99 TXT Battery terminals keep melting

[Wylie_Tunes]

That exploded battery has me scratching my head. Thats just not common, but to be coupled with melted out battery posts......something is not correct.

[rib33024]

The exploded battery was probably caused by the bad cable or loose connection, all it takes is a little spark to make a battery exploded, the battery could of had a short in it, it happens more than you think, your post melted because there was a loose connection or a bad cable


Here's some, it happens

http://www.buggiesgonewild.com/elect...batteries.html

[BatteryZombiedotcom]

Electricity takes the path of least resistance. If you're mixing old and new batteries, and with mixed capacities too- consider how the amps will flow to your motor; fast and furious through the plates of the new (less sulfated) batteries, and considerably "slower" through the layers of resistance (sulfation) on your older batts... Add to that the possibility some of these batteries are "fuller" than the others due to their different capacities... And you've created some "express lanes" for that amperage to fly through, and some "slow lanes" for it to avoid. Highly recommended to match your pack up!

[yurtle]

Originally Posted by BatteryZombiedotcom

Electricity takes the path of least resistance.

Just to be 100% accurate (nit-picker), it "prefers" the path of least resistance. It still goes the other ways as well.

[yurtle]

Kinda like the phrase, "a chain is only as strong as its weakest link". Only accurate in a failure mode. If you have 30 feet of 6 AWG and only change out 15 feet to 2 AWG, you have STILL reduced total series resistance. Dumb, but true, 'specially if you only own enough to to half of what you should do.

[yurtle]

I just reread the post I was nit-picking. I was referring to parallel circuits, after I read the first sentence, not a true series circuit.

Amperage is the same throughout a series circuit. Voltage drop will vary, but not amperage. Amps don't blast fast and furious through parts of a series circuit. Unless you consider a battery plate parts of a parallel circuit...

How does electricity "pick the path of least resistance", in a series circuit, when there's only ONE path?

[BatteryZombiedotcom]

Please let me explain:
I wasn't using the term "fast and furious" in a technical manner. (I was simply trying to illustrate different degrees of resistance of the plates) My apologies :0
Nor was I using the terms "express lanes", "slow lanes", "fuller", and "slower" in a technical manner. ;P
Yurtle: do you think the exploding batteries mentioned could've been caused by being REVERSE charged by the other (higher capacity) batteries?

[superuo]

LOL I hear that! Thanks.

[yurtle]

Originally Posted by BatteryZombiedotcom

Please let me explain:
I wasn't using the term "fast and furious" in a technical manner. (I was simply trying to illustrate different degrees of resistance of the plates) My apologies :0
Nor was I using the terms "express lanes", "slow lanes", "fuller", and "slower" in a technical manner. ;P
Yurtle: do you think the exploding batteries mentioned could've been caused by being REVERSE charged by the other (higher capacity) batteries?

No offense intended. I get nit-picky at times, just 'cause we do have prolly hundreds of active readers, and posts here sometimes get read (and even commented on) for years.

As far as the 'sploded battery, I have no clue. Could have been hydrogen turning into water, which does so quite excitingly. Otherwise, could have been something internal, which caused it to heat up, though I'd think the fill caps would have vented any slow build-up of pressure due to heat.

I'm an "expert" in some explosive events, but not batteries.

[yurtle]

Since I'm in a nit-picky mode, I feel I should clarify my post #25 above. I did caveat my statement as a non-failure example, but many of us push our buggies way beyond the failure mode. I killed two solenoids and an FNR, so I didn't mean to imply that we should ignore the weakest link in a chain. I was merely trying to convey that to be 100% accurate, given perfectly good cables, it never hurts to only upgrade some of them, if that's all you can afford, or if you happen to have some "free" cable lying around collecting dust. You won't necessarily see any performance difference, but you will have eliminated part of your resistive losses (heat).