As automotive batteries don’t last forever, you must learn how to install a car battery. Replacing your car’s battery yourself is an easy task if you know the right steps. In today’s post, I will teach you how to install a car battery safely. You need to follow all safety precautions as replacing a car battery is not typically a DIY job. You need to first check if your car battery needs to be replaced to save your time and money. Simply follow the steps below to install a car battery safely. You can keep on reading further to learn more about how to install a car battery.
How To Install A Car Battery?
In this section, I will explain how to install a car battery in detail. When a car battery is more than 3 years oil, you need to replace it. The battery installation procedure is easy and requires only a few basic tools.
You can follow these steps to learn how to install a battery in a car.
- To start, park your car on a level surface.
- Make sure you find a safe place to work that’s away from traffic, sparks, open flames, or water.
- Then, engage your parking brake and turn off the vehicle.
- Next, remove the keys from the ignition.
- This ensures that no power is going to the battery.
- Now, wear safety gear and open the car hood.
- If required, take off any metal jewelry you’re wearing and wear old clothes.
- Now, locate the battery which has 2 cables attached to it.
- You can even use a user’s manual if you can’t find the battery.
- Remove the negative cable and then the positive cable to prevent electrical shorts.
- Using a cable tie, secure both cables to the engine bay.
- This makes sure the cable doesn’t come into contact with anything metal.
- Also, make sure the positive and negative cables don’t touch each other.
- Carefully remove the battery from your car.
- You can ask your friend for help as batteries weigh more than 20 pounds.
- Clean the battery terminals to remove corrosion by using sandpaper.
- Now, buy the correct replacement battery from an auto parts store.
- Place the new battery in the battery tray and secure it to the bracket.
- Coat each terminal in a thin layer of lithium grease to prevent corrosion.
- Avoid applying the grease on any other parts of the engine other than the terminals.
- Place the positive cable over the terminal and tighten it with a wrench.
- Now, reattach the negative cable to the negative terminal.
- Make sure neither the wrench nor the cables touch anything metal.
- When everything is done correctly, close the hood.
You can use the same procedure if you want to know how to install a car battery without getting shocked. Batteries are made up of sulfuric acid electrolyte solution which is highly corrosive. It can burn your skin and produce flammable hydrogen gas. Therefore, make sure you use insulated work gloves and safety goggles while working with batteries.
Time Required To Install A Car Battery
I hope now you’ve understood how to install a new car battery. If you’re a beginner, performing car battery installation at home can be a bit risky. Now, you must be wondering how long does it take to install a car battery. If you visit an authorized service center, 15 minutes are enough to install a new battery in your car. However, the actual amount of time depends on a variety of factors. You can even ask a local auto parts store for a free car battery installation.
Signs Your Car Battery Needs Replacement
After learning how to install a car battery, you need to make sure whether your car’s battery needs replacement. Here, I’ve listed down some common signs that indicate your car battery needs to be changed.
- Your car engine will hesitate or takes a while to get started. This can happen when your car battery fails to provide enough charge to start the car.
- You notice your car headlights start flickering or are dimmer than usual. It is a clear sign that your battery can’t keep your lights stable and run the car at the same time.
- Your car triggers the battery or checks the engine light to signal that there’s a problem with your battery.
- Perform a quick battery charge test at a service center to diagnose the problem.
- Check whether your battery is bulging on one or more sides. This clearly indicates that there has been internal damage to the battery.
Thus, all these situations can be dangerous, so make sure you get a battery replacement immediately!
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FAQ
Is Installing A Car Battery Easy?
Yes, car batteries are fairly easy to replace. A trained mechanic may be able to do it faster, but that doesn’t mean you can’t do it on your own as well. All you need to know is how to remove the positive and negative terminals from the old battery and attach them to the new battery.
Can You Install Car Battery By Yourself?
You’ll have no option but to call for assistance if your battery goes dead if you are on the road. But if you are at home and can get a lift to the auto parts store, you can replace a car battery yourself. This guide shows you the steps of replacing a car battery.
Is There A Wrong Way To Install A Car Battery?
Connecting the battery terminals in reverse can cause serious damage to the battery itself, the electrical components, and even to yourself. Each terminal of a car battery uses 12V of current with positive and negative orientation.
What Happens If You Connect The Negative Terminal First?
However, if you connect the negative terminal first, it can potentially result in a short circuit or other electrical issues, as it creates a direct path for current flow before the positive terminal is connected.
Do You Hook Positive Or Negative Up First On A Battery?
“Positive first, then negative. When disconnecting the cables from the old battery, disconnect the negative first, then the positive. Connect the new battery in the reverse order, positive then negative.”
Conclusion
By reading the above post, you got to learn how to install a car battery properly. The procedure of installing a new car battery is a relatively quick process. It involves disconnecting the old battery, removing it, placing the new battery, and connecting the new one. Roughly 15 minutes are more than enough to install a new battery. However, the actual time taken to replace the battery will depend on the model of your car. Always wear gloves and safety glasses while cleaning corroded terminal clamps. Once you understand how to install a car battery, you can replace the battery yourself!
