6 Ways to Avoid A Dead Car Battery This Winter

Winter time calls for the most warming holidays. Whether it is to shop for Christmas or attend your favorite celebration, roads trip can not be avoided in winter. Before you get behind the wheel, it is extremely important that you make sure your vehicle is ready to hit the snowy roads and will not pose any danger.

Car batteries are the most affected components during winters, from poor performance to damage beyond repair and dying entirely, you should keep your car batteries on top of the care list to keep your vehicle running smoothly in winter.

The reason behind the underperformance of car batteries is how electric charges are created in the batteries. When the weather is on the warmer side, less power is required to deliver voltage as the rate of reactions increases. When the batteries get cold, the opposite happens. The reaction rate slows down and high power is required to deliver voltage.

As the battery naturally exhausts overtime from internal corrosion, it becomes hard for the battery to deliver charge during harsh winter, resulting in it eventually dying.

Signs of a Dead Battery

You can identify a dead battery by the following signs:

• Engine Won’t Start: The most common sign. You turn the key or push the start button and hear clicking or nothing at all.
• Dim Headlights or Interior Lights: A weak or dead battery won’t provide enough power to fully illuminate your lights.
• Electrical Components Not Working: Power windows, radio, dashboard lights, or other electronics may stop functioning.
• Dashboard Battery Warning Light: If this light comes on, it's a signal that the battery isn’t charging properly or is close to dying.
• Corroded Battery Terminals: White, ashy buildup around the terminals can affect battery performance and lead to failure.
• Swollen Battery Case: Extreme heat or overcharging can cause the battery case to bulge, a clear sign it’s time for a replacement.

How to Prevent Your Car Battery from Dying?

There are some precautionary measures you can take that can help you in avoiding a dead battery, and keep your vehicle in a stable state.

Not Driving? Disconnect Batteries.

If you own multiple cars and only plan on using one, or, if you’re not using your car for the duration of over a week, the best practice to keep your batteries stable is to disconnect them. We suggest you keep them in a normal-temperature area, like a garage or basement.

If this feels like too much work for you, you can always invest in some battery insulators. These insulators keep the batteries at a stable temperature. They do a great job of keeping the heat in and protecting your batteries. This could save you a lot of trouble that could come with dead batteries.

Battery Charger

The electricity that charges your batteries comes from your alternator when your vehicle is in running condition. If your vehicle is not running for a long duration, your car batteries will not be charged. To overcome this, all you have to do is invest in a battery charger.

Using this device, you can use any socket and hook the charger to the terminals of your batteries. Portable battery chargers can be extremely convenient for ins and outs and you will never have to face the problem of dead batteries or have trouble starting your vehicle in the mornings.

Drive Often

The lesser you drive your vehicle, the more are you shortening the life span of your car batteries. This is because in order to get electricity to your car batteries, your vehicle needs to be in running condition. If the vehicle hasn’t been taken on the road for weeks, the battery is bound to drain and will have no power to work for your next trip.

To keep your battery charged and running for a long time, take long drives often. This will help in increasing the life expectancy of your car batteries.

Clean Batteries

Just like every other component of your vehicle, it is extremely important to keep your car batteries clean and taken care of. Cleaning your car batteries is a simple quick task that you should not be skipping.

Check the battery terminals for any corrosion or molding, in case there is corrosion, all you have to do is clean it with a wire brush. Battery solution, battery acid, might overpower, causing the acid to leak out. If left unattended, these build-ups can lead to decreased performance, component damage, and failure.

Don’t Drain your Car Battery

Avoid battery-draining habits, like forgetting to turn off headlights, sitting idle while using the heater, or listening to music while the engine is off. These tasks might seem small but they combine to collectively exhaust the battery and other components of your vehicle. These small things add up to eventually drain your battery and you could experience a dead battery if you get accustomed to these habits.

Get a Battery Test

If you’re noticing symptoms of a dying battery but aren’t sure, we suggest you drive your vehicle to the nearest auto store and get a battery test. The battery test will let you know what needs to be replaced and what are the issues with your batteries.

Based on what you learn, you can maintain and take precautions for the car battery, avoiding the possibility of failure.

Conclusion

Even though with advanced cars being introduced, the performance of batteries has been improved significantly, but still there is no set knowledge of when car batteries can die out. It is extremely important to keep your batteries in check, especially during winter, and take all the precautionary measures you can to avoid a dead battery.