Three Tips For Testing Your Vehicle's Battery
Your vehicle's battery is not something you think about until it dies. While it does a great job at recharging itself thanks to the alternator, there may come a point where it stops charging and loses power. Follow these tips for testing the battery to make sure that it's working right
Test The Charge
Is your battery holding the right amount of charge? You won't really know until you test it. One way to do this is with a multimeter. Figure out the voltage of your battery, then set the multimeter to read the voltage and connect it to the battery. This is done by touching the black negative cable to the negative terminal and the red positive cable to the positive terminal. You should then see the voltage that the battery currently has. If it's below what the battery should hold, you'll then know that the battery is losing its charge.
Test The Connection
You can also use a multimeter to test the connection between the cable and the battery. Do this by touching the red positive cable to the positive battery terminal, and then the black negative cable to the cable. If the connection is good it should read as zero volts. You can then do the same thing on the negative side, but by also putting the positive cable on the terminal and the negative cable on the car's cable.
Test For Surface Drain
Believe it or not, the dirt that can collect on top of your battery can be conductive, which will actually cause the battery to drain over time without your knowledge. Checking for surface drain is similar to how you would check the cable connection. You touch the positive terminal with the red testing cable, and then touch the battery case with the black testing cable. Your multimeter should be reading zero volts if there is no surface drain activity. If you are seeing voltage activity, this means that the battery casing should have the dirt cleaned off.
Running into an issue where your battery needs to be replaced? Reach out to a local auto parts store that sells car batteries. They can help you select the right type of battery for your car because it is not a part where you can select any battery. You'll need to find the right type of battery that your specific vehicle uses.
Contact a local company that sells automotive batteries for more info.