Extend the life of your car battery

When it comes to vehicles nothing is worse than being stranded on the side of the road.  Many factors can contribute to this unfortunate situation, one of which is the battery.  Today's modern vehicle are not known to give away many warnings that a battery is on the fritz.  

The battery in your vehicle, just like your cell phone or laptop, are lead-acid and have a limited life span, eventually losing their ability to hold significant charge to start your car.  The average life expectancy of a vehicle lead-acid battery is around 42 months.  This time frame can be influenced by a number of different variables; hot or cold climates, journey lengths, and the performance of your vehicles electrical system.  

There are a few things that you can do to help prolong your batteries life:

1. Keep the battery tightly fastened.  Excessive vibration can damage the battery's internal components, creating short circuits and reducing battery life.  We suggest making sure that you have the correct battery clamp and that it secures the battery properly.  Tighten the bolts until you feel resistance, then go about another 1/2 turn as to avoid over tightening.
2. Keep the battery clean.  Ensure that the top of the battery is free of dirt and grim.  A dirty battery can discharge across the grim, thus creating a mild short circuit leading to a flat battery.  Keep an eye on the battery terminals as well.  Over time the terminals start to calcify and corrode.  The terminals are the life source for the battery and sending power to the rest of the electrical system.  Using a mixture of baking soda and water, scrub the terminals with an old toothbrush then spray them with clean water to rinse the solution off and follow up with a clean clothe to dry.  
3. Minimize the power used while the vehicle is off.  Batteries are happiest when kept as close to 100% charge as possible.  Be mindful to turn headlights and interior lights off while the engine is not on.  Before leaving the vehicle, check your switches to ensure everything is turned off.  
4. Minimize heat exposure.  It is said that cold weather is what kills a battery.  It is true that it is harder on the battery to start your vehicle in cold weather, but it's the heat causes the most damage.  Extreme heat increases the rate of water evaporation from the battery cells.  The cold will then reveal the shortcomings of a weaker battery.  Basically try anything you can think of to minimize the heat exposure.  This could mean parking in the shade or keeping the vehicle garaged.  You could also look into insulating the battery to protect it from the heat generated in the engine bay.
5. Don't leave the vehicle unused for long periods of time.  It is vital the lead-acid batteries are kept fully charged at all times to prevent damage.  Your alternator is what recharges the battery, so if the vehicle doesn't get started for a long period of time this promotes what we call self-discharge.  All batteries self-discharge throughout their life span, keeping them fully charged with your vehicles built-in system is a great way to battle the fast decline.

We are always here for you!  Give us a call anytime, we are happy to help 619-562-3933

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