Frozen battery in my van......

[isawlogs]

 I put a new 1050 amp battery in my caravan this past summer. I had not started the van in a few weeks. Today was a little milder so I got in it to move it so I could push the snow from around it and it would not start.    :-\

I was going to boost it with my truck, but my booster cables went missing.  :  So I popped the hood to put the battery charger on and saw that the side of the battery was swollen up some  >:(  Battery is froze, so I took it out and put the darn thing in the garage and will wait till it thaws out and see if it will take a charge or not.....  Joys of glaciertown.   

Poston, that chair is lookin' better   :D :D

[POSTON WIDEHEAD]

I put a new 1050 amp battery in my caravan this past summer. I had not started the van in a few weeks. Today was a little milder so I got in it to move it so I could push the snow from around it and it would not start.    :-\

I was going to boost it with my truck, but my booster cables went missing.  :  So I popped the hood to put the battery charger on and saw that the side of the battery was swollen up some  >:(  Battery is froze, so I took it out and put the darn thing in the garage and will wait till it thaws out and see if it will take a charge or not.....  Joys of glaciertown.   

Poston, that chair is lookin' better   :D :D

Try putting your battery in the microwave on defrost for 25 minutes. The swelling should go down :D :D :D
Your rocking chair has your name on it. 

[Sonofman]

I feel your pain. I drive a company van to work, so I only drive my car on weekends, and then it is usually noon or so before I go to town. I went out at 7 am to fire it up to go somewhere, about 20 deg f, and it would hardly turn over. The battery charger got it going, though. That battery is a 2 year battery that I have had over 8 years, so I can not complain. Got a new one today, boy prices of batteries have sure gone up since I last bought one.

[thecfarm]

I did not think a GOOD battery froze. My poor subaru, with over 220,000 miles has been a bear to start.This has always started. Had to boost it with the tractor yesterday and today. I wonder if the -12 has something to do with it.  : Tommorow it will get a cleaning and we'll see what happens.Battery is no more than 3 years old,but like isawlogs,that don't mean anything.

[isawlogs]

 This is a good battery, or what I thought one to be .... :-\

[Sonofman]

Around here, they only freeze if they are not charged. When charged, they have enough sulfuric acid in them to prevent freezing. As they discharge, I believe it turns to water, or something, with a much higher freeze point. I do not know where the freeze points are for y'all, but that is the rule of thumb for down here.

[isawlogs]

 There may have had a light stay on in the van wich may have got the battery to go dead, then the sub-zero glacier temps kicked in and all this may have had something to do with the freeze up. I will know once I get a battery in the van.
its just another little thing to deal with when it gets really cold out. I aint losing any sleep over it, by no means .  :D

[Sonofman]

Yep, just a part of living in the Great North Deep Freezer. Batteries go bad just a quickly in the heat of summer, also, so we have 2 battery seasons a year here.

[mrcaptainbob]

A long time ago the battery in my '66 Galaxy froze. Dad took it home and thawed it out at work. Left it upside down in a janitor sink with water running on it. Refilled with fresh electrolyte and it served me well for around another four years!
As for battery prices...the last lead producer in the country just closed shop in December, 2013. All lead prices are up. Batteries to bullets.

[WDH]

Marcell,

Give it two aspirins and plenty of fluids, and maybe the swelling will go down. 

[easymoney]

you can thank washington for stopping lead production. the epa says  too much pollution.the epa thinks every form of manufacturing pollutes too much in one way or the other.

[36 coupe]

You should know that cars with computers have a constant drain on batteries.Trunk and under hood lights run batteries down.Caught the glove box light on in my truck.A trunk light on can kill a battery in 2 days.

[barbender]

I just did the same thing with my 97 Dodge Cummins. I have a truck I drive for work, so mine doesn't get fired up very often. I went to start it yesterday, well bummer, mine drained down and they were froze. It has 2 >:( It was my own fault, I knew I should have gotten out there and disconnected them so they didn't draw down. $200 lesson, at least.