Rusty battery terminals

[ebbtide]

What is needed around battery terminals which always corrode quickly despite covering with grease?
Is Vaseline better?
Lanolin possibly?
Or some spray-on?
Advice welcome

 

[FlorealIII]

Lanolin is an animal fat (wool fat) , vaseline is a mineral jelly.
They can both be used, but batteries that are in good shape do not need any grease around the terminals.

 

[RogerMayne]

Vaseline! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[MoodySabre]

Make the terminal and the inside of the clamp shiny, do up the nut so they are tight to each other and then cover the lot in Vaseline. i.e don't put Vaseline on the terminal before you do it up.

 

[ebbtide]

[ QUOTE ]
batteries that are in good shape do not need any grease around the terminals.

[/ QUOTE ]

Hold on there!
My 2-year old batteries perform to spec BUT have corroded terminals and nuts, in fact one stud sheared off when replacing - the material used looks unsuitable for a salty environment.
Am fairly meticulous in my maintenance but this suggests a glitch somewhere.
The batteries are outside in a cockpit locker, certainly not warm and dry!
Is that significant?
Thanks.

 

[VicS]

Never come across batteries with ferrous terminals. Not lead acid ones any way! Sounds very unsuitable especially in a marine environment.

The posts are usually lead and the clamps are plated brass.

Do as suggested clean thoroughly to bright metal refit connections and coat with Vaseline.

Might even be tempted to use a spray on water proof grease or a silicone grease.

 

[vyv_cox]

Lots of automotive battery terminals are galvanised steel, with steel bolts. As far as I remember, all six of them on my boat are this type but they never see the weather and consequently remain in good condition. I'm always meticulous about drying up spills of deionised water but I have never found the need to coat them with anything.

 

[VicS]

[ QUOTE ]
Lots of automotive battery terminals are galvanised steel, with steel bolts

[/ QUOTE ] Fortunately not come across one yet! With the exception of couple of Fords all mine have had round lead posts. Don't know about SWMBO's Renault. Seldom lift the bonnet of that. Nothing under there that I recognise!

 

[vyv_cox]

Sorry, Vic, we may be at cross-purposes here. I was talking about the clamp terminal, not the battery post. I don't think I have ever seen a post that was anything other than lead but I have seen the clamp terminal in a whole range of different metals.

 

[ebbtide]

Thanks.
Of course the actual battery post is lead, but the rest of the gear certainly isn't corrosion-resistant despite coming from a certain marine factors in Portsmouth.
No top-up hazard either - I long since changed to maintenance-free.
Look elsewhere? That's where my local chandlery get's them!

 

[pampas]

Vasoline is hydroscopic therefore I use gease, found the now defuct Duckhams was the best. Now use any stern tube grease to hand. Many years ago in the MN all ni-cad cells had teir topps filled with Vasoline,right pain in the neck if they had got a spray of water,spent many an hour digging the stuff out and refilling.

 

[PetiteFleur]

A lot of terminals are now a zinc die casting, which don't last five minutes as they snap - I've had two break like this and had difficulty finding proper tin plated brass ones.