Battery problems

[cchase]

I went to start up the truck today for the first time in a few weeks. The battery was completely flat on it. It's never had an issue in the past over this time period. I measured the voltage of the battery which was 1.2 volts and figured it was shot.

But, figuring I had nothing to lose, I threw it on a charger. It's now at 11.5 volts and still charging at a decent rate.

I'm not sure why it discharged so far because there's almost no parasitic loss with this truck when the power is off. I suspect the battery is on its way out since this past summer it actually leaked quite a bit at one point.

It's just under 5 years old. I'm just wondering if anyone has any experience with something like this and to whether I should bite the bullet and buy a battery or whether I can nurse this one along for the winter and wait until spring. I don't depend on the truck in the winter and leaving it out and charging is no big deal but if it's shot I'd rather grab whatever I can out of the pro-rated warranty while it's young(er).

 

[OtisBlkR1]

i vote replace. 5-7 years is the claimed average for most ive talked to, use what you can on pro-rate and play better safe than sorry with a dead battery.

 

[oilstudent24]

I agree. Be sure and check the warranty on the new battery you are about to buy. Some places have just the free replacement period such as 2 or 3 years but no prorated for the rest of the time. And some have both. Might as well check the charging system since O'Reillys/Auto Zone will check for free.

 

[daves87rs]

Just replaced mine after 6 years...just couldn't hold a charge anymore....

 

[Donald]

Could you have done something dumb like leaving on a dome light? Fully charge the battery and the load test it at 1/2 the CCA. Or use a hydrometer. Look at your truck when its dark for a light you missed.

I do not think the prorated warranties are worth the paper they are written on.

My dying battery after driving 30 minutes (and being charged while driving) had to be jumped in the Walmart parking lot to get it into their service bay. They did not bother testing the battery at that point. That was a MAXX but not a JCI made one. The replacement MAXX was a JCI.

If your Walmart's MAXX batteries are JCI, I do not think you can find a "very good" battery at a better price.

 

[JHZR2]

high internal resistance will do that. The key is to watch how it drops in time. 11.5v is 0% state of charge.

 

[LeakySeals]

It will be cold any day now. We been lucky so far. Get rid of it.

 

[FusilliJerry82]

Voltage itself means nothing in terms of the health of a car battery.

 

[Donald]

Originally Posted By: FusilliJerry82
Voltage itself means nothing in terms of the health of a car battery.


I am not sure I would agree. Yes, there are better tests than voltage. But charging up a battery via an AC charger and measuring the voltage 24 hrs latter with an accurate meter is not a bad test.

 

[cchase]

Originally Posted By: Donald
I do not think the prorated warranties are worth the paper they are written on.


It's not worth much but it still would come out to about $25 or so if I did my math correctly.

I'm just worried I'll bring it in and they'll tell me it's fine when it's obviously not.

Originally Posted By: FusilliJerry82
Voltage itself means nothing in terms of the health of a car battery.


Normally I'd agree with you but 1.2 volts in a few weeks with no external losses certainly doesn't signal a healthy battery. As JHZR2 said, it probably indicates a very high internal resistance in the battery which is probably not unrelated to the issue I had earlier in the year.

In any event, color me unimpressed with Exide batteries. Less than 5 years with a 3/84 battery is pretty terrible in my book. Usually get 7-9 years out of the Johnson batteries.

 

[FusilliJerry82]

Fair enough; I should have said its not the only or even most important indicator of health, although observing the voltage drop under loads can be helpful.

 

[toneydoc]

Take it to an auto parts store and have them test it. The machine will tell you better than any forum will. That is what I do with my batteries.

 

[Donald]

If they walk out with a hand held 50 or 100 AMP load tester I might not be convinced. A carbon pile load tester should have been on your Christmas list.