Lead-acid batteries are most commonly used in vehicles such as trucks and cars. Other electric cars, as well as golf carts, also use this kind of battery. In essence, all of the lead-acid batteries work on the same principle. Conversely, they are also vulnerable to the same kind of degradation which is sulfation.
Sulfation happens in the batteries’ plates. When a battery becomes sulfated, it will most likely go flat and won’t be able to start your vehicle. But there is still hope for this seemingly dead battery. (You can read my guide to refurbish your auto battery).
In this article, i’ll share with you how to recondition a lead-acid battery. For as long as there are no physical defects on your lead-acid battery and it is still mechanically sound, you won’t have a problem restoring it. When the process is successful, you will have a working battery again, and you won’t need to buy a new one.
Lead-Acid Battery Reviving Technique
Hopefully, this article will allow you to discover the ways on how you can recondition your old lead acid battery. To do this procedure of de-sulfation, you first have to identify the bad cells of your lead-acid battery.
Do the following steps:
1. Charge the lead-acid battery for at least twelve hours. When it has finished charging, remove the lead-acid battery from the charger and them let it rest for about ten minutes.
2. Take of the battery caps of the lead-acid battery. If you have a sealed lead-acid battery, it is best if you go on the web and search for a guide that can help you on how to open them up. It may be different for each brand, so you have to search for the specific steps on how to do it.
3. After the caps have been opened, fill them with distilled water. This is an important step. There may be sparks that will be produced, and then the compartments’ air column that has oxygen and hydrogen may cause the lead-acid battery to explode. You don’t want that to happen. May sure that the water level is high so that there is less risk for an explosion in the air column. Use a flashlight so you can see the water levels of the lead-acid battery.
4. After filling the lead-acid battery with distilled water, begin measuring the terminal voltage. At a fully charged state, it must have a range of 12v or around 11.8 volts to 13 volts. If it is lower than 11.8 volts, then we can assume that there is an imbalance in the cells. There may be some cells that have a problem.
5. Measure each of the cell’s voltage so that you can know for certain which of the cells of the lead-acid battery has a lower voltage. Connect the multimeter probe to each terminal and them immerse the other probe of the multimeter into the solution of the lead-acid battery cell. Do this to each of the cells. A good working cell will have at least 2 volts. Take note of the bad cells. You will see that their plates have a different color than the rest because of the heavy formation of the sulfate crystals.
Here are the steps for de-sulfation:
1. Connect a lead-acid battery trickle charger, or you can use a computerized smart charger to the battery. Charge the lead-acid battery continuously for seven to ten days. The slow charging can cause the sulfate crystals to dissolve. This process can then revive your old lead-acid battery to one that can be used again.
2. Connect an electronic de-sulfation device that will constantly de-sulfate your lead acid battery. These devices are available and are ready to be used. There are also ones that you can build for yourself.
3. Add the chemical de-sulfator to the old lead-acid battery’s filling ports. This chemical will dissolve the sulfate crystals and will prolong and restore your lead-acid battery and make it work like new.
Before you proceed with restoring your old lead-acid battery, remember these steps:
● Wear gloves and protective goggles during the whole duration of the restoring process.
● Make sure that the plates and the cells of the lead-acid battery are mechanically sound and there are no physical defects in the battery. Otherwise, it will be useless to try and revive them.
Now you know how you should recondition lead-acid batteries. Hopefully, this article can help you with your issues with your old battery. If you have any questions about the process or about reconditioning other types of batteries, don’t hesitate to email me. I’d be happy to help you out!