Show me your corroded battery terminals!

More of a PSA than anything, go clean them and snap a pic for posterity!

 

mine aren't.

first thing i do whenever i get a new-to-me vehicle is clean the terminals, apply dielectric grease, and use the foam donuts that i think are semi-useless.

hasn't failed me yet

 

I use CRC battery terminal protector spray, it eliminates the chance of corrosion. I've been using it for over 20 years on different vehicles and never once had any corrosion. A red dye is used to verify coverage.

 

Me too.
. 20+ years using CRC and never any corrosion.

 

Same experiences with the CRC here. Good stuff. However, I started using Fluid Film instead of the CRC product back in 2020…and have had zero issues, just like the CRC. Just food for thought.

 

How often are you applying to coat? Every service interval? My terminals are in bad shape

 

Terminal corrosion is usually caused by acid seepage that comes out from underneath the vent caps where they are pressed onto the case (common on flooded (or FLA) type batteries). The acid gets all over the top of the battery and eventually it migrates over to the terminals and 'boom' you have the green fuzzies.

Any time I get a new FLA battery, what I always do is pop the vent caps off and wrap each of the plugs a couple times with teflon plumbers thread-seal tape, then shove them firmly back on. This stops the seepage (and so stops the corrosion). Just be careful you don't actually block the vents with the tape.

 

I apply the CRC about twicw a year.

 

Awesome info, thank you!

 

I removed and sold my vented OEM battery the weekend after I got the truck home. Replaced with an AGM Optima Red Top and never had any corrosion issues anywhere around the battery, since it's sealed.

Can't be driving like this with a vented battery. Sulfuric acid will spill out of the vents

 

I've driven like that many times.
The acid does not spill out of the vents, it comes out from between the cap itself and the battery case (it's a crappy plastic-against-plastic plug "seal" (if you can call it that) and is why the teflon tape I mentioned above).
There are baffles inside the case that allow for plenty of angle... To actually spill out through the vents, you pretty much have to be on your side (in which case you'll probably have bigger things to worry about than a bit of spilled battery acid).

 

^On the OEM 24F battery, the vent is on the cap:



On aftermarket batteries where the vents are on the sides of the battery case, I've seen acid spill out just transporting the battery in the footwell of a car.

 

Yea that's the same style as the one I showed above (they're made by Johnson Controls).
I've also used batteries made by East-Penn long ago in the past w/o issue (those didn't have caps at all, but did have vent ports on the side). Maybe there's another kind out there I'm not aware of that leaks more easily, but the teflon tape works wonders on keeping a JC battery (OEM, Costco/Interstate, and numerous others) corrosion-free. Haven't needed corrosion-inhibitor sprays, grease, washers, etc.

 

I just had to swap my stock battery for a new one. I thought I took care of it but there was a bit of corrosion on it. I figured I'd give this stuff a try after seeing it at Wally world and seeing how it holds up after a while.

NOCO NCP2 MC101 Battery Terminal Cleaning Kit With Battery Corrosion Preventative Spray, And Anti-Corrosion Washers

https://www.amazon.com/NOCO-Termina...161-4115-babc-7b4e212781b5&pd_rd_i=B001DKNKB2