Did you know – a ‘maintenance free’ car battery does not last as long as a normal car battery? The truth:
Like many things in life, the term “maintenance-free” is only partially true. Lead-acid batteries normally consume some of the water during a normal charge-discharge cycle. It actually electrolyzes into hydrogen and oxygen and escapes as gas. So adding water periodically is necessary to keep the plates flooded.
Maintenance-free batteries use a calcium alloy of lead instead of an antimony alloy which is suppose to sustain the water longer without refilling, but certainly not forever!
Any abnormal electrical system condition or high ambient temperatures may boil off more than the normal amount of water, however. Adding water may extend the service life of these supposedly maintenance-free batteries.
Conclusion:
Especially in places with consistent or all year round hot climate (tropical weather or desert areas), the ‘maintenance free’ battery will not achieve it’s full life span and will fail prematurely.
Tip:
Though using ‘maintenance free’ batteries maybe convenient, but it’s definitely not as economical as a normal car battery as it tends to fail earlier. So be a little hardworking and use a normal car battery which requires refilling of the water. =)
Test:
A simple test was done to estimate the lifespan of:-
a) Maintenance Free battery (claim – 2years) actual 8mths to 1.5years
b) Normal battery (claim – 2years) actual – from 2 years to up to 4years with proper on-time maintenance
We hope you have found this tip useful.
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