery?

Batteries contain hazardous lead
(and other nasty things)
They are very harmful to the environment.
It is illegal to place them in the trash or
landfill.

63
What do I do with the old, junk battery?

Any business that sells batteries
... is legally obligated to recycle them.

64
This battery was only three years old, what
caused it to fail?

Vibration...Check hold down
Overcharging
...look for bulged case, low electrolyte
...voltage with engine running
...after battery is fully charged

65
This battery was only three years old, what
caused it to fail?

Discharged (sulfated)
look for dirty battery case
and corroded battery cable ends
Recommend more frequent battery cleaning

66
What Causes Sulfation?

Check voltage drop across positive and negative
battery cables during cranking
should have less that 0.3 volts
Check for parasitic draw
Should have less than 50 milliamps

67
What Causes Sulfation?

Check for low voltage with engine running
...after battery is fully charged
Insure voltage stays up with all accessories
turned on and engine running at 2,000 RPM
Quiz customer on driving habits
...short trips will not allow battery to fully
charge

68
Replace the entire battery cable