Most of the time, when your car’s battery corrodes around the terminals, you will see powder-like material forming on the terminals. The powder can be white or green, but sometimes, it may turn blue. But what causes blue powder on a car battery?
The white powder forming on the battery’s terminals can be anhydrous copper sulfate or lead sulfate. Chemically, when anhydrous copper sulfate is exposed to water vapor, it will change its color from white to blue.
Of course, the battery’s terminals are always exposed to free air with moisture, a condition that will lead to a chemical reaction in the white powder.
The connectors on the battery terminals are made of copper. The battery contains sulfuric acid inside, and this acid releases hydrogen gas through the terminals.
The terminals are located openly to the free air; therefore, the ambient atmosphere reacts with leaked gases, creating a corrosive environment. The presence of salt and moisture elements accelerates the reaction process on the terminals.
When such salts of sulfate get exposed to the ambient atmosphere with moisture and copper connectors, they will form a white substance that changes to a bluish color and its corrosion.
Battery terminal corrosion is not suitable for the healthy functioning of the car since it may face difficulties starting the engine, a low power supply to the headlights, and even poor recharging.
Mostly, corrosion on the battery terminals will typically be seen on the negative terminal. If you see such occurrences, it suggests undercharging the car’s battery. However, if the corrosion is on the positive side of the battery terminal, then it is a symptom of overcharging.
The main problem that leads to battery undercharging can be the alternator failing to provide enough time after the battery has lost its capacity to replenish. However, this can be due to vehicle demand for electrical load and concise car usage. The gases produced will be exposed on the negative terminal, and corrosive substances will form.
Overcharging the car battery means there will be excessive gas production. In this case, the electrolyte will experience excess heat, and oxygen and hydrogen gases will be produced.
When reacted with other elements on the terminals, such gases will cause corrosion. For instance, if the battery is older and vented, the electrolyte will leave the plates exposed and damage them after it cooks away.
Contents
How do I get the blue stuff off my car battery?
You inspected your car’s battery and found blue stuff on the battery terminals? The bluish staff you see is an anhydrous copper sulfate that causes corrosion on the battery terminals.
To remove the blue stuff, you need an antireagent to the substance. It is corrosion, and dealing with it can be a nuisance. The cleaning process involves removing the terminals and cleaning them and the battery connectors. Always go to a pro for a job well done.
However, if you remove the connectors from the terminals and realize one or both have swollen, consider replacing them immediately. This is because handling such a battery is dangerous because of getting harmed by the chemicals in the battery acid.
How to prevent the appearance of blue powder in the car battery?
Over time, you have seen your car’s battery terminals experiencing blue powder from time to time. You take action and remove it, but later, you realize it still appears.
Such substances occur when the battery experiences undercharging or overcharging, or other forms of corrosion. Therefore, if you know what leads to the appearance of the blue stuff on the terminals, stopping causes will prevent such issues.
Are there any other colors on a battery that cause problems?
Most individuals will associate corrosion with rust, and they may expect a brown color, but this expectation should be based on the metallic materials.
Although battery terminals are made of metal and experience corrosion, the form and color of corrosion are different from other corrosion.
Battery acids produce certain gases and charges that form corrosive substances around the terminals. Most of the time, the corrosive substance around the battery terminals is anhydrous copper sulfate or lead sulfate, which appears white but sometimes greenish or blue after exposure to moisture.
Conclusion
It is easy to identify that your car battery is experiencing corrosion around the terminals. When you see a white, greenish, or bluish substance on the terminals, that is lead sulfate or anhydrous copper sulfate, and is responsible for corrosion.
It is good to wipe such conditions away, as your battery may not provide the correct performance of the car. From time to time, inspecting the battery life can enhance the good health of the battery.
However, you need to know what causes the bluish stuff so that you can prevent it from coming in the future.
