Low battery electrolyte

[Dave]

I have been maintaining my 1985 Cat 30 carefully, but never checked the battery electrolyte because starting was fine and hard to reach the batteries. Went on vacation, left the charger off and returned to a dead battery. When I checked the fluid level today, each battery took two quarts of distilled water and was still not entirely full. Had no trouble starting the Universsal 25 after charging. But, Chapman's says never let level get that low or plates will be destroyed. So, do I bite the bullet , chalk it up to experience and buy two new batteries or can I still get some life out of these batteries now that they are properly filled and will in the future be checked a lot more often?

 

[RonD]

Batteries

A wet cell battery that has been allowed to dry & expose the plates will, in all likelihood, not be very reliable. (see weblink, below -- bulletin#501)You can try filling & re-charging it. Maybe you'll get lucky and get a few more months of use out of them. However, I have a feeling from your post that this might be the original battery, so it's due for replacement. A battery that old (and abused) probably has heavy sulfating & a sludge layer just below the plates waiting to short out a cell or two.You are operating on borrowed time. Better to replace it now and not suffer a failure when you really need that starting power.--RonD

 

[RDS]

Battery

I agree with Ron, its just a matter of time before you get stuck. If its hard to check your batteries get AGMs, they require no water. In my Cat 28 they were very hard to check and needed water all the time (always hooked to the charger). I got Lifeline AGMs, group 27, and love them, Rick

 

[Dave]

Thanks for advice!

Thanks for the advice. The investment in new batteries is cheap insurance to make sure the engine starts on a lee shore. One last question- I have group 24 bateries and is there room under the chart table in the 85 Catalina 30 to replace them with group 27?

 

[RonD]

Caution

If you decide to replace the batteries with a different technology (e.g., gel vs wet cell) make sure you review the capabilities of your charging system, too! Different technologies have different charging rates/cycles, so your regulator might have to be changed as well.--RonD

 

[Lauraine]

Hi Dave, We have group 27's under the chart table

They fit just fine.

 

[Dave]

Thanks again!

Thanks again to everyone for your recommendations. I appreciate the willingness of the Catalina 30 owners to share information and experience on this site- one of the hidden advantages of owning a Catalina 30!