Melted Battery Terminal!

[Buergday]

Any thoughts as to why my f-ing battery got so hot/overcharged that the entire damn postive terminal (lead post) actually melted off onto the floor?!?! There were also sparks flying off of the coil (I think it's the coil - the small black cylinder with a single "plug wire" coming out of the top).
I'm SO PISSED RIGHT NOW! We had to paddle back into the dock yesterday, and missed a BEAUTIFUL day of sunshine and butter.

Oh yeah - and on the way home I blew a trailer tire on the freeway. New tire, totally shredded and flew off the wheel at 60 mph.

Bad Day.... Bad, bad day.

[wakeboarder89]

sounds like a bad day sorry to hear that

idk what would cause that to happen

[640Pressman]

Sorry to hear you had more bad luck Dave ! Yes that is your coil.

[wakejeff]

Terminals could have loose. Was it a firestone tire? Just joking.

[MrBlean]

I'm assuming you genuinely mean that the terminal melted or did it just detach from the battery?

Unless someone else has a specific experience of this, the only thing I know of that could cause the terminal to melt would be the heat generated by a HUGE current flow. To get that much current to flow would necessitate effectively shorting the positive side of the battery to ground.

I can't imagine that it could have been caused by overcharging as your alternator isn't capable of delivering enough current to melt the terminal.

Did the insulation on the positive lead from the battery melt too? Or, for that matter, that on the negative lead?

I'd certainly wanna check out my electrical system before fitting another battery. I think I'd start with the starter motor and solenoid as these could stick and hence draw a lot of continuous current.

Let us all know what you find.

[vette74]

A bad connection at your battery will do this. If the connection was loose or corroded only a small amount of metal will actually touch the battery cable. Running all of your electronic equipment used a lot of current and trying to do it through a small connection (ie corrosion) will cause a lot of heat.

Or like MrBlean said shorting the battery will also do this.

[chaz28o]

I'm not sure what caused your battery to short out like that, but it would seem you have a major wiring issue in the ignition (since your coil also erupted) You better hunt that down, cuz your day coulda got a WHOLE lot worse if that battery had exploded (and they do)

[MrBlean]

If the insulation on the leads to and from your battery are undamaged, then vette's explanation is the more likely one. Whilst the current won't necessarily have been high it will have been focused through a small contact area between the terminal and connector which creates a lot of heat.

However, when contact is poor it is normally a self-limiting condition in that only a small current can flow and this cannot generate enough heat to melt the terminal.

I always keep my terminals clean and coated with vaseline to prevent corrosion so have no first-hand personal experience of the type you have had. Hence, I could be wrong in my explanation/analysis.

chaz is correct too in that batteries do explode but typically only when short circuited. They pass so much current that the acid boils and they burst open explosively. However, I suspect that a poorly contacting terminal will prevent sufficient current passing to allow that to happen.

So, the condition of the insulation of your battery leads is likely to be a key indicator as to what the cause was and what has happened.

[Buergday]

Thanks for all of your feedback guys. I'm going to have a professional check the entire electrical system this time.

[baggyman]

Agree with the comment of a lose connection. Had that happen with my first boat when in was in the middle of the lake..... sucked..

[Buergday]

baggyman - was it just a loose connection at the actual terminal, or somewhere else in the electrical system?

[gus_jd]

[baggyman]

Buergday, right at the terminal. i was trying to start the boat and would not get any response when i turned the key. i pulled the cover and saw that the battery connection was sparking. i tried to tighten it but didnt have any tools on the boat that i could get a good grip with. ( i could move it by hand, not the nut but the whole terminal connector)

so i tried to start the motor again and my buddy was watching the battery.... well the whole thing melted off..... and we had to get a tow in.

i got a new battery and changed the connector and never had the problem again.

[Buergday]

wow - i sure hope thats my problem. i'm getting tired of dumping $$ into this thing!

[chaz28o]

Buergday, I hope so for your sake too, but this has me concerned: