What is this Drainage Tube For?

[Rusty Wishbone]

I've just replaced the battery in my car, and see that there is a drainage tube which passes down and out through the base of the battery tray at the front off side corner of the battery. However, the top end is not connected to anything, and I can't see anything obvious to connect it to. Any ideas?

[chipp]

I think most Elans have this tube as all mine did.
Possibly the original battery had a drain off.

chipp

[Rusty Wishbone]

Thanks. The length would be right for connection to the battery itself.

[lotusflasherman]

It's the Battery Vent Pipe (A100M4997K). If your battery has a Vent Tube it should be connected as battery charging produces hydrogen ( ), but a lot of modern batteries are sealed or have no Vent Tube. Just avoid causing sparks after the battery has been charging...

[Kipperozzy]

It's the Battery Vent Pipe (A100M4997K). If your battery has a Vent Tube it should be connected as battery charging produces hydrogen ( ), but a lot of modern batteries are sealed or have no Vent Tube. Just avoid causing sparks after the battery has been charging...

I remember jump starting my pals Capri when we were teenagers, connected the cables in the wrong sequence, blew the top right off my battery, we looked for it after I stuck my head in a trough of water and it had gone.
Thankfully only my boiler suit got acid burns .
40 years later and I stil shudder when jump starting, but use the engine block as the last connection now !

[Rambo]

It's the Battery Vent Pipe (A100M4997K). If your battery has a Vent Tube it should be connected as battery charging produces hydrogen ( ), but a lot of modern batteries are sealed or have no Vent Tube. Just avoid causing sparks after the battery has been charging...

I remember jump starting my pals Capri when we were teenagers, connected the cables in the wrong sequence, blew the top right off my battery, we looked for it after I stuck my head in a trough of water and it had gone.
Thankfully only my boiler suit got acid burns .
40 years later and I stil shudder when jump starting, but use the engine block as the last connection now !

Kippered Ozzy. Well named

[Jamie N]

It's the Battery Vent Pipe (A100M4997K). If your battery has a Vent Tube it should be connected as battery charging produces hydrogen ( ), but a lot of modern batteries are sealed or have no Vent Tube. Just avoid causing sparks after the battery has been charging...

I remember jump starting my pals Capri when we were teenagers, connected the cables in the wrong sequence, blew the top right off my battery, we looked for it after I stuck my head in a trough of water and it had gone.
Thankfully only my boiler suit got acid burns .
40 years later and I stil shudder when jump starting, but use the engine block as the last connection now !

Kippered Ozzy. Well named

Aye, sounds like you have become a bit Paranoid.

[lotusflasherman]

Aye, sounds like you have become a bit Paranoid.

You've obviously never experienced a battery explosion then. The 'rule' is "Never make the last connection onto a recently charged battery" - but even that's not guaranteed.

I had a battery that wouldn't crank the 3 litre V6 in my Scimitar GTE for long, but if left it would go again, and then again, etc, which was strange. I'd checked out all the cabling so removed the battery onto the bench in my garage to investigate that. I noticed one terminal post had a slight bit of movement in the case but put it on charge for a few hours before I investigated. Connected jump leads to the battery still on the bench and put a spare starter on the floor (lucky the bench was so cluttered) and knelt down to connect one to the starter terminal and dabbed the other onto the body with a slight spark and BOOM. Ringing in my ears, bits of plastic flying around and acid raining down on me. Very lucky I bought my house from the builder who built a big double garage first to use as an office & workshop and took a small corner for an outside toilet. When I replaced the kitchen the old stainless steel sink got put in the garage with a cold water supply from the adjacent toilet and when I upgraded the electric instant shower in the house the old unit went over the garage sink to give me warm water out of a shower head for hand washing. So before the 'rain' had stopped falling I was at the sink showering down to get the acid off me. Took my boiler suit off and sprayed it and put it straight in the washing machine but when I hung it up to dry it looked like I'd had both barrels of a 12 bore shotgun in the back so that went straight in the dustbin. Later investigation indicated the wobbly battery post was cracking off the plate so reckoned it had sparked internally igniting the hydrogen. Part of the garage had a 5 ply wood ceiling and bits of battery case were embedded in it and plates spread all over the garage. I'm just so lucky I'm untidy and had to be down near the floor so missed the shrapnel and I had a shower a few steps away to deal with the acid. Never want to repeat that as I'm sure I won't be so lucky the 2nd time. Don't think I'm paranoid, just been there, got the T shirt ...

[Jamie N]

Aye, sounds like you have become a bit Paranoid.

You've obviously never experienced a battery explosion then. Don't think I'm paranoid, just been there, got the T shirt ...

I kind of thought there would probably be at least a couple on here that wouldn't get what I was alluding to, was a bit of humour!, it was nothing to do with being scared of connecting a battery , maybe only the Heavy Rocker's among us will "get it" .

[dapinky]

....... maybe only the Heavy Rocker's among us will "get it" .

I got it, but as today is Black Friday, not Sunday, I'm giving no clues to the rest of 'em.

[Jamie N]

....... maybe only the Heavy Rocker's among us will "get it" .

I got it, but as today is Black Friday, not Sunday, I'm giving no clues to the rest of 'em.

Haha!, now that's clever

[rip]

....... maybe only the Heavy Rocker's among us will "get it" .

I got it, but as today is Black Friday, not Sunday, I'm giving no clues to the rest of 'em.

Black Friday is next week.

[Brit-Car-Nut]

Don't need to be really hard rockers to know about Ozzie and his paranoid life...

[Rambo]

Am I going insane ?

I thought this was about drainage tubes

[dapinky]

Black Friday is next week.

well, tell that to all the people sending me emails advertising their bargains then....... Amazon, Argos, B&Q for starters, sent me 'great offers' today under the Black Friday banner......

....... but that wasn't really the point of the post I made.

[Brit-Car-Nut]

For those in the US, Black Friday isn't until NEXT Friday the day after Thanksgiving).

[Brit-Car-Nut]

Am I going insane ?

I thought this was about drainage tubes

Blame Jamie N for being so paranoid

[dapinky]

Am I going insane ?

I thought this was about drainage tubes

Blame Jamie N for being so paranoid

Don't bite his head off!

[Rambo]

Very good Dave. I'd forgotten about that. Thankfully !

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/ ... t-20120116

[John_W]

Don't bite his head off!

That was Alice Cooper .... or maybe Freddie Starr.