reconditioning batteries

[Highbanked Hauler]

    Shot in the dark.  Has anyone heard anything about some outfit reconditioning the reproduction batteries for our cars ?? I thought I had heard of someone doing it.

[hemigeno]

 


I saved one of my "dead" acid-filled Group 27's hoping it could be done.  A friend of mine reconditioned some rechargeable batteries (for a drill) that wouldn't take a charge anymore by using a wire feed welder, after watching a how-to video on YouTube.   

[nvrbdn]

well, there is a concoction that you heat up and add to batteries to bring life back. i did this for my golf carts that are electric. the 6 batteries would be dead in about 20 min of driving. i added this to the batteries and charged them over night and the next day that golf cart drove 3 miles to the start of a parade, traveled through the entire parade and the 3 miles back to the campground. then drove around the campground all evening. now 2 years later and they are still running. i have had a couple batteries that it didnt ork on, but about 80% of the time ive used it, it re-energizes the batteries. and its cheap. distilled water and epson salts.thats it.

[aussiemuscle]

wasn't there a system of reversing the particle flow from anode to cathode to undo the process of electrolosis (like rewinding a video tape)? 
apparently replacing the acid helps too? 

[Highbanked Hauler]

well, there is a concoction that you heat up and add to batteries to bring life back. i did this for my golf carts that are electric. the 6 batteries would be dead in about 20 min of driving. i added this to the batteries and charged them over night and the next day that golf cart drove 3 miles to the start of a parade, traveled through the entire parade and the 3 miles back to the campground. then drove around the campground all evening. now 2 years later and they are still running. i have had a couple batteries that it didnt ork on, but about 80% of the time ive used it, it re-energizes the batteries. and its cheap. distilled water and epson salts.thats it.

  Did you drain the acid out of the battery or just fill the cell to near the top ?

[nvrbdn]

what you do is remove the acid down to the cores. then heat the water to just before boiling. add 10 tablespoons of epson salts and disolve. cool the water and add to the battery. you can store the acid in glass jars to add back to the battery when it gets low. then charger the battery over night. thats it.

[nvrbdn]

when doing this, you are heating the whole gallon of water. for 10 tablespoons of epson salt. the water is under a buck at wally world. the salt is a couple bucks.

[Fred]

How much distilled water to 10 tblspoons of epsom salts please Jim.

[nvrbdn]

one gallon of distilled water heated on the stove. not boiled. just heated to right before the boil. then add 10 tablespoons of epson salt and stir till dissolved. let the water cool and add to batteries. the acid in the batteries should be drained down to the cores. keep the acid in a jar to add back later as the battery needs it. charge the battery over night. i was doing 6 batteries on each of my electric golf carts, so i had to mix a couple batches of it.

[elacruze]

Here's a website (relevant page) everybody should read about batteries.

http://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/how_to_restore_and_prolong_lead_acid_batteries

Dead batteries can have three basic problems, two of which make them unrecoverable;

1. Sulfation lock
2. Mechanical damage (warped plates)
3. Chemical damage (eaten away/no circuit)

The first issue can be dealt with. There are a couple of inexpensive marine devices which use high-frequency AC current to break down the sulfation. Simply attach the device to the batteries and charge/discharge a few cycles. The trick here is that you can't start with a completely dead system, you need at least a solar panel to power the AC device.

There are also chemical additives, but I've not tried them-I have some stuff on the shelf I'll try pretty soon.

http://www.inoxbattery.com/Welcome.html

[Fred]

one gallon of distilled water heated on the stove. not boiled. just heated to right before the boil. then add 10 tablespoons of epson salt and stir till dissolved. let the water cool and add to batteries. the acid in the batteries should be drained down to the cores. keep the acid in a jar to add back later as the battery needs it. charge the battery over night. i was doing 6 batteries on each of my electric golf carts, so i had to mix a couple batches of it.

Thanks Jim, will give it a go on the weekend.  

[Highbanked Hauler]

  I took the caps off the battery and  the top the cells looked very clean so I checked the voltage and it was at 5 volts.  I put a 2 amp. charge to it for two days and it came up to 10.5 volts. Another day on it and it came up full charge. I haven't load tested it yet but hey it was worth a shot.  I figured it had frozen when I was up north but apparently it didn't.  Best I can figure it is about 7 years old.

[Tilar]

the acid in the batteries should be drained down to the cores.

I'm guessing you mean to drain it down to the top of the plates?


I have taken poor batteries and put a 12 volt drain to completely discharge them, Then reverse the polarity on a battery charger and charge them back up. Run a drain on them again and then put the charger back on with correct polarity and recharge them. This helps break up a badly sulphated battery and will give you a shot at getting a little more life out of it.

[Highbanked Hauler]

  If it doesn't take a load test I'll give that a shot.

[nvrbdn]

the acid in the batteries should be drained down to the cores.

I'm guessing you mean to drain it down to the top of the plates?


I have taken poor batteries and put a 12 volt drain to completely discharge them, Then reverse the polarity on a battery charger and charge them back up. Run a drain on them again and then put the charger back on with correct polarity and recharge them. This helps break up a badly sulphated battery and will give you a shot at getting a little more life out of it.

yep, drain it to the top of the plates.