There is nothing more inconvenient than a dead battery. It will literally strand you without the use of your vehicle, and without the help of either a jump box or another motorist it can lead to a stressful and desperate situation. Although the ultimate goal of jump starting a battery is to get your vehicle running, our auto repair shop urges all of our customers to remember than when jump starting your battery, safety must always come first. In stressful situations, it can be hard to slow down and use extra caution. But with the dangers that come with battery terminals and possible errors, safety must be used throughout each step as outlined in one of our teen driving videos.

Car batteries can explode due to detonation of hydrogen liberated by electrolysis of the water found in lead-acid car batteries. Some circumstances, like extreme heat or cold, are especially conducive to electrolysis. Likewise, placing clamps on the wrong battery terminals can also lead to injury. The real caution should be used before the jumpstarting even begins. Experts urge all drivers to be sure to wear safety goggles and gloves if you have them, and be sure to tuck away loose hair and clothing. Then inspect the car. If you find any leaks, damages, or cracks, do not try to jump start the car. Instead, have your vehicle towed to your local auto repair shop for safe battery service should that be the case. One you have determined that the battery is the problem, locate the battery and inspect it. You can then follow these steps:

• Pop the hood and familiarize yourself with the battery and terminals. These will be marked with either a plus or a minus symbol. The negative symbol will usually be with the black cable and the red cable is the positive terminal. Check this yourself before proceeding. The positive terminal is usually slightly bigger in size than the negative terminal.
• With either a jump box or jumper cables, clamp the cable around the terminal with the matching color. It is important to do this in order. First, connect one red clamp to the positive terminal of the dead battery. Second, connect the other red clamp to the positive terminal of the good battery. Third, connect one black clamp to the negative terminal of the good battery. Fourth, connect the other black clamp to a piece of grounded metal on the dead car. Try to find a piece of metal that is attached to the engine and is not painted or oily.
• Wiggle the clamps to ensure that you have a good connection.
• Start the working vehicle and let it idle for 30-60 seconds. This charges the dead battery.
• Try to start the disabled vehicle. If it does not immediately turn over, allow a few minutes for charging before attempting to start the disabled vehicle again. If the vehicle still does not start, shut the engine off and rearrange the four clamps to verify a good electrical connection.

The vehicle should start if everything goes right. It is then important to come see us or your local trusted repair shop or mechanic for auto battery service. Here, that includes services like cleaning the battery, a thorough inspection, application of a leak detector, anti-corrosion protectors, and sealing of terminals. A dead battery doesn’t have to be a serious vehicle issue, but wrongly or unsafely jump starting a dead battery can be. Safety comes first and the rest is easy.