Ultimate Guide to Car Battery Maintenance | Top Tips for Longevity

The battery is one of the most important parts of your car. It is the very car part that starts up the engine and keeps its energy system sustainable. Without it, you won’t be able to use and drive your car at all.

Needless to say, you must know how to keep it in tip-top condition. To help you with that, we have listed few ways on how you can take good care of your car battery:

Car Battery Care Tips

Avoid Short Drives

I know owning your own car gives you the privilege of not needing to walk or commute when going anywhere from a simple visit to the grocery store to a weekend getaway outside your state. But did you know that you should not always use your car all the time when you’re just going for a short ride?

You use your car battery to start the engine. It is then recharged by your engine during the drive. If you’re just going for a quick drive, the battery won’t have sufficient time to be fully charged. And if you only use your car for short rides, the battery’s voltage will progressively decrease — contributing to a shorter battery life.

Though if short rides can’t be avoided, you should consider buying a car battery charger instead, which can help to maintain its correct voltage.

Disconnect the Battery When Not In Use For A Long Time

Short trips are not the only one to be avoided. You should also refrain from leaving your car idle for long periods.

Let’s say you’re going to a month-long vacation overseas, and your car will be left alone in the garage. The best thing you can do to protect your car battery is to disconnect it.

This is because car batteries slowly self-discharge even if the car is not in use. Aside from that, there are also passive accessories (e.g. clock) that still use battery even if the engine is turned off.

Turn off ALL Lights When Leaving the Car

There are some people who accidentally leave their car lights (e.g. headlights or cabin lights) open when they exit the vehicle. This is a big no-no. It will not just completely drain your battery, but it will have an impact on its lifespan as well – especially if done repeatedly.

It is bad for car batteries to be drained completely. This damages the lead cells, which generate the power harnessed by the car battery to start the engine. With that said, avoid any activities that can drain the battery, especially leaving any light open when you leave the car.

Clean It Regularly

Keeping your car battery clean is one of the best ways to ensure that you can extend its life. Regularly check if there are any rust or dirt buildup.

You can use an old toothbrush to scrub the dirt off. For corrosion, you can put anti-corrosion paste on the corroded areas to melt the rust buildup. If you don’t have any in stock of this, you can just use soda as an alternative to the anti-corrosion paste. Once the rust melts, scrub it with a dampen rug.

To further help you keep your car’s battery in tip-top condition, we have also listed things you must NEVER do;

• NEVER leave your car parked in a hot area.

• NEVER disconnect the positive cable first when removing your car’s battery.

• NEVER idle your car for too long when waiting for someone at the parking lot.

• NEVER use an alternator as alternative to your car battery’s charger

The Importance of Caring For Your Car Battery

A dead car battery is the last thing you need, especially if you’re in the middle of the road driving. That is why it is so important to know how to extend your car battery life as long as possible.

But no matter how well you take care of your car battery, it is not designed to last for life. There will be a time where changing it becomes inevitable — typically every 2 to 5 years. All that you can do is delay it by making sure you are taking care of it properly.

With our easy-to-follow tips above, you can have a surefire way to extend the life of your car battery. Now, you can guarantee that it remains in good shape for a long time and save money.