can someone tell me why my positive battery post keeps accumulating residue? i keep cleaning it out with baking soda and water, but it keeps coming back. i'm afraid it will corrode my engine bay. how do i correct this?

 

First clean off all the residoo shtuff, then
Put battery washers on the terminals. At the auto parts store they should have stuff that seals and protects the posts and terminals. Thats my 2¢

 

To avoid acid residue build-up on battery terminal posts and cable clamps, place a copper penny on top of the battery between the battery posts. (The copper penny will usually stay in place without falling off.) The copper in the penny will absorb the acid residue from the posts and keep the terminal posts and cable clamps clean. On older batteries that appear to give off more acid residue, add an additional penny and place each penny one to two inches from the posts. Make sure that there are no exposed areas of the battery cables near the post terminal clamps, since the stranded copper cables will also absorb acid residue. In about 6 to 9 months, the penny will turn into a small lump of greenish powder. Merely wipe off the powder with a paper towel and replenish with another copper penny as required.

And that's my 2 cents!

 

literally

 

heh...if it keeps building up, the battery is venting a lot. Mine did this; in the space of 2 weeks the buildup was really bad again, so I got rid of the battery for a sealed Optima.

 

wow, that's a sick trick i've never heard of! i'll try it. thanks. my battery never used to do this. can someone please explain why this battery all the sudden wants to corrode? i think i was absent in chemistry the day they taught it.

 

The electrolyte of wet cell lead acid batteries expands during the charging process. Under certain conditions, some of the acid solution is pushed through the cell cap’s vent, and an acid residue accumulates on top of the battery.

 

Bro, I'm having the exact same problem in my 99. I keep cleaning it off with baking soda, and putting the sealand gel on it, but it keeps popping back up worst then before. The battery is 4 years old, I think its time to get an Optima.

 

I just covered both battery terminals and cable ends with some electrical grease. Haven't had a problem since.

 

Did you know that copper well pennies are copper but it's only copper plated zinc. And of course zinc can be dissolved by acid quicker than copper can. Did an experiment in Chemistry class. Puncked a hole on the side of a copper pennie, put it in 6 molar HCL (hydrochloric acid) and a couple minutes later, left with a copper, well, very dark copper shell.