Battery Info

Battery Service

Batteries in Winter

Battery Replacement Tips

     How long should a Battery last?
Battery life is influenced by type of driving, how long the battery spends at below full charge, how often heavily discharge, under-hood heat and of course quality of the battery.

Cause of low battery charge are; short trip driving cycles, long periods of not driving or charging system problems.
 

      Battery Ratings

Cold Cranking Amps (CCA)
Indicates how many amps a battery can deliver for 30 seconds and maintain at least 7.2 volts at 32 F.

Cranking Amp (CA)
Similar to CCA; Cranking amps is a measure of the number of amperes a lead acid battery at 32 degrees F can deliver for 30 seconds and maintain at least 1.2 volts per cell. (CA ratings are more commonly used in climates where temperatures rarely drop to 0F.)

Reserve Capacity (RC)
Reserve capacity is the time in minutes that a new, fully charged battery will deliver 25 amperes at 80 degrees F and maintain a terminal voltage equal to, or greater than, 1.75 volts per cell.

What it Means
A higher CCA will give you more raw starting power and a high RC will help keep a battery going longer when an alternator fails or something is left on such as the headlights. Some batteries will have a high CCA but a small RC, which can leave you stranded if you leave your door open for a while, or let the car sit for a week.
Never use a battery with a lower capacity rating than is recommended by the manufacturer, not only will it fail early, some very cold morning it may leave you sitting.
A 4 year battery may be at 50% in 2 years, always buy a five or six year battery.

Why they go Bad
Heat and vibration are the biggest battery killers, heat causes a battery's positive plate grids to corrode more rapidly and can cause the battery plates to warp and short out. Many other factors can also cause battery failure, such as: corroded cables and terminals, sulfating, alternator/regulator malfunction, and electric draws. Anytime a battery is discharged (goes dead) it shortens the battery's life.

Jump starting
When jump starting a car it is important to make sure you shield your eyes and face from the battery at all times and follow these steps:

1. Connect the positive [+] cable to positive post of discharged battery.
2. Connect other end of the same cable to same marked post (positive) of starting vehicle battery.
3. Connect second cable (negative [-] ) to other post of booster battery.
4. Make final connection on engine block of stalled vehicle away from battery.
5. Start vehicle and remove cables in reverse order.

Charging
If a battery is discharged rapidly, it should be recharged rapidly.
If it’s discharged slowly, it should be recharged slowly on a trickle charger. (This could take 8 – 10 hours on a fully discharged battery)
Note: Overcharging a battery will damage the internal plates and shorten battery life.

Recycling
Batteries are 99% recyclable and are filled with lead and acid. Please recycle your batteries!

 

 

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