The car battery is the juice box and nothing can run without it being in good condition. That is why you need to maintain your battery quite cautiously to avoid damaging it. a damaged battery is the cause of most car complications you might be experiencing. At times you will need to jump your car battery if the charge is down, this is normal and takes place within minutes.
Will a car battery explode if jumped improperly? Yes, improper jumping will provoke a series of severe issues that will even damage your car battery altogether.
Improper jumpstarting can be as a result of putting the red cable on the black terminal which is the negative terminal and having the black cable on the red, positive terminal. This sends the power a direction it should not be going.
What Happens When You Jumpstart Your Car the Wrong Way?
Improper jumpstarting leads to series of damage not only to the car battery but also the parts of the car and the jumper cables too. The battery will be the most damaged as a result of wrong jumpstarting. It might begin heating up and scary sparks will also be witnessed.
As for the car, the electronics might get damaged. This is serious if the car has some monitors or even speakers connected in the interior. Fuses and sensors will not be left behind as they too will be damaged. The jumper cables might also get damaged and may not be fully insulated thus exposing you to harmful electric current.
The car alternator might get damaged if a component that is on is using it in the process of jumpstarting. A surge might occur and cause damage on the alternator. The electric current tends to be too much for the alternator to handle and it gets overheated. The heating causes the alternator to be unable to function as it did before.
Why Would the Battery Explode If Jumped Improperly?
There are quite a number of reasons that might make your battery explode when you jump it improperly. For starters, the battery might be overcharging and this is just the start of anything bad that occurs.
The overcharging makes the battery produce a significant amount of hydrogen that might escape through the casing. Eventually the hydrogen escapes and when it reaches the outside part it might ignite and hence explode.
How to Properly Connect Jumpstart Cables
For starters, ensure that the two cars are not touching each other. The jumpstart cables also have to be distinguished to avoid them coming into contact when electric current is passed through them.
Thereafter, you will have to turn of the car and ensure that all electric systems are off, such as the lights and the stereo. After ensuring this, it is time to connect the cables; begin with the positive cable and connect it to the positive terminal on the either batteries. You can then do this for the negative cable and terminals on both batteries.
Turn on the donor car, that is the car that has come to your rescue. Let the dead battery recharge for not more than ten minutes and if it is not that drained it will take less time.
After that, you will want to try the dead battery which should be working, put it on drive for half an hour and this will help it recharge. If you are ascertained that everything is okay battery-wise, you can then disconnect the battery and go on with your driving.
Steps to Avoid Explosion of the Car Battery
You will need to know how to jump your car battery properly to avoid the several complications from being witnessed. You are also advised to connect the charging cable to any available bare metal that is around your car engine rather than the car battery.
As a safety measure, it is advisable to have the car off before beginning to jump start your car. This will reduce the damage caused on to the car’s components especially for the electric ones-fuses, accelerator, stereos and car computer.
It is also obvious that when charging your battery, you should not go for a car battery that has more power than yours. Ordinary ones will do the trick as soon as possible. The cables have to be insulated as them coming into contact with one another or any metal surface might be disaster in the making.
A frozen or cold battery should not be taken through the jumpstart process. This is not advisable. This is the same if the you realize that the battery is damaged, has cracks on the outer casing or even leaking. Instead, just go for a new battery for your car.
Measures to Take After Jump Starting Your Car Battery
For starters, you will have to take a look at your car fuses. This is because they are probably the most affected. The alternators may also need your attention as they are electrical and will be affected with the power surge. You may have to replace them completely if they get damaged. Failure to do this might put components connected to it in danger in the near future.
The car’s computer system might need to be replaced if the electric current from the jumpstart cables gets to it. Lastly, the car battery might need to be replaced. This is because it might be harmful and it might inconvenience you in the near future.
Conclusion
Before jump starting it is important that you know which cable goes where and which of your battery terminals is positive or negative. This helps prevent complications in the process of jumpstarting.
It is also recommended that you switch off components of your car before going through with the jumpstarting. This include the stereo or even the car’s lights. This safety precaution reduces the amount of repair bills that you will have to incur if you jumpstart your car wrongly.
