Battery Terminal Corrosion?

[TheVrolok]

Disclaimer, I'm not a car guy. Well educated, science guy, big fan of DIY. My father was the car guy, and I always went to him with questions and for advice/education in that regard. Unfortunately, he passed away a few weeks ago and now my sister is calling that his car won't start.

Mid 2000's Ford Fusion Sport, won't turn over when she goes to start it, sounds like she gets a click or two and that's it. The car has been sitting for a few weeks at the least (while he had been most ill). Sounds like a dead battery to me? I asked my sister to pop the hood and check the connections at the terminals.

The cathode looks like:

http://imgur.com/JhX9jjl

(blue stuffs surrounding the terminal)

Suppose it's corrosion, copper, perhaps? My plan was to get over there when I have some time, clean off the terminal (had heard of using baking soda/water and a wire brush in the past), check connections, see if it starts (suspect it won't).

Try to jump it, if it jumps, I'll let it run for 20-30 mins and see if it'll start itself off the battery then, but will likely take it somewhere to get the battery checked regardless. I'll try to look through my father's records (usually very good) to see if I can figure out how old the battery is.

Does this make sense? Wanted to run my limited knowledge by those who knows more.

 

[Vdubchaos]

You have a good plan.

The reason why your father was a DIY is not because he enjoyed it or loved it (although I'm sure to an extent he did).

It's most likely because he has been thru the process of hiring people and overpaying the. Usually you don't end up with the results you want and it costs a premium.

And he also had ambition to learn and get his hands dirty. Troubleshoot, tinker etc.

In the end, as he got done.......he felt the sense of accomplishment. It's something that many people don't experience in modern age.

And it's what you are currently doing and what you will experience as well.

IMO, it's important and priceless.

 

[RayH]

Your plan is good, just make sure you actually remove the connector from terminal and scrub both the terminal and the connector contact surfaces. You can use terminal spray or WD40 to help prevent it coming back. The battery manufacture date is usually somewhere on the label sometimes shown as a 2-digit year that's blackened or punched out.

 

[zerocool84]

You can use the baking soda which is cheap, I like to use the battery cleaning spray as it doesn't get all over the place like water does and scrub with the steel brush battery terminal cleaner or some type of steel wire brush. Then use the battery terminal protector spray as that helps as well.

 

[NutBucket]

Dielectric grease also works well.

 

[TheVrolok]

Appreciate the responses guys.

Got over to the house. It's all corrosion. Battery is dead. Used some baking soda solution to clean much of the corrosion, but there's still a fair bit within the terminal-cable connection that I just can't get to. Would love to get the clamp off, but it's basically corroded solid. No give whatsoever. Not thrilled with the design.

Couldn't get it jumped (all I get is relay clicking) , again, not sure there's great connection to the battery.

 

[dud]

Appreciate the responses guys.

Got over to the house. It's all corrosion. Battery is dead. Used some baking soda solution to clean much of the corrosion, but there's still a fair bit within the terminal-cable connection that I just can't get to. Would love to get the clamp off, but it's basically corroded solid. No give whatsoever. Not thrilled with the design.

Couldn't get it jumped (all I get is relay clicking) , again, not sure there's great connection to the battery.

Try disconnecting the terminals, cleaning then. Then apply a thin coating of Petroleum Jelly to the terminals and re-attach. This will keep the corrosion at-bay for years. Try jump-starting again, using the correct procedure here:

http://blog.cochran.com/wordpress/index.php/jump-start-car-battery/


You may want to attach the cables and then wait for 5-10 minutes then try to restart.

Good luck ...

 

[nakedfrog]

There's often a date sticker on the battery as well.
Your guess of still having poor connection to the battery itself is probably a good one. You're going to need to get those terminals off, and by the sound of it, potentially replace them. Parts are like $10 or so, and pretty straight-forward job.

 

[TheVrolok]

There's often a date sticker on the battery as well.
Your guess of still having poor connection to the battery itself is probably a good one. You're going to need to get those terminals off, and by the sound of it, potentially replace them. Parts are like $10 or so, and pretty straight-forward job.

Yep. I didn't have the time to spend over there today, but I'll go back later tomorrow and try to get it off. We'll see.

Clamps are shown in this video: https://youtu.be/7sqOTf8Pgb0?t=39

First thing he says at that time period is "if you have any significant corrosion of the battery, these pieces will have fused together." Welp, he's right.

Subsequently share this dude's (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHGNS2T0nAo) view on these clamps.

Might be sawing it off and replacing.

 

[deadken]

Just a quick tip:

We used to glue a penny about an inch away from the battery terminals. Just use a reasonably new penny and adhere it with a dab of RTV (the silicone gasket maker). For quite a while with the price of copper being so high, it isn't worth making a penny out of copper, so we use zinc. Zinc is used as a sacrificial metal in many applications (anyone own a boat that is kept in salt water?). Putting a penny near the terminal will allow the zinc to take on the corrosion instead of the battery terminal.

Take your time and you might just find that working on your own car is less of a chore and more of a hobby. If you reach that point, you can also call yourself a 'car guy'. I wish you the best of luck and a project like this is a great start!

 

[sontakke]

Most likely there is minute crack at the battery terminal and causing the acid to spill out. If that is the case you will never be able to control the on going corrosion.

 

[nakedfrog]

Yep. I didn't have the time to spend over there today, but I'll go back later tomorrow and try to get it off. We'll see.

Clamps are shown in this video: https://youtu.be/7sqOTf8Pgb0?t=39

First thing he says at that time period is "if you have any significant corrosion of the battery, these pieces will have fused together." Welp, he's right.

Subsequently share this dude's (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHGNS2T0nAo) view on these clamps.

Might be sawing it off and replacing.

Huh, yeah, I have not encountered those battery clamps yet. Seems I ought to be happy about that.

 

[marincounty]

Try disconnecting the terminals, cleaning then. Then apply a thin coating of Petroleum Jelly to the terminals and re-attach. This will keep the corrosion at-bay for years. Try jump-starting again, using the correct procedure here:

http://blog.cochran.com/wordpress/index.php/jump-start-car-battery/


You may want to attach the cables and then wait for 5-10 minutes then try to restart.

Good luck ...

Petroleum jelly, that's how I do it after cleaning and reattaching terminals. Works great.

 

[TheVrolok]

Petroleum jelly, that's how I do it after cleaning and reattaching terminals. Works great.

How often do you guys clean the terminals?

 

[Raizinman]

Here is a battery corrosion tip: Take a penny and glue it (using silicone sealer) to the top of your battery. The penny will attract the corrosion instead of it going to the battery terminals. It will only cost you a penny. Change penny after a few years or when heavily corroded.

 

[LTC8K6]

How often do you guys clean the terminals?

I've never cleaned the terminals on my 2008 Jeep, and they look factory new still.

 

[WackyDan]

Bah... I actually have been using the spray on battery terminal protector shit for years. Still have the same can I've been using for like 15 years. Once or twice a year I spray on that red shit and I've never had any issues at all. I'll do that over a penny any day.

 

[razel]

How often do you guys clean the terminals?

Depends on the battery. On your picture, on the top of the battery are two recessed hexagonal's covers. Hydrogen comes out of those which causes much of the corrosion on the positive battery terminal. Other batteries, mostly American cars have the posts on the sides avoiding much of that problem. By the way, if you are still using the old battery, pop that cover open and refill with distilled water if needed. Do not add use Epsom salt or any magic potions, just distilled water. If the top plates of battery are under the water, that battery is DONE.

Instead of constantly cleaning you can add the felt covers that go underneath the positive terminal and optionally cover it. Works well in both cars I own. I have even tried spraying spray wax, but it doesn't last long at all. I am currently trying Fluid Film which works well but I plan on trying PlastiDip the next time I remove the positive terminal. You can easily peel it off if you ever need to jump and easily reapply when you get home.

 

[bryanl]

Remove all the hardware from the clamp - nut, bolt, washer, and clean each piece separately with baking soda and water. Coat each piece and the battery post with high temperature grease before reassembly, not after.