·
The
battery in a car provides enough amps to start the engine and then provide
volts to electrical demands. Once the car engine starts and is running, the
alternator restores the amps and voltage spent from the battery and provides
constant backup for the battery. An alternator does not fully recharge a car
battery, however, so when one is close to the end of its life, it does not put
out enough amperage needed to turn the starter. Charging it will temporarily
assist in getting the engine to start, but may not provide reliability on the
next intended start-up.
Batteries contain a diluted solution of sulfuric
acid, which has a chemical reaction to the lead plates that soak in it. This
reaction makes the batteries volatile and susceptible to ignite if a spark
occurs. A flammable mixture of hydrogen and oxygen escapes from the vents of
the battery, so if you charge it incorrectly, you are risking a battery
explosion.
Showing posts with label car. Show all posts
Showing posts with label car. Show all posts
Saturday, May 19, 2012
Friday, July 6, 2007
IS YOUR CAR READY FOR WINTER
No question about it, winter is hard on your car. You've got ice. You've got salt. And the last thing you want to worry about is getting stranded on the side of the road.
It's important to plan ahead so you don't find yourself with a car that won't start. You should know your battery has a much tougher job during extreme conditions. Your car's engine and other parts require more power to start up in cold weather, and yet it's harder to get power from your battery in the cold.
The older the car, the greater chance for problems. Combine that with an old battery and frigid weather, and you're asking for trouble.
To be on the safe side, you should get your battery tested. Better yet, if you live in a harsh climate, consider replacing your battery if you think it's getting old. A brand new battery can see you through the toughest of winters.
Other tips:
• Park your car in a garage whenever possible.
• If you must leave your car outside all day, find a few minutes a couple of times during the day to go out and start it. Letting your car run for a few minutes will warm up the parts and improve the chances of it starting later.
• Cars are designed to handle temperatures below 0 degrees Fahrenheit, but in much colder weather, you should avoid leaving your car out for an extended period of time.
• Try the Battery Health Checkup on this Web site to see how long your battery is expected to last.
It's important to plan ahead so you don't find yourself with a car that won't start. You should know your battery has a much tougher job during extreme conditions. Your car's engine and other parts require more power to start up in cold weather, and yet it's harder to get power from your battery in the cold.
The older the car, the greater chance for problems. Combine that with an old battery and frigid weather, and you're asking for trouble.
To be on the safe side, you should get your battery tested. Better yet, if you live in a harsh climate, consider replacing your battery if you think it's getting old. A brand new battery can see you through the toughest of winters.
Other tips:
• Park your car in a garage whenever possible.
• If you must leave your car outside all day, find a few minutes a couple of times during the day to go out and start it. Letting your car run for a few minutes will warm up the parts and improve the chances of it starting later.
• Cars are designed to handle temperatures below 0 degrees Fahrenheit, but in much colder weather, you should avoid leaving your car out for an extended period of time.
• Try the Battery Health Checkup on this Web site to see how long your battery is expected to last.
BATTERY TIPS
Taking care of your new battery pack
Normally, a new battery pack comes in a very low charge condition and must be fully charged before use. Refer to the user manual of your portable electronic equipment for charging instructions.
A new battery pack needs to be fully charged and fully discharged or "cycled" as much as five times to condition them into performing at full capacity.
Your equipment may report a fully charge condition in as short as 10 to 15 minutes when the new battery pack is being charged for the first time. This is a normal phenomenon especially for Nickel Cadmium (Ni-Cad) and Nickel Metal Hydride (Ni-MH) chemistries. When this happens, remove the battery pack and let it cool down for about fifteen minutes then repeat the charging procedure.
"Conditioning" (fully discharging and then fully charging) is necessary so as to maintain the optimum performance of a battery pack, and is recommended at least once a month particularly for Ni-Cad and Ni-MH batteries. Failure to do so could result in reduced charge capacity and can significantly shorten the battery pack’s useful life. Lithium Ion batteries do not require conditioning.
It is normal for a battery pack to get warm when charging and during use. However, if the battery pack gets excessive hot, there may be a problem with the portable electronic equipment’s charging circuit and should therefore be checked by a qualified technician.
Rechargeable batteries undergo self-discharging when left unused for long periods of time. This is normal particularly in the case of Ni-MH and Li-Ion chemistries. For best results, always store a battery pack fully charged. It should be removed from the equipment and kept in a cool, dry and clean place.
The amount of runtime a battery pack produces depends on the power requirements of components in your electronic equipment. This could be the hard drive setting, screen intensity and back-lighting on notebook computers, the liquid crystal display (LCD) screen and floodlight feature in a video camcorder, or the tri-mode communications network of a cellular phone. Always refer to your equipment’s user manual for power management settings.
Battery Dont'ts
Rechargeable batteries contain a considerable amount of energy.
DO NOT leave on charge for extended periods.
DO NOT short circuit terminals.
DO NOT drop or mutilate.
DO NOT disassemble.
DO NOT place in fire or near sources of extreme heat.
DO NOT expose to moisture or rain.
Normally, a new battery pack comes in a very low charge condition and must be fully charged before use. Refer to the user manual of your portable electronic equipment for charging instructions.
A new battery pack needs to be fully charged and fully discharged or "cycled" as much as five times to condition them into performing at full capacity.
Your equipment may report a fully charge condition in as short as 10 to 15 minutes when the new battery pack is being charged for the first time. This is a normal phenomenon especially for Nickel Cadmium (Ni-Cad) and Nickel Metal Hydride (Ni-MH) chemistries. When this happens, remove the battery pack and let it cool down for about fifteen minutes then repeat the charging procedure.
"Conditioning" (fully discharging and then fully charging) is necessary so as to maintain the optimum performance of a battery pack, and is recommended at least once a month particularly for Ni-Cad and Ni-MH batteries. Failure to do so could result in reduced charge capacity and can significantly shorten the battery pack’s useful life. Lithium Ion batteries do not require conditioning.
It is normal for a battery pack to get warm when charging and during use. However, if the battery pack gets excessive hot, there may be a problem with the portable electronic equipment’s charging circuit and should therefore be checked by a qualified technician.
Rechargeable batteries undergo self-discharging when left unused for long periods of time. This is normal particularly in the case of Ni-MH and Li-Ion chemistries. For best results, always store a battery pack fully charged. It should be removed from the equipment and kept in a cool, dry and clean place.
The amount of runtime a battery pack produces depends on the power requirements of components in your electronic equipment. This could be the hard drive setting, screen intensity and back-lighting on notebook computers, the liquid crystal display (LCD) screen and floodlight feature in a video camcorder, or the tri-mode communications network of a cellular phone. Always refer to your equipment’s user manual for power management settings.
Battery Dont'ts
Rechargeable batteries contain a considerable amount of energy.
DO NOT leave on charge for extended periods.
DO NOT short circuit terminals.
DO NOT drop or mutilate.
DO NOT disassemble.
DO NOT place in fire or near sources of extreme heat.
DO NOT expose to moisture or rain.
USE AND MAINTANENCE OF CAR BATTERY
Use and maintenance
Fluid level
The majority of batteries today are maintenance free and don't require top up. If the battery has easily detachable tops then a top up may be required from time to time. In this case the tops are simply removed and the cells topped up with distilled or deionised water just above the visible plates.
Tap or rain water should never be used as they both can contain high levels of minerals which will impair battery performance.
Charge and discharge
In normal automotive service the vehicle's engine-driven alternator powers the vehicle's electrical systems and restores charge used from the battery during engine cranking. When installing a new battery or recharging a battery that has been accidentally discharged completely, one of several different methods can be used to charge it. The most gentle of these is called trickle charging. Other methods include slow-charging and quick-charging, the latter being the harshest.
In emergencies a battery can be jump started, by the battery of another vehicle or by a hand portable battery booster.
Changing a battery
In the vast majority of automobiles, the grounding is provided by connecting the body of the car to the negative electrode of the battery, a system called 'negative ground'. In the past this was different, some cars had 'positive ground', but such vehicles were found to suffer worse body corrosion and, sometimes, blocked radiators due to deposition of metal sludge.
When removing a car battery, the ground connection should be removed first and the other connection second. This ensures that a short circuit will not occur by a wrench touching grounded engine parts while disconnecting the other terminal. When connecting a battery, connect the live (or positive) connection first and then the grounded one.
Freshness
Because of "sulfation" , one should never buy a battery that is more than six-months old. In the United States, the manufacturing date is printed on a sticker. The date can be written in plain text or using an alphanumerical code. The first character is a letter that specifies the month (A for January, B for February). The letter "I" is skipped due to its potential to be mistaken for the number 1. The second character is a single digit that indicates the year of manufacturing (for example, 6 for 2006).
Fluid level
The majority of batteries today are maintenance free and don't require top up. If the battery has easily detachable tops then a top up may be required from time to time. In this case the tops are simply removed and the cells topped up with distilled or deionised water just above the visible plates.
Tap or rain water should never be used as they both can contain high levels of minerals which will impair battery performance.
Charge and discharge
In normal automotive service the vehicle's engine-driven alternator powers the vehicle's electrical systems and restores charge used from the battery during engine cranking. When installing a new battery or recharging a battery that has been accidentally discharged completely, one of several different methods can be used to charge it. The most gentle of these is called trickle charging. Other methods include slow-charging and quick-charging, the latter being the harshest.
In emergencies a battery can be jump started, by the battery of another vehicle or by a hand portable battery booster.
Changing a battery
In the vast majority of automobiles, the grounding is provided by connecting the body of the car to the negative electrode of the battery, a system called 'negative ground'. In the past this was different, some cars had 'positive ground', but such vehicles were found to suffer worse body corrosion and, sometimes, blocked radiators due to deposition of metal sludge.
When removing a car battery, the ground connection should be removed first and the other connection second. This ensures that a short circuit will not occur by a wrench touching grounded engine parts while disconnecting the other terminal. When connecting a battery, connect the live (or positive) connection first and then the grounded one.
Freshness
Because of "sulfation" , one should never buy a battery that is more than six-months old. In the United States, the manufacturing date is printed on a sticker. The date can be written in plain text or using an alphanumerical code. The first character is a letter that specifies the month (A for January, B for February). The letter "I" is skipped due to its potential to be mistaken for the number 1. The second character is a single digit that indicates the year of manufacturing (for example, 6 for 2006).
WHAT IS A CAR BATTERY
A car battery is a type of electric battery that supplies electric energy to automobile. They can be a SLI battery (Starting - Lighting - Ignition) to power the starter motor, the lights and the ignition system of a vehicle’s engine or a traction battery (used for the main power source of an electric vehicle).
They are usually lead-acid batteries that provide a nominal 12-volt (actually 12.6 volts) potential difference by serially connecting six cells that each produce about 2 to 2.1 volts. As other batteries of its type, it is made up of plates of lead and lead oxide. These plates are submerged into a 35% sulfuric acid and 65% water solution called the electrolyte solution. This process causes a chemical reaction that releases electrons, allowing them to flow through conductors thus producing electricity. As a lead acid battery discharges, the materials of the lead plates react with the acid of the electrolyte, changing the surface of both plates to lead sulphate. When the battery is recharged, the chemical reaction is reversed. The lead sulphate reforms into lead oxide and lead, restoring the plates to their original condition, allowing the process to be repeated
They are usually lead-acid batteries that provide a nominal 12-volt (actually 12.6 volts) potential difference by serially connecting six cells that each produce about 2 to 2.1 volts. As other batteries of its type, it is made up of plates of lead and lead oxide. These plates are submerged into a 35% sulfuric acid and 65% water solution called the electrolyte solution. This process causes a chemical reaction that releases electrons, allowing them to flow through conductors thus producing electricity. As a lead acid battery discharges, the materials of the lead plates react with the acid of the electrolyte, changing the surface of both plates to lead sulphate. When the battery is recharged, the chemical reaction is reversed. The lead sulphate reforms into lead oxide and lead, restoring the plates to their original condition, allowing the process to be repeated
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