Battery safety practices

[tecnodave]

Battery Safety & Personal Safety

Conductive Items:  The first thing to do when servicing batteries is to put the jewelry away, no rings, watches or metal of any kind. Gold rings make excellent conductors and will melt when shorting out a battery pack.

Clothing: Wool is the fibre that is affected the least by sulphuric acid, it is universally used in battery shops. Long sleeved wool shirt and wool trousers will protect you the best, way baggy is better because if you do spill they will be easier to get off. Thin long johns will cure the scratchies of the wool and provide extra safety.

Face Guard, A full face shield is preferable to goggles as it will protect full face. The face shields used  in metalworking are appropriate. The ones by A.O. Safety are reasonably priced. About $10.00 in hardware stores. Polycarbonate is preferred. It is highly resistant to acid. 

Gloves:  Stanzoil brand gloves are excellent for this use, made of very thick neoprene they are highly acid resistant yet they have good finger feel. They are made for solvent cleaning of auto parts, can be found at high quality auto parts stores. About $12./pair.  I've had mine last 10 years easily. They also have excellent insulative qualities and test over 1,000 megohms with a megger at 500 volts.

Hydrogen gas is one of the by products of heavy charging. It will burn in air at any concentration of between 4% and 75% hydrogen in air. Oxygen is the other by product of charging. Hydrogen / Oxygen buns at 5600 degrees Fahrenheit with a light blue flame almost invisible. The mixture burns at a rate of approximately 5500 feet per second. That is more than a mile a second! Combustion sources are to be avoided at all costs! No gas water heater, flames or spark anywhere near the batteries.
Hydrogen is the lightest gas and will rise and dissipate. A hood over the batteries vented outdoors is appropriate.

Chlorine:  Hydrogen and Chlorine react spontaneously at room temperatures! No pool chemicals (chlorine) or Clorox anywhere near the batteries.

Haline  also reacts as does Chlorine  in the presence of Hydrogen but this gas is almost never found in the home environment.

Think safety.   Batteries can be dangerous!

td