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Post by martinos on Sept 14, 2007 19:59:32 GMT
Can a battery lose its charge when its fluid levels are topped up? There is normally a green led on top of the casing that signifies a full charge but it went out when i put the water in.
Also, it might be totally unrelated but the alarm has started playing up. Any ideas?
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Post by Chris Tideswell on Sept 14, 2007 20:31:06 GMT
If it's an OEM MGR battery then I thought that they are the gel type i.e. with the acid held in a semi-sold gel and not water, if so then I would have thought it would be possible to kill the battery by putting water into it.
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Post by charless on Sept 15, 2007 9:18:03 GMT
If it were a gel battery it would be sealed so I don't think you have a problem in that respect. The addition of water should lower the overall state of charge, no matter how small. The green ball is a hygrometer device and should refloat(become visible) with a decent long run or just normal use IF your system is in decent working order and putting charge into the battery. Loss of some level from the battery is normal over time and use.
Low voltage can cause the alarm to misbehave and there are plenty of archived reasons for that low voltage! Corroded door lock microswitches and the boot wiring loom chafing are well documented 'favourites'.
Cheapo multimeters from the likes of Maplins are a real boon if the trouble persists and you have the interest. They have an offer of two for £5.99 at the moment!(The 9V internal batteries are nearly worth that alone!).
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Post by Chris Mills on Sept 15, 2007 9:36:20 GMT
The MGF Battery was originally sealed for life. As are most replacement batteries. They should not be topped up with distilled water. This has probably killed the battery.
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Post by colintf on Sept 15, 2007 19:58:02 GMT
exactly my thoughts as well Chris!!  |
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Post by martinos on Sept 17, 2007 18:17:42 GMT
Oh bugger! I had no idea!
The car is in immaculate condition so no rust problems, i just thought i was 'being good' and looking after my battery!
Will it explode if i try to charge it at all? Surely the gel must just be regular battery contents but conjealed? Maybe i have just diluted the acid a touch, and a quick charge or a good run will put it at its best again?
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Post by mgamark on Sept 18, 2007 16:06:34 GMT
What complex things batteries can be!
The green indicator may well be an LED indicating charge state, but it would be a pretty funky battery to have that, so it is more likely to be a hygrometer float, which indicates the specific gravity (i.e. strength of the acid silution/gel). It may not be visible because on topping up with water, you may have reduced the specific gravity of the solution to the point that the float is not visible.
All Lead/Acid batteries use an acid/water solution; gel batteries generally use that acid solution to which silica gel has been added to reduce water being driven off by the charge/discharge cycle, thus leading to the supposedly "maintenance-free battery". If yours needed topping up, it should not be because the acid has reduced, but because the level of water held in the gel has reduced to the extent that it need "topping up" - that you have been able to do so implies that it is not a truly sealed battery. Deep cycle (or "leisure") batteries for boats and caravans simply have a different ratio of plate strength/size to solution to cope with the different pattern of charge/discharge compared to a car.
Best way to check is to run the car and put a voltmeter across the battery - that will check whether the alternator is providing the right sort of charge level of around 13.8v and whether the battery is taking its charge. Plug in a battery charger and watch the charger gauge for a while to see if it is taking a charge and watch the battery for signs of leakage. If it is taking a charge, leave it on charge for a couple of hours - that should be enough to check whether the alarm issue is related to low battery voltage. If it is not taking a charge, then you need to buy a new battery
However, for the price of them and for peace of mind, you may just wish to buy a new battery and fit it - it may well be that having reached the stage of needing topping up, your existing one has reached the end of its useful life and a rapid charge or an overcharge which it might experience following topping up could cause internal damage to the plates, the risk of that being greater the more water you had to put in to reach the level.
My advice would be to get a new battery (you know what you are starting with then) and buy a regulated condition charger that you can keep plugged into the car when it is parked up if you use the car infrequently - that will keep the battery in good order and prevent overcharging which is the most common cause of damage to batteries. Otherwise if the car is used regularly, the normal charge/discharge of the alternator/normal use will suffice.
When changing the battery, if you can attach another 12v source via jump leads to the battery leads before you disconnect them from the battery, then you can disconnect the leads, remove the old battery and install the new one, reconnect the leads to a new battery, and remove the jump leads, and not have to reset anything. Just remember, Earth off first and back on last.
MGA Mark
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Post by charless on Sept 20, 2007 9:19:46 GMT
Martinos, and the situation is...?
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