Negative battery post corrosion cure

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OLE442

OLE442

Well-Known Member
4 wheel drive
2nd Gen owner
V8 Engine
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Dec 23, 2006
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Some where way to close to the effen city
What engine do you have?
V8 engine
What year is your Sport Trac?
2007
What Generation is your Sport Trac?
2n Gen Owner
I have notices my negative battery terminal getting covered with corrosion so I have to disconnect it and clean it about every 6 months or so. What is the best way to eliminate it or at least slow it down. Never had too much of this problem with my GM side post batteries? I used to put the red/green felt pads under the side posters...do they make them for top post and will it do the trick. In high school auto shop class, they told use to smear Vaseline on the post/terminal connection after they were cleaned but I seem to have heard of it actually getting in between the post and connector and causing problems?? Any hints....thanks in advance!



'07 ST:driving:
 
Good quality batteries don't have this issue so much and I can honestly say that I have never had this issue on any vehicle that I have ever owned. WHat you can try is get yourself about 5 pennies, heat them up with a small torch and then place them on top of the battery. The acid fumes will attract to the pennies and collect there before attaching to your battery post. If you don't like that idea then clean the post and cable connection very well, hook the battery back up and then completely cover the post adn cable end with grease. The grease will provide an airtight barrier so the fumes won't be able to corrode the cable end or the post.
 
Thanks for the info. Think I'll pass on the pennies. Wonder why it only happens with the neg terminal and never on the positive one?



I assume that means the OEM FORD battery is not a quality battery? What would be a quality battery so I get a good one when I finally replace it?



'07 ST:driving:
 
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Well, I've always used a little spray can that you spray on the clean terminal. It has a red tint to it, but is translucent. I bought it at Walmart or OReillys.



http://shop.genuinedealz.com/items/item.aspx?itemid=5951332
 
Is it possible the "vents" on the top of the battery may be defective? Allowing excessive fumes to collect around that terminal? As Scott says above, baking soda and a little water to make a paste. Apply and wire brush everything, re-assemble, then coat liberally with the spray sealer(auto parts store) or some grease. Bob
 
Yes, they make red/green felts for top post batteries. I have them on the ST right now. Don't know why only the neg cable is having a problem though...
 
some one tell me why it does this.

my negative and positive terminals both have the corrosion.

i clean it but within a week its all back.

what sign is this?

bad battery?
 
My experiance with corrosion. Is that there is not a good seal around the battery post. I have had some that leaked acid bad enough. I could see the wettness around the post. For me it usualy happens while the battery is free warranty exchange. I get it replaced.
 
Well, I've always used a little spray can that you spray on the clean terminal. It has a red tint to it, but is translucent. I bought it at Walmart or OReillys.
Click to expand...



I use the same stuff. Every oil change I spray the posts and never have a problem.
 
Had the same problem for a wire on both, but more predominantly on the negative terminal. I cut off the old connector and put a new one on (corrosion was in the wire already) and used the spray. Haven't had a problem since.
 
It's not the fault of the battery. Given the time and no maintenance, all battery terminals will start to corrode...especially the negative terminal.



The simplest solution is to clean the terminals, make sure they are tight. I think there is a relationship to loose connections and corrosion as Eddie said. Usually, new cables or cable ends resolves the issue until they get old and loose. In the old days we used to put Vaseline on the terminals to prevent corrosion but the corrosion would still occurr and now you had a greasy terminal that attracted dirt. It has always been one of the pesky maintenance issues that face all vehicles.



...Rich
 
l1tech said

Really? I have never seen this happen to an Optima. Was it a side post?
Click to expand...



Yup it was a top post red top, only on the neg side.. I even brushed it off several times, but never put any grease or anything on..
 
Newer battery connectors are not made from lead. The reason why old connectors were made of lead was because putting different metals together will cause a small current, called electrolysis. Electrolysis is what makes your battery produce work, but it's also what causes corrosion in many places. Boat owners know about zinc sacrificial anodes, that take the electrolysis hit so that other metal parts of the boat don't have to. Every GM side-post connector was lead, IIRC, hence your experience.



Yes, they do still make the red and green felt rings for top post batteries. I'm using them now on my cars. I got mine from O'Reilly. Petroleum jelly is OK, but if you want the very best, head over to CAIG Labs (http://www.caig.com/) for the finest contact cleaners and coatings in the industry. They have different products for everything from micro-Volt phono cartridges to mega-Watt TV transmitters. I've used their products for years (for Hi-Fi gear and TV transmitters) and swear by them.



IMHO the best thing to do is to get a nice battery terminal cleaning device, the felts and a CAIG auto battery kit, and do the maintenance every spring and fall. Alternately, you can go to a lot of trouble to find high quality cables that have pure lead battery connectors at one end, the appropriate connectors at the other, and are the right length. But you still need to use some kind of contact cleaner and protector with Pb-Pb connections.



BTW, using the CAIG cleaner/protector duo on other connections, like at the starter, isn't a bad idea at all...
 
+1 to what Mustang Guy says!



The corrosion is all about cations and anions- stuff I have long forgot about from my Chemistry classes in college... :grin:
 
It's a form of "galvanic corrosion" caused by passing a current through two dissimilar metals. Essentially, the terminal and the connector take on the roles of an anode and a cathode, and if of dissimilar metals the ion jump between the two generates the corrosion.



It cannot necessarily be avoided, but it can be reduced and slowed considerably.



To remedy: Disconnect and clean the terminals and connectors with baking soda and cocoa cola mixture (try it, but be careful as you mix) using a green scrubber pad, insert a felt washer below the connectors to help reduce any gases you MIGHT be getting from a loose terminal seal, reconnect, then cover exposed post & connector with petroleum jelly or a spray especially made for the purpose of protecting against corrosion as keeping acids, salts and moisture away from the metals helps to reduce the corrosion.
 
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