corrosion on battery leads

[matrass]

recently I have been getting a lot of corrosion on my battery leads.

I have cleaned them off with baking soda only to see it come back again .

What can I use to keep the corrosion from coming back ?

Been looking at the red and green felt pads for the gm style connections , do they work ?

Can I use something like liquid tape on the exposed wires ?

As always open to your suggestions.

 

[eljefino]

is it an exide battery?

 

[Chris142]

Originally Posted By: eljefino
is it an exide battery?
Ya thats the main cause!

There is a seal between the case and the post. If it's not sealed well the acid and fumes will find their way out and cause corrosion.

Exide seems to have the most trouble with thses seals not sealing. I've never had any luck with the green and red washers. A thick film of grease works better.

Is it a top post or side post battery?

 

[JHZR2]

I use dielectric grease around my terminals from the start and have never had these issues. Ive seen this mainly on toyota vehicles, personally.

Verify that under some situations you arent boiling electrolyte/overcharging. May need to replace the battery.

 

[Chris Meutsch]

Wheel bearing grease works for me.

 

[rclint]

I use the felt washers you can purchase at walmart, parts stores etc combined with an application of grease ( I think about any grease will work.. I wouldn't use moly etc just on the fact of it running off when hot) your just coating the parts to keep corrosion away.

 

[mrsilv04]

Originally Posted By: eljefino
is it an exide battery?

Isn't that the truth.

I'm now down to just one Exide battery in the fleet, and it was just replaced free under warranty in month 11, after a total failure.

 

[Kuato]

You could try taping/gluing a penny to the battery. The copper (if copper is still being used by Uncle Sam) is more reactive to corrosion than the cables, so will corrode faster and help save the cables.

 

[eljefino]

copper pennies stopped being made mid 1982. But lots of older ones are still around as it costs more in energy to melt them down than you get back in copper.

 

[matrass]

thanks for all of the replies so far. the battery is only a few months old and it is an Optima. it is a Chevy with side post mounts. I have tried Vaseline and dielectric grease on the connectors with very little luck. maybe I need something like what permatex makes for cleaning and protecting battery terminals in addition to the felt washers ? have heard that the product corrosion block works well, anybody try that product ?

 

[eljefino]

In that case I'd run new wires down to the starter and ground, they're actually pretty cheap. You may have something going on in the insulation you don't know about, ie a leftover from an old battery. This can strand you (pun not intended) despite passing a visual inspection. Delcos had a quality issue around y2k where they'd leak acid in the manner in which you describe.

 

[Chris142]

How can an AGM battery such as an optima leak?

 

[Kuato]

Originally Posted By: eljefino
In that case I'd run new wires down to the starter and ground, they're actually pretty cheap. You may have something going on in the insulation you don't know about, ie a leftover from an old battery. This can strand you (pun not intended) despite passing a visual inspection. Delcos had a quality issue around y2k where they'd leak acid in the manner in which you describe.


+1; I've found corrosion inside the insulation, up to 8" (20cm) away from the battery terminals. It had eventually gotten bad enough to make my electrical system crazy.

 

[matrass]

so it sounds like you suggest I change the battery cables out then. guess i will start shopping for them. thanks for the advice everybody.

 

[SIXSPEED]

Originally Posted By: matrass
the battery is only a few months old and it is an Optima. it is a Chevy with side post mounts.

That is really odd for an Optima, which is a sealed Valve Regulated Lead Acid battery. It should not corrode the terminals unless the seal around the terminal is breached.

 

[matrass]

agreed , the issue was not present until a couple of months after I changed the battery to the Optima. I think the negative lead is the culprit as there are some bare copper wire showing where three negative wires are joined to base of the negative terminal. also the negative terminal used to have a plastic protective ring over it and that cracked and was removed. seems like the plastic part helped keep the corrosion in check hmmmmm ?

 

[mechtech2]

Another old trick is to simply place pennies on the battery.
The corrosion will collect there, and you simply discard them.
It really works!
The cost? Only pennies!

I avoid putting anything on the terminals UNTIL they are assembled. Why put any insulator between the surfaces that are suppose to be tight and right and conductive? I like a few light sprays of Rustoleum to seal things once assembled. It works great!

You may have a real problem, however.

If you have a leak with a new battery, get the warranty out.

 

[brianl703]

Originally Posted By: Chris142
How can an AGM battery such as an optima leak?


AGM batteries can leak a little bit through the vents if the charging voltage is too high or if one of the cells develops a short.

I've had it happen twice so far, not with Optima batteries, but with the smaller AGM batteries used in UPSs.

 

[SIXSPEED]

Originally Posted By: brianl703
Originally Posted By: Chris142
How can an AGM battery such as an optima leak?


AGM batteries can leak a little bit through the vents if the charging voltage is too high or if one of the cells develops a short.

I've had it happen twice so far, not with Optima batteries, but with the smaller AGM batteries used in UPSs.

Optima's claim: Will not off-gas in normal operation, eliminating fumes, odor & corrosion. "Normal operation" is the key word here. I agree, it might be worthwhile to check the charge voltage applied to the battery terminals while the engine is running. I believe it should be like 14.2 VDC.

 

[KrisZ]

If the terminal still corrodes with petroleum jelly or dielectric grease, then something is not right. Either the battery itself or wiring, perhaps a bad ground?