Battery Connections

[Keith Moffett]

I completely remove each connector on the batteries yearly for cleaning.  I do a basic cleaning with soap and a brush twice yearly.  While having battery problems recently I pulled off a couple connectors for the second time this year and found them covered underneath with thick blue corrosion.  The way the connectors are clamped to the copper wire allows corrosion to climb under the connector to break the contact there as well.  The PO had allowed this to happen so often that the connectors were paper thin and one was broken 3/4 of the way through.
I only mention this for the new folks out there who might think the connections are clean when a close inspection shows almost no contact at all.
Each bad connection cumulatively reduces voltage both into and out of your batteries.  My solution was all new cables and connectors.

Keith

[Bill Sprague]

Keith,

I was complaining to Marty one day about battery and tray corrosion.  He told me to hose them all off about once a month!  Some how it seemed unnatural to spray water on anything electrical.  He explained that cars, trucks and motorhome all have their batteries where they can get wet.  I tried it and nothing happened except that they got clean of corrosive residue. 

My routine became checking them for water and hosing them off as close to monthly as I could remember.  My tray and cables stopped corroding.   When I sold it this summer, the cables were original and in great shape.  The batteries were 7 years old and I never removed the terminals for cleaning. 

At one point I put an adapter into the outside shower so I could connect the hose and use warm water to spray off the batteries.   The batteries got cleaner more quickly with less water.   Don't spray your batteries over nice concrete because it will stain.  But if you are parked on gravel, take advantage!

[Joel Ashley]

I think that Marty's advice was pretty good, Bill, as long as the tray was left to dry well and limit rusting from water trapped in angle iron crannies.  But I'd probably be too lazy or forgetful or procrastinatory to get it done monthly.  I don't get much corrosion around my connections because I keep all exposed conducting metals coated with spray-on anti-corrosion paint;  most auto parts and some hardware places carry various brands.  NAPA's dries faster, but Permatex's is thinner and seems to penetrate into copper strands and nuts and bolts better - downside is its stronger vapors and maybe days to dry.  But it gets in to places like Keith is talking about.

The bigger issue for me has been accessory metals.  The hold-down straps' buckles and their tray mount brackets disintegrate, even when coated with the paint.  The original plastic snap buckles melted within the first year.  I found chromed cast metal ones at a farm store and they were eaten away within 2-3 years;  ditto for the second set.  I think acidic battery gasses travel down the nylon straps and concentrate on the metal parts.  Amazingly, they melt buckles of any material, but not the strapping.

This year, most of the strap mount brackets to the tray finally rusted out via their screws, so I lengthened the straps enough to put them through the unused slots in the tray that seemed originally meant for them, in lieu of the metal brackets.  I wrapped them around clevis pins on the outside of the tray and back through the slots to new plastic buckles;  the clevis pins lay flat against the tray side when the strapping is tight, so the straps can't pull back through the slots.  If they corrode, the clevis pins are easier to replace than the factory hard-to-find brackets that require screws.  Because I had to take the batteries out to get the old strap mounts out, drilling out shot screws, etc., I took the opportunity to thoroughly clean the tray for the first time in 9 years.  It wasn't as bad as I'd expected;  after cleaning and a little wire brush and Dremel work, I touched up any bad spots with POR-15 paint, and attended to any other issues I saw.

I think I'll try rinsing at least several times a year when I check the 6 volts' water level, and maybe stave off another plastic buckle meltdown.  I usually rinse the battery tops when done with water levels, but I could be more thorough with the job and wash down the strapping good.  Thanks Marty and Bill.

-Joel

[Keith Moffett]

Bill and Joel
The point I attempted to make but missed was that as clean as they appeared to be from the top the connections were awful from underneath.  This was the case even though I had used simple green and a stiff brush and rinsed them off very well.
I believe there was a charging issue as well until I found out the temp senor was providing bad info.  to the charger.

In our coach there is a Magnum Smart Battery Combiner just above the batteries.  This and the fuse that goes to it will short if water gets on it so folks should use caution when spraying water on the batteries.

Joel, I have had nothing but bad luck with the spray on protector paint.  I know some folks swear by it but I have found that clean and dry is best.  Baking soda leaves a residue as well.  Just an opinion.

Keith

[Joel Ashley]

I did get that a lot of your green flux was under the connectors and out of sight, Keith.  When I use the anti-corrosion paint, I shoot it at all angles possible to get it on all exposed lead and steel surfaces.  The Permatex is runnier than most and takes forever to dry, so it works and wicks its way deeper.  I've had no repeats of flux when I use the paint judiciously.   It penetrates well into the strands of copper in the cable too, up under the sheath.  I haven't seen much of any flux there since using the paint.

I have a spray bottle with dissolved soda in it that I often use, but since the paint works so well, the soda is usually only for flux on exposed metals around the tray not hooked to a battery.  A rinse and a day's drying, and I paint them too;  but for whatever reason, the paint doesn't protect them as well.  Acid gases seem to attack them harder.

-Joel