Car Battery Charger Info

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photo credit: Charles WilliamsIt’s very important to use your car battery charger to charge your car battery correctly, not just because you could damage it or shorten its life, but also because of safety. Batteries can produce explosive gas (hydrogen) not just when charging but also during normal day-today running. If the battery is overcharged or charged too rapidly there will usually be a rise in temperature. High internal temperatures can shorten the life of batteries and this means that you will end up having to replace the battery earlier than necessary. Rapid charging of the car battery could also lead to excessive production of potentially explosive hydrogen gas inside the battery. Here are some safety tips about safe charging:

• Firstly and most importantly, make sure that you wear personal protective equipment including eye protection that is suitable for protecting your eyes from all angles. Also wear protective gloves if your skin is likely to come in contact with the battery acid.
• Keep clean water to hand so that you can rinse skin or eyes that come into contact with battery acid. If this occurs, rinse for at least 15 minutes and seek medical advice.
• Read the instructions that came with the charger and follow them closely. Avoid using chargers that do not come with clear instructions on how to use them.
• If using a mains electricity-powered charger, conect the charging cables to the battery before plugging the charger into the mains electricity outlet. This will help to avoid sparking.
• Keep anything that could cause sparks or flames away from the battery, including cigarettes, matches, lighters etc.
• Be sure to charge away from fuel vapour, so as to avoid causing an explosion.

• Avoid short circuiting the battery terminals with tools or other metallic objects, and avoid shorting between battery terminals and bodywork.
• Keep the charger as far from the car battery as possible, and keep people and pets away from the area where you are charging.
• Make sure that you charge in a well-ventilated place, so that any gas formed does not build up to dangerous levels.
• In cold weather, flat car batteries can freeze. Avoid charging frozen batteries otherwise they could rupture and leak battery acid.
• Don’t overcharge the battery, most modern car battery chargers will not overcharge the battery, however some models may overcharge.
• Charge the battery on the lowest Amp setting possible, as this will avoid overheating and excessive gas production.

Most of these points are simple to stick to, and following them will ensure that your car battery life is the longest possible and that you avoid injury and damage to property.