Battery makers put a certain amount of acid, diluted with water, into each cell when new, and no more acid is needed. As the water evaporates, it must be replaced from time to time so that the solution keeps the plates completely covered.

EVERY WEEK, on the pilot cells, and EVERY TWO WEEKS on all the other cells, look at the acid level. To do this, remove the caps and use a flashlight to illuminate the cell interior. The acid level should be about a quarter of an inch above the top of the plates. It should never be allowed to get down to the top of the plates, and on the other hand, it should not touch the bottom end of the filling tube.

Add the necessary amount of water by running it in slowly just BEFORE charging. Batteries require more water in hot weather than in cold weather.

Distilled water may be obtained at any drug store or battery service station. It is best to buy it in large bottles of one gallon to five gallons capacity, and fill the cells either directly from the bottle through a rubber tube, or else by a special filling cup. Do not use a hydrometer for this purpose. If you are not already provided with such an arrangement, our service man will show you how to set up a distilled water bottle with glass tubing and rubber hose.

Cleanliness

Keep the outside of the battery dry and clean, not merely for the sake of appearance, but to obtain proper service.

If you are careless in using the hydrometer, and drip acid on the batteries, or if you leave the filling caps off and allow the fine acid spray, coming from the batteries when they are charging, to be deposited on the battery tops, you invite short circuits and noise in operation. A little acid mixed with dust from the air in the room will soon form an electrical leakage path on the battery top between terminals, which may give a lot of trouble. In any case once each week wipe off the battery tops and connectors with a rag moistened in a solution of baking soda in water, or a solution of household ammonia and water in equal parts. Be sure none of this liquid gets inside the batteries, so for the sake of safety dampen the cloth somewhere away from the batteries. After this cleaning, wipe off the battery tops with a rag dampened in water; finally, dry them off with a clean rag.

After cleaning, coat the battery terminals and connecting bars with the special non-oxide grease supplied. If any deposit has formed on the parts, scrape it off first.

Remember that even a very small particle of dirt getting into a cell may reduce its efficiency and its life. Therefore, ALWAYS KEEP THE FILLING CAPS SCREWED ON TIGHT, except when testing the gravity, or adding water. The little vent holes in the caps will take care of the gas given off in charging.