On Wed, 05 Mar 2003 21:51:03 +0000, Ross Virgin wrote: > ... > ... > Sam Heywood
> You are totally correct in your strategy, with > many "dead" ni-cad or lead-acid batteries, if > they have not been dead for too long. > The "temporary death" is caused by "branch crystals" > growing between the + and - plates, being sharp, > and actually puncturing the insulator between > + and - plates, thus short-circuiting the battery. > Your "brief" high power surge burns off these > short circuit bridges, thus permitting the battery > to once again take a charge. > You are also correct in your "cautions" to wear > safety glasses, protective clothes, gloves, etc. > If any of these batteries rupture/explode acid or > caustic fluid will go in your eyes, nose, mouth... > all of which are not nice, not to mention possible > blindness. Also, an exceptionally heavy surge > current, if you use such, will generate significant > amounts of hydrogen and oxygen, mixed together into > a deadly cloud if there is even the slightest > spark.... Boom ! > For someone who was just guessing how to re-activate > batteries, you are very clever. You are almost > intelligent, taking all the safety precautions. > Keep on truckin with those batteries. > Ross Virgin > Toronto, Canada > ... > ... > On Wed, 05 Mar 2003 12:11:12 -0500, Samuel W. Heywood wrote: >> On Wed, 5 Mar 2003 08:04:32 -0700, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: <snip> In using jumper cables for delivering a brief and very powerful charging rate to an automobile battery, significant amounts of hydrogen are released. If the hydrogen and oxygen mix inside the battery being charged is of the right proportions a spark can set off a very violent explosion. It happened to me once. I used to not be a believer in the manufacturer's warnings about how to use jumper cables safely, but my very bad experience changed my faith forever on that issue. Most people do not heed manufacturer's warnings on how to use jumper cables safely. Automobile batteries are lead-acid batteries. All lead-acid batteries release hydrogen when being charged. I do not know what kinds of gases are released by Ni-Cad batteries as they are being charged. Let me tell you about my very bad experience. My girlfriend and I were in front of my apartment building and we had decided to go out for a date. First we had an argument about where we were going to go. She lost that argument and she agreed to go with me to where I wanted to go. Then we had an argument over which of my two cars we were going to take. She lost that argument and she agreed to go with me in the car I wanted to take. The car I wanted to take would not start because the battery was very low. I lifted the hoods of both cars and I took out the jumper cables from the trunk of one of the cars. While I was doing that the girlfriend started an argument with me about politics by making some stupid comment about how all Republicans are unreasonable and disagreeable and that they don't know how to please a woman. The debate became very heated and we started shouting at each other. Any onlooker might have gotten the mistaken impression that we were having an ugly lover's quarrel. We were not having a lover's quarrel. We were only arguing about politics. I started one of the cars and then I began to hook up the jumper cables to the other car while the girlfriend continued to shout at me and telling me about how how unreasonable and disagreeable I am in her not so humble opinion. I yelled back at her about how she is so wrong on the subject of politics. Then there was an extremely loud explosion. It sounded like a shotgun blast. The battery had blown up and acid had splattered all over my chest area. I started ripping off my clothing, lest the acid should soak through to my skin. The girlfriend just stood in front of me and screamed at me as I was ripping off my shirt and my undershirt. Within a minute a police cruiser arrived on the scene. The officer told us that he had received a complaint of a very loud disturbance in which a shot had allegedly been fired. Also the officer demanded an explanation as to why I was ripping off my clothes in front of the woman who had been screaming at me. The confrontation with the police officer was very embarrassing both for myself and the girlfriend. The officer was annoyed with both of us for creating a disturbance. Also he was especially annoyed with me for trying to jump start a car in an unsafe manner. He said he could cite both of us for disturbing the peace and he said he could charge me also with violating a law against committing unsafe acts. The girlfriend was very good at dealing with the police officer and she talked him out of running us in and booking charges against us. After all that I washed down the car where the acid had sprayed out and I washed myself up and changed my clothes. The girlfriend and I then went out on our date. I took her to where she wanted to go and I took her in the car she wanted to ride in. For the rest of the evening I let her get her way with me. I really hate it when a woman gets her way with me, but I like it when she knows how to get her way with a police officer in talking him out of arresting me. The police officer advised me that if I were smart I would let my girlfriend get her way with me. I told him I would and he decided not to arrest me. During the course of my relationship with that girl I never lost anything other than my shirt. Sam Heywood -- This mail was written by user of The Arachne Browser: http://browser.arachne.cz/
