How to charge a car battery

     "I'll phone my recovery man / mechanic / relative / friend and they will help me out without behaving all superior and not being sarcastic".

* Battery getting old
* Car has been standing for a while
* Alternator not charging
* Lights have been left on

  Car battery chargers ;

  HOW EASY ARE THEY TO USE ?

  WHAT YOU NEED ;

  Battery charger,
  Spanner (usually 10mm or an Adjustable),
  Up to 8 hours charge time (overnight),
  Possibly some distilled or de-ionised water.

HOW TO CHARGE YOUR CAR BATTERY

If your car is parked close enough to your house or in a garage, then you can leave the car on the battery whilst it is charging.  However, you must disconnect both red and black battery terminals (probably with your 10mm spanner) ;

If it is not, then you will have to take the battery off the car, so watch this video to see how easy it is ;

WATCH VIDEO
 
VideoJug: How To Change A Car Battery

So once you have taken off the battery, take it to a safe area with plenty of ventilation and away from kids, pets, naked flames and sparks.  '

HOW TO USE A CAR BATTERY CHARGER

Check the labels on the battery to see if you need to remove any of the 'cell caps' whilst charging the battery.

Some batteries are sealed units and do not have these, but if yours has 'cell caps' they will be situated on the top, they are normally under a press-on strip, others will be circular caps for individual opening (see pics below).

This battery has caps under the yellow  strip	This battery has the individual caps

This battery has had the cell caps removed.

Either remove the press-on strip or individual round caps before connecting the battery charger.  This will allow any gases created during charging to escape and not build up inside the battery - this is why you need to put the battery in a well ventilated area.

It is important to ensure that the metal plates / cells inside the battery are covered with electrolyte. DON'T PANIC, electrolyte is just the mixture of acid and distilled water inside the battery and if the cells are not covered by the electrolyte liquid they will get damaged and you will need a new battery.

Here are a couple of drawings showing the inside of the battery and the cells / plates that need to be covered by the electrolyte.

All you need to do once you have removed the cell caps is have a look down inside all of them (ideally use a small torch) ;

Looking into the cells, you can see they have
been filled so that the plates are covered with the electrolyte.

Most batteries have a minimum fill level when you look inside them, so topping up is very easy and very cheap.  DO NOT ignore the importance of topping up your car battery, it can save you ALOT OF MONEY.
 

CHARGING

If you are leaving the battery on the car then disconnect the negative (black) and positive (red) wires from the battery using the relevant spanner (usually 10mm).

Before you go any further, make sure you have read the manufacturers instructions that come with the battery charger.

With the battery charger unplugged from the electricity supply, connect the black charger clip to the negative ( - ) terminal of the battery and the red clip to the positive ( + ) terminal.

Now plug the car battery charger into the mains and switch it on.

Leave the battery charging overnight and when you check on it in the morning the charger should indicate that the battery is fully charged.

Switch off and then unplug the charger, remove the charger clips from the battery and refit the cell caps / strip.

The battery should now be ready to refit to the car, follow the removal instructions in reverse.

THEN, start your car - AND OFF YOU GO

WARNING - BATTERIES ARE HEAVY !!
and you will also be bending over, so if you have back trouble,
be more careful and perhaps get someone to help you with the lifting.

NOTE - make sure you always read the manufacturers instructions for
all equipment and appliances.