acting up again

[thegoon543]

i had some problems starting that began earlier this summer that i thought i had solved in another post. i would turn the ignition to the on position, hear the fuel pump start up, then turn to start it, then it would click and all power would shut off. i replaced the positive battery cable clamp (with a cheap silver looking one) and that seemed to work for a couple of weeks. then it acted up again (corroded) so i threw out the cheap one and replaced it with a brass clamp (about 3 bucks). now, a few weeks later, it is corroding so much again that it is preventing it from starting (exactly like the original problem). ive hit a roadblock in solving this problem for good. any ideas?

 

[thewishkah]

you can start buy buying one of those battery post brushes(steel brush), and clearing it of ALL corosion and then do the same to the clamp. If that doesnt work try changing your clamp and then change your battery if you have that much corosion so quickly your batter is probably leaking by the post. hope this helps.

 

[Creager]

My personal favorite is Diet Dr Pepper

pour it on the battery termainals (when you dont feel like messing with it)

then get some REAL battery terminals...

dont know where to buy em as far as i know you probably would end up having to make them yourself. Those clamp on terminals are flat out crap. Maybe you can score some good ones out of a Junkyard?

 

[thegoon543]

what other kinds are there besides clamp on? those seem to be the only kind ive seen in auto zone, advance auto, etc.

 

[ryf]

the rightest way I know is to use brass terminal ends from Home Depot/Lowes and use the correct heavy duty crimping pliers (these dimple the terminal so it can't pull out), and attach these to a battery terminal end that has a bolt or if you have alot of accessories (amps, lights whatever), use the clamp on type, using the bolts through the eyes of the terminal ends. the clamp types actually clamping the wire IS crappy, and usually needs fixing more than once, because the wires can pull out since you are clamping many cables of different thickness (positive side is like 2 or 3), which leaves bare wires hanging out up there (never good) the brass clamps are a few dollars and they look better, last longer and doing this way makes it easy to add other power wires for other accessories later.

 

[ryf]

to be helpful I went and took pictures, I did heat shrink the terminals after the crimp, the ones I used were aluminum, but I wouldn't put money into that, since they cost about 4x as much and have no real redeaming value. I think this is the "rightest" way to put new clamps on without putting in all new factory equipment (a little costly for sure)

been this way about 3 months or more, not a sign of corrosion, and no it isn't recently cleaned, and yes I drive it every day. I also replaced the wires, but thats a whole different story.

 

[thegoon543]

thanks for the tips. i will post how things turn out.

 

[big_hoovie]

one thing you may want to do to help prevent corrosion in the future, is get some vaseline(or other petroleum jelly product) and smear it all over the terminals and connectors(after hooking everything up). This seals it from the air, and will help with corrosion, and will make it easier when changing the battery in the future.

 

[Maniak]

I see you are replacing the terminals only. Have you cut back some more wire to see if the corrosion has made it into the wire.. If it has, the wire should be replaced also.. otherwise it will just keep corroding and also corrode the connection to the battery.

~Mark

 

[Creager]

Oh yeah

i forgot to mention, but once you clean them terminals off and get them nice and shinny, use some all purpouse grease on the exposed areas of the terminals... That will prevent corrosion.

Bearing grease will work.

 

[thegoon543]

heres what i did

well, here is hopefully a permanent solution to this ongoing problem. i took the ends off the terminals and cleaned the ends and posts with a wire brush thoroughly. then, i placed some anti-corrosion felt washers around the posts and coated the washers, the posts, and the ends with vaseline. i also cut about a 1/2 inch off the 4 gauge positive wire (there was no corrosion past the end of it) and reattached it and the smaller gauge wire going to the solenoid back to the battery. im hoping this will work. i heard about the washers from a friend who has been corrosion free since placing them on his battery terminals a few years ago.

 

[thegoon543]

about to give up

well, i was able to get a jump and drive around town for about half an hour (despite the high gas prices). for some reason, the battery does not seem to want to hold a charge. could it be defective? (the battery is a little over a year old)

i tested the alternator and here are the following results i got with a voltmeter:

idle (no load) - 14.6V
idle (load i.e. headlights on, etc. - 14.5V
1500 RPM - 14.3V

according to articles i have been reading, this is normal. however, when i turn the car off, i try starting it 10 seconds later and it just keeps clicking. i put the voltmeter to the battery (engine still off) and it was only reading between 8-9V.

 

[zhanx]

time for a battery test for sure. this my test. i start it .... wait... pull the battery .. notice i didn't say shut it off.. it runs = good alt. I got two vehicles so i i think a battery is bad i swap one and drive it atleast 10 minutes and let it idle for 30 shut off and wait 3-4 hours or what i feel like it. if it start then i know its the battery. i know your not a hermit in a shack in the middle of nowhere so you should have access to another know good battery give it a try and see what happens.. oh i dont use the pads i use petro jelly or vasoline.

 

[Maniak]

Those voltages are a bad battery.. You have good charging voltage.. but bad charged voltage (assuming it was charged long enough.. and 30 mins is more than long enough to get it higher than 8v)..

Most likely you have a dead cell or 2. Also, when you have dead cells, the battery normally gets very hot while being charged.

If its under waranty, have them check/charge/check it.. it will fail.. If its not under waranty, just buy a new one.

~Mark

 

[thegoon543]

sure enough

i had it tested at advance auto parts and they said it was bad. it was replaced for free under warranty (thank God for warranties). so im hoping this is the end of my battery problems for a while. thanks for everyone's help with this.