5 Tips to Extend the Life of Your Car Battery

Turn Off Lights

Ensuring that lights are turned off whenever the vehicle is not in use is a quick and easy way to extend the life of your car battery. Especially in newer vehicles, leaving a light on can cause a significant drain overtime on the battery. Even tiny details such as headlights and interior lights can drastically increase how often you have to replace your vehicle’s battery if left on. It can also be avoided by switching everything off before getting out of the vehicle, even if it just means quickly double-checking everything one last time before locking up. Taking care of such simple maintenance tasks now will ensure your car runs like new and has a longer-lasting battery.

Avoid Short Trips

Practicing safe driving habits can help extend the life of your car battery and save you money in the long run. Whenever possible, avoid taking short trips in your car because the additional starts and stops that come with short trips tend to wear out your battery faster than regular daily commuting. Instead, combine errands and errand-running into one longer trip or utilize public transportation or ride-sharing services if they are available in your area. Additionally, keeping your car well maintained by regularly checking fluid levels and ensuring connections are clean can ensure your battery is adequately charged consistently. Following these simple steps will prolong the life of your battery and potentially save you big over time.

Don’t Use Electronics Without Turning ON The Engine

Using electronics in your car without turning on the engine is a surefire way to shorten its battery life. Every device and accessory you use requires power, whether your radio, headlights or even that handy cellphone charger. When your engine is not running, this power demand can lead to excessive draining, causing your battery to struggle to hold a charge longer than it should or fail altogether. Instead, always hit the ignition switch before reaching for any of your car’s electronics — a vital habit that will save you time and money in the long run.

Control The Corrosion

One of the most important ways to ensure a longer life for your car’s battery is controlling corrosion. Corrosion occurs naturally when the connections between stems and posts are exposed to moisture. Over time, it weakens the battery terminals’ connection and reduces the electrolyte flow necessary to power your car. Keep your battery clean and dry, check fluid levels regularly, and use an anti-corrosion spray or paste on its posts and connectors to prevent corrosion. These simple preventive steps will help extend your car battery’s longevity by protecting it from corrosion damage.

Test Your Battery Regularly

Regularly testing your car battery is a great way to increase its lifespan significantly. Since trouble with batteries often comes from a lack of maintenance, it is important to ensure that your battery is not straining under extra workload or reduced charge. You should periodically check the water level in the cells, look for any signs of disrepair, like bloating, and inspect the terminals for corrosion. Additionally, if you want to take proactive steps to maximize the life of your battery even further, consider investing in a product that monitors voltage levels and warns you when your battery may be running low. These actions will help protect car owners against inconvenient breakdowns and costly replacements of neglected car batteries.