Silence is the last thing you want to hear when it comes to starting your car. As a result, it's critical to act quickly if you think your car's battery is dying. You can't remember the last time you changed your automobile battery, no worries. You can perform a quick battery check without leaving your driveway. Listed below are ways on how to test a car battery at home.
What is a Car Battery?
Car batteries are part of an integrated, well tuned system designed to run your vehicle smoothly. If you just thought it was a piece of equipment, think again. Testing a car battery is important because some of your car’s most important duties are held by the battery.
A car battery provides power. When you turn your key or push the button and start the motor, the chemical energy in the battery is converted into electrical energy. It is sent to every part of your car that needs it.
A battery turns on and starts the ignition system. This connects the vehicle's electrical system, and when activated, also its safety measures. All the electronic devices get its power when the engine is not running. An alternator charges your battery when you start your car so that every little thing works while you drive.
It also stores chemical energy so that when it is turned off it can turn the car's engine on the next time. Also, they are newer batteries which have technologies built in to stop their energy from being depleted. This prolongs the time too for which it can safeguard these toxic substances from corrosive degradation.
The alternator is given electrical current by a battery. In essence, it is responsible for electric operations such as sound system, air conditioning, wipers, headlights, even airbag system. Should the alternator fail to operate, or become overworked, the battery can act as a backup and allow you to continue for a while.
Contemporary batteries can handle a certain amount of the high voltage produced by other components. Moreover, every solid part of the electric system is protected against destructive effect of an abnormally high voltage. In all these, here is why learning how to test a car battery is crucial.
How to Test a Car Battery
1. Load Test
Running any test on your car can be scary if you’re not a technician. Fortunately, this is one of the easy ways of how to test a car battery. The only thing you have to do is turn the head lights on in your car without turning it on. Then turn them ON and leave them like that for 10-15 minutes.
After that time you can start your car. Then pay attention to how bright your headlights are. If your headlights dim significantly as the engine turns over, then your battery has failed your load test. It should take the battery 10-15 minutes to handle that. If your car's battery is having problems here, it's not a question of if, but rather when, that it will fail you on the road.
2. Corrosion Test
If your car's battery looks corroded, that could suggest a power problem. Over time the battery terminals lose their ability to transfer power due to corrosion created by hydrogen gas released by the acid in the battery. That means the battery has to work harder to compensate and it has the tendency to shorten its life.
You can gently clean the battery connections with baking soda and an old toothbrush. If your battery has been corroded for a long time, however, the damage may be irreversible. In that situation, it’s time to replace.
3. Clicks
Turn your key in the ignition and you’ll hear a vigorous roar that will eventually calm to a purr. If you hear "click-click-click," however, your car battery is probably dead. From the other side, one click could mean a bad start.
Whether those clicks mean you need a new battery or not they are certainly an indicator. Annoyingly, even if a jump start works and the car does start, it is first to the bay of a skilled, reputable technician that should it be taken.
4. Check the Voltage of the Battery using a Multimeter
A simple way of how to test a car battery is by using a multimeter. You should be able to get one in any hardware shop, and it makes sense to have one in the car in case. Make sure first that your multimeter's voltmeter is set to read 20 volts DC. The “V” is for volt, and there’s a V on the top of the multimeter’s voltmeter section.
Put the positive red meter probe on the positive red battery connector. Attach the black probe, meter plus, to the battery's negative black connector. Ask a friend to turn on the headlights. It isn't a lot of work for the battery.
A battery with a good charge is around 12.5 volts or higher with a reading of 26.6 degrees Celsius, 12.3 volts is about a 75 percent charge, and 25 percent or less is 11.8 volt or less. If the battery is not driven enough or if it is used when the engine is off (or otherwise drained).
The only way that an acid stratification can build is if your battery is continually being charged below 80%. This means that the bottom half of the battery’s electrolyte is concentrated in an acid free upper half. The degradation of battery performance and possible failure will occur due to acid stratification.
5. Cranking Test
Monitoring the voltage when cranking a car can let you know if you need to charge or replace a battery. Now we turn off the car, and all of its accessories. Lastly, get rid of either the fuel or ignition systems as per what will get the job done in your car. The car must crank, but not start, and it’s required because that’s what the test requires.
Place the positive multimeter lead on the battery's positive terminal and the negative multimeter lead on the negative terminal. Allow a helper to turn the ignition on for up to 15 seconds while you eye your multimeter. When battery voltage falls below 9.6 volts, the battery is considered weak.
6. Test the Alternator
To test the alternator, be sure to turn on all the vehicle’s electrical equipment (including headlights, interior illumination, climate controls and stereo) at the same time. This will maximize voltage load. If the reading drops below 13.5 volts, the alternator isn’t charging the battery sufficiently and possibly deserves kicking the bucket.
It’s time to get help from a licensed professional. As such, the owner of a vehicle can use a multimeter to get very important information about his battery and its electrical system. Further, periodic testing can anticipate and forestall impending failures which most frequently occur without notice.
