U6TL bomb

[Banshee365]

For those of you I spoke with in the chat room last night about my batteries being possible bad. Well after charging all night I installed them and flipped on the acc switch. Right away I noticed the battery gauge was already in the yellow, I figured I'd try to crank it anyways. I hit the button and the rear battery exploded. They are U6TL's from Interstate batteries less than a year old. Come Monday I'm going to take them in and get them both replaced as I'm sure the other battery is also bad because it had the same 12.6V without a load as the explosive one did. I'm wandering if there was a short in the battery causing them to both run down if that's possible, rather than something in my truck. I'm glad I was in the cab and not by the battery, it blew most of the top off the battery.

-Kelly

 

[sprucemt]

Have to have power in one of them to explode. Dead short and battery gas, now we know what happens.

 

[doghead]

Glad you didn't get hurt.

I would guess that after charging it, it was giving off gas and when you hit the start button, possibly you had a poor connection and it allowed a spark to occur, exploding your battery. Just a guess. Do you have a self regulating battery charger?

I found the following info on the web, Gassing
Batteries start to gas when you attempt to charge them faster than they can absorb the energy. The excess energy is turned into heat, which then causes the electrolyte to boil and evaporate. The evaporated electrolyte can be replenished in batteries with removable caps such as most flooded deep-cycle batteries. Many car batteries are sealed and thus need to be replaced when their electrolyte evaporates over time.

Since AGM and Gel cells are always sealed, it is very important to guarantee they are not overcharged. The only way to ensure this is to use a temperature-compensated charging system. Such chargers use a temperature probe on the battery to ensure that the battery does not get too hot. As the battery heats up, the charging current is reduced to prevent thermal runaway, a very dangerous condition.
Thermal Runaway
This is a very dangerous condition that can occur if batteries are charged too fast. One of the byproducts of Gassing are Oxygen and Hydrogen. As the battery heats up, the gassing rate increases as well and it becomes increasingly likely that the Hydrogen around it will explode. The danger posed by high Hydrogen concentrations is one of the reasons that the American Boat and Yachting Council (ABYC) requires that batteries be installed in separate, well-ventilated areas.

 

[rmgill]

Ack, good reason to NOT want them in your cab with you....

 

[sprucemt]

When I was a young adult, working at various service stations, it was a common occurance during a fast jump charge or shortly there after. To this day you will not see me facing a battery during a jump charge without a face shield.

 

[saddamsnightmare]

July 19th, 2008.

JUST PITY THOSE POOR GUYS WITH THE M715's! I'd suggest you wash down your Truck's right side with water and baking soda, otherwise your deuce ain't gonna be there shortly...... RMGILL.... where do they hide them in your Ferrett???

Be carefule, drive safely, live long, and give the other guy the fits!!!!

Sincerely,

Kyle F. McGrogan


1971 Kaiser Jeep M35A2 Wo/W "Saddam's Nightmare" Desert Storm and Vietnam Veteran Deuce
1968 Johnson Corp M105A2 Cargo trailer
1967 Hercules MEP023A Gen Set APU-gasoline
1963 Swiss Army Cargo Unimog, S.404.114 MB