6 volt Batteries split at the corners

I go cheap.
I disconnect the charged batteries after every trip .
I don't own a trickle charger , solar , or a genny .
I found out from a friend a couple of decades ago that a connected battery will freeze .
Parasitic load will drain the batts .

S_Bubba wrote:


Did they freeze? I didn't think that was possible.

Yes, they froze. Here is the 'Batteries for Dummies' explanation. :)

With a fully charged battery, the sulphuric acid in the water acts like antifreeze. When the battery discharges, the sulphur, symbol S, atoms attach to the plates and the % of acid in solution in the water decreases allowing the remaining water to freeze.

HTH;
John

Fiverwheel wrote:
Remember to thoroughly clean your battery compartment with baking soda to neutralize the acid. Your next battery loss could be when they fall onto the road through seriously weakened brackets!

Good advice right here. Your batteries didn't just leak water, but acid and it will eat and corrode whatever it touched unless cleaned properly.

Remember to thoroughly clean your battery compartment with baking soda to neutralize the acid. Your next battery loss could be when they fall onto the road through seriously weakened brackets!

I too leave my 12VDC batteries connected to my OFF-ROAD POPUP during the winter months here in Northern Neck Virginia. We normally don't have bad winters here with maybe one or two overnight freezes. This year however I had seen a couple days of water being frozen all day long.

My setup is I sometimes leave a 'ON' connection to my garage 120VAC 15A receptacle which keeps the on-board smart mode converter running keeping the batteries charged up. Other times I will charge the batteries to their 100% charge state and then do a full battery disconnect switch operation like I did this season. Usually I will make a quick check on the batteries at least once a month. My batteries setting in the battery boxes stayed right at 12.6VDC this season. I last checked two weeks ago.

When I first got my OFF-ROAD POPUP I left it connected to the garage 15AMP receptacle when at home and it boiled out my battery fluids with the non smart mode converter I was using. This placed 13.6VDC on the battery all the time and that is right at boiling out your battery fluids I find out. This battery then shorted out an internal cell and became a short circuit to the converter.

I then replaced the converter/charger to a smart mode PD9260C 60AMP Converter/charger unit which is use today five years later with the same new batteries installed in my 255AH battery bank in 2009.

My lesson learned is your have to do battery maintenance and inspections even though you keep them plugged-in to shore power all the time.

Roy Ken

I've left batteries in my hunting equipment for several winters which are usually down to -50D, but I always unhook them when I come back in the fall from hunting when they're fully charged. I'm changing them this year and they're eight or nine years old.

Batteries need to be fully charged and disconnected when the rig is stored for the winter. Then in the spring, clean the terminals and goon your way. You should be cleaning your terminals once a year anyway, so the easy way is to disconnect them in the fall and clean them in the spring when you reconnect them.

Bill

Sorry to hear of your dilemma, a fully or nearly fully charged battery will resist freezing, but when they are significantly discharged they are susceptible to freezing which appears to be the scenario you described. We have always left our batteries on our rig during the winter enduring many cold fronts delivering sub-zero temps, but our rig is stored in our backyard and is always plugged in allowing our smart converter to keep them fully charged. It's an unfortunate circumstance, Samsclub/Costco is where we purchase our replacement batteries as they always have the best prices in town.

Sounds like a $180 education on not storing even partly discharged batteries outside in the winter... or any other time. Even disconnected they will discharge in 4-6 months enough to freeze in ID unless they are AGM.

You probably allowed your batteries to freeze due to being discharged.

Most batteries die an early death due to abuse and neglect, not old age. I think you qualify under the first part.

http://jgdarden.com/batteryfaq/carfaq4.htm#freeze_points