What you need to know about the car battery.

The Car Battery

The Car Battery is a source of Energy to the Vehicle. It converts Chemical Energy to Electrical Energy which it supplies to the Vehicle. It is the power house of the Electrical system of the vehicle, as without battery there is little or no functioning of the vehicle. A Battery is needed to start up your vehicle and it must have enough power supply to be able to start up the vehicle which is in use.

The Car Battery also Helps to power other cars components like the Lights.

Primarily the purpose is to aid cranking. A good battery must be able to provide power enough quickly to supply the Starter Motor. Also a good battery must also have enough power to supply some Electrical component like Parking Lights, Horn etc. to operate for a reasonable amount of time. It must also be able to provide power to operate some Accessories of the vehicle, when the engine is not turned ON or running, such accessories includes Audio Player, Electric door opener, Electric seat adjuster etc. A good battery must also help the supply stable voltage to various components of the vehicle.

We know that electric power generated to the vehicle by the alternator is AC, which is converted to DC; this DC is supplied to the battery, which in turn supplies stable voltage to the various Electrical components like the fuses, switches, motors etc. The Car Battery is also responsible for powering components like Alarm, Clock, and Gauges which usually remain running always throughout the vehicle lifespan. You can also check our free automotive ebooks for more information on batteries.

More about Car Battery

Now the size of the battery depends on the size of the vehicle it needs to power. A large Battery would be needed for a Car with more Electrical components. Batteries are available in various sizes and ratings. Vehicles use the Lead Acid Battery.

Batteries usually have indicators that help to show the state of Such Battery, whether it is Charged, discharged, Bad etc. These indications are usually noticed by the changes of the colour of the Electrolyte inside the battery. Most Batteries have instructions on how to know the status of your battery by the colour Indication.

When Batteries are have low voltage supply the vehicle will not crank up. Batteries are usually low, when Voltage reading is below 11 volts If battery output voltage is Low, a lot of malfunctioning can occur in the vehicle system. When low battery voltage is noticed, it should be charged up immediately. The voltage reading of a battery can be tested using a multimeter. To learn more about Car Batteries visit our free automotive courses.

Car Battery Drain

Now, all battery may undergo discharge when there is either an electrical fault that causes voltage drainage, which may make battery voltage get low often. When the voltage supply of a vehicle battery is too low it can hinder engine cranking, that why we Jump Start to support the voltage supply in the vehicle battery.

It is better to jump start using appropriate jump start cables, than removing the battery completely and putting another one to start the vehicle when the battery is drained totally. When you remove the battery completely it can affect some device like alarm, such system may return to default settings when there is replacement of the battery. Therefore a battery should be removed only when it is to be charged, tested, refilled, or replaced.

In removal of the battery the negative terminal should first be removed then, the positive terminal, while in fixing it back, the positive terminal should be placed then the negative terminal. When a battery has low voltage supply, it affects the various Electrical components in the vehicle, they may even malfunction.

When a car is turned off the battery stills supply power, so if there is any malfunctioning of an electrical component which refuses to go off, it may lead to voltage drainage. Also when the alternator, charger or connecting cables are faulty it may not allow the battery to be charged properly, as this may also lead to the battery voltage supply to drop below normal. A faulty battery can be serviced to restore them to normal working condition.

When you check your Battery Voltage level and you notice a drop in voltage below the normal working condition you should ensure you charge the battery. The battery should be charged using a battery Charger, and this should be done in a well-ventilated environment, as battery release toxic gases during charging. Also such environment should be free of Fuel, which can lead to fire Outbreak. You must also be careful when charging it to avoid accident. Also while charging a battery, you must ensure you avoid current leakage and acts that may cause electric shock.

Car Battery Fault Diagnostics

When a battery is malfunctioning, you can perform a test using various battery testers to know the status of the Battery. Also, you can also test for the concentration of the acid (Battery Electrolyte), by using an hydrometer. The hydrometer reading of the specific gravity of the Acid, can tell us if the battery Acid need to be refilled.

This process of testing using hydrometer should be done with care and caution, also make sure you put on your protective outfits, because you are dealing with Acid. The specific gravity of the Acid should be about 1.8. When replacing the acid make sure it is mixed to acquire the right concentration. When replacing the acid make sure it is mixed to acquire the right concentration, using the correct procedures. If the terminals of your Battery are faulty it may also result in supplying no or low voltage to the vehicle. Always do physical examination on the battery, inspect the terminals and clean up the dirt away from it. Make sure it is in proper working condition.

When a Battery is not in good working condition, the Electrical system of the vehicle is affected. Sometimes faulty batteries and batteries connection may cause problems that you may think are as a result of bad distributor, starter and even alternator. On one occasion at the Workshop, a vehicle came, experiencing occasional difficulty in starting up of the vehicle. After checking the various Electrical components we later discovered that it was one of the battery terminal that was bad. After replacing it, the vehicle worked normally.

The battery is a very important element in the vehicle as it stores electrical energy needed for powering the electrical and electronics systems of the vehicle. Click here for more information on Automotive Electrical Systems And Components.

The battery which is usually the lead-acid battery stores electric voltage, this could be that of 12 volts or 24 volts with amperage ranging from 75 amps, 100 amps, to 150 amp, This value depends on the voltage and current rating of the vehicle.

The battery provides the power requires by the ignition system to crank the engine (i.e. start the engine) and run it. It also supplies the other electronics and electrical components in the vehicle with power needed for their operation.

The battery should always be maintained charged; this is done by ensuring the alternator working properly and is charging up the battery. For a 12 volts battery the battery voltage reading should range 11 volts to 13 volts when fully charged, when the battery displays any voltage below 11 volts it should be charged up. For cases of below 10 volts it should be tested to know if the battery can be recharged or needs servicing.

TESTING OF CAR BATTERY VOLTAGE USING MULTIMETER

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To test a battery voltage using a digital Multimeter is very simple. The multimeter has two testing cables that are connected to certain port in the multimeter depending on the type of Multimeter, it is also set to perform voltage function readings and the positive cable is placed on the positive terminal of the battery and the negative cable is placed on the negative terminal of the battery. When this is done it will display the voltage reading, if the positive and negative cables are interchange it will display a negative value of the reading.

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