Battery Corrosion- Negative Terminal

I popped the hook this morning and noticed some corrosion beginning on the negative terminal of my battery. my truck is about 1 year old and purchased brand new. The only thing i have hooked up to the battery aftermarket is a switchpro 9100 which powers some lights (1 light bar and 3 sets of pod lights).

I read that corrosion on the negative terminal means it is an undercharging situation. Can anyone explain this to me? Is something faulty? Can I do anything to prevent this?

 

Corrosion at the battery terminal is not an uncommon occurrence. It isn't caused by poor charging but it will cause poor charging. It is best to clean of the top of the battery with some baking soda and water. Rinse it well with water. If you aren't comfortable working around the battery get it done by a mechanic.

 

I don't have a problem working on the electrical and will do that. Thanks! I just wanted to see if something was failing or needed to be done possibly to accommodate for the added accessories I am running. I will probably upgrade eventually to a better battery.

 

Where is the corrosion?

 

I bought my used Tacoma about a year ago and it had the same build up on the NEG terminal to. I did the cleanup much like @Speedfreak recommended and have not had any issue since. Enjoy the easy DIY!

 

Replace with a sealed agm battery and you won’t have a corrosion problem ever again.

Or you can clean the cables and terminals every now and again with a flooded battery.

 

It's normal for wet-cell batteries to do this, just clean it up and spray some corrosion preventative on it.

Edit: Since you have a wet-cell battery be sure to check the specific gravity once in a while and add water as necessary.

 

Off gases coming out of the battery causes that.

 

On the negative terminal. It is just starting to happen so it isn't bad... but i want to stop it!

 

Thanks!

 

That little amount you have nothing to worry about just spray it up. Batteries must corrode faster where I am at in Michigan. Once a year or so I have to really scrape it all off and apply dielectric grease

 

I probably am under the hood at least once every 2-3 weeks so it must have just started happening. I caught it early and was hoping to just remedy it before it got bad. Sounds like I have some cleaning to do! Thanks everyone for the info.

 

I don't take a lot of long trips in the truck, so my battery doesn't ever get fully charged. Over time this is bad for the battery so about once a month I stick a charger on it and leave it on for 12 hours or so, or at least to the point where my charger says it's in float voltage mode. Not sure if it will help over the long run, but I know it won't hurt...

 

Dielectric grease doesn't conduct electricity. You could probably use it on top of the connections after cleaning and re- assembly

 

Oh what am I talking about. I use this stuff that turns purple. I think it is from permatex

Also yes put on after reconnecting everything

 

get some of this, best there is, sprays red so you can see you covered it

 

I just crinched when i saw that can on your hood. Yes sorry, my ocd is bad.

 

Hey truck is out on a farm everyday getting the crap used out of it....don't think this hurt a thing, just you city guys would be worried about it........now let me have it.......LOL

 

NOCO felt washers for the terminals after cleaning. They come doused in their battery corrosion preventative goo.

My battery did the exact same thing on the negative terminal and I also first thought it might be under charging.

After cleaning the negative terminal and post it took on a copper color.

I'm old and have lived all over the country. First time I've had a battery corrode on me. Been lucky I guess.