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Void Where Prohibited |
I had to get a new battery for my lawn tractor; it's a non-sealed lead acid battery. It's been something like 40 years since I charged a lead acid battery, and I can't remember the answer to this question. I filled it with electrolyte (sulfuric acid solution) and now I have to charge it. What I can't remember is if I put the caps in, or leave the cells open while charging. I seem to remember having to leave them open for gas to escape, but I'm not sure. What say you, Sig Forum? "If Gun Control worked, Chicago would look like Mayberry, not Thunderdome" - Cam Edwards | ||
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| Three Generations of Service  |
A lead-acid battery is normally vented as part of the case construction. If so, removing the caps is not required. OTOH, no harm is done by removing the caps as long as you're sure no foreign matter can fall into the cells. Be sure you have adequate ventilation and no ignition sources nearby. Be careful when following the masses. Sometimes the M is silent. | |||
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| Void Where Prohibited |
Thanks. I'll loosen the caps but leave them in the holes just to be on the safe side. "If Gun Control worked, Chicago would look like Mayberry, not Thunderdome" - Cam Edwards | |||
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Tinker Sailor Soldier Pie |
The caps will allow for venting ~Alan Acta Non Verba NRA Life Member (Patron) God, Family, Guns, Country Men will fight and die to protect women... because women protect everything else. ~Andrew Klavan | |||
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| Member |
Did you get instructions for the rate of charge? If the battery is physically small, 1-2 amps should be the maximum rate of charge. If it is a car size battery then you can use a normal car rate. Don't push too high an amp rate into it. | |||
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| Void Where Prohibited |
No, there were no instructions for the charging. My charger has circuitry to monitor the process and adjust automatically - there's no manual way to change the rate of charge with it. I was actually surprised to receive a non-sealed battery when I ordered it; I guess I didn't read the description thoroughly enough. I always charged the sealed lead-acid battery that I'm replacing with this charger. "If Gun Control worked, Chicago would look like Mayberry, not Thunderdome" - Cam Edwards | |||
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| Member |
Charge it on a low amp rate, and take the caps off. Keep ignition sources away; the battery gasses off hydrogen. | |||
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Happily Retired |
Yeah, you are gonna want to keep that charger on a 12 volt/2 amp charge rate. .....never marry a woman who is mean to your waitress. | |||
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| Partial dichotomy |
Maybe not the case now, but caps used to come with a rubber seal inside that could prevent proper venting. Might be worth checking. SIGforum: For all your needs! Imagine our influence if every gun owner in America was an NRA member! Click the box>>>  | |||
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To all of you who are serving or have served our country, Thank You |
Yea but smart chargers have no way to tell what AH size of battery they are charging. I hope you are not using something like a 8 10 or 12 AH charger on a smaller battery. | |||
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Yokel |
Very Important. Caps off, Low amp charge overnight or longer. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT. Before disconnecting the clamps make sure you unplug the charger. Yes unplug it. Do not trust the of timer off switch. When charging a lead acid battery it will emit Hydrogen Gas which is very explosive. Any spark disconnecting a clamp can easily ignite this. I have seen the after effect of a battery blowing up. Please do not trust the timer off knob. Unplug the machine and wait a few minutes before disconnect the clamps. Well ventilate the area while charging. Do not leave it in the garage closed up on the charger overnight to only go out there and turn on a light switch in a room filled with Hydrogen Gas. . Beware the man who only has one gun. He probably knows how to use it! - John Steinbeck | |||
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| That rug really tied the room together. |
What charger do you have? Like said, you only want to charge at 2 amps. Maybe read the manual and see if there is a way to lower the charge amperage. You don't want to cook that battery with 10 amps. Now might be a good time to buy a Battery Tender to keep that lawn tractor battery in good condition. It will also charge a lawn tractor battery at 0.75 amps or so, which is safe. https://www.amazon.com/Battery...harger/dp/B000CITK8S One final point, what the hell battery did you buy that comes without charge? A lawn tractor battery at Walmart cost $20 and comes charged and ready to go. ______________________________________________________ Often times a very small man can cast a very large shadow | |||
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| Member |
I can attest to this. It is like a bomb going off when a battery grenades. I've had 4 of them grenade over the years. On yachts, we have large battery banks of 3-6 banks of batteries. They have large chargers that are on all of the time, typically 40-120 amp chargers. Occasionally one of the diodes will go bad in the charger and the charger will leak AC voltage into a bank or several and as soon as you hit the bank with a decent load, like a starter, kaboom. The engine room where they are located is somewhat small 16'x 15' for example with a 5' headroom and there will be shrapnel and acid all over the entire engine room when they go and it sounds like a grenade went off in there. | |||
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| Member |
That's good to know, I had no ides that charging a battery can produce and add enough hydrogen gas to the air concentration in a room that could ignite? Is this only when first charging a new or depleted battery or does just maintaining batteries on a trickle charger produce an appreciable amount of hydrogen gas as well? I rotate two or three smart chargers which are on continuously in a 20'x 22' inside room. That's also where I activate and charge new batteries. These are smaller motorcycle batteries although the battery in the Harley is larger, about the size of a garden tractor battery. BTW when activating a new battery the directions typically say to add the acid, allow it to sit for 30 minutes, then charge.
No car is as much fun to drive, as any motorcycle is to ride. | |||
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| Tinker Sailor Soldier Pie |
For chrissakes, folks. We're talking about a single, small lawn tractor battery here. Not an entire bank of 225 A/H deep cell batteries. Jiminy Christmas...  ~Alan Acta Non Verba NRA Life Member (Patron) God, Family, Guns, Country Men will fight and die to protect women... because women protect everything else. ~Andrew Klavan | |||
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| That rug really tied the room together. |
 ______________________________________________________ Often times a very small man can cast a very large shadow | |||
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quarter MOA visionary |
CTEK Battery Chargers are considered industry standard. They have smart chargers to vary the charge as appropriate. You do not need the uber large battery model and more expensive models as the lower owns work just as well with a variety of batteries. Check them out: https://smartercharger.com/battery-chargers/ | |||
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| Member |
Typically the excess buildup of hydrogen was due to high charge rates (relative to size/capacity of the battery) and the batteries being in an enclosed space. I haven't seen a flooded lead acid battery that wasn't vented in years (decades). There are a LOT of fishing boats that are charged each and every time they are taken off the water with no incident using all sorts of chargers (from on board to small portable chargers). Most typical fishing boats have at least 2 - often 4 or 5 depending on the electronic packages. Modern chargers are relatively 'smart' in how they charge a battery - some will even lower the amperage based on how the battery is taking the charge. Unless its one of the monster chargers that have their own built in dolly - hook it up, plug it in - wait for the charge to complete - unplug it and then disconnect from the battery. Shawn I reject your reality and substitute my own. --Adam Savage, MythBusters | |||
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| Member |
I agree, BUT if you are standing directly in front of the lawn battery, with the battery caps off of it, and disconnect the battery cables with your hands and create a spark with hydrogen gas present it can and will blow battery acid all over you and everything around it, if it ignites. So the initial post is good advice to disconnect power to the charger before removing the charger cables, that is all. NOT that the lawn battery is capable of taking out a drywall wall or anything like that. I have had a group 31 battery, which isn't all that big (compared to an 8D) blow a heavy duty fiberglass battery tray into a million pieces in an engine room with fiberglass shrapnel embedded 10' away into the insulation on the ceilings and walls. It's very rare, but nothing I'd want to be standing in front of. | |||
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member |
If this is a lawn tractor like I picture, such as ATV sized, those usually come with either Gel cell or AGM batteries, which are sealed. If it is indeed a larger and more tractor-like machine, such as a Kubota utility tractor, those usually have flooded batteries. In either case, due to infrequent use, I keep them hooked up to a Deltran Battery Tender. It is a low amperage charger with smart electronics to sense the state of charge, so you won't need to take the caps off a flooded battery. If it is of the smaller variety machine, you might consider next time sizing an AGM battery as a replacement. AGM is lead acid, but the electrolyte is absorbed in a glass mat, so it won't spill, and is sealed. | |||
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