Hi: Many thanks for letting me know about that....I will certainly try
to get a refund since I firmly believe the battery was bad from day
one. I finally took it out of the car tonight and read the following
alphanumeric info.on the label:

Group 24 - 31500 - SF1 - C11JB, Label HS2F3

I'm not sure what date of manufacture this indicates, but the battery
was purchased in late 2005. If I read the label correctly, it either
means it was made in mid 2001 or mid 2003 -- too old to be fresh.
Thanks again. - Paul

On Tue, 27 Mar 2007 17:10:28 GMT, E Meyer <epmeyer50@msn.com> wrote:

>I don't notice that you say how old the battery is anywhere. If you got it
>from a Honda dealer, they have a 3 year free exchange warranty (no pro-rated
>charges until after 3 years), at least they have that here in the US. If it
>is still in the free period, I would take it back to the dealer where you
>got it and ask for another one.
>
>
>On 3/27/07 10:09 AM, in article
>TsaOh.200117$5j1.141269@bgtnsc04-news.ops.worldnet.att.net, "Grumpy
>AuContraire" <Grumpy@ExtraGrumpyville.com> wrote:
>
>> That's probably it. It's not the first time I've seen a battery suffer
>> from a total discharge.
>>
>> However, 12 volts or more should not hamper starting (or operating) your
>> vehicle and I would ignore it until it drops below 12 volts...
>>
>> JT
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Paul wrote:
>>
>>> Hi Tegger:
>>>
>>> I pulled out my digital multimeter tonight and checked the idling
>>> voltage as per your suggestion...it appears to be normal at 14.38
>>> volts. Please correct me if I'm mistaken, but I am assuming that this
>>> reading, in addition to the facts I mentioned earlier, suggests that
>>> my issue is NOT charging system, starting system, or alternator
>>> related. The battery problem, I now recall, actually seemed to start
>>> about six months ago when my wife accidentally left the dome light on
>>> all night, necessitating a jump the next morning. Everything charged
>>> back up OK after driving around a bit, but I don't think the battery
>>> has ever been quite the same since. I'll take your suggestion and head
>>> down to Wal-Mart tomorrow for a new one. Thanks for your help. - Paul
>>>
>>> On Tue, 27 Mar 2007 02:22:55 +0000 (UTC), Tegger <tegger@tegger.c0m>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>>
>>>> Paul <paul@hotmail.com> wrote in news:sqtg03ttotnd619922icd779bq7uf86k8e@
>>>> 4ax.com:
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>> Greetings To All:
>>>>>
>>>>> I have a rather mysterious issue with the battery in '92 Accord LX (4
>>>>> dr. 2.2 liter) which I have been trying to resolve. In a nutshell, the
>>>>> battery voltage keeps dropping to less than 75 percent (down from 12.6
>>>>> v freshly charged) to about 12.25 to 12.35 v after only a few hours of
>>>>> sitting. This voltage drop occurs whether the battery is connected to
>>>>> the cables or not,
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Have you checked for charging voltage across the battery terminals? At idle
>>>> it should be 14.4V.
>>>>
>>>> If the battery is running down even though you have the cables
>>>> disconnected, then you truly have a weird problem. I suggest trying the
>>>> different manufacturer. Wal-Mart's Eveready batteries are pretty good.
>>>>
>>>> It's NOT weather-related. If anything, Canada's cooler weather helps
>>>> contribute to longer battery life.
>>>
>>>
>>>

 

Gee, I'm getting quite a nice education about car batteries here.
Almost like a free workshop! Anyway, thanks John (and Tegger) for
letting me know that it is both the starter AND the alternator which
go under stress when the battery voltage is too low. Yes, the car does
start OK but I can "feel it's pain" (i.e. hear it turning over a bit
too much) every time I go for the ignition, which causes me to wince
since our '92 Accord is sort of like a member of the family. Like I
said earlier, I used a good charger from Canadian Tire and got the
battery up to 12.7 v pretty quickly, but then it just lost back down
to 12.15 v after a few hours post clearing the surface charge. - Paul

On Wed, 28 Mar 2007 02:02:41 GMT, John Horner <jthorner@yahoo.com>
wrote:

>Paul wrote:
>> Hi JT:
>>
>> Thanks for your post. Yes, the problem is that the thing keeps getting
>> down below 12 volts if it sits for just a few days in the garage, and
>> I don't want to damage my starter. Bottom line is I do my homework
>> from now on before purchasing an automotive battery. Live and learn. -
>> Paul
>>
>
>
>You are right to replace it. A battery like that puts a great deal of
>extra load on the alternator and doesn't do the starter any favors
>either. If it can barely make 12 volts unloaded then I wonder what it
>collapses to under the load of starting.
>
>Automotive batteries are not built to take the stress of full deep
>discharges. There are special deep discharge batteries made for marine
>trolling motors and such.
>
>John

 

Hi Dave: Thanks for your post. I opened the vent panels today and drew
some of the electrolyte into a dropper. It looks OK and does not have
a particularly strong smell...but then again, this is the first time
I've ever done this so I can't really know for sure what I'm looking
at. I'll probably pick up my own hydrometer in the next day or two and
do a bit of testing as per your suggestion, as it might make for a
good learning experience before taking the battery back to Honda. -
Paul

On Wed, 28 Mar 2007 00:47:19 -0800, "Dave and Trudy"
<dtdodson@acsalaska.net> wrote:

>
>"Paul" <paul@hotmail.com> wrote in message
>news:sqtg03ttotnd619922icd779bq7uf86k8e@4ax.com.. .
>> Greetings To All:
>>
>> I have a rather mysterious issue with the battery in '92 Accord LX (4
>> dr. 2.2 liter) which I have been trying to resolve. In a nutshell, the
>> battery voltage keeps dropping to less than 75 percent (down from 12.6
>> v freshly charged) to about 12.25 to 12.35 v after only a few hours of
>> sitting. This voltage drop occurs whether the battery is connected to
>> the cables or not, and a "probe light test" revealed no hidden drain
>> such as a trunk or glove box light. I guess my basic question is: do I
>> need to buy a new battery? I know this may seem obvious, but a
>> mechanic did a full electrical test on the vehicle a few months ago,
>> and the only thing he found was that the 10 amp alternator fuse had
>> corroded terminals. This fuse was replaced, but the alternator itself
>> tested as good. I just tested the alternator again yesterday with a
>> Motomaster Elminator unit from Canadian Tire, and it showed operation
>> at 100 percent. I also charged the battery in the 12 amp mode from
>> about 12.25 v up to 12.6 v in short order, but it quickly lost voltage
>> down to 12.35 v within a few hours. Please note that the surface
>> charge had been dissipated prior to all testing. The battery itself is
>> a sealed, "maintenance-free" dealership OEM model and is less than a
>> year old. It is the second new battery (in a row) to run low or bad in
>> this car within the past three years. If the car sits in the garage
>> for just a week, the voltage goes down to 11.5 v and of course the car
>> then has to be jumped in order to start. I am relatively new to
>> Canada, so I was wondering if part of the problem with short battery
>> life up here may be weather related. In any event, thanks in advance
>> for any information or suggestions. - Paul
>If the battery is loosing charge while disconnected, that is just sitting in
>its holder, check two things. First - ensure that the battery is clean (no
>dirt, etc on the outside of the case) and dry; secondly - have a mechanic do
>a hydrometer test to check the condition of the electrolyte. If the battery
>has been discharged severely, even once, it may never recover even with a
>full recharge....
>DaveD
>>
>>
>