Car battery dead

[CathyA]

I was pushing it. Last summer the Honda guy told me I needed a new battery. But I hadn't had any troubles whatsoever with it...........so I took a chance. It did great in the cold until this morning. Now its dead. I wish I had gotten that fancy high-powered battery charger I was going to get, but didn't.
We have a small car battery charger, but the last time I used it, it didn't do anything after 4 hours. Anyone know what setting I should have it on, if I'm charging a dead batter?
Its probably best I don't go out today, since the roads are still bad and its 1 degree out. But my chickens need feed...........

[redfox]

Feed your girls some oats or bread & greens. They'll be fine for another day!

[CathyA]

Thanks redfox. I think I have enough for a few days. But we're expecting a huge snowstorm on Sunday and sub zero temps next week........so I was wanting to be sure I had enough for another week or 2.
But we do have oatmeal/bread/ etc. And lots of black oil sunflower seed........and other nuts!

[ToomuchStuff]

A multimeter can be used to determine what the voltage is. This will not tell you the condition of the battery, however, as that is determined, by testing the CCA (cold cranking amps). That requires a different tester.
Are you charging in or out of the car? If out, make sure the battery isn't on concrete (should be up on something). This is mostly from days gone by (battery construction) but has still been an issue, before.
Clean the posts. This is better done with a wire brush, but hot water (will stain underneath the car) will work ok. MAKE SURE THE CHARGER IS HOOKED UP CORRECTLY. Red is + POSITIVE


Black is - NEGATIVE
Separating those two so no confusion. If the battery is dead, dead (not just low), with an older charger, your better off in low amp mode (may take overnight). The higher the amps, the faster the charge, but if a battery has an internal issue, a faster charge may make the problem worse.
Here is a Youtube video, with a typical older charger:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXqIjjozzsM

[CathyA]

Thanks TMS.
I probably could revive it, but I think its had a long happy life, and I doubt I could keep it going for much longer, and I don't want to get stuck away from home. I got it in November of 2005! With all the sub-zero weather coming up, I think I'll just go with a new one. DH is going to bring one home tonight.
Thanks!

[Tanglefoot]

Batteries fail for a few reasons, but a common one is low fluid level in the battery. Although most batteries say "maintenance free" now, they still do have removable vents, run low on water over time and often benefit greatly from some maintenance.

Use caution, wear gloves and eye protection, be careful not to short the terminal or plates with any tools, etc. Gently pry open the vent caps (with your face away from them in case they are under a little pressure) and then look inside. The water level should be just over the whitish-colored plates. If not, get some distilled water and add it to each cell (a funnel helps) so it just covers the plates by about 1/4". Don't fill all the way to the top! Then replace the vent caps and put the battery on an overnight slow-charge.

Not every battery is easy to revive--plate damage and sulfation (also reversible, with some patience) do claim batteries as well.

As mentioned, definitely clean and tighten the battery connections first. I read that poor connections at the battery make up the largest percentage of roadside assistance calls.

[bae]

A battery of this sort, properly maintained and properly charged (by a smart-ish charger) can give many years of service. I have batteries on my boat that are ~10 years old that are going strong.

However, it is pretty easy to damage car batteries by running them flat, overcharging them, undercharging them, or keeping the fluid level too low. Some of that damage is not reversible, some is.

My local auto parts place, affiliated with NAPA, will put your battery on their charger/analyzer for an afternoon for free, to see what shape it is really in and possibly save it if possible. If you have a similar customer-service-oriented parts place nearby, that would be worth the effort.

[Packy]

The battery in my '97 Aspire is one that I acquired used, about 6 years ago. It doesn't take much to run it low, especially if something---like a door even slightly ajar----causes the warning beeper to run all night. It wouldn't start in the minus -? below-zero day we had, so I pulled the battery, brought it inside to warm it up, check the water level, and charge it. That helped,(by giving me something to keep occupied while I waited) and by the way, I used a multimeter Voltage function to ascertain that it had 13+ volts after charging over night, which is normal. Put the battery back in next day, and all is fine But, some time this year, I ill probably have to replace it. But, not just yet. I do carry booster cables, next to the spare tire, but bringing the battery in was called for in this case.

[CathyA]

I got a new battery..........just in time for the minus 20 degree weather. The old one was 8 years old. We don't have a garage. I think it had a good run.