Battery Acid Build Up

[its a V-12]

I noticed, I am getting a battery acid build up on the battery hold down bracket. Its a V-12 with a 6 volt system. The battery and regulator are new and the generator rebuilt. What would cause this to happen?...Thank you for your response.

[Guest De Soto Frank]

Sadly, this is fairly "normal"...

Check the electrolyte level in each cell to make sure it's not too high...there's usually a "ring" about 3/4" down inside the filler that is the "fill-level"... it should at least cover the plates in the cell.

Next, make sure the battery isn't being over-charged...too high a charging rate will cause any battery to "gas" and usually spritz acid over the top (looks like it was "misted".

Once the engine is started, the ammeter should show about 5-10 amps charge for the first couple miles of driving, then drop back to just above the "0" mark.

The red & greem felt washers on the battery posts will help somewhat.

This was a common problem with metal battery hold-downs and boxes, and around the early fifties, car makers began coating the hold-downs with vinyl...it delayed the inevitable, but one usually finds the steel dissipated inside the vinyl shell...

It also helps to remove the battery once or twice a season, and rinse the case with cool water, and to wash the battery box and hold-down with a solution of warm water & baking soda...not a very neat process for show cars.

I wonder what the other guys do ?

[Ron Green]

As Frank stated the felt washers do help. I have also cut a piece of rubber and placed it underneath the battery. This has helped considerably, but hasn't stopped it completely.

[Guest BillP]

A trick I learned from an old-timer is to smear a dab of black RTV around the joint between the post and case on each terminal. There's always a little seepage there that leads to the white fuzz and this seals it up.

As for venting the case, I've thought about but never carried out drilling a small hole above the water line and running a small diameter hose down out of sight to remove gas. Then I would invisibly seal the individual vents in the caps. This depends on having a common chamber above the plates for all three cells, otherwise you'd need to make up a little manifold. Of course, all this would be for a driver, and have to be swapped out for judging. This tube vent system is on motorcycles, so I'm not the genius.