Deep cycle battery seeping acid from top.

[THECHEMICALS]

My "less than a year old"&nbsp; marine deep cycle battery tipped over in the rear of my van and when i was driving and by the time i noticed, it had leaked out maybe a cup of acid out. Well i cleaned it off and recharged it and used it just fine the other night. However the problem im having is that everytime i look at it the clear transparent acid seems to be seeping or squeezing its way through the sealed caps. <BR><BR>Anyone know what i can do or if this is safe? Its a new battery and id hate to dump it since it cost me 90 dollars. I did check the fluids inside and they need to be topped off but my research revealed that it should only be refilled if it has lost normal electrosis fluids and not a leak.

 

[ccbreder]

Quickly use lots of baking soda to flood the area contaminated with battery acid ( a diluted sulfuric acid)

 

[ccbreder]

General rule. If the electrolyte goes below the plates in the battery and you continue to use it, charge it, ect, it is bad. Clean the top of the battery, be very carefull to not get any inside, using baking soda and water. I would top the battery with electrolyte acid, maybe from NAPA auto or your mechanic. and then charge. At the very least top the battery with distilled water and then charge. Where the spill got on any thing except polyester will dissolve. Soak the van floor with water and baking soda.

 

[wrcsixeight]

The caps themselves might still be holding some electrolyte from their time tipped over. &nbsp;If the battery is an Exide Nautilus, then it will always spew electrolyte.<br><br>An Unsecured battery is a big No No, and can certainly cost you a lot more than 90$.<br><br>Make sure the battery plates are still covered. &nbsp;Just adding distilled h20 &nbsp;when electrolyte is spilled will weaken the sulphuric acid and affect battery performance to some degree or another.<br><br><br>

 

[Jennifer]

Expert is entirely correct that, generally speaking, 12v "deep cycle" batteries are not true deep cycles - they tend to be "hybrid" batteries.. designed for a little bit of each type of duties (starting/low amperage, long draw) but no place close to the best at either task. Of course it depends on the specific battery. This might be a reason of this.<br><a href="http://www.empyrealenergy.com.au/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Empyreal Energy</a>

 

[THECHEMICALS]

I figured it out. Deep cycle batteries are not supposed to be fast charged. I was charging them fast instead of trickle charge and they overheated and seeped out acid. The performance has degraded a lot but i learned my lesson. Old wise guy at auto zone explained this to me.

 

[laurieannie]

if it is a sealed battery you should not be able to get into it and if it isn't sealed it shouldn't be inside with you.&nbsp; if a sealed battery tipped over it would not leak as it is ok to mount those laying on their side.

 

[wrcsixeight]

Deep cycle batteries can be fast charged just fine. I feed mine Huge amounts of amps and only rarely is there any seepage from around the caps. "Trickle" charging is always the safest method and best for battery longevity, but trickle charging can take several days to truly recharge a large depleted &nbsp;battery back to 100% yet I've heard AP stores workers tell people to put their battery on a trickle charger for an hour or 2 to fully recharge it. &nbsp;Ridiculous.&nbsp;<br><br>The charging source should not allow voltages greater than 14.8, and manual chargers will just keep raising the voltage well after full charge, and this will indeed cause excessive water loss.<br><br>But in the case of the OP, the unsecured battery spilled, the caps got saturated, the electrolyte concentration is all screwed up, and it is only luck that the battery still can provide energy at all, and it certainly will not do so for much longer if actually used.<br><br> &nbsp;I've heard the most ridiculous things out of the mouths of auto parts store workers, and the general public treats their words as gospel, which is like taking medical advice from the pimpled teenage cashier at a pharmacy.<br><br> The caps should contain any droplets and let them drip back into the battery, but obviously some brands do not do this very well.<br><br>True deep cycle 12 volt batteries are rare, and hard to find. &nbsp;If they say marine/RV in addition to deep cycle, they are a hybrid battery. &nbsp;A dual purpose battery, which is only slightly more tolerant of deeper discharges than a starting battery. &nbsp;Expect to pay 30% more for a &nbsp;flooded true deep cycle 12 volt battery from Trojan, Crown, or Deka. &nbsp;6 volt golf cart batteries wired in series for 12 volts is the best bang for the buck, but they are taller.<br><br><br>