SALES AND SERVICE ENGINEER CHARLEY GIPE GOES OVER THE SIGNS
To understand why a battery freezes, fleets must understand how a battery is made. Inside the battery is sulfuric acid and water. The combination of these fluids creates an electrolyte with a very low freezing point, making a frozen battery unlikely in most temperatures. The potential for freezing comes with batteries that are not fully charged.
Charley Gipe, Purkeys’ Northeast Region Sales and Service Engineer, said, “As a battery becomes discharged, the sulfuric acid combines with the positive and negative plates in the battery and leaves the water behind. As batteries become discharged, the freezing point will rise. Severely discharged batteries can freeze at temperatures as high as 20 degrees Fahrenheit.”
Some signs to look for are the following:
- Cracks anywhere on the battery case
- Bulging sides
- No sound of liquid when the flooded cell battery is moved
While flooded cell batteries are at a higher risk of freezing AGM batteries still need to be examined in extremely cold situations. Never attempt to jumpstart a frozen battery as that may cause it to explode. Practice safety when attempting to charge a thawed battery because the freezing may have damaged connections. Avoid a potentially dangerous situation and keep fleets on the road with the frozen battery alert on Purkeys’ Lightning in a Box jumpstart machine. By monitoring the charge of the battery and the current temperature, the machine will alert users when a battery has all the warning signs for being frozen.
Are you dealing with battery issues? Are you looking for more information on our jumpstart machine Lightning in a Box? We welcome your comments and questions below.
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