Corrosion in battery box

[petefl]

I am getting corrosion (?) in my battery box. This is new in the last 2 weeks. Battery was filled with distilled water and not over filled. MH hooked to shore power and charger is in float mode. There is corrosion on the strap buckle, strap tie down and one terminal. I know what to do to clean and fix the problem. I just an courious why this is happening? Any ideas? I have pictures but don't know how to add to post.

Thanks

[petefl]

I am getting corrosion (?) in my battery box. This is new in the last 2 weeks. Battery was filled with distilled water and not over filled. MH hooked to shore power and charger is in float mode. There is corrosion on the strap buckle, strap tie down and one terminal. I know what to do to clean and fix the problem. I just an courious why this is happening? Any ideas? I have pictures but don't know how to add to post.

Thanks

[racer0624]

You'll get many replies on this subject. First, don't fill to the ring, stay below that point. It didn't work for me however. I finally got so fed up with the corrosion I added 2oz. of mineral oil to each battery not caring if I ruined the batteries. This has been done by many. IT WORKED! No more corrosion and that was 2 years ago. There are also special battery caps available that help.

[racer0624]

I should have said I added 2oz. of mineral oil to each cell.

[GaryKD]

Mine did the corrosion thing really bad. I tested each cell and found, of 4 batteries, 3 had bad cells! I have no idea if this contributed to the corrosion. I changed all 4 batteries to AGM style. This took care of the corrosion problem.

[Lug_Nut]

I did the same as Gary, changed all 8 house batteries to AGM. Mine is all electric which is like a non-all electric coach battery bank on steroids, as far as corrosion is concerned.

Peter

[CSX4350]

I stopped at the dealership to check some measurements while they were PDI'ing my coach. I saw they had mounds of baking soda all over the batteries and drawer, and horrible corrosion everywhere. I pitched a fit about it and they assured me that it would all be taken care of.
Fast forward to about 3 weeks after getting it, I went to double check the electrolyte level, and found massive corrosion all over the batteries and surrounding area. The corrosion was so bad the hooks on the ends of the straps were already rotted away and about to fall off. One strap was already missing, the hooks were 80% gone.
The first thing I did was spray everything down with corrosion cleaner/acid neutralizer. After the box was reasonably clean I yanked the batteries, pressure washed the entire area, then wire brushed everything. I painted the entire area with rubber bed liner and replaced the house batteries with LifeLine AGM's. I've been keeping a close eye on them for the past few weeks since I did this and the box is fine, no corrosion of any kind. The coach has been on float charge since doing all of this work.

I also found bad corrosion on one of the slide bearings for the drawer. I cleaned all of them as well as possible and lubed them thoroughly with a white lithium spray. Additionaly, the batteries tested fine, I gave them to a friend and he is using them in his tool delivery truck to power his inverter for lights, computer and printer.

[petefl]

test

[park_ridge_dave]

Peter:

There have been several threads RE: "Battery Corrosion" on the forum. If you have ruled out bad battery/cells (They can cause "boiling" off acid fumes), you might want to look at your charge cycle controller. The unit on my Scottsdale had a wire jumper that you could use to get "Fast Charge". I bought a Microchip controller from the manufacturer (Newmar didn't spend the extra $25.00 8-)that plugs into the unit and that has reduced the overcharging.
The usual culprit in corrosion is the "Boiling off" of the battery acid. The fumes are highly corrosive. So anything you do to prevent the "boil off" will lessen the corrosive effects.

Also, look at the charge controller for any solar panel that you may have installed. These can also boil off the acid if they are not controlled.

FYI my rig has deep cycle marine cells and so far I have had zippo trouble with corrosion.
I go over all connections spring and fall and spray them with the anticorrosion spray. The mineral oil and the attention to the charge rates seem to be doing the trick so far. But, cells can and do fail so vigilance is still required (so true in RVing )


All of the suggestions that have been posted are also valid. The old mineral oil in the cells is a good one. I used to run a battery shop in a steel mill where we serviced the huge battery packs for the fork lifts. All our cells had the mineral oil in them.

If you need anymore info, just post here or PM me.

Good luck and travel safely!

[Ecker]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by CSX4350:
The corrosion was so bad the hooks on the ends of the straps were already rotted away and about to fall off. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I'm looking to replace the "hooks" but can't find them on Internet [probably because of improper name. Did you replace yours and if so where did you find them ?

[CSX4350]

I pitched a fit to the selling dealer and they replaced them for free. They had them in stock, I assume this isn't an unusual problem. The hooks are an integral part of the straps, and are sold as a set only.

[Max Hubrich]

Leo,

I was crawling around under my rig and I noticed my battery tray has a name plate on it (on the rear side of it). www.keylinesaleselkhart.com. Maybe that will help you get the hold downs. Mine was corroded away also.

The tray has the name "Journeyman" on it also.

[Ecker]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Max Hubrich:
Leo,

I was crawling around under my rig and I noticed my battery tray has a name plate on it (on the rear side of it). www.keylinesaleselkhart.com. Maybe that will help you get the hold downs. Mine was corroded away also.

The tray has the name "Journeyman" on it also. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>Thanks I'll give it a shot.

I found their Journeyman web site

http://www.keylinesaleselkhart.com/C..._Catalog07.pdf

[Geri and Jim]

I am also considering replacing my house batteries with AGMs. Are there any changes necessary to the charger or inverter? Also, can anyone suggest a good source for the AGM batteries?
Thanks
Jim