cleaning battery terminals

M

medic

New member
Had to get the car battery replaced yesterday and the tech used something I'd never seen before.



It's a sodium bicarbonate (can't spell) spray. Bascily a spray form of baking soda. They tech sprayed my battery tray and within a minute it was totally crud free.



I always had to pull my battery cable off and remove my retaining strap to soak them in a baking soda solution to clean them. This spray should make things a lot easier since I can just pop the hood, spray, and wipe off a few minutes later - no need to remove anything and no need to reprogram the stereo presets. I picked up a small can for $2 at autozone.



They also have a $2 can of anti-corosion sealent to use on the terminals. I'm using this instead of the petroleum jelly trick.
 
INNNNNNNNNNNTERESTING! I am about due to clean my terminals anyway. Might have to check that out. There is also a terminal cleaner on the Autopia store....Wurth, I believe.



Up till now, I have used warm Coke mixed with Baking Soda, pour it on and the crap disappears. Pretty ghetto, tho! ;)
 
baking soda and distilled white vinegar works too.



kind of like your volcano science project when you were a kid!
 
yeah, this spray is basicly baking soda also, but it will coat the terminals until you wipe it off so it stays on their longer which seems more effective, and it's easier and cleaner to apply IMO then the baking soda solution I used to pour on the terminals. It always seemed to run onto other stuff and I was afraid it carried the battery acid with it. I guess I could have used less water and made a paste, but now it just seems like too much trouble when a spray is availible.



I'll have to take a look at the autopia terminal cleaner...
 
Sorry for a minor thread hijacking here :o but I was wondering if anyone knew if those funny red and green felt anti-corrosion washers for the battery terminals actually do anything or not? :confused:



Thanks.
 
The baking soda spray sounds like a good idea, is it just baking soda/water or does it have other components?





4DSC,



I currently have a set of the Anti-Corrosion washers on my car and they seem to be working well. I've used them on other cars as well with good results. They apparently have an acid neutralizer that prevents corrosion on the terminals. For 99 cents you can't go wrong. Only difficulty you might see is that they're a bit thick and it may be difficult to slide the clamp over the terminal if you have a ton of accessories.



Here's a shot of what they look like on mine.
 

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there's some other stuff in there...I'll look at the ingredient label



as far as teh felt things go, they do work pretty well, but I have still gotten corrosion that starts at another point and ends up growing everywhere otehr then right by the posts.
 
Thanks guys, I guess I'll get a set then. I'll probably have to replace my battery next year sometime.
 
the spray has baking soda, water and some ethanol and butane; the last two are probably as propellants for the spray
 
4DSC said:
Thanks guys, I guess I'll get a set then. I'll probably have to replace my battery next year sometime.
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If you can get them in Canada, the Autozone Gold Batteries are terrific. Normally, I am lucky to get 3 years out of a battery. I got more than 4 1/2 years with the Autozone Gold and I have underdrive pulleys on my car. Plus, for my car, it has 1000 cold cranking amps and 110 minute reserve!
 
Afshin



Have you ever gotten corrosion on your MB battery? I ask because of the 4 cars I have owned that had the battery in completely environmentally protected areas (trunks - like the MB) I have never gotten any corrosion.
 
bet993 said:
Afshin



Have you ever gotten corrosion on your MB battery? I ask because of the 4 cars I have owned that had the battery in completely environmentally protected areas (trunks - like the MB) I have never gotten any corrosion.
Click to expand...



Hi Brian,



Yes and no to your question.



No my 500E didn't have corrosion on the terminals but for 99 cents I figured it couldn't hurt.....so I'm a bit anal about my car.:o



Yes years ago I used to own a 190E which had a battery in the engine bay and it did have corrosion although it wasn't an MB battery, it was a Douglas. After installing the Anti-Corrosion washers the problem was solved. My dads 300D MB battery had minor corrosion and again the battery was in the engine bay. I've found the best combination is to wipe the battery regularly and install the washers for good measure.
 
Your answer seems to support my findings also. The exposure to the elements seems to be the common issue. It has been my experience the more exsposure to the elements the more likely the battery is to develope corrosion on the terminals. The pads do seem to help in these situations, but I have never used them on my environmentally protected batteries and have never had any problems.
 
Scottwax said:
If you can get them in Canada, the Autozone Gold Batteries are terrific. Normally, I am lucky to get 3 years out of a battery. I got more than 4 1/2 years with the Autozone Gold and I have underdrive pulleys on my car. Plus, for my car, it has 1000 cold cranking amps and 110 minute reserve!
Click to expand...
Thanks Scott, that sounds like a good battery, but there are no Autozones up here (at least, not around here anyway). Shopping for batteries based on recommendation is tricky up here because companies and suppliers are often different. :(



In all likelihood I'll probably be going with a Costco battery because it's cheap and Consumer's Reports (puts on flame suit) rated them pretty well.
 
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