Petroleum jelly does work as you say to keep oxygen away from the metal
surfaces but its melting temperature is relatively low making it not a
long-term solution.
A device I saw used on an industrial battery bank years ago used a solid
brass alloy device. A small oblong plate fits over the battery post, lies
flush on the battery case, then the battery cable is attached. A machined
brass dome-shaped cover fits snugly over the plate and is attached with
small set screws. A grease fitting on the top is where you squirt in special
non-corrosive 'grease' until it leaks out around the battery cable opening.
If the cable/terminal connection is good & tight the connection should not
corrode or loosen for a decade or more. The device is no doubt pricey but
should last for the life of the bank on a quality installation.
I have not ever seen this device advertised, or even thought about it until
I read Dicks posting. It sounds like it's worth the investment for an
enclosed flooded battery enclosure where fumes will accumulate.
Jim Duncan
North Texas Renewable Energy Inc
817.917.0527
[email protected]
www.ntrei.com
********************************
----- Original Message -----
From: "Richard L Ratico" <[email protected]>
To: <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, December 01, 2009 5:00 PM
Subject: Re: [RE-wrenches] Strings and series of batteries
Perhaps off topic, it's been said here previously by others, but is worth
repeating, good old Vaseline, coating all exposed metal surfaces at
battery
terminals, totally eliminates the corrosion issue. It's benign,
inexpensive and
available everywhere.
Dick
Solarwind Electric
--- You wrote:
Yes, especially with flooded batteries where the posts are much more
subject to
corrosion. I am getting too old and decrepit to get out in the field much
anymore, but in the past I have seen complete strings basically isolated
by bad
cross connections, usually (but not always) due to corrosion at the
terminals.
In extreme instances I have seen cross connect cables totally gone at the
cable/lug connection point - nothing but green powder.
With multiple batteries and banks, correct cabling and connections become
much
more important, because they may not show up until too late. With a single
series string it is usually obvious if something goes bad, but with
multiples
not so much. Sometimes you have no choice but to use large strings, but I
have
seen installations where 60+ 42 amp-hour batteries were strung together,
because
they were "cheap".
--- end of quote ---
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