How Can I Make My Battery Last Longer?

Here's an interesting statistic: Only 30 percent of car batteries make it to 48 months. And the life expectancy varies by where you live. It ranges from 51 months in icy areas to 30 months in scorching climates.
 

Car Battery Health 

Why is that? It turns out that our modern cars with all their electric accessories are to blame. Things like GPS, DVDs, and entertainment computers keep vehicle batteries from maintaining a full charge. The longer a battery goes with a low amount, the sooner it'll die.
 
Keeping the battery charged is the job of the alternator. The problem comes when the car's demand for electricity is high, and we are driving in stop-and-go conditions or short trips around town. The alternator can't keep up. The result is shortened battery life. So, what can we do to improve our battery's health? Battery maintenance and a corrosion inspection are part of the complimentary inspections we provide. 
 
We need to keep the battery as close to a full charge as possible. That can be hard because sitting for just 24 hours in hot weather between appointments can be too long. When the weather's cold, sitting for several days will cause discharge.

Using Car Lights When The Vehicle Is Off

Some highway driving will help keep a full charge if the battery has not been deeply depleted. Car batteries are not designed to be run down low or deep cycled, as it's called. So, using your headlights or other power accessories when the car is off can deeply deplete your battery. Using the alternator to recharge from a deeply depleted state is also very dangerous to your battery because it charges too fast. In fact, on average, your battery would only last for ten recharges like that.
 
If you find a dead or secondary battery, use a good quality battery charger to bring the battery up to full charge slowly. You can also stop in to see us, and we will do a complimentary battery test to see if it's time to replace it. 

Learn More 

Visit our website for more information on keeping your car battery properly taken care of this winter.