How to maintain car battery life for a long time is very important topic and we need to understand why a battery required to be replaced or changed in just 1 to 2 years of buying a car. Here are some tips on how to maintain car battery and also what we should not be doing so that our car battery will last longer.
Why we need to maintain car battery life
It is more than necessary to maintain car battery life because
- Now a days cars are having more and more electronic system installed so a good battery helps to power the entire electric system.
- Suppose we need to rush to a some place and its urgent so a good battery in car will save our time and money also.
- It helps to prevent unplanned seize up of our car.
- Proper voltage will help maintain a good health of sensitive electronic devices.
- A battery provides the electric supply to the sub components of a car mobility system, specially the ECU which is the nervous system of cars. It sends information from parts to parts so to work properly.
- A good battery life provides a very good entertainment experience like listening music and it also guides us with navigation system.
So there are multiple benefits of maintaining a car battery life and it is more important for a car to get start. So it becomes important to focus on the topic of how to maintain a car battery.
How to maintain car battery health
There are some tips to maintain a car battery health
- Cold start your car in morning before moving so that proper load on the battery will be maintained. It also helps maintain good Engine life.
- Keep all your lights off including the cabin light also. Lights consume battery and if remains switched on it will decrease battery life.
- Do not listen music for long time if your car’s engine is turned off it will also degrade battery life.
- Make sure to switch off the Fan and AC before starting ignition they increases battery load
- Check Battery Water regularly distilled water must be filled up to the maximum indication level.
- Battery terminals must be properly connected and kept tight.
- Loose terminal will create sparking during ignition. Also a loose connection will increase the heat under the hood and Engine will also get affected.
How to maintain car battery life
- Properly lubricate the battery terminals it will reduce corrosion and improve contact also.
- Carbon accumulates on the terminals so once in a month wash terminals with hot boiling water so that it will remove dust and carbon and will improve the connection also.
- Use wd40 spray for terminal if its getting rusting and corrosion time to time.
- If your car is standing for long time like 15-20 days then start your car in every 4 to 5 days for at least 15 minutes. This will help maintain the voltage of battery and overall battery life.
- Alternator recharge the battery when the car keep running. So Check whether the alternator working properly or not it can also damage battery life if any malfunction occurs.
- Multimeter is used to check battery health. 7 volt reading on it means battery is dead. so keep track of its voltage so that corrective measure can be taken
- On load means during ignition when keeping headlights switched on, if reading on Multimeter is below 10volts that means battery life is good. Below it means battery needs attention.
How to maintain car battery in winter
- In winters the car charging take longer time means longer running needed
- It also gets discharge very quickly in cold so its more important to check battery health in winters.
- Remove battery terminals if the car is parked for a long time in winters. It will save battery from discharging and also there will be no chance of short circuit.
- More important is to check recommended level of battery water. Less water will destroy battery cells. Water level of a battery can be checked using the marking on it with minimum and maximum.
- Start the car in winter daily for at least 10 minutes if car is not running daily. So that power and voltage will be maintained.
- Remove corrosion or any type of carbon deposit on terminals. You can do using hot water on the terminals.
- Keep the terminals well lubricated in winter also so there will be better connection and better flow of current.
How to maintain car battery when not on use
- Remove the battery terminals when the car is not running. Removing it will save extra voltage and voltage loss will be minimum.
- If Sulphur smell is pungent and if it comes out from the hood that means battery leakeage is there. try to check all the connection. Do not neglect it because in long run it will destroy your battery.
- Because of long standing cars battery can’t get proper charging keep checking ignition when take longer time which means battery needs attention.
- Headlights throw become low during horn or any acid leakage are the sign of low battery life. Keep checking the terminals properly.
- Never try to flip or put the battery upside down when car battery is not in use it destroys the cells.
How to maintain car battery charge (Corrective Measures)
- Keep a Jump Starter as an accessory. It helps in emergency
- Maintenance free batteries are also available in the markets but irony is that they also need maintenance like it needs distilled water full and check corrosion,
- Check for Guarantee(its for less time) and Warranty(for longer time but it covers only repair) before buying the a new one.
- Battery life is of 3-4 years so keep track of it and keep checking for its voltage replace if its voltage is below 10 volts.