The Automobile Storage Battery: Its Care And Repair

by Otto A. Witte

Now hold a negative group under the faucet, and let a strong stream of water run down over each plate so as to wash it thoroughly, and to remove any foreign matter from the plate surfaces. All negative groups must be handled in exactly the same way so as to get the same results in each case.

After you have washed the first group, place it on edge on a clean board with the post down and pointing away from you, and the bottom of the group toward you. Now insert plate press boards which are slightly larger than the plates, and of the exact thickness required to fill the spaces between plates, Fig. 113. For the standard 1/8 inch plates, a 5-16 inch board, or two 1/8 inch boards should be placed between plates.

The 1/8 inch boards are actually more than 1/8 inch thick, and will give the proper spacing. For thin plates, use 1/4 inch boards. Do not push the plate press boards more than 1/8 inch above the tops of the plates, and be sure that the boards cover the entire plates. Put a board on the outside of each end plate of the group. In this way insert the plate press boards in each of the three negative groups.

Then place each negative group on the lower jaw of the plate press with the post of each group pointing toward you. Three groups may be pressed at one time. Bring the top edges of the transite boards flush with the front edge of the lower jaw of the press, so that no pressure will be applied to the plate lugs. See Fig. 114. Pressure applied to the plate lugs will break them off.

Now screw down the upper jaw of the press as tightly as you can with the handwheel, so as to put as much pressure on the plates as possible. Leave the plates in the press for about five minutes. Then remove them from the press, take out the boards, and replace the plates in the battery jar from which they were removed, and cover with water. They may also be placed in a stone or earthernware jar and covered with water, especially if there is any work to be done on the jars or case of the battery. If the spongy lead of the negatives is firm, they may be reassembled in the battery as soon as they have been pressed. If, however, the spongy lead is soft and mushy, keep the negatives covered with water for 12 to 24 hours. This will make them hard and firm. Then remove them from the water and dry them in the air. In drying, the plates will become heated and will steam. As soon as you notice any steaming, dip the plates in water until they are cool. Then remove them from the water and continue the drying process. Each time the negatives begin to steam as they dry in the air, dip them in the water until they are cool.

When the negatives are dry, they are ready to be reassembled in the battery and prepared for service. Negatives treated in this way will give good service for a much longer time than they would if not treated in this way. The spongy lead has been made firm and elastic. If you have other negatives in your shop which are not in use, treat them in the same way and put them away for future use, to use as rental batteries. Always put them through the same process:

1. Charge them fully.

2. Press them in the plate press to force the spongy lead back into the grids.

3. Soak them in water, if the spongy lead is soft and mushy, for 12 to 24 hours, or even longer until the spongy lead is firm. Dry them in the air, dipping them in water whenever they begin to steam and become heated. This will give you negatives that will give excellent service and have a long life. Many negatives treated in this way will be good for fifteen months to two years of additional service. The rental batteries should be assembled in the same way as those you are rebuilding for the owners.

The importance of pressing negatives cannot be exaggerated. Always press the negatives of the batteries which you rebuild. Do not do it to half, or three-fourths of the negatives, but to all of them. The work takes but a few minutes, and the time could not be put to better advantage. The spongy lead of the negatives swells and bulges out and makes very poor contact with the grids as a battery becomes discharged. This results in a loss of capacity, gradual sulphation of the loose active material, corrosion of the grids, failure of the gravity to rise high enough on charge, overheating of the battery on charge, gassing before the sulphate is reduced to active material with breaking off and roughening of the active material, and makes the battery lazy and sluggish in action. The spongy lead must make good contact with the grids if the battery is to have a long life and give good service.