Well my China made Battery finally starting to fail. 2002 to 2014!

[SPIKER]

Could be the chinese mfr is not playing by international "battery manufacturing rules" which ensure future battery sales. I had an OEM battery in a Nissan that lasted 11 years, and I didn't want to replace it because I was quite curious how much longer it might last. From that I've concluded that lead-acid batteries can last 11 or 12 years but are engineered to fail sooner. Possibly the OEMs have enough purchasing power to specify batteries that don't have that BS.

I was told by a chemistry professor that lead-acid batteries fail mainly because it's an engineered, timed chemical reaction that the industry spent considerable $$ to refine. They need the battery to fail shortly after, but never before a guaranteed life expectancy. Or at lease a life expectancy that is generally accepted by consumers.

Here's how it works. The lead plates have a certain amount of physical space above the bottom of the battery. When the lead (flaking off the plates) piles up and shorts out the plates, then one cell is dead, and the battery has failed. If the battery had more space above the bottom, it would last until the plates failed, which is not as predictable.

More months = more space for lead flakes. Sometimes batteries "revive" and I suspect this is because you take it out of the vehicle, handle it a little roughly, and cause whatever was shorting out that cell to dislodge. For example bumping it around on the concrete floor and re-settleing the pile of flakes that shorted that cell. Then you recharge it with some fancy charger and you think the charger healed it. Wrong, physical action 'failed' the engineered obsolescence (temporarily). Just my opinion.

You cant dump a old battery upside-down because the acid would dump out, and the flakes wouldn't come out. And they would short out more cells. If you could get under the plates and vacuum off the lead flakes then you could get more life out of your battery. If there was a battery life extender that worked, then I bet that company was bought out by a battery industry group (and scuttled).

I find that interesting, perhaps I will pull it out, (I have an old battery setting to trade for the new replacement.) Might have to pull that battery, use a vac suction to suck acid off from bottom into big glass gallon jar, see if crud is the cause.

the chemical stabilizer I sued claimed to reduce the sulphate-ion of the plates reducing the lead corrosion & flaking. Perhaps it worked, I looked into the top of the battery acid levels are all pretty good and plates appear very clean for it's age. figuring this thing has lived it's live bolted in place for 570+ hours over 12 years now in Ohio winters , this last one was pretty bad with a good bit of -20's...

Mark

 

[RetiredCarGuy]

Periodic use of a low amp trickle charger, battery maintainer, etc can add many years of battery life.

 

[Bob Rooks]

I was told by a chemistry professor that lead-acid batteries fail mainly because it's an engineered, timed chemical reaction that the industry spent considerable $$ to refine. They need the battery to fail shortly after, but never before a guaranteed life expectancy. Or at lease a life expectancy that is generally accepted by consumers.

Please cite the professor's credentials and name please, assuming he/she is not an imaginary "shade tree" professor.

 

[SPIKER]

If you do a few min on You Tube there are some interesting "fixes" that may seem to work, I'll be replacing mine some time soon just have not got around to it. Sticking the trickle charger on it, then switching to 10 amp charger just a bit prior to needing it and boosting when getting ready to crank is getting it running. ( I'm not doing much where stalling could happen or keeping it higher RPM than I would for tasks out away from house just in case.) Once running it has no issues but without the charger it won't crank. Been doing some mowing and moving my trailer around that I'm refurbishing so most of time it is simply parked in front of barn for now. Hate to have to pull the front end all apart but will probably be planing on removing the cowling/hood etc and making a lower and extended battery mount so that thing don't cover up the Radiator so much.


Mark

 

[DLTTrekkers]

Good !

 

[RonMar]

It is not so much chemestry as the physical properties of the charge/discharge process and the forces associated with a vehicle. The lead plates flake and these conductive flakes fall to the bottom of the cells. Eventually this sludge builds to a point where it touches the bottom of the plates shorting them. SO the main difference between a 48 month and a 72 month battery is the depth of the sump beneath the cells More vibration hastens this process.

Another factor is the charge/discharge process. As a battery discharges the sulfer in the electrolyte is absorbd by the plates. IF left in this state, the sulfur forms deposits on the plates(called sulfation). These deposits build up and progressively isolate more and more plate surface from the electrolyte. This makes the battery electrically smaller and smaller(reduced capacity) over time. The more time the battery remains discharged, and the deeper the discharge, the quicker the battery fails. IE, leaving a battery in a discharged state is a death sentence for it. Because of internal resistance, a battery will self discharge over time. Reducing depth and duration of discharge and using a maintainer to hold the battery at a proper state of charge will greatly extend the batteries life...

 

[bajabum]

Used to be U.S. batteries lasted maybe 3 years or so ('50s&60's), the technology and materials are sooo much better now.
I had an '78 Datsun B-210, the battery lasted over 12 years (I sold it then)
I now buy at Wally world, 3 or 5 year guarantee, no questions asked.