Extreme Corrosion or Bolt Sauce?!
 

Ok, weird question, but I can't find an answer anywhere on the Google: a couple years ago, I decided I had a parasitic draw on my lawn tractor when every time I would try to start it, the battery would be dead. Since then, I've used a wingnut and bolt to connect the positive and disconnect the battery each time I'm done using the tractor.

The weird part/question: the last two times I've gone back to use the tractor, the bolt and wingnut have been thickly coated in a pale gray sauce/foam/ick.

I cleaned and wire brushed them off last time, but today--after about two weeks--they were coated again.

Thoughts?!

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Just guessing, but perhaps the bolt and nut are dissimilar metals and the ambient moisture serves as an electrolyte. Also possible battery acid is wicking up between the post and case.

Take the battery out, buy a new tractor and put the old battery in the new tractor. If it does the same thing, its the old battery. If it doesnt do the same thing its the old tractor.

There's no sauce on the post, and it only happens when the nut and bolt, which are not connected, are sitting on top of the plastic battery casing.

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Do you use anything like this to prevent outgassing from the battery corroding those parts ?

That's exactly what I'm trying to find out. You ever actually read before posting?

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I don't--I've never had corrosion on my tractor battery or terminals. As I mentioned elsewhere, this only happens when the hardware is NOT connected. Weird, right?

Now, on my golf carts, I just had to clean most of the terminals with baking soda... Would these have prevented that?

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I have a solution. And if it were corrosion, I'd have called it corrosion--the wingnut and bolt are perfectly solid. They just get covered by some foamy yet-to-be-identified (though the first response makes sense) sauce.

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Pictures may help
 

Pictures might help. Post a picture or two and maybe we can all see what you are calling "sauce". One man's sauce may be another man's goop.:rolleye2:

Just a thought

Dave

I was going to, but the moment I grabbed them to get them in better light, the goop compressed and slid off. It's not crusty like regular acid corrosion--the greenish stuff usually found on connections/posts--but rather like a gray sugary consistency that slides off easily. It's very odd.

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Scrub that yucky goopy white stuff off the battery stud with a wire brush, and smear $3.89 dielectric grease, Walmart, on the stud, covering the metal ...... problemo solved ..... that will be 85-dollars, thanks!

And, while you are at the Gilford Walmart, suggest you try a $1.36 brown paper bag of hot baked potato wedges ..... in the food display close to the checkout scanners.

thinkxingu,

I've been a Heavy Truck and Equipment mechanic most of my life, huge fleets, Construction and Sand & Gravel Companies, and such. I always use Never-Seize, and or Anti- Seize on batteries and some electrical connections after cleaning corrosion off. It conducts electricity so do the posts and cable connectors and hardware. Doing this will lube the nuts and bolts and save the batteries and future headaches as well. Any good auto parts stores will carry it in stock. And will keep any hardware from turning colors on you
Terry

I'm in the Automotive industry and I always use a can of coke to clean the terminals and then coat them with a clean spray grease. The stuff I use is called Endura by Castle.
But with the draw and disconnecting the battery all the time that can be messy.
You need to fix the draw, leave a trickle charger on it all the time, or put a battery cut off switch on it. I leave a trickle charger on mine all the time as it can sit for a month at a time without being used.

Agreed
 

Agree with what Biggd said...

Dan

Thanks for the ideas. Is there a quick way to test for a parasitic draw? In my (limited) past experience, it's been a pain to chase them down and, given that I only use it every few weeks, not really an issue to disconnect the battery.

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Grease—Not the Movie...
 

A meter isn't necessary. Put a 12 (or 6) volt bulb between either battery post and the cable. Turn on (or off) each possible draw. (Headlights, if equipped). Pull fuses to narrow the cause.

As for corrosion: conventional lead-acid batteries continually "out-gas". The out-gassing condenses on top of the battery, such that an indicator (such as the placement of a penny) will show corrosion overnight! Clean the battery top with baking soda, and keep the battery caps depressed.

As for the terminals: I've had excellent luck using ordinary "axle" grease; it's messy, but smeared over every metal part of the battery posts, exposed cable ends and clamps/connectors, the grease keeps those parts in such good shape, I've had to replace them only after they've run out of adjustment (after routine exchanges of batteries).

One would think grease would act like an insulator, but the clamps always make long-lasting connections. (And you may have to grease these parts only once during your entire ownership of the boat or auto). Those red and green rings won't hurt, but they'll get greasy, so their effectiveness may diminish.

What if I have a parasitic draw? There wouldn't be a noticeable difference in brightness as it wouldn't turn on/off but rather be constant.

To test the outgassing suggestion, I've placed the bolt/nut set on my wood workbench rather than the top of the battery.

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If the gooey substance crawls over to your bench, leave the house ASAP and call an exterminator. Something wants to mate with your nuts! :D

I had a Walmart tractor battery that often, but not always, would not turn over the engine. I too noticed lots of crud on the positive terminal. I found that if the engine was positioned at or just ahead of the power stroke, it wouldn't turn over. If I turned the flywheel maybe 1\2 turn counterclockwise with the palm of my hand it would start every time. I had to clean the terminal often to keep it working. When cleaning the connection, I noticed wetness at the base of the terminal post where it exits the battery case. My guess is that the battery had internal damage and the terminal became resistive, limiting the current.

I got a few more years out of this batter before it gave up.

Can You Spare a Penny?
 

A parasitic draw can be miniscule, so look closely, for the bulb's filament may show only a faint glow.

While the wood work bench may be handy, it would be more scientific to clean the bolt, and place the bolt on a neutral surface, such as a plastic bag.

Also dependind on design,
 

of battery hold down, if it has an upper case hold down frame, the acid buildup can cause a drain to ground. thinkxingu, Please take a picture.

Terry