Battery "eye" no longer green - what to do?

Status
Not open for further replies.
Originally Posted By: StevieC
Originally Posted By: rationull
Originally Posted By: StevieC

If it fails the load test replace it before it cooks your alternator.


This scares me a bit...


Why?


Because I didn't realize that neglecting this could lead to cooking my alternator. Seems like I'd see problems with starting or something before then.
 
I went thru this w/the Accord. It load tested fine, but had a dead eye. Spoke to the head tech at Johnson and he told me that yes, the electrolyte level is not low, but unbalanced, as the eye tests specific gravity. The batt is indeed 'defective' by Johnson's standards, but Honda would not do a thing. They instead charged me $39.95 for the load test. The car cranked like poo and any accessory use would kill the battery in seconds.

http://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php

Just another in a string of poor cust service that caused me to trade the car in and scratch Honda off the list for good.

http://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php
 
Originally Posted By: rationull

Because I didn't realize that neglecting this could lead to cooking my alternator. Seems like I'd see problems with starting or something before then.


If the battery is weak then it can stress the alternator and prematurely wear it out...

Load testing the battery is the best way to find out if a Battery is tired and should be replaced. I do mine once a year in the fall.
 
Just running the radio or the dome light for a minute should clear the surface voltage.
Then the reading would be the battery voltage.

I have yet to hear that a dead battery will take the alternator out with it.
 
Well I tested as JHZR suggested after getting home from work tonight and it still read 12.5-12.8 volts after running the dome light for 10 minutes and then letting it sit for 10 more. Interesting tidbits:

- The eye is green again. Not sure what to make of it because I'm sure it was clear/white this morning.
- My multimeter did the weirdest thing I've ever seen it do. I touched it to the terminals and it didn't register anything right away, pushed the probes into the terminals harder and eventually it registered the 12.5 or so volts. When I removed the probes from the terminals .... the multimeter screen still showed the voltage! It slowly dropped back to zero (probes still not touching anything). Thereafter I could touch the terminals lightly and it was working normally and was responsive.

I'll check the eye again in the morning and see if it changes overnight. I have no idea what to think of the multimeter's "episode" or how it could show a voltage when the terminals weren't touching anything.
 
Originally Posted By: rationull
Well I tested as JHZR suggested after getting home from work tonight and it still read 12.5-12.8 volts after running the dome light for 10 minutes and then letting it sit for 10 more. Interesting tidbits:

- The eye is green again. Not sure what to make of it because I'm sure it was clear/white this morning.
- My multimeter did the weirdest thing I've ever seen it do. I touched it to the terminals and it didn't register anything right away, pushed the probes into the terminals harder and eventually it registered the 12.5 or so volts. When I removed the probes from the terminals .... the multimeter screen still showed the voltage! It slowly dropped back to zero (probes still not touching anything). Thereafter I could touch the terminals lightly and it was working normally and was responsive.

I'll check the eye again in the morning and see if it changes overnight. I have no idea what to think of the multimeter's "episode" or how it could show a voltage when the terminals weren't touching anything.

I would recommend getting a proper battery test with a Midtronics tester. Any O'Reilly Auto Parts stores will be able to test it for you in minutes for no charge.
 
Put some EDTA if you are concerned about the longevity of the battery. I put some in all my wet batteries. I had a Honda Group 51 battery and it was dying. I just put some EDTA and had it charged at Autozone for free. I put back in and no problema.
 
Originally Posted By: StevieC
Load testing the battery is the best way to find out if a Battery is tired and should be replaced. I do mine once a year in the fall.

Load testing is not the best way to check a battery anymore. There are newer testers that check them electronically and are more accurate. I've seen batteries pass the load test, but were still bad.

Originally Posted By: The Critic

I would recommend getting a proper battery test with a Midtronics tester. Any O'Reilly Auto Parts stores will be able to test it for you in minutes for no charge.


What he said.
 
First, check the electrolyte level as others have suggested. The plates MUST be covered or it will be unable to function properly. Unless you have a leak you're only losing the water component to electrolysis and you should just add distilled water to restore the proper level.

Second, check the charging system that the battery is being charged properly and fully. The specific gravity of the electrolyte is also dependent on the electrical state of charge.

Third, consider getting your own hydrometer to test the specific gravity. Even the cheapest have at least 4 floating balls instead of just red/green. They will tell you the "% of charge" of the battery. Specific gravity should be read fully charged but not fresh off the charger. Best would be to ensure that it's charged then test after an overnight rest. Here you'll see the service life of the battery indicated - if this hydrometer says 75%, your battery can only hold 75% of the charge it once did - roughly. This is not 75% of the voltage - but 75% of the charge. It's as if the battery was 25% smaller. It will still start your car but it will have less reserve and lower performance in cold weather.

Fourth, typical automotive lead-acid batteries must be kept fully charged or they will succumb to sulfation. Crystals form which reduce the effectiveness of the chemical reactions and can also grow until they bridge multiple plates effectively shorting them out of the battery. If your battery dies in this way you will not have "trouble" starting. One day you'll come out to your car and instead of 12.0V you'll have ~10.4V and nothing will happen when you turn the key - you get no warning. The folks advising you to wait will probably leave you stranded at some point. This is also why that old battery you took out of your car last year which was working fine all of a sudden won't hold a charge - sulfation.

Years ago I invested in a float charger with de-sulfation function (a certain frequency is applied once the battery reads as charged). I used it for a "toy car" which was usually parked. The toy car is sold now but I still put it on my daily driver when I think of it. If your habits are a lot of short trips you might not be attaining full charge. Think about some sort of low current plug in charger to top up and maintain your level of charge from time to time. It will greatly increase the service life of your battery and alternator. I have to say my batteries are lasting longer.

On alternators, they are intended to "top up" the battery and to run electrical loads in the vehicle. They are not intended to charge batteries from dead or which have become significant parasitic loads and can overheat and damage themselves (no warning light for this). If your open terminal voltage is still in the 12s you aren't cooking your alt from that alone but if, as I mentioned above, there are lots of short trips and your battery always needs charging you could be overheating the alt.
 
Last edited:
Thanks, lots of good (new to me) information here.

I feel compelled to point out that the only reason I was concerned about anything here was that the eye didn't appear green when I checked it once. No starting problems, accessory problems, or anything else to lead me to believe I have a battery problem. I may check the levels or get it load tested just for kicks but at this point I think it's probably fine.

I have thought about getting a battery maintainer for our tow vehicle which doesn't get a lot of miles. Most of our trips (regardless of vehicle) are long enough to get the battery charged up so I'm not too worried about battery health or longevity in general.
 
Originally Posted By: ludey
Put some EDTA if you are concerned about the longevity of the battery. I put some in all my wet batteries. I had a Honda Group 51 battery and it was dying. I just put some EDTA and had it charged at Autozone for free. I put back in and no problema.

What is EDTA ?
 
Everyone seems to be telling the OP to ignore the green eye. While it may be true that the battery isn't about the die tomorrow, that doesn't mean it should be ignored.

I certainly don't know everything about everything, but most of the "eye bearing" batteries I've seen use the eye to read both electrolyte level and specific gravity. If the eye isn't green one of the two is low.

Pop the caps - check the electrolyte level by eye with a flashlight and get a
Sulfation usually begins because the battery isn't kept fully charged. That could be because of your habits (short trips, long periods of no use), your charging system isn't quite working properly or you have a parasitic loss in your electrical system running the battery down when you're parked. Mild sulfation can also be reversed with a float charger with a de-sulfation function and prevented by keeping the battery fully charged.

In terms of electrolyte level I've read two guidelines. One says that the level should be just over the top of the plates. The other says that the level should be touching the bottom of the ports into the cell causing a fish eye effect. The plates must absolutely be fully covered so that's your minimum. If the cells are over-full they could boil over and the battery could ooze in certain conditions so having a level somewhere between those two recommendations is probably about right.
 
Last edited:
As my battery eye is no longer green thought I'd resurrect this excellent thread. It's the OE battery on an 07 Honda Accord.

Got a Battery Tender Junior yesterday, from fathers day Amazon gift certificate. So, thought I'd charge my motorcyle and lawn mower batteries, both went to full green light (charged) on BTJ rather quickly.

Then decided to put it on the Accord, red light stayed on and on. Checked the fluid level, all plates covered, but filled with distilled to bottom of fill holes jic. I thought I saw the eye briefly turn green.

Put the battery back on BT charger but the light on the BT charger wasn't green until this morning. However, battery eye is still dark. Since the fluid level is up, I'm thinking the eye must read the specific gravity at least as much as level. Car is making a decent trip today so will check the eye tonight.

All that said, car hasn't had any difficulty turning over or starting. As I've generally done with batteries, thinking I'll just run it until it quits.
21.gif


fwiw, I already had a Sears battery charger, but really like the BTJ, great for the motorcycle with the quick connector harness, and two other wiring harnesses included.
 
Interesting. FWIW I never had a problem with the battery that prompted me to start the thread -- but before I took the car up to a colder climate for a few days last month I got it load tested and it failed, so I replaced it to be safe.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

A
Voltage drop on battery when headlights are OFF, fine when they're on
Replies
19
Views
966
tiger862
B
Walmart Store Brand EverStart batteries - Do they typically last 5 years or do they need frequent replacement?
7 8 9
Replies
177
Views
51K
Nukeman7
E
Loose battery terminal connection inadvertently leads to a battery test showdown
Replies
3
Views
1K
Elektrishun
I
Napa AGM CCA dropped 10% after 2 months
Replies
12
Views
1K
benjy
B
Should I return this EverStart Platinum battery, or put it in service
2 3
Replies
43
Views
5K
JimPghPA
Back
Top