Do not throw a battery in a landfill if it malfunctions. By applying some methods, you can almost completely restore its performance and service life.
It is necessary
rechargeable battery, electrolyte, distilled water, soldering iron, lead solder, battery mastic
Instructions
Step 1
Examine the battery carefully. Identify mechanical damage, cracks in the cans, possible leakage of electrolyte, the presence of dirt on the surface. Very often, the increased self-discharge of the battery is eliminated by wiping the surface between the terminals. Do not rush to disassemble the battery if it is poorly charged in the vehicle. Check the tension and serviceability of the alternator belt, voltage at the battery terminals when the engine is running at medium speed. It should be in the range of 13.8 V - 14.1 V. In case of difference, adjust or replace the relay-regulator.
Step 2
Carry out a test cycle - fully charge the battery, and then discharge with a current, the value of which corresponds to: I = C / 10 (A), where C is the nominal capacity of the battery (A / h). When charging the battery, some symptoms may appear that indicate the nature of the malfunction: 1) if the battery does not charge well, i.e. the charging current grows slowly with an increase in the charger voltage, the current, then this is the sulfation of the battery plates; 2) if during charging you hear a characteristic hiss in one of the cans, one of the battery terminals heats up strongly, the charge current changes sharply, then this means that in one of the cans has no contact between the terminal and the block of plates; 3) if the charge current is established normally, but in one or several cans the electrolyte density grows slowly or does not increase, and an hour after the start of the battery charging, the bottom of the cans heats up, then this is the closure of the crumbling plates active mass. Under normal parameters, fully charge the battery, let it cool for about 2-3 hours, measure and record the density value in each jar. After a day, measure the density of the electrolyte again. In case of a strong decrease, which indicates an increased self-discharge, change the electrolyte. To do this, first fully charge the battery, drain the old electrolyte, rinse the battery with distilled water and fill with fresh electrolyte. Charge the battery and check for self-discharge. If it is negligible, carry out a charge-discharge test cycle to assess its capacity. During the test cycle, discharge the battery until the voltage drops to 1.8 V. The battery capacity will be equal to:
C = TxI, where C is the battery capacity (A / h), T is the discharge time (hours), I is the discharge current (A).
Car incandescent lamps can be used to discharge the battery.
Step 3
Eliminate the sulfation of the plates, which occurs from systematic undercharging, the use of non-distilled water, electrolyte contamination, long-term storage of the battery in a discharged state. Perform a charge-discharge test cycle, but charge current and discharge should be 25 percent of normal. Carry out them until the battery capacity becomes close to the nominal. Remove the foam that appears at the same time. Re-establish the broken contact in one of the jars. This is possible if the battery is collapsible. Use a hacksaw to cut the jumpers that connect the faulty jar to the adjacent jars, clean the jar lid from the mastic and remove the plate block from the jar. Rinse the removed plates with distilled water. Inspect the unit for broken contact. Restore contact by soldering with a 100-200 W soldering iron. Clean the solder spots to a shine, coat with rosin or stearin. Solder with pure lead, tin and other solders should not be used. Reinstall the plate block (observe the polarity), solder the cut jumpers. Heat the mastic to a liquid state, fill in the cracks between the lid and the body.
