Handle Your Vehicle Battery

The car battery is the source of electrical energy to the vehicle and is required to feed electrical consumers.
When needed, it must be recharged or replaced. I am here to shows how to best perform the work and some helpful Tips.

About the car
The car battery is usually a lead acid battery, whose main task is to provide electric current to the starter of the internal combustion engine. Therefore, it is also often used as starter battery designated.
Besides the starter, it supplies the other electrical equipments in the vehicle. It is loaded by the generator which is running inside combustion engine.
At startup, the battery charging current is racked with up to 1000 amperes. Especially in winter it is important to ensure performance at low temperatures, so starting batteries have a very low internal resistance.

Structure and types of batteries
Starter batteries are usually put together. Thus, the voltages add up from 2.12 V per cell. In order to achieve a battery with 12V or 24V nominal voltage, you need 6 or 12 such cells in series.
Starter batteries can be divided into three types:
* Spillable (electrolyte in the battery containing liquid)
* Nonwoven battery (electrolyte is contained in a glass fiber mat)
* Gel battery (electrolyte is a gel material contained in)
The various types of work with the same electrochemical process and the electrolyte is in the fleece and contain the spill-proof gel battery in a glass fiber mat or a viscous gel. In contrast to classical spillable these types of maintenance could be much more expensive.

Bridging the battery
When battery turn out that the starter battery is discharged, they need first try this bridge.
With two jumper cables, a motorist with a running car and the necessary know-how, the proper bridging can get their car to run again.
Rules for bridging a car battery - as recommended by the ADAC:
1. Ignition and all electricity consumers only when both vehicles off
2. The red jumper cable to positive poles of the two batteries connect.
3. End of the black cable to the negative terminal of the battery attach a donor.
4. Free end of the black cable to a ground point of the car combine the margins (e.g. a metal part in the engine or the engine block itself). Notice: The cable must not end terminal of the battery connected to the receiver directly.
5. Watching that cable is not the area of the radiator fan or the fan belt can get in.
6. Start the engine of the donor vehicle.
7. Then broken down vehicle and start the engine can run the.
8. Disconnecting the negative cable is before the vehicle remains a major power. It will used for usual purpose (e.g. heated rear window, or headlights). Tension peaks need to be avoided in on electric equipment.
9. Starter cable disconnect completely (only black / minus, then red / plus).

Alternative to jumper cables: Start-up / Power Station
With the so-called energy station, it could also be possible to bridge the discharged battery starter. The devices are mobile and have their own power supply. Usually these power stations with integrated compressor and work lamp offered as optional equipments. 

Examination of a starter battery
It is advisable to check the condition of the battery for a longer run in winter. The voltage measurement could by a normal multimeter or one resorts to a special battery tester.
The test should be carried out under load, as in idle mode, a voltage of 12V - 13V battery can be displayed. Thus, this measurement without load is less significant, but control can be used fast.

Battery Acid Test
The voltage test under load should be carried out only if the test is with a tester battery acid, an acid density of at least 1.2 to 1.24 results in all cells. This corresponds to a charge of about 50% of total capacity.
To test the battery acid, first to remove the cable from the ground pole and then the positive pole in order to prevent short circuits..It is essential to all battery consumers to be switched off at this moment! Then open all plugs and insert the hydrometer into the closure opening. Soak it, the acid from the cells and examine them individually. After each measurement, press the acid from the acid tester again fully in the appropriate cell.
When examining the battery acid you should work very cautiously and carefully, because battery acid is highly corrosive!
If the values are ok, the battery can be replaced and connected. First reconnect the positive terminal and then the ground pole.

Voltage test under load
Loaded test requires consumers who need the battery strongly.
To pull it off the ignition of the spark plugs or the ignition coil and put their meter on voltage display. The red wire of the gauge now needed to connect with the positive (+), the black wire to the ground pole (-). As consumers, they turn on the lights and press for 5-8 seconds (no longer) the starter. Watch them And the voltage should be in the range of 9V-12V.

Charging a battery
In a heavily discharged to start battery, charging process often helps only one with a special battery charger. To correctly perform the loading process, proceed as follows:
* Build it from the battery from the vehicle or to jam the battery from the battery cables from
* Ensure the room is well ventilated
* Use a DC charger
* Connect the positive terminal of the battery to the positive terminal and the ground pole to the negative terminal of the battery charger
* Turn the charger with a charging current tenth of the battery capacity (Ah)
* Interrupt it by excessive heating of the battery (about 55 ° C) the charging
* The battery is fully charged, if not increase more within two hours, the acid density and voltage
* Correct them with distilled water when necessary, the level of the acid
* They build the battery back into the vehicle and clamp it to the battery cable

Buying a new one
The test Should fail to load the test battery due to high age or excessive strain. Only the purchase of a new starter battery is what you can do in such a case.
The right of the battery capacity 54Ah for example is determined by the manufacturer of the vehicle. When buying a battery, you should choose the same type and capacity as the original one, the capacity might be higher but it’s ok.
Make sure they are on reasonable prices, the batteries from reputable manufacturers only in a few cases better, but in any case they are much more expensive.