What is that white CRAP on my car battery posts??

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - What is that white CRAP on my car battery posts??

Posted: 12/27/2003 9:55:00 PM EDT

Car mechanic tells me that he has to clean them off and wants to charge me 25.00 to do it. What the hell is it and it looks like something a steel brush can handle... any hints?

Posted: 12/27/2003 9:56:41 PM EDT

[#1]

OMG go get a terminal cleaner.

Posted: 12/27/2003 9:58:26 PM EDT

[#2]

What does it taste like?

Posted: 12/27/2003 9:59:22 PM EDT

[#3]

Battery terminal cleaner available at your local auto parts store, and the terminal cleaner tool. 10 minutes, and they'll be good to go. Make sure you rinse all the goop off before you get to scrubbin on the terminals.

Posted: 12/27/2003 10:02:01 PM EDT

[#4]

it's corrosion, and you can get a $5 tool at any auto-parts store to clean it yourself. Coat with vaseline when you're done & it won't happen again.

Do you know how to put gas in the car & which pedal makes it go & which one makes it stop?

Posted: 12/27/2003 10:03:58 PM EDT

[#5]

Quoted:
OMG go get a terminal cleaner.

View Quote

But will it leave a mark?

Posted: 12/27/2003 10:04:00 PM EDT

[#6]

[img]http://photos.ar15.com/ImageGallery/Attachments/DownloadAttach.asp?iImageUnq=20971[/img]

Posted: 12/27/2003 10:04:00 PM EDT

[#7]

Quoted:
What does it taste like?

View Quote

lol

Its just battery crap. whip it off and get some battery jelly for thge posts. OR vasaline

SGtar15

Posted: 12/27/2003 10:05:11 PM EDT

[#8]

Hell, just pour Coca Cola on it, let it sit for a couple of minutes, and rinse off with water.
If it's really caked on repeat and use a toothbrush.
Also check the water level, it's probably low.
Use proper eye protection any time you work around a car battery!

Edited to reflect AZ K9 beat me to it.

Posted: 12/27/2003 10:05:27 PM EDT

[#9]

Quoted:
What does it taste like?

View Quote

[ralph wiggum]"tastes like burning"[/ralph wiggum]

Posted: 12/27/2003 10:05:53 PM EDT

[#10]

[b]Do you know how to put gas in the car & which pedal makes it go & which one makes it stop?
[/b]

[LOLabove]

Posted: 12/27/2003 10:07:06 PM EDT

[#11]

It is a form of corrosion. This can be cleaned off fairly easy using a terminal cleaner from an auto parts store. Another way to do it is to make up a thick paste of baking soda and water and apply it, this will eat away the corrosion (some scraping may still be required).

This corrosion can be caustic to the eyes so be carefull. Either way, it needs to be removed as it will eventually interfere with the contact between the terminal and the cable. Once they loose contact, the car wont start.

If you do the job yourself (which I recommend, it is very simple) take care not to short out the battary. My dad was cleaning some posts one year and dropped a wrench. The wrench apparently shorted the battary because it exploded in his face. It was scary as hell. He got a bunch of cuts on his face that made it look like he went through a windshield.

It is a minor and easy job to clean it up but use some caution.

EDITED to say....Good grief you guys are fast. One response when I started typing and 9 more before I finished.

Posted: 12/27/2003 10:08:20 PM EDT

[#12]

Quoted:

Quoted:
What does it taste like?

View Quote

[ralph wiggum]"tastes like burning"[/ralph wiggum]

View Quote

Niiiiiiiice!

Posted: 12/27/2003 10:11:36 PM EDT

[#13]

Actually, rather than editing my original post, let me clarify. I can see how I came across as some wimpy-ass Potsie Webber on this one... dont be overtired and post!!

I HAD a car mechanic that was awesome and brought my vehicles to him for tune up, oil change etc etc... Was worth it to me to bring it in rather than time wise for me to mess with it.

This new guy itemizes EVERY single detail and treats this battery corrosion as some sort of nuclear toxin and how a 'qualified' technician can handle this.

I have seen my dad clean off this crap all the time when i was a kid, and thought no big deal. This guy was like "OH NO, YOU HAVE TO BE EXTREMELY CAREFUL HERE" So I was wondering WTF?

Posted: 12/27/2003 10:14:06 PM EDT

[#14]

It just astonishes me that this would be an issue for someone who works on cars (enough to charge you for it.)

Posted: 12/27/2003 10:15:52 PM EDT

[#15]

It astonishes me that you work on electrical appliances and seem befuddled here.

(No offense implied.)

Posted: 12/27/2003 10:16:08 PM EDT

[#16]

The same type of people that now charge a $2.00 "oil disposal" fee.

Posted: 12/27/2003 10:16:38 PM EDT

[#17]

The mech, probably has to pay for his Snap-on's some how.

Posted: 12/27/2003 10:19:45 PM EDT

[#18]

If your car still starts, don't worry about it.[:D] Just scrape the most off and don't get any of it on the car paint.

Posted: 12/27/2003 10:23:31 PM EDT

[#19]

[b]Q: What is that white CRAP on my car battery posts??[/b]

A: The lead in the battery post and clamp reacts with the sulphuric acid electrolyte inside the battery to form lead sulphate.

Interestingly, the quality of the battery has an effect on how much of this crap appears. Batteries with a good seal between the terminal post and battery case tend to have very little corrosion. IMO, the best battery brands in this regard are AC Delco, DEKA/East Penn, Interstate and Trojan.

Posted: 12/27/2003 10:25:11 PM EDT

[#20]

Quoted:
It astonishes me that you work on electrical appliances and seem befuddled here.

(No offense implied.)

View Quote

No. I am not befuddled... well, I am in a way on how this technician was acting in a way that maybe I was missing something on the "handling" of the battery crap. I thought it was something simple...which it is. This mechanic wanted to charge me 25.00 to do something that was commonplace.

Kinda like me charging a customer to clean a refrigerator drain pan for 25.00 and telling them "NO, you have to handle it a certain way. Only I know how to do it because you can screw the refrigerator up"

understand now why I asked?

Posted: 12/27/2003 11:03:48 PM EDT

[#21]

I just pour hot water on it (a slow trickle) until its gone....Even cheaper than coke or baking soda.

Posted: 12/27/2003 11:11:26 PM EDT

[#22]

baking soda mixed with water drizzled over the terminal posts. i've never tried a paste like Lumpy said, i've always made mine runnier. either way should work fine though

Posted: 12/27/2003 11:35:54 PM EDT

[#23]

Doesn't the vaseline run off if it gets too hot? I hadn't heard of that trick. In Alaska, battery power is of utmost importance. Not knowing any better, I buy clean the posts well, then hit them with the batter terminal protectant spray, and use those felt anticorrosion rings. On other batteries I just use some of this anticorrosion gunk I got for anti-corrosion use on ground connections.

Posted: 12/27/2003 11:53:36 PM EDT

[#24]

Baking soda nd water are great - just don't let it get into the battery itself if the battery isn't sealed. I'tll make the cells it gets into go dead.

Posted: 12/28/2003 12:30:07 AM EDT

[#25]

Battery corossion. Usually happens at some point (well, I haven't seen it on the GM terminals, just normal ones, clamp type).

I got sick and tired of cleaning battery terminals on the equipment (tractors). The right way is to take the battery out, scrub it down and put it back.... heck, I only got 3 years at best with the tractor batteries. Usually ran out of fluid or some other BS. That's why I ended up purchasing Optima batteries. Yes, they are expensive. I've got one that is pushing 7 years now....

No corrosion, no water, no acid to worry about.

Posted: 12/28/2003 12:56:00 AM EDT

[#26]

Quoted:
IMO, the best battery brands in this regard are AC Delco, DEKA/East Penn, Interstate and [red]Trojan.[/red]

View Quote

They make batteties now?

[img]http://www.walgreens.com/dbimagecache/68712.gif[/img]

Posted: 12/28/2003 1:26:46 AM EDT

[#27]

Quoted:
That's why I ended up purchasing Optima batteries. Yes, they are expensive. I've got one that is pushing 7 years now....

No corrosion, no water, no acid to worry about.

View Quote

Can also be stored/used in non vertical positions, have a great charge to bulk ratio, handles cold better...

Posted: 12/28/2003 1:28:14 AM EDT

[#28]

Quoted:
...I have seen my dad clean off this crap all the time when i was a kid, and thought no big deal. This guy was like "OH NO, YOU HAVE TO BE EXTREMELY CAREFUL HERE" So I was wondering WTF?

View Quote

Time to find a new mechanic, before this one screws you.

Posted: 12/28/2003 2:29:17 AM EDT

[#29]

Buy one of these:
[img]http://hartwellinternational.com/staticpages/%21images/battmetalwirebrush_01.jpg[/img]

Buy some of this crap (it's no good for drinking, that's for sure):
[img]http://www.vanillacokefans.com/vcleft.jpg[/img]

Buy some of this:
[img]http://www.armandhammer.com/images/historic.gif[/img]

Pour the coke on the battery and posts. Let it fizz. Pour the baking soda over the battery and posts. Let it fizz.

Rinse it off with clean water.

Remove the battery post clamps.

Clean the battery post and battery post clamps with the battery cleaning tool.

Buy a can of this:
[img]http://www.powerstridebattery.com/store/images/NCP-2%20Spray.jpg[/img]

Buy a couple of these:
[img]http://www.powerstridebattery.com/store/images/NCO%20Pad%20Set.jpg[/img]

After the batter post and the clamps are SHINEY clean spray the protectant over them.
Place the pads on the posts BEFORE placing the clamps back in place.
After tighting the clamps back up spray the posts and clamps one more time.

You will never have any corrosion after that, unless your batter is a piece of shit non-maintenance free.

If you buy one of the Optima batteries you will never have to worry about corrosion again.

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - What is that white CRAP on my car battery posts??

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