Uh, what is all this stuff about jumping vehicles and unhooking things?

Look, I've jumped hundreds of vehicles. Tractors, trucks, old ones with new ones, new ones with old ones, lawnmowers, motorcycles, bulldozers, combines, cars, LTBs, etc, etc, etc. Don't need to worry about it. I've never unhooked anything and I've never blown anything or messed up anything.

Plus to plus, minus to minus. You'll never have a problem.

You may, however, have a problem if your battery has an isolated pole. What can happen is that you start the disabled vehicle and then when you disconnect the vehicle with the good battery, the pole on the disabled vehicle isolates or is isolated. Its like the big NO NO of unhooking a battery in a modern vehicle WHILE ITS RUNNING. The alternator will problem shoot the voltage up to 20+ volts and blow the regulator and the computer and anything else that won't take that much voltage. ...maybe. Many of them have limiters on them now that will take the pain and keep you at less than 18v.

Good luck and may your jumper never smoke.

i HAVE seen a car battery explode when cross connected during a jump-start (which is why i caution to discharge them completely before reverse charging them) but, like ntrngr i simply connect positive to positive and negative to negative at the terminals and have never had a problem.

Much needed post!
I have Epson Salt and was wondering when a battery goes bad if I could just add more battery acid to recharge it.
I have a better understanding in how it works now.
I picked up some battery acid at an estate sale and took it out of the plastic bag and into glass containers made for acid. I am sure I will find a use for it in other areas.
So the root cause for a battery going bad is lead sulfate.

Kevin

it's actually propagation of the lead sulfate from one plate to the other due to electron flow (it's the same situation as is used to electro-plate metal).

as for the acid, it's fairly strong sulphuric acid, 80% at least. you could use it to open a really clogged drain or use it along with nitric acid and coal tar to make tri-nitro tolulene (TNT). at least, that's what i do with it.

Christian for Israel wrote:it's actually propagation of the lead sulfate from one plate to the other due to electron flow (it's the same situation as is used to electro-plate metal).

as for the acid, it's fairly strong sulphuric acid, 80% at least. you could use it to open a really clogged drain or use it along with nitric acid and coal tar to make tri-nitro tolulene (TNT). at least, that's what i do with it.

You must be very smart, CFI ! I didn't understand a single word you said !

me?

i'm dumb as a box of rocks. i just said i make my own explosives...what more proof do you need?