Jumper Cable question and corroded side post terminal. What else could I do?

I tried to jump start a Suburban tonight but I couldn't because the battery's side terminal post had separated completely from the battery. I hope I can convey this correctly. The positive cable is still attached tightly to the post bolt but where the post bolt goes into the side of the battery, it's broken completely off because of corrosion. I think my jumper cables are 10 gauge and I was trying to get a good clamp connection on just that loose Red(positive)starter cable. I was thinking that this was all I needed to do and once the motor turned over, the Suburban could be on it's way. After hooking everything up, the hood light would come on and the interior lights would light but I couldn't get the Suburban to turn over but once or twice before the starter would begin clicking. I tried repeatedly but never had enough juice to crank the motor. I am guessing my jumper cables just didn't provide enough current from my battery to make that big motor turn over. Could I have done anything else? I have heard you can put your positive jumper cable on the positive end on the Solenoid and crank an engine that way but I have never done it before. Would that have worked or would it not have made a difference? I realize a motor draws A LOT of current to crank and I was trying to feed this motor with my 10 guage jumper cables. Anybody want to offer their observation?

Reply to
Elflan
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10 gauge is nowhere near enough. Think about it, the battery cable to the starter is usually 4 gauge minimum and only 40" long or less. You've pretty much nailed the "problem" and the only real solution at this point is a new battery. If you want to jump start it you'll need heavier cables (I'm sure they're not actually 10 gauge, maybe 1/0?) but depending on the year that may not be a good idea - electronics don't like running without the battery to damp out the voltage fluctuations from the alternator (the alternator doesn't put out filtered power, it's just straight full wave rectified) and when you replace the battery you may want to replace the positive cable as well - if the connection corroded out of the battery, that end of the wire can't be in particularly good shape.

good luck

nate

nate

Reply to
Nathan Nagel

Thanks Nate, I appreciate the info. I hated not being able to start the vehicle but I'm somewhat relieved that I pretty much did all I could do. If a battery corroded the connection so badly that it came apart, wouldn't the battery mfg/dealer give a pro-rata refund? This battery looked in good shape and the "green"bulb was very visible. I was not aware of the implications of trying to start and engine without a battery. That's interesting. When you said my cables were probably 1/0 what did you mean? If I wanted to get a better set of jumper cables, what should I look for and where?

Reply to
Elflan

That depends on a lot of things. How old's the battery? What kind of care was taken of it?

Wire "size" is designated in North America by the American Wire Gauge system. As the numbers increase, the wire size (therefore current carrying capacity) gets SMALLER. So, from smallest to largest, we have (starting arbitrarily at 22, there are smaller wires): 22, 20, 18, 16, 14, 12, 10,

8, 6, 4, 2.

Now, for wire bigger than 2-gauge, we proceed: 1/0, 2/0, 4/0... with these numbers, the larger the number before the slash, the BIGGER the wire size (hence current capacity).

Be careful not to be fooled by the physical thickness of a wire -- it is the material and cross-sectional area of the conductor itself that matters for current capacity; it is possible to have very thick insulation on a very thin wire.

Go to NAPA and pick up a set of Belden cables of at least #2 gauge conductor size. This will be marked right on the box. Thinner cables will be cheaper, but these ones will get the job done and last for years.

DS

Reply to
Daniel J. Stern

"Daniel J. Stern"

Thanks for the info. These jumper cables I have are several years old and they are Cobra brand,"all copper",tangle-free, and I guess about 3/8" thick. I'll head over to Napa and check out the Belden brand.

Reply to
Elflan

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