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/diy/ - Do It Yourself


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1544509 No.1544509 [Reply] [Original]

Help me, /diy/.
My car battery exploded an hour ago. I was charging it indoors (safety charger, my ass), and the whole upper half of the plastic cover just blew away. At least it was on a stone floor, but it still left a mess with battery acid everywhere along with a black liquid that I could not identify.

I dumped all the baking soda at hand on it, but I didn't have enough and I somewhat contained the rest with simple flour, which I'm not sure if it was a good idea or not, but at least it turned it from liquid into a bit of a semi-solid goo.
There is still acid left in the bottom half of the battery.

What the hell do I do with this mess? Should I buy more soda, pour out the remaining acid in the battery on the ground and try to neutralize it?
Can I then put the whole thing into a plastic bag and throw it away?

>> No.1544513

>>1544509
Is there a river or stream nearby?

>> No.1544515

>>1544513
No. I'm in the middle of a large city.

>> No.1544520

>>1544509
>I was charging it indoors (safety charger, my ass),
Was it a frozen battery?

>> No.1544521

>>1544509
>Can I then put the whole thing into a plastic bag and throw it away

take it to a auto parts store or shop where it can be recycled. Some places will pay $10 for batteries.

s for the clean up, you need a SHIT ton of baking soda. Like 1 of the big 5 pound boxes to nuetralize the acid, which you can then put in a plastic container and throw away.

>> No.1544522

>>1544509
don't dump more acid on the ground, that's what a gypo would do. put soda powder in a bucket, drop the bits of battery in, then fill it with the hose. once the fizzing stops it's safe to recycle the remains.
might be funny to take that to a shop and ask if they'll waive the core charge.

>> No.1544529 [DELETED] 

>>1544515
Most large cities are built on rivers, and chances are dumping the mess in there will actually make it cleaner.

>> No.1544530
File: 250 KB, 640x427, remove_battery_terminal_cover.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
1544530

>>1544509
>My car battery exploded an hour ago. I was charging it indoors
>the whole upper half of the plastic cover just blew away

youre supposed to remove the covers while charging.

>> No.1544531

>>1544520
No. It was a backup battery that I didn't use for a while, and every month I charged it for a few hours. I kept it inside, it was at room temperature.

>>1544522
Yeah, I didn't use any acidic cleaner on it. I guess I'll buy more soda, thanks for the bucket of water tip.

>>1544529
Can I flush it down the toilet? It will end up in a river sooner or later.

>>1544530
There wasn't any cover on it, there was a hole in the middle with don't cover written next to it (I didn't).

>> No.1544538

cat litter might be good for the floor

>> No.1544542

>>1544531
>can I flush it down the toilet?
Is it a low-flow? If so, you can try but those things are aweful.

>> No.1544546

>>1544542
No, it's a normal toilet.
If I dilute it with water and use some soda on it, i won't eat the plastic piping if I flush it, right?

>> No.1544548

>>1544542
>you can try but those things are aweful.

Toilets have been "low-flow" since 1992, and the maximum 1.6gallon rating hasnt changed since then.
You cant tell me that every toilet made in the last 27 years is terrible.

"low-flow" toilets being bad is a long outdated meme.

>> No.1544552

The Vintage Toilet Wizard is one of youtubes hidden gems
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBVEivsYttoy6wBLaHWxk6A/videos

>> No.1544558

>>1544509
Just mix it with more baking soda until there's no more reaction. Then just bottle it up and throw it in the trash.

>> No.1544607

>>1544509
>posts pasta gore pic
>has own live gore
>does not post pic
OP, is disappoint

>> No.1544610
File: 624 KB, 2592x1936, battery1.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
1544610

>>1544607
You're right, might as well post it.
The white stuff is baking soda that I dumped on it.

>> No.1544612
File: 663 KB, 2592x1936, battery2.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
1544612

>>1544610
I wonder if the black stuff on the wall is corrosion from the acid, burn from exploding hydrogen gas, or just some lead residue.

>> No.1544616

>>1544612
Black stuff is lead oxide. It is safe enough to handle and clean up, just dont lick it.

>> No.1545948

Did you retard charge it on more than 12V?

>> No.1545949

>>1544612
>just some lead
>just
I know toxicity depends on it's form but it's funny seeing that typed out

>> No.1545974

Not that it helps much now, but if you have the time a 500mA or 1A trickle charge is always better for the battery and just about eliminates things like this.

>> No.1545979

>>1544610
>>1544612
1. You either didn't pop the covers off it before charging it, or the vents were blocked and hydrogen pressure built up until it blew. You're goddamned lucky it didn't literally explode in a fireball and burn your house down
2. You're an idiot for charging a lead-acid battery INSIDE a house
3. You're also an idiot for storing a lead-acid battery on a concrete or stone floor; it will literally self-discharge that way
4. If it had removeable cell covers: did you even bother to see if it needed distilled water added before charging it?
5. DO NOT FLUSH ANYTHING DOWN THE TOILET, GODDAMNIT! YOU WILL DESTROY YOUR PLUMBING!

Get about 10 pounds of baking soda and cover EVERYTHING. Wear thick rubber gloves working with ANY of this unless you want to get your skin burned off you. Make sure there is NO acid solution left on ANYTHING in the WHOLE ROOM, it will eventually eat through EVERYTHING it touched. After everything is neutralized scoop everything into a plastic bucket with a plastic lid and take it to an auto parts that accepts used batteries, they MIGHT take it off your hands. You might have to take it to a County recycling site as it's highly toxic and dangerous waste at this point.

Next time maybe you'd better get someone else to charge your batteries for you. Your imcompetence could have burned your entire house to the ground.

Lead-acid batteries are a mature technology and very well-behaved WHEN HANDLED COMPETENTLY. They're not rocket-science. Either learn to work with them competently or get someone else to handle them for you, next time you may not be so lucky.

>> No.1545985

>>1545979
>You either didn't pop the covers off it before charging it,

Since when did you have to remove the covers every time you start your car and the battery gets charged?

>> No.1545994

>>1545985
It's accepted practice to help vent hydrogen as it builds up while charging it externally. Also how can you argue with me about this when the OP came within a cunts-hair breadth of blowing up his goddamned house because obviously there was a catastrophic pressure buildup?

..and you probably won't accept what I'm saying anyway.
The vents built into the caps are designed for a much slower release of gas buildup. Much more is released during charging externally so you loosen the caps, leave them loosely over the cell access holes, to facilitate the release of hydrogen. The exception is '''sealed''' batteries.
Add to this that it was probably an old shitty abused/neglected battery he had lying around, so for all anyone knows the vents were plugged up.

Also the OP probably was charging it at too fast/high a rate than was necessary. He should have put it on a slow overnight charge instead.

>> No.1545995

bump

>> No.1546031

>>1545979
Bruh, the concrete floor shit hasn't been true for years. Modern lead acids are made of plastic that isn't shit-tier and doesn't leak acid all over the place.

>> No.1546032

>>1545979
I’m an idiot, but even I know that a couple of these are old wive’s tales that haven’t been true for the past 3+ decades.

>> No.1546035

>>1546031
>>1546032
*shrug* suit yourself(s).
Meanwhile dumbshit OP nearly blew his house to Kingdom Come because he's a dumbshit.

I'll just continue using Best Practices with such things and have no stupid '''incidents''' like this. You people can do as you please. Just glad none of you live next door to *me*.

>> No.1546044

>>1546035
I somehow doubt your neighbor’s battery is going to ded itself because he left it sitting on his garage floor.

>> No.1546105

>>1545994
>Much more is released during charging externally
Alternator 200A
Battery Charger 6A
>6A releases more hydrogen than 200A

There was probably an ignition source of some sort near the battery that caused the released gas to ignite and act as a fuse to gas still in the battery.

>> No.1546110

OP here.
>>1545948
It's a commercial battery charger specifically for car batteries, has 12V written on it.

>>1545974
Even has an ampere meter on it. At first it went up around 4A, then as the battery started filling up it went down between 1-2A. It said it has overcharge protection, so I assumed it was safe to leave it on for a few hours to fill up the battery completely.

>>1545979
I didn't see any covers that could be opened, and I had used and charged it before for years without any accident, so I assume the vent must have got blocked somehow. It never really got much dirt on it, is this supposed to happen?

>>1546105
Probably. The only ignition source I can image would be an electricity meter in the same room. The door into the rest of the house was left open, so there was plenty of ventilation, though. When it went off I heard a LOUD pop.

>> No.1546131

>>1546035
nigga, that was true in 60s
not any more now
get with the 80s

>> No.1546300

yeah sure a lifetime of working on cars and motorcycles yet I never had a car battery blow itself to kingdom come trying to charge it because I'm not stupid. Apparently the OP is and so are the rest of you morons that can't be bothered to pay attention to some basic safety rules. No skin off my nose.

>> No.1546303

OP is the big tardboy.

Shit ton of baking soda.

Cause remember. Acid + Base = Salt + Water.

>> No.1547279

>>1546110
It doesn't sound like you did anything wrong.
Taking the cell covers off a battery during charging? That's the first I've ever heard of this. that should never be necessary. And if it were, charging at ~0.1C (assuming 50Ah?) would never, could never make enough hydrogen to blow it apart.
You should check your charger and make sure it didn't fail somehow and severely overcharge that battery.

>> No.1547295

>>1546110
>The only ignition source I can image would be an electricity meter in the same room.
If one of the clamps slipped off a battery post it would spark.
That spark could be enough to cause the explosion.
(this is why you unplug the charger before removing the clamps)

Do you have a cat or dog?
Have they been scared shitless since the event?

>> No.1547304

>>1547295
No pets, and I always check that the clamp is securely in place. And yeah, I turn it off before putting it on or taking it off.

>> No.1547314

>>1544612
I like the asbestos floor tiles anon.
Very lucky you wern't there when it popped.

Batteries can boil and pop or hydrogen gas can build up and bad shit happens.

>> No.1547358

>>1544509
decant the rest of it into a glass bottle. battery acid can be very useful
as for the cleanup. I would first dilute the acid with water, then add the alkaline to that. after the acidity is neutralised you should be able to take the battery to your local recycling centre and dump any mess.

>> No.1547513

>>1544509
>01/27/19(Sun)19:02:15
>>1547358
>02/01/19(Fri)22:06:33
do you actually think he hasn't cleaned it up by now?

>> No.1547659 [DELETED] 

>>1544515
pack it up and dump it in a black neighborhood. then call the cops because you suspect a crack kitchen. kick back and watch the pigs murdering a bunch of nigs

>> No.1547661

>>1545979
>this amount of panic for a small lead acid battery
you fucking millennials are just pathetic

>> No.1547664

>>1545994
>blowing up his goddamned house
lol fucking underage

>> No.1547702

>>1547659
Why do you fucking assholes insist on injecting your racist bullshit on every goddamned board? Fuck the fuck off back to >>>/pol/ or >>>/b/ or >>>/trash/ or better yet drink battery acid and die horribly you piece of shit.

>> No.1547707
File: 45 KB, 800x450, brainlettttt.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
1547707

>>1547664
>I'm a teenager and I'm smarter than everyone else!
>Safety precautions are for pussybois, real men don't need any of that!
>IT'S JUST A LITTLE BATTERY ACID NO BIG DEAL!
Fucking brainlet.
I worked in a bunch of service garages when I was a teenager. Where else do you dumb shits think I learned this stuff?

Be stupid all you want. "Call it evolution in action".

>> No.1547719

>>1547707
>"Call it evolution in action".

Natural Selection is very real, the system works as it should

>> No.1549074

>>1544513
Hello, Dupont.