Leaking Wal-Mart ES12BS "sealed" battery?!

[dculberson]

  Hey, I'm a passive member here ("Lurker?") that actually has a question for once!  I took the advice of a few GS500 owners here and tried the Wal-Mart ES12BS sealed battery.  I followed the directions when I took it out of the box: filled it, let it sit for 1/2 hour, charged it, let it sit for an hour, then installed it.  Installing it, I put the negative terminal down and slighly bent the positive terminal.  Everything went well and the bike cranked strongly and started just fine.  However, an hour or two later when I was finishing up bleeding the brakes, I found battery acid on the floor under the bike!  I quickly wheeled it out of the garage, removed the battery, and hosed everything down.  The acid was *not* coming out of the caps that I put on - it was coming out of the plastic strip parallel to the caps with writing on it.  There's a small opening at the negative terminal end of that.  It might be a safety vent or something.

  Anyway, my questions are: has anyone else run into a leaking "sealed" battery like this?  Is it due to overcharging or anything else I might have done wrong, or is it a defective battery?

  I'm nervous about reinstalling it; I don't want to end up with acid on my legs when I'm riding around town.  I'm tempted to just put a stock size battery in and forget about the sealed battery.  Sigh!  I hope someone can shed some light on my silly leak.

  On a side note, my front brake fluid was quite gross.  Amber-brown rather than light yellow.  Ewww!  That was a satisfying flush.  It had been 5,000 miles since I last flushed it.

-David

[Chuck]

I might be crazy, but if you put acid in it, and it has caps, it is most definitely not sealed.  All sealed batteries I've ever bought come with acid already in them (because they're sealed), and have no caps* (because they're sealed).

A true "sealed" battery is a VRLA (valve regulated lead acid).  The valves allow pressurized gasses to escape during the charging process, but don't allow acid out even if operated sideways.  I have about 400lbs of batteries of this type for a UPS-type installation.  They don't leak.  You can send them by UPS/USPS if you want.  They rock.

Generally, I prefer the non-sealed variety anyway.  They are more tolerant of overcharging (since you boil off water from the cell, and you can just put it back in) and typically can be charged and discharged at higher rates.

Anyway, back to your problem...  is there a place to put on an overflow hose?  If so, put one on and you're good to go.

* Okay, sealed batteries have caps, but they're typically hidden under a "non user serviceable" type cover that you have to pry off and void your warranty.  I've made many VRLA batteries into "regular" batteries this way.

[Admiral Crunch]

I just bought one on recommendation from posts here.  I had to fill the battery and then pop the one-piece sealing cap on.  Once that cap is on, getting it back off would be a major undertaking.  it ain't going nowhere, and the manual says to never remove it.  After charging, I held the battery at several different angles, and it showed no sign of even thinking of leaking.  It's in my bike sideways, and it's doing fine.

Sounds like a defective or damaged battery.

And I would just like to say that the person who designed the terminals on that battery should be pistolwhipped.  A loose nut that can fall out?  Why not thread the terminal itself instead of using a nut that has to be held up by something to screw it onto the bolt and that falls out into the depths of your bike every time you try to hook up a terminal?

[Egaeus]

And I would just like to say that the person who designed the terminals on that battery should be pistolwhipped.  A loose nut that can fall out?  Why not thread the terminal itself instead of using a nut that has to be held up by something to screw it onto the bolt and that falls out into the depths of your bike every time you try to hook up a terminal?

Probably because threading a lead terminal would be difficult, and the battery wasn't intended to be used sideways.

[Chuck]

Why not thread the terminal itself instead of using a nut that has to be held up by something to screw it onto the bolt and that falls out into the depths of your bike every time you try to hook up a terminal?

Probably because threading a lead terminal would be difficult, and the battery wasn't intended to be used sideways.

You and your "logic..." 

[dculberson]

I might be crazy, but if you put acid in it, and it has caps, it is most definitely not sealed.  All sealed batteries I've ever bought come with acid already in them (because they're sealed), and have no caps* (because they're sealed).

  Chuck, you're not crazy - before I bought this battery, I actually had to open the box and read through the instructions to be 100% sure it was actually a sealed battery.  I had previously never seen a sealed battery that had the acid separate from the battery on the shelf.  I guess that allows it to have a long shelf-life; with the acid already in it, you can't leave a lead-acid battery off of a charger for more than 3 months without risking a loss of capacity.  So anyway, this is indeed a sealed battery (VRLA) without any overflow hose port.  Quite a few people here have bought this same battery (or the VTX12BS which is the same battery) and put it on it's side without reported incident, so I just assumed it was something I did wrong.

  I'll wait a bit to see if anyone else has had trouble with it.. and in the mean time, I'll put it on it's side in a safe container to see if it leaks again.  Perhaps it was a fluke??  I did charge it using the quicker of the two factory-recommended methods so maybe that valve (y'know, the "V" in "VRLA" ) opened up for a bit?

-David

[The Buddha]

I typed up a long ass reply to this 2-3 hours ago ... but somehow its lost ...
Anyway I have heard of these leaking - including cheesy's new ZX6R ... the crappy wall can crack and leak like a mofo ... I have never had these leak, cos I am yet to buy one ... I pick it up off the toss pile in junkyards ... good sheite sometimes ...
So I guess I am sorry for misleading ya ... but its a freaking defect in the damn battery ... walmart should replace it free obviously .. .and the washing with water prolly fixed the acid getting on your bike ...
Cool.
Srinath.

[dculberson]

  I finally remembered to come back and post the conclusion of my battery troubles!

  I left the battery on it's side for three days in a protected place (in a tub on the garage floor.. oh well, more or less protected) and it didn't leak a drop.  So I put it in the bike and have been riding it since, again without a drop leaking.  So I guess I either overcharged it, causing it to leak temporarily, or else it was something else clear dripping out of the bike that smelled funny!  Either way it was my fault.

  Thanks for the help, guys, and Srinath, it was absolutely no problem with your suggestions!  It's been a great battery and works 1000x better than any of the crappy autozone batteries I've used before.  WhirwhirwhirSTART!

-David

[makenzie71]

Wal-Mart doesn't sell sealed motorcycle batteries...

[Egaeus]

Wal-Mart sells quality, sealed motorcycle batteries...for very small values of quality and sealed. 

[rangerbrown]

batterys boil off water while chargeing. this is normal as the battery is not sealed. they do this even more if new. what amp seting did you charge it at. NEVER EVER charge a small battery (or any battery) with over 2 amp's.

so in your case it sould like it was just venting. how ever if it does it again (not with a charger) then there is a problem, such as the battery is not taking a charge and the bike is just heating it (by trying to charge it) and the water is boiling off.

a sealed battery comes prefilled and can not leak (well it can but not easly)

[The Buddha]

OK the walmart sealed battery is still dry, and you get an acid container. You fill it and the caps they give you are to be installed, then I slap duct tape over it. Yea yea yea It can leak, and some of them do, but cracks in the wall, or some other BS is why they crack. I believe the selaed batteries have a cotton like stuffing between the plates. The acid soaks up into it and you'll never have liquid running about. The disadvantage is, the cotton soaked acid and the plates are only capable of a slow reaction, liquid and plates are quicker. So these batteries charge and discharge slower, however I have noticed that the batteries come back to life after being sitting for 1-2 years, as well as get shorts in them much much less often. Possibly because you dont have lead running into the acid solution and settling on the bottom. Fitting it on the side also helps it to some extent. GS with its metal battery box with nice big hole on the bottom is tailor made for it. yamaha's have plastic battery bosed and as such are solid wall, not a cage type like the GS. You have to slice the thing to fit a sealed battery in it.
The problems with the GS are - 1. Auxillary ground losing contact. Will cause 1 cyl to die ... lousy problem. 2. the battery can rock a bit back and forth and the positive terminal can hit the brake reservoir bracket and short itself out. make sure the battery stays put and the positive terminal has the rubber cover on it. Watch for those 2 and you're home free.
Cool.
Srinath.

[dculberson]

  Sorry to bring back an old topic but I just don't log on here more than every couple months.

  It's funny to read the responses that say it isn't a sealed battery.  Did you guys actually read my posts?  Have you looked at my battery?  (The ES12BS that Walmart sells.)  It says across the battery itself "THIS IS A SEALED BATTERY."  I am not entirely sure how that could be interpreted as "Walmart doesn't sell sealed batteries."  And yes, the acid is separate when you buy it.  You put it in the battery then seal the battery.  It's unusual, but slowly becoming more common.  That way the shelf-life is much, much longer; a lead-acid battery with the acid in it must be kept charged or it's ruined, even if it's a sealed battery.  Separately, they'll last for years without maintenance.

  Anyway, yes it's sealed, yes the acid is separate, and no mine still hasn't leaked.   Srinath has posted about this for years now and it's almost common knowledge on here and other boards.

  Thanks again, Srinath!! 

-David

[The Buddha]

Side ways is fine, if it leaks its defective ... BTW walmart batteries while decent may not be the tightest in that regard, however you make it through the first few hours of actual riding, you're good, as acid cycles into and out ... it will get soaked in better and never leak after that.
Cool.
Srinath.

[dgyver]

.....
And I would just like to say that the person who designed the terminals on that battery should be pistolwhipped.  A loose nut that can fall out?  Why not thread the terminal itself instead of using a nut that has to be held up by something to screw it onto the bolt and that falls out into the depths of your bike every time you try to hook up a terminal?

That is typical of many smaller batteries. I will take a small piece of foam (like weather stipping) and stuff it under the nut. It holds it in place and still allows the screw to go into it if needed.

[DerekNC]

.....
And I would just like to say that the person who designed the terminals on that battery should be pistolwhipped.  A loose nut that can fall out?  Why not thread the terminal itself instead of using a nut that has to be held up by something to screw it onto the bolt and that falls out into the depths of your bike every time you try to hook up a terminal?

That is typical of many smaller batteries. I will take a small piece of foam (like weather stipping) and stuff it under the nut. It holds it in place and still allows the screw to go into it if needed.

Yuasa batteries have the loose small nut. I was afraid of galling the inside of the terminal out when I tightened it but everything worked out good.