Battery relocation questions

[zachattack_5491]

I have everything I need to move my battery to the back. But I've read that you should use a dry cell battery. Is that just because the acid might leak out? Or is it because being inside the sealed cabin will create some health/safety issues ie... dissolving my lungs or blowing me up when I smoke.

Second question, how should I set up my grounds? I tried to do this once just to see if it would work, I had the engine bay grounds all bolted down to the chassis and the battery grounded in the back of the car. When I went to start it up, there wasn't enough power to turn it over at full speed. It was like my battery was drained or something. What could be the problem?

[liquid_cool]

well...lets start with the battery its self.......some times sellers will have the battery sitting on a shelf for god knows how long..you should allways test the battery before buying it..in my many years playing with cars..i have run into times where the battery was dead on the shelf....as for leadacid - vs- drycell.....drycells offer alot of benifts over the leadacid type...one being safty...if you ever plan on participating in a track day..they will require at most track's that you have a drycell if its in the cabin...onother benifit is longer shelf life..and improved cranking under most conditions...i run a optima red top myself and have had the battery for 5 years..thats incredible considering the summer heat in vegas gets 120+ at midnight and inside the car where my battery sits gets a whopping 265+ when in the lot..up to you thou..wish ya luck what ever you choose.

[gumby74]

I also run an Optima red top goind an almost 9 years. Central Texas does not get as hot as Vegas, but we will hit 100+ degrees often enough. I relocated my battery to where the rear seat used to be on the passenger side. I am using one of the seat belt bolt holes as the ground.

[snake240]

dry cell all the way. ive been running red top optima for 4 years now and no problems. And a regular battery does emit a fume where the dry cell doesnt.just make sure on ground you have good clean shiny metal.

[Kelbizzle]

A dry cell is definitely the way to go. If you don't have the money a wet cell will suffice and won't kill you before you can get a new one.

But yes wet cell batteries do emit hydrogen when charging a good battery. On a bad battery it will emit hydrogen sulfide. Some battery boxes come with a small hose to vent those types of gasses.

[zachattack_5491]

Well, I guess I'll just wait until I can afford a dry cell. I don't really want to be inhaling anything more than I already to. Thanks guys.

[C2CAHOON]

your grounding issue seems to either be a weak battery or bad ground, stop by a local autoparts store and see if they'll test your battery. If it tests good i reccomend using a wire wheel or brush to clean the area around your grounding cables in the engine bay and battery, also make sure your using a sufficient size power cable to your engine bay, and consider adding another grounding point ie a good grounding strap from the engine block to the chassis