Buried deep inside the hood of almost every car you’ll see rolling down the street, is a quiet electrical powerhouse that has the critical job of kicking your car’s engine into gear with nothing more than a twist of the ignition key or the push of a button. But the car battery isn’t only responsible for starting your car; it powers the entire electronic system in the car, including all of your headlights, stereo, and entertainment system. Nevertheless, in most cases, it is one of the most often-overlooked component in any vehicle, which results in many drivers to being stranded with a dead battery. Luckily, you are in a better position than you might think when it comes to the life expectancy of your car battery.

Typically, a car battery should last for somewhere between 3 to 5 years. That may seem short to you, but remember that this life span can differ significantly according to your climate, your driving patterns, as well as the amount of attention that your battery receives on a daily basis. Thankfully, with a bit of routine maintenance and good care you can extend the life of your car battery a little further than average. Here are a few tips on how to do that.

1. Keep Terminals Clean and Corrosion-Free

The number one cause for a faulty battery connection, corrosion happens when fumes from sulfuric acid leak out of the battery and contact the terminals of the battery resulting in a bluish or whitish crust like accumulation on the posts of the battery. Although it does not seem to be very serious, this is the insulator which would cause difficulty in electric current flow causing low or no cranking, dimming of headlamps and extreme voltage drops.

The white crust fighting your car:

• Corrosion acts as an insulator
• Disconnect negative cable first always
• Baking soda and water removes buildup
• Rinse dry and protect terminals
• Clean once or twice yearly

Fortunately, removing this crust is a relatively simple process that’s extremely important to keep up with periodically. Begin by removing the negative black wire, followed by the positive red wire. Make a paste by mixing water and baking soda and slather this over the battery terminals, scrub with a wire brush. Rinse, then dry the battery and spray a thin coat of petroleum jelly or battery terminal cleaner to prevent corrosion.

2. Check Battery Fluid and Electrolyte Levels Regularly

However, older battery types are of serviceable design, which allow you to open them up and add electrolyte. This is essential to the survival of an older vehicle battery because when the electrolyte level becomes too low and leaves the lead plates exposed to air, they suffer damage from sulfation that cannot be reversed by any charger.

What lives inside your battery:

• Check electrolyte every few months
• Only use distilled water to refill
• Tap water introduces damaging minerals
• Wear gloves and safety glasses always
• Low fluid causes irreversible plate damage

Check electrolyte levels regularly if you still have a good battery, following lines etched into the side of the battery casing as a guideline, typically every few months. Use only distilled water or de-mineralized water to top up the electrolyte level in the battery. Do not use ordinary tap water to top it up, that’s one of the easiest ways to destroy a battery as mineral content from tap water and other contaminants cause irreparable damage to the plates inside the battery and reduce its life considerably, so topping up will save you a few months or even a year or two off the battery life.

3. Ensure a Secure and Tight Battery Connection

A loose battery in its tray goes way beyond a simple engine clatter over a bumpy road. Vibration and rocking action will inevitably break down a battery case with normal wear and tear and you’ll end up with a leak or battery failure. Also a loose connection or cable to the terminals will cause intermittent electrical gremlins that will be a nightmare to troubleshoot.

Vibration is the silent killer:

• Loose battery causes case cracking
• Vibration leads to acid leaks
• Loose clamps cause voltage fluctuations
• Poor starts damage onboard electronics
• Check tray and clamps periodically

It goes without saying that loose battery terminals can lead to risky voltage fluctuations, ultimately compromising start-ups, damaging fragile onboard systems, or even impacting everything from the lights to the sound system. Get into the habit of taking a few minutes to verify that your battery isn’t rocking in its tray and that the clamp at each of your terminal posts is securely fastened down.

4. Protect Your Battery Against Extreme Temperatures

It’s true that batteries operate optimally in temperate conditions; when the temperature is too high or too low, the battery will not perform optimally and will wear out much faster. The real enemy is extreme heat, because it tends to cause moisture to evaporate out of the battery’s electrolyte mixture. This causes the cells to go dry and the internal plates will become damaged for good, hence the reason why you will only be lucky to have batteries in hot places such as Arizona to last you two to three years before it requires a full replacement.

Heat and cold both hit hard:

• Heat evaporates electrolyte solution fast
• Arizona batteries last two to three years
• Cold slows internal chemical reactions
• Park in shade or garage always
• Insulated battery blanket helps freezing climates

The extreme cold of winter further slows down the chemical process that powers your battery, limiting its capacity to transmit power and making it much easier to find yourself on hard winter start-ups. The same extreme weather affects your battery: In the summer, keep your car parked in a shady location or in your garage if at all possible. In the cold regions of winter, install a battery blanket or park in a heated garage, and you’ll notice a considerable improvement in cold weather starts.

5. Drive Regularly to Keep the Battery Fully Charged

A car’s battery truly takes a beating from many, short drives. It was designed to produce an enormous blast of power just to get an engine started; and just seconds of turning an engine over is responsible for depleting quite a bit of your battery power. It is the alternator’s responsibility to bring that battery back up to full while you are driving, but that has to take place over a length of time.

Short trips drain more than you think:

• Short trips leave battery undercharged
• Alternator needs time to recharge
• Incomplete charging causes sulfation buildup
• Drive 20 to 30 minutes weekly
• Steady speed maximizes alternator output

If you only make short, 5 or 10 minute trips to work each day the alternator doesn’t have a long enough time to top up the power that went into starting the vehicle. Gradually, this can build up to cause sulfation and to permanently reduce the vehicle’s battery capacity. Develop the habit of taking your car for a 20-30 minute drive at consistent speed at least once per week.

6. Minimize Parasitic Drains When the Car Is Parked

Although your vehicle appears inactive when the ignition switch is off, your vehicle’s electrical system never totally sleeps. Several modern accessories-the security system, the keyless entry receiver, the clock, and the computer’s memory chips-all consume small currents from your battery whenever your vehicle is shut off. These phantom currents can be considered a parasitic drain and even the slight amounts of continuous drain can effectively run down a battery if your vehicle just sits idle for a week or two.

The invisible power thief at work:

• Security alarms constantly draw power
• Dash cams in parking mode drain fast
• Unplug all non-essential devices always
• Mechanic can measure current draw precisely
• Faulty component may be the cause

More commonly the blame falls upon aftermarket accessories, a parked vehicle with a dash camera functioning in its parking mode, a GPS unit being left plugged in, or even a cell phone charging device can create a silent power drain. A mechanic can also use a multimeter to measure your vehicle’s amperage while it is parked to discover a malfunctioning accessory or short that is draining your battery.

7. Invest in a Smart Charger or Battery Maintainer

If you park your car for winter storage or it isn’t your daily driver, a battery maintainer is a simple, cheap, and worthwhile gadget to have around. A battery maintainer isn’t like a battery charger that’s meant to boost up a dead car quickly; rather it supplies a slow and constant trickle of current so that the battery can remain fully charged while in storage without being overcharged or potentially damaging the plates over time.

The gadget every garage needs:

• Prevents sulfation during long storage
• Monitors voltage and charges only when needed
• Available from $30 to $60
• Ideal for classic cars and RVs
• Saves cost of premature replacement

A good battery maintainer, or “trickle charger,” reads the voltage of the battery and sends power when necessary, to prevent sulfation what happens when a battery sits discharged for too long. There are several trusted companies like NOCO and Battery Tender, with units for about $30 to $60. An investment this modest easily outweighs replacing an expensive, soon-to-expire battery after it’s sat for a few months.

8. Check the Health of the Charging System Too

Your repeatedly dead battery may be only the first hint that a failing charging system lies beneath. A battery’s only role is to kick the car to life after the alternator kicks into gear to provide electricity and keep your battery charging as you ride. If it’s failing, it will continue to drain the battery’s life with insufficient charges and you’ll unfairly point your finger at the battery.

When the alternator is the real villain:

• Failing alternator drains battery continuously
• Faulty voltage regulator can overcharge dangerously
• Rotten egg smell signals overcharging issue
• Healthy alternator reads 13.5 to 14.7 volts
• Full system test prevents mystery failures

The worst case is an alternator with a bad regulator, that continues to overcharge the battery until the electrolyte is actually bubbling off like it’s going to explode. With the engine running, you can quickly throw a voltmeter on the charging system and a fully charged system will read from 13.5 to 14.7 volts. Outside of that range means the problem is either an under-charging alternator, or it is an over charging alternator, and a mechanic with proper testing equipment could finish the game of Chinese arithmetic you seem to be suffering with in battery life.

9. Get the Battery Load Tested at Least Once a Year

A voltage test will tell you how well your battery is charged currently but it will never be able to tell you the condition that your battery is truly in. The battery may look like it has all of it’s charge on when it is resting but when called upon to deliver a great deal of current for the engine turn-over, that is when the battery is prone to dying especially when it’s cold outside. This is when load tests truly play a crucial role.

The test that reveals the truth:

• Voltage test misses hidden weakness
• Load test simulates actual engine starting
• Healthy battery holds voltage under load
• Failing battery voltage plummets immediately
• Many auto parts stores offer it free

Load test involves connecting a massive but safe electrical current to the battery for a couple of seconds, mimicking the effects of the engine cranking the engine. A good battery will see a dip, but the reading will remain at or above a defined voltage while a poor battery will dive, showing a need for replacement. Most auto parts shops offer this as a free service, so make sure to add this into your annual maintenance checklist.

10. Know When to Replace Rather Than Just Recharge

You might get years out of a battery with proper maintenance, but even good maintenance can’t undo the steady chemical deterioration that affects every battery, over time. Eventually, it’s safer to simply replace a battery. Knowing how to tell that a battery has reached the end of the line helps prevent you from breaking down on the side of the road at a truly inopportune moment. If your battery’s case is swollen or cracking, an obvious sign of exposure to heat and/or overcharging, replace it.

Reading the signs before it fails:

• Swollen case means replace immediately
• Leaking acid cannot be reversed
• Standard lead-acid costs $80 to $150
• AGM batteries cost $150 to $250
• Always check the warranty carefully

Even if your car or motorcycle’s battery starts spitting acid or the load test on the dead cell reveals there’s no hope for recharging it, then a simple charge will get you back on the road for safe use. There are generally two major types of battery you can buy when it is time for an upgrade; from basic acid-lead battery for the old car $80 to $150, to better technology battery type AGM for the latest cars that have too many electronic devices on the car, these cost $150 to $250. Look at the warranty or check out affordable aftermarket options for best results for you.