How to Overcome Hot and Smelly Car Batteries and the Factors That Cause Them

How to deal with a hot and smelly car battery is something that you should know if your car battery starts to heat up and emit an odor. This method can help you address the issue appropriately.

There are at least three ways to handle a hot and smelly car battery. They are:

Check and Repair the Electrical Charging System of the Car Battery

If the car battery starts to heat up and smell, immediately check the electrical charging system of the battery. Usually, a hot and smelly car battery has a charging system with too high a voltage. Especially, in the alternator section.

Normally, the electrical charging system has a voltage of about 12.7 volts to 14 volts. More than that, the charging system and all components will heat up and produce an unpleasant odor.

If this happens, immediately repair the electrical charging system of the car battery. Fix it until the system returns to normal as it was before.

Drain the Old Battery Water and Replace It with New Battery Water

This method is done if the car battery is still hot and smelly. Drain all the battery water from the car battery. After that, clean all the elements inside the car battery.

Once done, you can directly add new battery water into it. As a suggestion, use sulfuric acid battery water as a replacement. Sulfuric acid battery water has a distinctive feature of its red-colored bottle packaging.

Once it is fully filled, you can recharge the car battery. This is done so that the battery can function normally again.

Replace the Problematic Battery with a New One

Often, the two methods above may not work. This usually happens if the battery is already completely damaged. If that is the case, do not hesitate to replace it with a new car battery.

Factors Causing a Hot and Smelly Car Battery

A hot and smelly car battery usually occurs due to several reasons. Knowing this is quite important. Just as important as knowing how to deal with a hot and smelly car battery. So, what are the factors that cause a hot and smelly car battery?

The Car Battery is Short-Circuited

The first cause is commonly experienced by car batteries that are nearing the end of their lifespan. This cause also occurs when the car battery is approaching its usage limit. Dirty battery water can also be a factor in this cause.

Overcharging of the Car Battery

Another contributing factor is overcharging that occurs in the car battery. For those who do not know, overcharging is a condition where the electrical charging system of the car battery experiences excessively high electrical pressure.

If left unchecked, the car battery will not only become hot and smelly but can also lead to an explosion. The main solution to address this cause is to perform one of the methods we have explained above. That method is to check and repair the electrical charging system.

In addition to the two causes above, there are several other causes that can make the car battery hot and smelly. Starting from a battery that is too dirty or some parts of the car battery that are completely damaged.

That is how to deal with a hot and smelly car battery, as well as some factors that cause it. Hopefully, it can be understood and practiced when your car battery experiences heat and odor.

Read also: Complete Steps on How to Repair a Dry Battery

Author: Anggie Warsito