Before I go poking and prying is it possible to remove and reinsert these plugs? It's napa legend.
Is this lead acid battarey servicable?
- Thread starter Rust_Belt_Pete
- Start date
Whatever you do...wear eye protection...cover all the bases, wear PPE.
The entire panel may pry off. Generally any battery is serviceable with enough effort. Including AGM's.
That looks like it will be an east penn battery. The caps do come off not the entire cover. Use a very small and thin flat blade screwdriver and slowly go in a circle around each cap. The are a tapered fit and need to be slowly worked up. I have done this multiple times on these style caps.
But is it worth it.
Before you try to water the battery be sure to charge it first as the volume of the electrolyte will expand. If you water it while it's flat you can over fill. Only add water before charging if a cell has exposed plates and only add just enough to barely cover it.
After it's charged, you only want a quarter or half inch of water over the plates... to just below the fill neck.
If the battery won't take a charge, adding water won't help, BTW.
After it's charged, you only want a quarter or half inch of water over the plates... to just below the fill neck.
If the battery won't take a charge, adding water won't help, BTW.
Just did two legends from the truck. Those are plugs, screwdriver and gloves, and you're in. I'm pretty sure the panel is glued, I wasted a lot of time and gave up as it looked like it was getting ready to crack, and I cut around with a knife...
Can u post a pic if u get it opened up?
Holy cow. If people want to get into opening maintenance free batteries just buy those serviceable batteries with caps. I’m getting reminded of those street side videos from India.
Here is a serviceable battery I purchased last year. They do sell them. Flame suit on.
Last edited:
I have... ah... 'failed' to properly water my boat and sump pump batteries in the past.
After charging, watering, charging several times, the capacity as measured by capacitance, rose back to normal levels.
So it may be useful for you. But as cautioned before, wear face and body protection. Full-face masks are cheap. Let the hydrogen gas from charging dissipate long enough you don't blow yourself up!
After charging, watering, charging several times, the capacity as measured by capacitance, rose back to normal levels.
So it may be useful for you. But as cautioned before, wear face and body protection. Full-face masks are cheap. Let the hydrogen gas from charging dissipate long enough you don't blow yourself up!
The maintenance free should not ever need water. It's a slightly different alloy I believe.
I am moving towards the normal (not the $400 ones) AGMs.
I am moving towards the normal (not the $400 ones) AGMs.
Is there a build date sticker on it? Usually it's a round sticker on the side with a letter- number code. See if it's worth even bothering.
Yes, these can be opened up.
Because that is what my grandpa used to do in the soviet Union. He is someone I look up to and I just remember when I was a kid him doing this to the car battery. If you want some kind of genuine deep honest answer? To feel connected to my grandpa, to acknowledge the shoulders of giants I stand on.
But the battery is a different technology than the ones your grandpa was use to. I am guessing there is probably something wrong with battery or charging system if a maintenance free battery needs water.
My dog opened up the top of a maintenance free battery one day. I bought a new one. (Battery, not dog).
If it’s a flooded lead acid battery, it’s pretty much the same as it was decades ago. And despite it being “sealed” the water still evaporates from them and needs to be topped off.
It’s no different than “sealed” transmissions.
Actually that's not true. The normal flooded cell just vents the gas. A maintenance free tries to recombine the gas back into water. It does have a valve (VRLA) to deal with over pressurization.
Similar threads
