At what temperature should you take a battery out of a car to avoid freezing? Does freezing cause permanent damage? Or is this just if you plan to use the car soon?
No problems around here down to -30 F, so you’re unlikely to encounter a temperature where it’s a real problem. Places where it frequently gets that cold people often have car block heaters which should take care of the battery as well.
If you have a 50/50 mixture of antifreeze how cold can it get before it starts freezing and would a 60/40 mix lower that?
I’ve never heard of taking the battery out to avoid freezing. If we did that in Canada we’d all be walking for the winter.
yes, if a car battery freezes it will damage the electrode plates and probably kill the battery. but if it’s fully charged, it should be fine. If the car sits for long periods, buy and connect it to a battery “tender” or “minder.”
car batteries typically use a ~30% sulfuric acid solution in water, and just like with the engine’s antifreeze the mixture has a much lower freezing point then either pure water (32F/0C) or sulfuric acid (37F/3C.) I haven’t seen any hard numbers, but some indication that a fully-charged battery in good condition (therefore nearly all of the sulfuric acid in solution) won’t freeze down to -70 degrees or so.
A fully charged lead-acid battery will freeze at something like -80 deg F. A battery that has a low charge on it may freeze at temperatures around -10 deg F (I’m going from memory here so the numbers might be a bit off but I think they are at least close).
If you live somewhere where your car battery is freezing, I think that is the least of your worries. It is too cold to be habitable in general. Warm it up and then start driving in the general direction of the equator as fast as you can until the climate becomes more hospitable. If you are in Antarctica, fake an appendicitis and be airlifted to anywhere else.
I live in freeze your ass off New England and I have never heard of car batteries freezing. There used to be block heaters especially for diesel engines back when both cars and batteries sucked a lot more than they do now but you don’t even see those much these days. For my 2010 vehicle, I just fire it up and drive off no matter how cold it is just like the manual says. No battery removal is ever necessary.
However, your mileage may vary if you have a 1978 Ford Pinto in Siberia.
if the battery is in a low state of charge, too much of the sulfuric acid electrolyte has been converted to lead sulfate on the plates, and the weak electrolyte will freeze at a much higher temperature.
Right, that just means your battery is worn out and needs to be replaced anyway.