Reviving Dead Battery Forum

What's the passphrase?

I am shocked that you would make such a poor joke!

Clearly he hasn't read my book, " Reanimating the dead with high voltage discharge via the Frankestonian method ".... You see I have this friend Frank Estonia, who showed me how to bring dead batteries back to life with repeated high voltage jolts from a car battery charger or even a welder...

That's Fronkensteen!

Dear, oh dear, oh dear. Go 'ohm!

I wish someone would post a serious answer. I have been trying to learn about saving or recovering batteries. I have added water to batteries from UPS and similar devices, no luck yet. I have tried desulfators, still no luck. Maybe the batteries were too far gone.

Just knowing how to tell if a battery is salvageable would be good.

Sparking a battery with a welder sounds scary. The concept reads plausible, but how do you know how much sparking is enough? AC welder, DC welder, what polarity???

No that method is only good for lithium ion batteries...If you're talking about lead acid wet batteries, like in a car, that is a different story....If the battery has sat unused for a long time and won't accept a charge, then you're problem is probably sulfation, here is a link..

http://www.ehow.com/how_5306420_fix-volt-rechargeable-battery.html

Thanks, Solar Eagle. That site recommends draining the battery and rinsing with an Epsom Salts solution to remove sulfation. That sounds ok but it says to charge the battery with the Epsom Salts solution in it overnight. It does not ever mention to replace the battery acid. Can an Epsom Salts solution substitute for battery acid?

Absolutely not! The overall reaction in discharge in a lead-acid battery is as follows:

Pb(0) + PbO^₂ + 4H⁺ → 2Pb⁺⁺ + 2 H₂O where Pb(0) is lead metal

Without the large amount of H+ ions (supplied by the sulphuric acid), then it is no longer a storage battery. Exactly what filling the battery with Epsom Salts (MgSO₄) does, I don't know, but whatever you do, don't charge up the battery with electricity in this state - yet. More research needed on the reason for filling it with Epsom Salts!

thanks 4 the link

my charger has a recondition setting, though i've brought many batteries back to life using a trickle charger. it might take weeks to desulfate the plates. check the water level regulary.

That sounds good, thanks. What is the brand and model of your charger with the recondition option?

mine is made by Black/Decker. appox.$80