If you are not confident in picking out a battery product for yourself at the market place, then please look over this piece as we run the trouble of having car battery specifications explained for you.
Explain This: How Do I Choose A Car Battery—With The Right Specifications or “Specs”?
Batteries can exist for all types and size of applications, including popular categories in the market:
• Cars
• Boats
Among boat and car batteries, there are two common kinds of battery materials when it comes to the cells that are prevalent products in the automotive battery market.
Lead-Acid Batteries
• These are often conventional batteries that go way back when it comes to their initial production—like a wet or flood cell type, many of these batteries do not always account for the battery acid leaking or spilling that is quite prevalent in the cell system.
Sealable Lead-Acid Batteries
• Though no less “conventional” in comparison to its other sibling, these batteries can fall in either wet cell or dry cell (mostly the former)—these batteries also reduce the likelihood of corrosion under controlling spillage or leaks (as much as it can, anyway).
In between your open or sealable lead-acid batteries, three common types of cells are also prominent products in the automotive battery market.
Starting Batteries
• Often these batteries operate in market-speak as starters, often as a reference for the beginning “starting” process of transferring currents and voltage of a battery over to an engine.
• More often than not, starters are very much a battery type that is common for the car battery section, probably more the case than on other applications.
• Though not a requirement, a high CCA rating, which stands for cranking amperage for cold weather situations (the “cold” is an enemy to many a battery), is usually a feature point for many starters.
Deep-Cycle Batteries
• Often these batteries operate in market-speak as deep-cycle or deep cycling, often as a reference for “cycling” or sustaining whatever voltage currents that the engine needs.
• And, more often than not, a deep cycling product is very much a battery type that is more in line with boat batteries, more so than in other applications.
• Often an ideal, a high number of amperes per hours for capacity is usually a feature point for many deep cycle products, which is essential for sustaining battery voltage right to the last minute before it hits a discharge.
Dual-Purpose Batteries
• Often these batteries operate in market-speak as dual-purpose, often as a reference for acting the “balance” as a battery product, about a reasonable distribution of both starting or cycling processes.
• More often than not, a dual-purpose product is very much a battery type that is more appropriate for both cars – boat battery application category—and whatever is in the middle of the market lists.
• Subjective or not, it will be ideal (and maybe even a requirement) for these types of batteries to possess significantly higher than generic ratings, both in the CCA or the capacity range of amperes per hours.
What Do Car Battery Numbers Mean, In Terms Of Specifications?
Here are some common examples of performance “ratings” or “specs” (specifications) that are more or less significant for many customers.
The CCA Or “Cold” Cranking Amperage
• You will often see this rating across many kinds of batteries, not just starters, and frequently, this is quite a marketable feature of many modern battery automotive products.
• Batteries usually operate with cranking amperage on a general level, but a CCA rating is a reservation for a different purpose: cranking when ‘cold’ temperature affects the battery voltage.
• Cold temperature (among other things) gradually reduces the voltage of the battery to the point it can be indefinitely at a discharge—from there, it can be a hassle to recharge, thus higher CCA ratings are desirable.
• The standard CCA rating is around 400, but some starting batteries can go up as much as a 650 or 850 in amperage for cold cranking—and under -40 Degrees Fahrenheit – Celsius, too.
The Amperes Per Hours Or AMPS
• You will often see this rating across many kinds of batteries, not just deep-cycling, and often, this (too) is quite a marketable feature of many modern battery automotive products.
• Though there is general amperage that runs through a battery cell system, an AMPS rating goes through a specific purpose for labeling: distribute and hold on as much “voltage” transfer in the exchange of currents before eventually discharging.
• And, while “discharge” is a fault that many batteries eventually make, it can be considered good that a battery can deliver high amounts of currents per hour before that happens—higher than average AMPS is, thus, quite recommendable.
• The benchmark can start somewhere as 30-amperes per hours, meaning the distribution of around 30 amperes in a period of maybe about 6 hours before the voltage reaches 10-volts (discharge range)—newer products offer higher at around 60-amperes per hours.
The Overall Structure And Design Of Battery
• Though not a rating per se, but this category is still quite a crucial feature—customers see this, after all.
• It is often common knowledge for many consumers that temperatures (hot or cold) wreak havoc on a battery, as well as shocks and even vibration heat at the internal level—a great design-structure prevents that from occurring.
• For all the good that higher ratings in the CCA or AMPS provide, a great battery needs to possess qualities in safety features in the structure or design of its cell
• One of the keys to getting this is to make sure that your battery operates using a plate suspension system, which can occur battery sediments not to build clogs.
• A battery that possesses an absorbing glass mat technology can “fit the bill,” as the fiber-mat it uses helps to suspend the sediments as well as compress battery cell movement—reducing internal resistance.
Can I Use A Battery With Higher Cranking Amps?
You definitely can, but with responsibility—higher cranking amperage is a capacity, and if too much is at an exchange, accidents can occur.
But, if you like to take an “off the road” trip in the countryside, or a trip that can last as long for your vacation, you may want to consider the “specs” (specifications) that a higher amp cranking battery can offer.
Hope that this is of help to get car battery specifications explained, in a down to earth process—cheers!
