What Are the Reasons for No Response When Charging a Car Battery?
3 Answers
Car battery cannot be charged may be due to a damaged converter in the charger, which fails to convert the charge, and the charger resistor should be replaced. Or the charger's safety fuse is burnt out, requiring the charger to be replaced, or the power cord and battery socket are loose with poor contact, which should be checked and replaced. Main reasons why a car battery cannot be charged: Car batteries are all lead-acid batteries. If they cannot be charged, the main reason is plate sulfation. For batteries that have been used for a long time (over three years), there is basically no repair value, and they should be replaced with new ones. If the battery has been used for a short time and the electrode plates are slightly sulfated due to short-term over-discharge, they can be repaired by desulfation charging, but the battery's capacity can only be restored to about 80% of its rated capacity. Battery sulfation refers to the phenomenon where excessive lead sulfate deposits on the internal plates of the battery, leading to increased internal resistance and reduced capacity. Its manifestation is that when the battery discharges, the voltage drops sharply; but when charging, the voltage rises quickly, the battery temperature increases rapidly, but the density increases very slowly, causing premature bubbling, or even bubbling as soon as charging starts. For example, when starting the car, there is strong power initially, but later the starter cannot start, or the car cannot start after being parked for more than a day. Judging battery sulfation: If a voltmeter is used to measure the battery voltage when starting the car and it is found that the battery voltage drops rapidly below 10V, such a battery can basically be judged as a sulfated battery. The main causes of battery sulfation are short-term high-current discharges, such as repeatedly starting the engine, listening to music, or using lights for a long time after parking.
I encountered the same issue last time when charging the battery. After struggling for a while, I realized the clamps weren't secured properly. If there's no response during charging, first check if the charger plug is firmly inserted, and whether the clamps are reversed or loose. If there's green corrosion on the clamps, scrape it off clean and try again. The charger itself might also be faulty—try a different one to see. If the battery is over four or five years old, it's likely reached the end of its lifespan, with the lead plates inside too degraded to hold a charge. Once, when I tested it with a multimeter, the voltage was only 8 volts, and the charger went into protection mode and stopped working. An emergency solution is to jump-start the car with a good battery and let the alternator charge it for about half an hour. But this is only a temporary fix for a few days at most—you'll still need to replace the battery. Regularly avoid letting the battery drain too much, and don't run the AC for too long after turning off the engine.
I once encountered a situation where my power bank couldn't charge the car battery, and I was really anxious at that time. Later, a car-savvy friend taught me to check step by step: first feel if the charger is hot—if it's too hot to touch, it might be broken; then check for white crystalline deposits at the connection between the clamps and the battery terminals, as these have poor conductivity and need to be rinsed off with hot water. If the battery is severely depleted, some smart chargers might judge it as faulty and refuse to charge. Once, I had to remove the battery and use a charger to slowly charge it at a low current for 12 hours to revive it. The most annoying issue is an internal short circuit in the battery—no matter how you charge it, the voltage won't rise. Now, I regularly check the battery's inspection window—green means healthy. If you smell acid or notice the casing bulging while charging, stop using it immediately, as leaking electrolyte can corrode the car frame.
