Dustin Hawley | Mar 24, 2021
Sooner or later, most drivers encounter the inevitable inconvenience of a dead car battery. You don’t need to be an expert auto mechanic to know that without a running battery, your car won’t start at all. You’ll have to call a roadside maintenance service or find a way to get your vehicle to a repair shop in this situation. Both of these options are less than ideal.
Alternatively, you have the option of avoiding these choices and charging your car battery yourself. So long as you have the proper equipment, like a portable battery charger, you can perform this task anywhere you need to, even when you’re stranded on the side of the road.
Let’s break down how to charge a car battery.
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Uh oh! If the battery in your car is dead, it can be a big inconvenience. There are two simple ways to recharge the battery: using a battery charger or using a running car battery. Follow these instructions to recharge it quickly and safely.
- With a Battery Charger
- Safety First
- Charging Settings
- Fast Charge Rate
- Slow Charge Rate
- How to Recharge the Battery
- With another Car Battery
- Safety First
- How to Recharge the Battery
- Reliable Car Care
- Share This Article
With a Battery Charger
Don’t get stranded. Simply keeping a battery charger unit in your trunk can save you from a dicey situation. With this type of charger, you don’t need another car to help you recharge the battery. Simply hook it up and charge up the battery, then get back on the road.
These devices generally cost between $30 and $120. The prices vary with the brand and the number of output and charging settings provided. You can purchase one at any automotive accessory store. Most battery charger devices work with standard 12V car batteries, including deep cycle or gel batteries.
Safety First
Before hooking up a car battery to a charger, review these important safety tips.
- It’s advisable to wear gloves and eye protection.
- Remove any jewelry or loose clothing.
- Be sure that the charger is as far away from the car as the cables will allow.
- Check the manual to see if your car has a remote positive terminal located in another part of the vehicle; use this terminal for safer charging.
- Always use the red positive jumper cable first.
- Don’t face the battery when connecting the clamps.
- Do not touch the clamps while the charger is on.
- Never connect the negative clamp to the carburetor, fuel lines or body panels of the car.
Charging Settings
Select the proper setting to fit the type of charge depending on the type of battery in your car and the speed of the charge needed. Usually there is a setting to charge 6V batteries, as well as fast and slow charging rates for 12V batteries. If you see a ‘crank assist’ setting, this is for simply jump starting the battery.
Check the vehicle manual to be sure your car’s voltage matches the charger’s DC output voltage.
Fast Charge Rate
The fast charging setting should only be used in emergencies.
Slow Charge Rate
The slow charging setting is less taxing on the actual battery. Using this setting will help ensure that the battery lasts longer, though the process will obviously take more time. It’s recommended that you let the vehicle charge overnight with this setting. If the battery was completely dead, it may take up to 24 hours to charge fully.
How to Recharge the Battery
- Check to make sure the charger is not connected into a power source. Leave it unplugged for now.
- Select the proper charge setting and rate for your situation and battery type.
- Take the charger cables connected to the charger and unwrap or untangle them, if necessary.
- Locate the positive and negative sides of the car battery. Look for a P, POS or the + symbol for positive; and N, NEG or – symbol for the negative near the terminal.
- Clip the red cable to the positive side of the battery terminal.
- Then, attach the black cable to the negative side of the battery terminal.
- Connect the charger to a power source. An extension cord may be necessary to reach the car.
- Wait for the battery to fully charge.
- Then, unplug the charging device from the power source. Turn off the device. Then disconnect both the positive and negative clamps.
- After unplugging, turning off and disconnecting the charger, you can test the charge with a multimeter. The meter should read 12.6 volts or higher to be considered charged.
If you don’t have this tool, try to start the engine and turn on the headlights.
With another Car Battery
The second method for charging a car battery is to use jumper cables to connect the dead batter to a running one. Most drivers are already familiar with jumper cables, but not everyone is sure how to use them properly to connect two cars. Here, is a step-by-step guide.
Safety First
Before trying to recharge a battery with jumper cables, review these important safety tips.
- It’s advisable to wear gloves and eye protection.
- Be sure that the two cars have batteries with similar voltage. Failing to do this could result in damage to the electrical components of the vehicle.
- Remove any jewelry or loose clothing.
- Ensure that the two cars are not touching each other.
- Check the manual to see if your car has a remote positive terminal located in another part of the vehicle; use this terminal for safer charging.
- Always use the red positive jumper cable first.
- Don’t face the battery when connecting the clamps.
- Do not touch the clamps while the car is running.
- Never connect the negative clamp to the carburetor, fuel lines or body panels of the car.
- Never connect jumper cables to the negative post of the dead car battery because it can cause sparking.
How to Recharge the Battery
- Situate the car with the live battery close to, but not touching, the car with the dead battery. Put both cars in park and turn off the engines.
- Attach the jumper cables in the proper order. First, connect the red cable to the positive side of the dead battery. Second, attach the other end of the red cable to the positive side of the live battery. Third, connect one end of the black cable to the negative side of the live battery.
- Lastly, carefully clamp the other end of the black cable to some large metallic part of your car’s engine block. Don’t connect it directly to the negative post on the battery.
- Start the engine of the working battery. Let the car idle for a few minutes.
- Start the engine of the dead battery.
- Once the engine has turned over and is running, immediately disconnect the jumper cables in the reverse order. It’s important to first disconnect the black cable from the engine block of the car that had the dead battery.
- Let the car run for at least 30 minutes. Then, drive the car for at least another 30 minutes to give the battery a good charge.
Reliable Car Care
Find more great tips here: Teach Your Teen Driver About Car Maintenance and 36 Items that Everyone Should Have in The Car.
For all your auto repair needs, get in touch with Badell’s Collision. We have two family-owned body shop locations in Aston and Malvern. For a quick quote, use the online estimate form.