That there is nothing worse for the battery than cold? This is an established view, but it is not entirely true. Steamy summer is a similarly unfavorable period, because at high temperatures the battery dries out, even though they are modern closed types.
Even in winter, however, car batteries suffer in two cases: When it is not in good condition or when the temperature drops significantly below minus 10 degrees Celsius.
What should motorists do to protect the car battery? ÚAMK experts together with partners from the German car club ADAC have compiled eight practical tips:
1) Beware of very low temperatures
At normal winter temperatures up to about – 10 degrees Celsius, charged batteries and batteries in good condition have no problems. However, below this limit, there may already be a loss of capacity, which decreases if we do not use the vehicle regularly. It is reported that at 20 degrees below zero, the capacity is reduced by about half, at minus thirty to about 40%. The reason is the electrolyte ions – at low temperatures their mobility decreases, due to increasing the density of the fluid in the battery.
2) Do you only drive short distances? Error!
If you generally drive little in the winter, and in addition you only go on short routes, to the store or to the doctor, the battery suffers. Simply put, it doesn’t get a chance for the battery to charge sufficiently during a longer drive with the alternator and get back in good condition.
What is a longer ride? Opinions differ, but ÚAMK experts are of the opinion that the alternator will start offering enough energy after about 15 kilometers from the start. If you do not drive it, it is recommended to charge the battery with an external source.
Even the “smart” controlled alternators, which have been installed in cars in recent years, do not help the winter condition of the batteries much. Although they save fuel and partially reduce emissions, at the same time they usually do not allow recharging at times when this would increase consumption. The alternator thus connects mainly during engine braking and is not fully charged until you take your foot off the accelerator. And such moments may not be enough for a proper recharge, even when driving longer.
3) Observe the battery voltage
According to manufacturers and retailers, today’s batteries are maintenance-free, but the label refers exclusively to the density of electrolyte, which you really do not have to check for a long time and add distilled water to the car battery. But voltage control is still necessary! Get a multimeter (voltmeter) and measure the voltage at rest, about five hours after parking.
According to some experts, the “breaking point” is 12.6 V, according to others the limit is one tenth lower. In any case, as soon as the battery voltage drops below 12.5 V (a fully charged battery has a quiescent voltage of up to 12.7 V), the active surface of the boards is reduced and the self-discharge current increases.
The literally critical limit can be 12.2 V. In such a situation, lead sulfate crystallizes, which binds to the electrodes, followed by so-called sulfation – lead sulfate crystals are formed on the electrodes and they cannot transfer energy. The capacity of the battery, which may be completely unusable, will be significantly reduced. Up to 80% of untreated lead-acid batteries fall victim to sulphation.
How to prevent it? In time, connect the battery to the charger, which can be purchased from about 700 crowns up. So these are not high costs. The charging current of the charger should reach one tenth of the capacity of the battery in your car.
4) Notice what the battery “tells” you
The battery usually does not stop working for hours. This is preceded by a warning, we just have to “hear”. For example, by registering a slow engine crank at start. Another symptom of future problems is fluctuations in the intensity of the headlight beam, in-vehicle lighting or the instrument panel backlight. We are talking about voltage fluctuations.
A recipe for a solution? Still the same: Charge the battery or take the car on another route.
5) Do not shake the battery. Do you know how to save it?
If you bother the battery, it may return you badly if it no longer allows you to start. What to imagine under the term “do not bother the battery? Just save it. For example, in the winter before starting the engine do not turn on the headlights, heated windows or seats and even the car radio.
Another such blow that the battery does not have to withstand is repeated unsuccessful starts. Repeated starts with the stop-start system in modern cars do not thrive even at intersections or in traffic jams.
However, a dirty battery and its contacts full of dust, trapped by grease or mud, can also be imagined as “troubled”. Even these apparent details increase self-discharge.
6) If so, the jump leads
Once the worst comes to the worst, the car cannot be started, the most suitable solution is to use jump leads. We should have these with us as part of normal equipment when traveling in the winter. Whether to rescue myself or another motorist.
When buying, do not decide on the price, but, for example, on whether the product has a European certificate. Lay advice for lay decision-making: a weak bundle of cable wires does not indicate a high-quality product.
The use of jump leads then has clear rules: The colors of the cables correspond to the caps on the battery poles – red is plus (+), black is minus (-). The red cable is connected first to the positive pole of the discharged battery of the revived car and then to the + pole of the “rescuer”.
This is followed by a negative cable to the rescuer’s battery. Finally, connect the other end of the negative cable to the metal part of the engine of the rescued car. Then starts. It should not be longer than 10 seconds and it is appropriate to choose about half-minute breaks between individual starts.
7) Forget about pushing the car!
Older motorists certainly have a lot of experience with pushing cars, but this must definitely be forgotten. In modern cars, it can result in the combustion of the catalytic converter and, in the worst case, damage to the timing belt or chain, with subsequent collision of the valves with the pistons.
Even towing with another car is not a good solution. But when the situation is desperate and otherwise unsolvable, we drive the “dead” car at low speed, gently shift into second gear and start starting before the clutch is released. This will reduce the impact on the engine when the clutch engages. Much less suitable for such an emergency operation are diesels.
8) Even heat and music can help
If we have no other choice, our helper can be warm – if the battery is not completely discharged, but the car still does not start, we can try to get it, for example, into a covered garage and let it warm up there. Even a hot water bottle placed for 10 minutes next to the battery under the hood can have some effect.
And another “trick”, even if it goes against the fifth council: just before the start, turn on the radio this time. Of course, it’s not about the music, but about the fact that when the radio and headlights are turned on, the battery is gently warmed up by a small current consumption.
ÚAMK experts emphasize that the eighth advice will work for a battery that is still in relatively good condition. If we let the battery completely discharge, the winter will only do what we caused ourselves.
And advice in the end? You don’t have to worry if you have the battery checked and recharged before the winter, if you take care of it properly and you are not in the cold for minus 20 degrees for a long time.
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