batterys and water

[taintedplay 10+ year member]

i am putting two of those big c&d batterys in my bed of my truck. amp is inside but no room for batterys. i dont have a toolbox and dont want to spend much money and all the ones ive seen are expensive. What should i do to cover them up?

i could put them in a big plastic crate thats waterproof, do they need to have ventilation?

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[Kangaroux 5,000+ posts]

i would not put them in a place unless you are positive it is water proof. batteries dont need any venting if they are sealed. if ANY water gets to the terminal posts you risk having some bad results

 

[Imtjnotu 5,000+ posts]

they do not need air but u will have to seriously ensure they stay dry

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

under the hood isn't waterproof. batteries don't need to be waterproof. boats certainly aren't waterproof. water mist gets in there every time it rains. engine bays suffer 100% humidity and high heat. batteries are up to the task. sealed batteries don't need as much ventilation, but you should allow ventilation so the battery can have cooling. what kills batteries is heat. heat causes the loss of electrolyte which reduces capacity. in direct sunlight (or in a black enclosure in direct sunlight without venting) the battery won't last as long. you need to vent whatever enclosure you have for them - simply for cooling.

while the engine bay is a warm place, there is a lot of air flow for surface cooling.

just try to keep water directly off them by using a cover/enclosure with louvered side vents. any marine store will sell plastic battery cases. i would prefer the cases weren't directly in the sun, and the enclosure wasn't black but instead reflected heat.

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

the toughest part is how you plan on sealing the penetrations into the cab, protecting the wire as it passes through both the bed and cab while allowing for flexibility as the bed will move independently of the cab. streetwires has some very nice firewall grommets that i would strongly consider for both power and ground penetrations. do not ground to the truck bed as it is independent of the cab. pass both power and ground through the cab.

i would also offset the wires between the cab and bed so that there is inherent flexibility and also prevent water ingress by having the cab penetrations higher than the bed penetrations.

 

[winkychevelle 10+ year member]

As long as the positive and negative terminals don't connect your good if water gets on the positive terminal it won't hurt the batt unless that water is connected to some ground connected to the neg terminal. I handle batts for a living as long as you can keep the positive and negative side from touching you are good But I do suggest some cover/case to try and keep them out of the elements best u can. You can buy batt boxes for like 20 a piece at Walmart I believe

 

[mclerico83 5,000+ posts]

https://www.powerstridebattery.com/marine-smart-box-battery-case-battery-box

Buy Rubber Queen Marine Battery Box Large AC189/BB243L at Advance Auto Parts

these will work, walmart even carries cheaper ones

Walmart.com: Snap-Top Everstart Marine Battery Box: Automotive

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

you get what you pay for. you need to fabricate a hold-down that bolts the battery down. i wouldn't rely on nylon or plastic to hold my battery in place.

as far as water goes, it depends on the water. distilled water is an insulator, not a conductor. tap water can be conductive due to the metals in it. rain water - depends on the location, but mostly isn't conductive. plus, 12V is pretty low voltage.

fusing is critical - as close to the positive terminal, if not built-into the positive terminal.

 

[taintedplay 10+ year member]

if i have the batteries elevated off the bed say 2 inches, could i put a plastic box over top of them if i make sure its secured down and wont move? so water would just go under the batteries. I cant find many cheap battery cases that fit a C&D battery, most are an inch too small