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Car battery vs cold weather

T

TheDarkOne

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Location
East Midlands
Car
Accord 1.8 VTEC S
Hi guys,

Yesterday i had a frightening experience, my baby didnt want to start. I guess/hope it was the battery.
The weather wasnt very cold. Eventually it turned and was purring, but those 3mins lasted a lifetime. The dash lighting up, but engine was not starting.

Now, my dillema is this:
I'm going away for a few days, and my baby will be parked on a car park..far far away from home. And with the temperatures now going into negative, i.e. minus, i have a feeling that the battery will only do worse.
My question is this, do i disconect the battery on arrival, as this would hopefully preserve it OR buy/borrow a battery charger and which one, no idea about the amps and voltage?

Many thanks
 
On my 7th gen about this time last year, the battery was the original one with the car (so it was 8 years old) and it was a frozen morning. The battery wasn't as juicy as it once was and it simply didn't have the grunt to kick the frozen starter motor into action. I replaced the battery and the car started no worries.

If I were you in your dilemma, I'd order a new battery so you have one ready to install when you get back from your trip. But borrow a battery charger for starting the car when you get back from your trip.
 
TheDarkOne said:
no idea about the amps and voltage?
Click to expand...

amps - the more the better
voltage - 12v as all car batteries are

I'd say disconnecting the battery will have little benefit. When the cars off there shouldn't be a noticeable drain, it's the cold cranking power that's the issue not the charged level of the battery.
 
Ok so any charger with 12v and high ampage. what is high ampage 6,8,10?
Also do these car chargers need long time to juice up the battery or would it take like 5-10min?

would something like this do?
http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_10001_catalogId_10151_productId_894793_langId_-1_categoryId_255205#tab1


Many thanks
 
You could buy a portable jump starter like this one

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_10001_catalogId_10151_productId_183849_langId_-1_categoryId_255204#tab1


I'd not buy it from Halfords, its a generic model and badged according to who is selling it. If you have a B&M near you, they have them for £30.
 
TheDarkOne said:
I'm going away for a few days, and my baby will be parked on a car park..far far away from home.
Click to expand...
I'm a bit puzzled about how you would use a battery charger on a flat battery when the car is parked on a car park :unsure:

Also, if your car has an alarm, that will draw current, so you might want to lock all the doors with the bonnet up, then disconnect the negative terminal, then shut the bonnet.

But if you can, remove the battery and put it somewhere warmer, though I guess you won't be able to do this either. You could even help it by taking it out and putting it in the front footwell wrapped in a blanket, I jest not.

Time it takes .... depends on the condition of the battery, and the type of charger. Most chargers are knowm as "trickle chargers" because their volts and amps are not high enough to rapidly charge a battery. In fact a rapid "boost" charger can be dangerous in the wrong hands. On a trickle charger, the inital current can be quite high, but as the battery recovers, the current will reduce to a trickle. If you leave a battery on trickle over night, it will be in fine fettle in the morning. But if you don't, then even 10 mins can sometimes be just enough. It all depends, depends, depends.
 
nick said:
amps - the more the better
voltage - 12v as all car batteries are
Click to expand...
As well as the ampere hour rating for the battery (which tells you the total capacity of the battery, so the higher the better), the cranking current (CCA) figure is also important as it tells you how well the battery can delivery it's peak current... particularly improtant for a diesel, so the higher the better as well.

I suggest either getting one from Holdcroft Honda using the TA discount (top tip: don't complain if it's a bit dirty :p ) or get a Bosch S4 or S5 from EuroCarParts using the discount code BATTERY15 (but make sure you get one with the correct handing),
 
If you buy a new battery make sure to get battery with only manufacturer sugested power output/ capacity. If you car has 62Ah then buy 64Ah or whatever capacity up to 10% more than manufacturer suggested.... don't use 74Ah for example, because you car alternator is not capable to charge fully such battery and it will "die" after some time (year or two maybe). Peak power output can be as big as it can be for such capacity(but not less than manufacturer sugested).

If charging old battery with charger, who have manual power preseter , make sure not charge more Ampere than 10% of battery capacity (for example if battery is 64Ah than charge it at 6A at max) or you can "boil" your battery and it will be unusable.
If you want fully charge battery than set minimum amperage on charger and leave it over night.
If your battery have corks (plugs, can be serviced) than open and leave them open while charging or your battery can explode. (modern/new batteries are without plugs/ unserviced so there is nothing to open ).
Fully charged battery should have 12.5-13.5V. If it has less than 12V, then you should get new one.
You should check car charging system too:
1.start engine.
2.turn on high beam lights, heater, rear window defogger and etc ON.
3. check voltage on battery terminals, tester should show 13.8V or more, if there is less than alternator should be inspected/repaired.

:)
 
I'd just get a portable jump pack for the time being mate. We use them at work all the time, it'll get you started even if the battery is completely flat. I started the Accord GSi using a jump pack even though the car didn't even have a battery in it :lol: Then once you've jumped the car and driven it home, you can start thinking about changing the battery over, rather than fussing with it in a car park far away from home :)
 
The way I read the original posts, he's on about getting a battery charger, not a battery, not a jump pack.
 
I was just building on what had been suggested in other posts :) With regards to charging it before it's left in the car park, it's really going to depend on the current condition of the car battery. We've had cars at work that even after being trickle charged in the workshop have then died again on the forecourt after a couple of days, and the only long term solution has been to replace the battery. However, one constant is that all of the cars have always been able to start using a jump pack, which is why I suggested that over a charger. It'll definitely get the OP started again after the car is left for those few days, then once the car is home then changing the battery is probably the next step - if it's draining now in the cold then it's probably on it's way out anyway.

Just my two pence :)
 
Linas said:
If you buy a new battery make sure to get battery with only manufacturer sugested power output/ capacity. If you car has 62Ah then buy 64Ah or whatever capacity up to 10% more than manufacturer suggested.... don't use 74Ah for example, because you car alternator is not capable to charge fully such battery and it will "die" after some time (year or two maybe). Peak power output can be as big as it can be for such capacity(but not less than manufacturer sugested).
Click to expand...
No... just because you have a bigger battery doesn't mean the alternator will have to work harder! It's only the 'used' charge that the alternator has to replace, and that amount will be the same despite the capacity of the battery.
 
freddofrog said:
The way I read the original posts, he's on about getting a battery charger, not a battery, not a jump pack.
Click to expand...
To me it sounds more like Darko doesn't know what he wants, and was asking for help to solve the situation. Which with a car left in a car park possibly miles away from a plug socket, I'd agree that a new battery or a jump starter is probably a better option than a charger.
 
Just get a new battery. It will have plenty of power in it to start the car after your holidays and you won't be faffing about in a cold car park trying to jump start your car. It'll also prevent you having the same trouble all winter.
 
HuskyMan said:
To me it sounds more like Darko doesn't know what he wants, and was asking for help to solve the situation.
Click to expand...
Well in that case, it could be anything. Loose battery terminal, problem with starter solenoid, etc, etc.

What do we have, an OP with a problem getting a car started, or an OP who knows he has an old car battery ?
 
if you live near Loughborough Darko, bring it over here and I'll tell you :lol:
 
freddofrog said:
What do we have, an OP with a problem getting a car started, or an OP who knows he has an old car battery ?
Click to expand...
Good point. He's guessing. However I would guess at battery as well so my suggestion would be get a new battery, but if you can't do that before having to leave the car in a car park then get/borrow a jump starter of some kind and then get a new battery. :D
 
^ or if he can't borrow a jump pack and is really strapped for cash, buy a charger and take it and some spanners, then hope that he can take the battery out to charge it somewhere ....without the bomb squad turning up :lol:
 
Whenever you're driving anywhere it's a good idea to drive with your lights on. This way your alternator is always working, and so is your battery.
 
luvmyaccord said:
Whenever you're driving anywhere it's a good idea to drive with your lights on. This way your alternator is always working, and so is your battery.
Click to expand...
But the alternator will then take longer to replace the battery charge used to start the vehicle, plus you will use more fuel.

And lead acid batteries - unlike the lithium ion, nickel-cadmium and nickel-metal hydride rechargeable technologies that have replaced it elsewhere - don't need to be continuously worked... that's why this archaic, heavy and environmentally unfriendly technology is still used in cars.
 
Jon_G said:
And lead acid batteries - unlike the lithium ion, nickel-cadmium and nickel-metal hydride rechargeable technologies that have replaced it elsewhere - don't need to be continuously worked... that's why this archaic, heavy and environmentally unfriendly technology is still used in cars.
Click to expand...
aye but lead-acid is cheap as chips ^_^
 
Thanks guys

Wow thats quite a bit of info!!
Came back on monday morning to find my beauty start the 1st time.
What a relief!!
The reason why i thought the battery might be on its way out was because it didnt want to start last week. It was only after 5-6 tries did it turn over.
Now after some pondering, i think it was because: the previous night i was playing with the car remote, locking and unlocking. Wasnt sure if the car was locked or not, couldnt see the lights. So i'm thinking maybe that was the reason why the battery was drained???!!

But i think its wise to have a battery charger, one you can hook on to a flat/dead battery and it will breathe life/charge into it. Only question is, how long does it need to be connected to it for the battery to start the car??

Also
How would u know if the battery was on its last breath?? Apart from not starting!! :rolleyes:
I was told b4 that if u see some white bits, like powder or white spots on top of it, thats one of the signs??

Oh yes, you are right, I've no idea what i'm after? lol
 
TheDarkOne said:
But i think its wise to have a battery charger, one you can hook on to a flat/dead battery and it will breathe life/charge into it. Only question is, how long does it need to be connected to it for the battery to start the car??
Click to expand...
Depends how old the battery is and how long its been flat. A battery that's not very old and only been flat a few hours would get enough to start the engine in about 10 mins. A bettery that's not very old and been flat for a day or two might get enough in about half an hour to start the engine. A really old battery that's been flat for several days will need an overnight charge. A really old battery that's been flat for several months would be dead as a doornail.


TheDarkOne said:
How would u know if the battery was on its last breath?? Apart from not starting!! :rolleyes:
I was told b4 that if u see some white bits, like powder or white spots on top of it, thats one of the signs??
Click to expand...
Age basically, and/or time it takes to charge from flat. White spots, no real correlation.
 
Would a battery affect the alternator? i.e. if the battery is on its way out, could it strain the alternator and f**** it up??
 
Dudes if you always use your headlights/sidelights when driving this will help keep the battery in top condition as it'll always be drawing charge and thus getting topped up by the alternator.

A good practise this, and one which is praised on the scooby club forum.
 
TheDarkOne said:
Would a battery affect the alternator? i.e. if the battery is on its way out, could it strain the alternator and f**** it up??
Click to expand...
No. The reverse is true in fact. If you have a flat battery and have to use a starter-pack or jump-leads to start the engine then, as soon as you remove the starter-pack/jump-leads, the flat battery will draw current from the alternator. When it's up to voltage, it no longer draws current from the alternator. But batteries have "internal resistance" and the older a battery is, the bigger its internal resistance. A bigger internal resistance limits large currents going in or out of the battery. So an old battery cannot "push" as much current into the starter motor, and cannot "pull" as much current from the alternator. One way to check the condition of a flat battery is to use a clamp meter to measure the current going back into the battery as soon as the starter-pack/jump-leads are removed. The AA/RAC etc often do this.

I replaced the battery in my car in November 2011 when I was told here that HH (Holdcroft Honda) had new batteries on offer for £38 last year. At the time, the battery in my car was the original battery, the VIN tells me the car was built in 2003, so the battery was 8 years old. I used to leave the battery on charge overnight on my driveway at least once a week. In 2010 I worked in the M3/M4 corridor and stayed in hotels during the week and walked to work. I took a few tools and the charger with me, and the night before leaving, I would take the battery out of the car and charge it over night in the hotel room (otherwise it wouldn't start the car) :eek: :lol:

.
 
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