Battery Charger

[trouble]

  I have a slow charge hooked up to my battery which is in my car.The instructions say for me to hook the positive end of the charger, to my positive end of my batterie cable.It also says for me to hook the negitive end to my block.Why can't i hook it up to my negitive cable to the battery instead?
Thanks Al

[360 'CUDA]

Hooking it to the battery makes a small spark and if there is some hydrogen gas coming out .......

[Oldschool]

OR----you can do it the Oldchool way.  I always hook the cables to both battery posts and THEN plug the charger into it's power source.  That way if there is any spark ay all, it is at the 120V connection away from the battery.  Never had a problem doing it that way.      

[MEK-Dangerfield]

I can see the point of the instructions as to not wanting any sparks.  They also tell you to ground the negative cable to the block of the car that has a dead battery if you are trying to "jump" someone, to avoid this same situation.


  Mike

[heminut]

OR----you can do it the Oldchool way.  I always hook the cables to both battery posts and THEN plug the charger into it's power source.  That way if there is any spark ay all, it is at the 120V connection away from the battery.  Never had a problem doing it that way.      

The only time you would get a spark is if the charger is on when you hook it up or unhook it. Usually the only time you will have the hydrogen gas is after charging the battery, as the gas is a product of the charging process. Don't take this stuff lightly!!! I've seen 2 batteries explode from people unhooking the charger before turning it off. One of the victims almost lost an eye because of it.

[ShelbyDogg]

Trouble,

Do not leave that charger on your battery at all times unless it is the small wall-wart "maintainer" that keeps it at 12v. I've used automatic "Battery Tender" types and also "Fully Automatic" chargers on batteries over the winter and the batteries always fail after a few years.

Those "AUTOMATIC" battery chargers will still kill your battery over time by keeping the cells over charged.
For Winter storage, fully charge it then disconnect it, or use this maintainer described below.

The "maintainer" is sold at Harbor Freight, usually on sale for $4.99 and will not CHARGE a battery but will keep a fully charged battery at 12v so it doesn't fall below this level.  This will keep you battery alive and not over charge it.
No matter how how much you pay for your AUTOMATIC charger, it will kill your battery if you leave it hooked up too long.
 

[Jacksboys]

OR----you can do it the Oldchool way.  I always hook the cables to both battery posts and THEN plug the charger into it's power source.  That way if there is any spark ay all, it is at the 120V connection away from the battery.  Never had a problem doing it that way.      

It's always better to be safe.  I have never seen but have heard of more battery explosions than I want to remember.

[tactransman]

I went to start my '75 Ramcharger about 15 years ago and when I turned the key nothing happened , but the one side of the hood bounced up about 2 inches. I raised the hood and the whole top of the battery was gone!

[ShelbyDogg]

That happened to a friend of mine too.  Went to start his car and the battery blew up.  That would spray acid everywhere!.  I might have to look into getting an Optima, but they are double the price compared to a Die hard or Duralast type 7 year battery.

[Jacksboys]

I went to start my '75 Ramcharger about 15 years ago and when I turned the key nothing happened , but the one side of the hood bounced up about 2 inches. I raised the hood and the whole top of the battery was gone!

How old was the battery that was in the Ramcharger?

[tactransman]

2 - 2 1/2 years old.

[Jacksboys]

2 - 2 1/2 years old.

Wow, that is surprizing.  I thought you were going to say something over 5 years.  I guess it was just a badly manufactured version.  Did it cause any damage before you cleaned it up?

[tactransman]

No , I think it was pretty dry on the inside (probably why it went KABOOM!) I think the plates were dry,warped and touched one another.

[MEK-Dangerfield]

No chances of the Optima battery in my Challenger blowing it's top.     


  Mike

[tactransman]