Battery for Dinner?

[SHG]

Fried Battery. Last November, I found my battery sitting in a pool of acid. So I take it to my mechanic (a fellow Healey S&T Club member) and he tests and tells me it's being fried by the regulator. So I put a new regulator in, and a new battery. Drive the car home and park it.

Today, I am in the trunk admiring my handiwork, and I see the battery sitting in acid again. Not a ton of it, but enough to coat the bottom of the tray. If it's not the regulator, and it's not the battery, what else can it be? Particularly since I haven't been driving.

 

[John Loftus]

Scott,

Are you sure it is acid? Could you have a leak in the trunk gasket letting water in there when you wash (or rain water)?

If it is acid you need to find out what the generator/alternator is putting out. Off hand I don't know the specs but sure someone will help out. Also, you should consider a Optima gel type battery. If you (or others) want to keep things looking more original, the company that sells Lucas 'tar top' batteries has a maintenance free sealed version. They told me it was just like an Optima but I don't know any more than that.

https://www.antiqueautobattery.com/

Cheers,
John

 

[SHG]

Hey John. It's definitely acid. I did the lick test. Before I changed the voltage regulator, it was putting out 17+ volts. That's why I put in a new one. But I haven't driven the car since. Even if I change the battery (again), I still don't know what's causing the battery to fry and leak. It's a conundrum. I'm not a big fan of Healey conundrums.

 

[John Loftus]

Sounds like the new battery is cracked or you spilled some acid during installation? Best pull the battery, inspect carefully, maybe put it on some paper towels or something overnight to see if it is leaking. Might just be a warrenty issue.

What's the new voltage regulator putting out?

 

[SHG]

Already pulled the new battery out to check it, but this is my second new battery and there's no crack or other obvious defect. My first fried. I put in the second, which fried. That's when we checked the regulator and realized it was putting out 17-18 volts. I haven't checked the new voltage regulator, but since I haven't driven in more than a month, it doesn't make sense that it would be the regulator. On the other hand, nothing else makes sense either.

 

[Keoke]

Hi SHG, Just a question for the moment. Do you still have that cut off switch in the boot hooked up and was it in the off position when the battery failure happened??---Keoke

 

[anthony7777]

shg,i think i see where keokes going on this one, bad master switch somehow grounding the wrong side heating up the battery could be rather dangerous. take out the battery check with a meter that the off position isnt shorting out. /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/savewave.gif

 

[healeynut]

Already pulled the new battery out to check it, but this is my second new battery and there's no crack or other obvious defect. My first fried. I put in the second, which fried. That's when we checked the regulator and realized it was putting out 17-18 volts. I haven't checked the new voltage regulator, but since I haven't driven in more than a month, it doesn't make sense that it would be the regulator. On the other hand, nothing else makes sense either.

Scott - That's not necessarily true. The Voltage Regulators are adjustable and they may not necessarily come from the factory properly adjusted these days (trust me, I know). The adjustments are quite simple, if your voltage is running too high, all you have to do is pop off the cover of the VR and back off the cutout contacts until it doesn't exceed the 13.5 V range when running. Give that a try first before checking into other problems... like the Generator.

Of course, I had similar problems for years (albeit not as bad) on my BJ8. Over cooked batteries, fried voltage regulators... etc etc. Finally I bought an Excide Orbital battery (like the Optima) and haven't had a charging problem since... (knocking on wood very vey hard!) /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/hammer.gif /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/hammer.gif /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/thirsty.gif

 

[Keoke]

/bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/iagree.gif SHG, They do not even have application numbers on them anymore. Previously, the application numbers IMOP was a marketing ploy or they were factory calibrated to go with a specific generator. Today there are a finite group of controllers to fit all the LBC applications. For the BJ8, the correct RB340 Control Box is the NCB-133, clearly marked with a yellow sticker on the back bearing the #30. If the unit operates on the car correctly without further calibration it is just luck!--Keoke

 

[SHG]

Keoke, I have the battery shut off, but it was in the on position. As for the regulator, I understand about the calibration, but this car hadn't been driven in more than a month, so there hadn't been any charging.

I will check the regulator again for voltage and see whether it's running at 13.5 (or thereabouts). But I still don't see how that could have fried the battery when the car was sitting in the garage. What am I missing?

 

[Keoke]

Was the little B/W wire also connected to the switch SHG ??

 

[healeynut]

Keoke, I have the battery shut off, but it was in the on position. As for the regulator, I understand about the calibration, but this car hadn't been driven in more than a month, so there hadn't been any charging.

I will check the regulator again for voltage and see whether it's running at 13.5 (or thereabouts). But I still don't see how that could have fried the battery when the car was sitting in the garage. What am I missing?

Scott - the problem isn't that you parked the car... the problem is your drove it. When you drive it and overcook the battery, it get's super hot... probably deforming the battery case. then you park the car and it all cools down... and acid leaks out through the cracks. Just because it leaked when you parked it doesn't mean it was caused by just sitting there....

/bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/computer.gif

 

[Ed_K]

Scott,

Check to see what your new regulator is putting out now. When you drove it home after the battery and regulator were first replaced, it may have been cooking the battery on the way home. Unless you inspected for acid leaks say an hour after you got home. It may have leaked out in the first 30 minutes after you got home and turned off the car. I know this may sound stupid, but what if the battery guy doesn't know NOT to overfill a battery or perhaps not be familar with your new battery and overfilled it by mistake ? The first time it was normally used could result in an acid overflow. That is why you need to buy an Optima and forget the old style battery.
A new optima is much cheaper than replacing the trunk floor after the acid has it's way with the metal !
IMHO
Ed

 

[healeynut]

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[SHG]

If I get a gel battery, does that eliminate the problem? Can I overcharge the gel battery without causing any other problems?

 

[Johnny]

I will check the regulator again for voltage and see whether it's running at 13.5 (or thereabouts). But I still don't see how that could have fried the battery when the car was sitting in the garage. What am I missing?

I had a similar problem found out I overfilled the battery plus the battery mounts ( I have two) were loose causing the batteries to move around. You might just want to make sure the battery sits level and is tight, and not overfilled.
Just a thought.

 

[Keoke]

If I get a gel battery, does that eliminate the problem? Can I overcharge the gel battery without causing any other problems?

A proper type battey is not a Gel Cell but an AGM which the Optima and others noted are in that class. Further, Tell me did you have the little B/W wire hooked up!---Keoke

 

[SHG]

What little B/W wire?

 

[Ed_K]

On the battery switch in trunk. It goes on the small terminal on the back of the switch.

 

[Ed_K]

If I get a gel battery, does that eliminate the problem? Can I overcharge the gel battery without causing any other problems?

I have no experience with these AGM batteries other than my own. I think another BCF member may be experienced with batteries used in enterprise backup power applications. Perhaps he can comment on what happens to these AGM batteries when more than the optimum voltage is applied ?