stupid question....

Topic: stupid question.... (Read 1324 times) previous topic - next topic

stupid question....

January 15, 2006, 01:37:30 PM

can you get a bad battery off the shelf? Im wondering because when it warmed up here in ny the car started fine no charging problems at all. now that its cold today it won't start without help. and i know the battery is new but could it be bad off the shelf?

stupid question....

Reply #1 – January 15, 2006, 02:45:24 PM

Yes, it is quite possible. Lead acid batteries go dead over time, and as they discharge they can become "sulfated", where the suplher part of the lead sulphate crystallizes and changes so that it can't be pulled out of the lead and put back into the acid (the "sulpher" part of sulpuric acid). If your battery sat around in a stockroom for any great amount of time it could well be sulphated

stupid question....

Reply #2 – January 15, 2006, 02:48:01 PM

well good thing its got a 2 yr warentee on it. also how can you tell when the battery was made? like a born date lol

stupid question....

Reply #3 – January 15, 2006, 02:48:50 PM

Working at autozone, i never had a battery on the shelve for more than a month..

stupid question....

Reply #4 – January 15, 2006, 02:50:01 PM

umm i got it at walmart lol

stupid question....

Reply #5 – January 15, 2006, 02:52:41 PM

Quote from: CougarSE

Highly unlikely, Johnson Controls (the company who makes most batteries for autozona, advance, etc.) puts them through extensive tests before they are sold.

True enough, but if it's sold 18 months after manufacture it will be damaged, if not dead. Having worked at a battry shop I can assure you it happens quite often, especially with more obscure batteries that don't sell well

stupid question....

Reply #6 – January 15, 2006, 03:45:41 PM

Quote from: Cougar8775

umm i got it at walmart lol

i've had one of the energizer batteries from there for about 3 years, but I bought it when the store first opened si it was 'fresh' it sat for 11 months while I was in manitoba and still works fine, not bad for a $45 battery

stupid question....

Reply #7 – January 16, 2006, 10:53:04 AM

Quote

Working at autozone, i never had a battery on the shelve for more than a month..

That's cause the customers had to replace them every month!!!

Was it filled with the acid/water mix when you bought it? Many battery stores keep them "dry", only filling them when they're sold, so they should keep indefinitely on the shelf.