Evening star., 1933-07-30
SERVICE
SEENFOR BATTERY
Car Owner Learning to Oh.
tain More Miles From
~ Ignition Source.

Being out of sight the automobile
storage battery has for years been one
of those things that is largely out Of
mind. Automobile men find the situa-
ton is changing with the increasing
popularity Of placing the battery where
it can be inspected more easily and
where the owner is more likely to give
it the attention it needs. Battery trou-
bic, electrical men have concluded, is
largely due to an entirely erroneous at
titude toward this vital unit of the car
Because guarantees are limited, and
owing to the fact that so many bat
teries suffer such a curtailed existence,
the average motorist has come to expect
that battery will not be reliable after
about year and half of service. Un-
fortunately this belief is strengthened
by experience with cheaper batteries
which the public assumes are as good
as the best and which are designed to
serve not much beyond the guarantee
period. 1t is gradually dawning upon
millions of motorists that a good bat
terry ought to last three years, If not
longer
Free Wheeling Responsible.
Free wheeling has served to bring
battery facts into sharper focus. With
excessive idling of the motor there has
been a tendency to make mistakes in
trying to regulate the balance between
charging and discharging Many bat
terieS have been ruined through excess
sive discharging. and as many have
gone West through being overcharged
In meeting these problems the motorist
has begun to learn some new points
1t has been found that satisfactory
balance can be obtained If drivers will
avoid free wheeling at night when there
is an excessive drain on tie battery
Following this simple rule will make it
unnecessary to step up the generator
charging rate. II the charging rate was
increased during the Winter it should
be decreased for the Summer touring
when long periods of driving tend to
overcharge the battery
On long trips it is not necessary to
burn the headlights if the car is oper-
ated in free wheeling. because there
are then comparatively long periods
where the motor idleS and the battery
discharges. There are certain ways of
telling whether or not the battery
is being overcharged. Rapid evapora-
| tion OF water over the plates is one cue
Another is the greatly increased starter
motor speed. Extra bright lights. how
ever. do not necessarily indicate that
the battery is overcharged.
Matter of Balance.
Long battery life Is largely matter Of
careful balance between charging and
discharging. These are chemical proc
esseS and in their too wide swings there
Is excessive deterioration of the battery
plates. Every time battery has to
be recharged its life is shortened. In
. n hat S-
mally used stands up longest, other
things being equal
Many batteries are handicapped from
the start because they are undersized.
Many bargain batteries would be prac-
teal ii motors did not have so many
cylinders and compression were not so
high. The most economical plan is to
buy an oversize battery
The care a battery needs is simple
but exacting. 1t must be given addi-
tions of water, not at fixed intervals,
but whenever water is needed. The
periods between filings will depend not
only on the design of battery but On
the way the car is being used as well
as on the efficiency of the voltage reg
ulator Of the generator. The electro
lyte of one cell never should be mixed
with that of another. An excessive
consumption Of water in one cell, while
the others remain normal indicates a
leak. Very excessive consumption of
water in normal running indicates
much too high generator voltage. Nip
this trouble in the bud, because the
generator will also suffer.
Distilled Water Best.
In some localities it Is permissible to
use water from the hydrant but in most
parts Of the country distilled water is
required for the battery The battery
posts should be clean and fabricated
so as to prevent the formation of cor
| rosive substances. The most satisfac-
tory plan is to install felt oiler which
will feed the right amount of oil to the
post without making the battery messy.
A Eattery should be kept tight in its
carrier. And it is important to check
the connection to the frame. Any
looseness here will cause an open cir
cult and be damaging to other parts of
the electrical system
Your battery can give you much more
service than you think it can. Keep it
IN mind. That's the secret of longer
battery life
(Copyrisht, 1933)