Imagine a situation when you are ready to go for a drive that is very important for you, and when you start your car, it doesn’t start because the battery is drained. How will you feel?
It is a genuine problem, and anyone may meet it anytime, anywhere. Also, there can’t be a horrible situation than this for a car owner. Have you ever met this problem? If yes, then you can relate it with your experience. Usually, this problem arises for many users when they are away from their homes and not able to seek help from anyone.
Generally, car batteries come with a lifetime of 2 to 6 years. But their lifetime may vary depending on several factors such as frequent climate changes, driving style, etc. Therefore, your car battery may get drained anytime, irrespective of the lifetime of your battery. So, you may need to consider these factors while driving your car to maintain the battery’s efficiency.
However, you can make your car battery last longer by taking care of it properly. Here are a few tips you can follow to enhance the life of your car battery.
1. Ensure Your Car Battery Is Properly Positioned And Connected
Usually, when you drive on rough roads, your car battery experiences a lot of vibration, and the connections get loosed. Because of this, the internal parts of the battery may get damaged and cause a short circuit. Therefore, it is a good practice to check your car battery frequently, whether it is connected tightly or not. You can tighten the nuts properly and position the battery in the mounting bracket for improved performance. By keeping the battery firmly in its place, you can enhance the life of your car battery.
While tightening the terminals, you should ensure not to over tight because that may damage the nuts. You can normally tighten the nuts and make sure that the battery is firmly placed in its place.
2. Clean The Battery
If your car battery is in a dirty condition, then the terminals may get affected by rust and discharge slowly across the dirt and pollutants on the battery surface. In this way, the battery will get damaged quickly. That’s why you should make sure to keep your battery clean for an enhanced lifespan.
You can use a mixture of baking soda and water and rub the terminals of the battery using a brush. After that, you can spray some cold water to wash the surface using a spray bottle. Once the cleaning is completed, you can dry the battery with a clean cloth.
3. Minimize Short Distance Drives
You know that your car battery recharges by the engine when you drive your car. Also, you use some battery power while driving your car. Therefore, if you drive your car for short distances, then the battery won’t get recharged while you will use the stored power in the battery. If you frequently drive your car for short distances, then the battery will lose the voltages and charge holding capacity. Then one day, it may not provide sufficient charge to start your car.
So you can try to skip short distances and go for long distances. Also, you can use a battery charger to maintain the right voltage in the battery.
4. Turn Off Electrical Appliances When Engine Is Off
If you keep using the headlights and interior lights when your car engine is switched off, then the battery will be drained easily. Therefore, you should avoid using the lights when your car engine is off. If you forget to turn off the lights, then you can plan and set a reminder to make sure you switch off the lights when you leave the car. By stopping the battery usages when the engine is off, you can enhance the battery life of your car.
5. Try To Maintain The Temperature
Extreme hot and cold temperatures can damage your car battery. During the hot summer, the water evaporates from the battery cells, and the efficiency gets decreased. Then in the winter season, the battery becomes weaker, and the battery fluid becomes thicker. In this way, both hot and cold weather affects the life of the car battery. If you don’t take care of your car battery, then it will get drained and affect your vehicle’s performance.
You can try to keep your car in an ideal place to ensure the battery is at the right temperature. During the hot summer, you can park your car in a shaded location to keep the battery safe from the extreme heat. Similarly, you can find a place where the temperature is neutral to park your car in the winter days.
6. Try Not to Keep The Car Unused For A Long Time
All cars come with lead-acid batteries that need a full charge to last for a long time. Also, these batteries get discharged over time. So, if you keep your car unused for a long time, then the battery will start draining. Usually, batteries get self-discharged because the owner doesn’t use the car regularly. Therefore, you can use a battery charger to ensure your car battery is in the right condition when you don’t use the car for a week or so.
7. Store Your Car In The Right Place
You should make sure to maintain all the parts of your car properly to extend the life of your car battery. If you keep your car in the proper condition, then the car can run smoothly for a long time and maintain battery life. If the car parts are not in good condition, then that may put pressure on the battery and decrease its lifespan. So you can try to maintain the parts of your car and park it in a good place for extended battery life.
8. Check The Voltage
In order to make your car battery long-lasting, you can check the voltage frequently to make sure that the battery is in good condition. The lead-acid battery drain automatically, so it is important to check the voltage routinely and charge it if the voltage level is decreased. By doing this, you can also track the battery life effectively. If you notice the voltage level of your car battery decreasing day by day or it is dead, then you may need to consider buying a new car battery.
Every car owner may face a battery issue if the battery is not maintained properly. As lead-acid batteries have a self-discharge issue, you have to take care of your car battery to keep it ready for all your drives. We hope the above tips will help you in maintaining your battery for a long time.