[ilangop]

Dear Folks,

Hope everyone here is stuck in the cycle of replacing the Lead-acid battery in your vehicles once in span of 3 - 5 years. Off late I have been hearing of some device called "Battery Enhancer" that can prolong the usable life of lead-acid batteries. I wanted to know if some of you have really tried such devices. If so please share your experience here. I am interested in installing such a device in my car as my usage pattern is like once in 7 - 10 days for about 15Kms. And long drives covering 350Km max like once in 3 - 5 months.

Principle: Battery plates have very fine pores to increase the surface area for effectively staying in touch with the electrolyte. When discharged, Lead + Sulphuric acid gives rise to Lead sulphate (PbSO4) that may sometimes occupy these pores permanently and diminishing the active surface area of the plates. Devices like these, when permanently connected across the battery terminals apply very tiny bursts of current pulses into the battery ther by relieving PbSO4 from the plates and restoring the actual surface area on the plates.

Though the theory sounds technically feasible, I would like to take feedback from the end users.

For example: http://www.batteryenhancer.com/

Disclaimer: I am no way a direct / indirect relation to the owners of this brand / technology.

Off topic: A similar stuff in the form of sticker is claimed to increase the life of mobile phone / mp3 player Lithium Ion batteries.
http://emr.kevaind.com/keva-battery-enhancer.html

[revintup]

If so, wouldnt the battery manufacturers incorporate the technology in their 'ultimate' range of batteries and Charge it the double price?They would gain tremondously from it.

Please do a proper research before investing your cash.By the way how much does it cost?IF not much, no harm in trying i guess.

[SAS]

Personally I would stay away from this stuff. There are better and more cheaper ways to improve your battery life which I can think of, viz:

1. Avoid running your power windows, other heavy electricals like souped up ICE, headlights etc when the engine is off.
2. If your battery is the maintenance type, once in two months please top it up with distilled water. Ensure you only put distilled water. The water level should at least be a few mm above the metal plates. However avoid overfilling as well.
3. Ensure your alternator is charging the battery correctly. Too high and too low charging voltages when running your car can reduce the battery life
4. Clean the terminals often, say around every 5k kms. Use a battery terminal spray or petroleum jelly to cover the terminals once they are clean.
5. If your engine does not start in the first crank, wait for at least 10 seconds before cranking again. This may be difficult if your car is stalled in traffic but even then keep a 3-5 second gap.

[k_nitin_r]

Originally Posted by ilangop

[COLOR=black][FONT=Verdana]Dear Folks,
Hope everyone here is stuck in the cycle of replacing the Lead-acid battery in your vehicles once in span of 3 - 5 years.

My batteries don't last more than 2 years. After replacement, I know I can get a whole year of service out of it. Then, the next 6 months are a kind of a bonus. The rest of the life of the battery is when it is about to get conked off.

[headers]

Originally Posted by k_nitin_r

My batteries don't last more than 2 years. After replacement, I know I can get a whole year of service out of it. Then, the next 6 months are a kind of a bonus. The rest of the life of the battery is when it is about to get conked off.

How do you manage only 2 years?
I'm amazed.