battery acid

[MikeT]

Help please. I had a battery explode in my pump room. I was charging it up for the electric fence with a new battery charger. I heard this bang in the house last night, could not find what caused it, but today I went into the pump room and the walls ceiling floor and the freezers, ground source heat pump, tools and shelves are covered in black acid residue. I now need to clean it up and neutralise the acid, I have been considering using baking soda. Any other suggestions please.

I suspect the battery charger is at fault as it is one that charges in 3 stages, but I believe it charged at the full rate all the time.

This will I expect be an insurance claim as I think the new freezer is badly damaged/.

 

[beehive1234]

Once had a battery tip over in a car boot. Thought for a second and poured in a bowl of strong bleach water. Instantly brought the acid down.

 

[MikeT]

Once had a battery tip over in a car boot. Thought for a second and poured in a bowl of strong bleach water. Instantly brought the acid down.

I do not want to use bleach in the house as bleach + acid = chlorine gas.

At the moment I have cleaned up the floor and the white goods, the freezer is badly damaged, I have left the walls and the ceiling as the plaster seems to be neutralising the acid.

 

[REDWOOD]

Check the charger was the right type for the battery, some batteries are filled with gel and need a special type of charger. The only thing to wash off acid is plenty of cold water, gloves and goggles are a must.

 

[Thymallus]

Washing soda (alkaline) will help neutralise. Or baking soda. Later is more expensive but you can make a paste with it and apply.

 

[MikeT]

The battery was the standby one for the electric fence, just a small lead acid battery from a Citroen ZX. The one on the fence is a Gel battery from my wife's electric wheel chair. Never had a problem charging batteries before and I have been doing it for the electric fence for over 30 yrs. I have learn one lesson Do not charge batteries in the house, it was a good job no one was near.

There should be a warning on these new batteries (introduce in 1995) as they can explode.

 

[jonnybeegood]

The battery was the standby one for the electric fence, just a small lead acid battery from a Citroen ZX. The one on the fence is a Gel battery from my wife's electric wheel chair. Never had a problem charging batteries before and I have been doing it for the electric fence for over 30 yrs. I have learn one lesson Do not charge batteries in the house, it was a good job no one was near.

There should be a warning on these new batteries (introduce in 1995) as they can explode.

where did you get the battery Mike? I would contact the company in case they have had a bad batch, they may need to put out a warning.
I know there have been some dodgy batteries sold online from dodgy "non local" companies.

 

[MikeT]

The battery is about 5 years old, so no redress from the manufactures.

3 months ago the battery failed on my C3 Picasso. This was replaced on warranty as there was a recall some 6 months earlier but Citroen failed to notify me. When the battery was replaced I asked the workshop manager why the recall, he told me there were a few batteries of this batch that exploded.

 

[thenovice]

anything basic will do...

drain cleaner and oven cleaner is usually Sodium hydroxide based. just make sure there is no bleach in it... Bleach and acid is a bad idea as mentioned above. Lots of water will do as well

 

[wessexmario]

flush and wash with plain clean water is safest.

mixing alkaline substances to the acid will neutralise the pH, but forcing chemical reactions without knowing the exact consequences might create some unintended ones.

 

[midnight sun]

Help please. I had a battery explode in my pump room. I was charging it up for the electric fence with a new battery charger. I heard this bang in the house last night, could not find what caused it, but today I went into the pump room and the walls ceiling floor and the freezers, ground source heat pump, tools and shelves are covered in black acid residue. I now need to clean it up and neutralise the acid, I have been considering using baking soda. Any other suggestions please.

I suspect the battery charger is at fault as it is one that charges in 3 stages, but I believe it charged at the full rate all the time.

This will I expect be an insurance claim as I think the new freezer is badly damaged/.

Sodium carbonate should do the trick. Then wash down with lots of clean water.
Did the new charger create a spark (open relays etc.) and ignite the Hydrogen given off whilst charging. Once happened to a guy near us over 30 years ago and it blew him out through the back of the wooden garage. He was ok (eventually)

 

[MikeT]

Thought you may like to see the battery that exploded. Good job we were in bed or someone may have got hurt.

 

[jd101k2000]

The quickest way to neutralise a strong acid (sulphuric acid) is with a strong alkali. However, you would need to know how much to apply or you would leave a surplus of acid (and risk acid burns) or a surplus of alkali (and risk alkali burns).

With weaker alkalis, you risk not neutralising the acid and spending a lot of money.

The best course of action is that suggested by Redwood. Plenty of cold water. Minimal risk.

 

[midnight sun]

Thought you may like to see the battery that exploded. Good job we were in bed or someone may have got hurt.

Positive (hydrogen side)? Could be a poor connection inside that arced due to age or possible warping due to heat from excessive charge amperage? Would be worth breaking it down now to find out (carefully naturally).

 

[midnight sun]

Positive (hydrogen side)? Could be a poor connection inside that arced due to age or possible warping due to heat from excessive charge amperage? Would be worth breaking it down now to find out (carefully naturally).

Sorry got that backwards, oxygen at + side. Although over charging can result in high electrolysis of the water and produce explosive mix of oxygen and hydrogen. Heat or spark could be disastrous.

 

[jonnybeegood]

Thought you may like to see the battery that exploded. Good job we were in bed or someone may have got hurt.

Is it a sealed battery or should the top have been opened?

 

[MikeT]

Is it a sealed battery or should the top have been opened?

Sealed battery. It had been used for the past 2 yrs on the electric fence and charged up about 6 time a year with no problems.

 

[REDWOOD]

Sealed lead acid batteries are not totally sealed, you can't top them up but on each end on the sides there are vent holes, probably the plates inside the battery overheated and buckled which caused the explosion. Modern battery chargers usually detect a fault and switch off, well the good ones do

 

[farbee]

Forget trying to neutralise. Lots and lots of water to dilute is the way to go.

 

[REDWOOD]

I had a battery explode in my face years ago and the only thing the first aider used on me was a hose pipe, my cloths fell to bits when i washed them. I still turn my head when I connect a battery up to a charger and that happened thirty years ago.