If your lights are dimming, your radio sounds like it’s struggling, or your vehicle seems to have a hard time getting started, check out your battery terminals before assuming you need to replace it. Battery corrosion is more common than you may think, and it can be debilitating for your vehicle. Too much corrosion build up will hinder the delivery of power from your battery to the rest of your vehicle, which means it could prevent you from starting your car! If it looks as though there’s a lot of grime and buildup around the terminals (the posts where those big cables connect to your battery) then you’ve identified the culprit. The best part? It’s really easy to clean them yourself!
There’s three ways of going about this: the more professional approach, the DIY approach, and the desperate, don’t-have-any-tools approach...
Professional:
- Take it to a shop and have someone else do it. Easy! Done!
Do it yourself:
You will need:
- Gloves
- Baking Soda
- Hot Water
- Toothbrush or wire brush (don’t need this if you have a battery terminal cleaner)
- Cool Water
- Paper towels
- Wrench to remove battery terminals from battery (for the thorough method)
- Wire brush OR battery terminal cleaning brush (for the thorough method)
Here we go…
- Step 1: Put your gloves on!
- Step 2: Mix one tablespoon of baking soda with one pint of hot water and mix thoroughly
- Step 3: Pour this mixture right over your terminals. Don’t worry about getting it in the car or on the battery - it’s safe.
- Step 4: Let the mixture sit for a little. It will fizz and bubble – that’s OK. After a minute, start scrubbing with your toothbrush, wire brush, or battery terminal cleaner
- Step 5: Pour cool water over the battery terminals to remove the fizzing baking soda mixture.
- Step 6: Dry off with paper towels, and voila! If you want to be more thorough in your cleaning, move on
- Step 7: Remove the NEGATIVE battery cable first, THEN the positive battery terminal with your wrench.
- Step 8: Clean both the terminals and the cables with your battery terminal cleaner brush.
- Step 9: Re-attach the POSITIVE cable, then the NEGATIVE cable
- Step 10: Dry off with paper towels, and you’re done!
For the desperate, no-tools, rest-stop method:
You will need:
- A can of Coca-Cola
- A toothbrush
- Some clean water
- Paper towels
- Step 1: Pour the can of Coke all over your terminals (for real)
- Step 2: Wait one minute, then scrub away with your toothbrush
- Step 3: Pour water over your terminals to clear them off
- Step 4: Dry them off with a paper towel – All done!
And when your car battery does die, make sure you’re prepared with a Weego portable jump starter. Check out the comparison page of our product line to find the best Weego for you!
