While all lead acid batteries are rechargeable, there comes a time when it’s time to let go. This time is called the battery’s life cycle, and it depends both on the actual passing of time, but even more importantly on the way you use the battery. Temperature and proper charging are also factors. We’ve blogged extensively about proper maintenance and provided tips to keep battery capacity at most efficient. But there will definitely come a time – within 3-5 years at the very most – when the new battery becomes an old battery, and needs to be recycled and replaced.
Why are we writing about this now? Because the interwebs are full of clowns that claim that lead acid batteries can be restored. What’s worse, millions of people are watching these clowns!
Here’s one:
This vid tries to convince you that you can add water to your dead lead acid battery and that will give it life again. While this is good advice for your garden (up to a point), it has absolutely no application for batteries. The water trick can only increase the voltage – so the battery will move the arrow on the voltmeter in that moment, but it’s still completely useless, since the battery’s capacity has been irreversibly diminished. As one of the commentators on the video said: “My friend, that one is garbage, no matter how many drops of distiled [sic]water you will add. It will be as a small capacitor, easy recharging, easy discharging.” Importantly, almost all other comments are about the kind of water necessary for this magic trick. The only value out of this trick is entertainment. If pouring water into hazardous materials is your idea of fun.
Why are people still watching this? Because we are a cheap species. It’s ok to be cheap. Our being cheap is one of the reasons that sealed lead acid batteries are still so popular and, up to now, irreplaceable – after 150 years on the market.
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