Winters are here, so is the time to get your snowmobile and conquer the icy paths. Maybe you won’t be able to start your snowmobile, and it needs a battery replacement. We all have faced this issue, and undoubtedly, it’s an additional burden on our pockets. In order to refrain from your battery being dead after being parked in the garage all summer, you should perform the proper snowmobile battery maintenance.
Well, if your snowmobiles battery isn’t working now, you can’t do anything much about it. You can check its physical condition and if it’s out of order, just get a new battery this time. But you can save yourself from the hassle the next season. If you properly perform your snowmobile battery maintenance, it can last up to five years.
Here are some valuable tips to properly maintain your snowmobile battery and make it last longer.
Keep The Battery Clean
Keeping the battery clean is the first thing you should do to maintain your battery’s health. Dirt and dust are your battery’s worst enemy, and when it forms a layer with oil, etc., it severely impacts the battery. The build-up doesn’t let the battery get power from the surroundings and can also damage the internal parts. Thus, the battery won’t start or work efficiently. A dirty battery also gets hotter quickly, further shortening its life.
One should perform battery cleaning as a regular part of battery maintenance. One should check the power cables of the electric system and clean its terminals so the battery remains dirt and dust free and there is no build-up.
Use The Battery Maintainer
A snowmobile is non-functional without its battery. It’s crucial to maintain its battery life. Thanks to technical advancements, you can skip the daunting task of manual battery maintenance and use an automatic battery maintainer to maintain the battery’s life.
A battery maintainer is a small portable device that performs various functions to maintain the battery’s health. The advanced battery maintainers can charge dead batteries of any type, maintain charging status, desulfurates the battery.
Most of battery maintainers are universal and work with diesel and gas-based snowmobiles effectively. It also prevents the battery from undercharging in cold weather or overcharging in hot weather.
Some battery maintainers come with advanced battery repair modes that extend the battery life using slow pulse reconditioner technology to check the status of battery sulfation and acid stratification. Anyone can use it in their home to maintain the snowmobile battery.
Keep The Battery Fully Charged
Yes, you read that right. Keeping the battery completely charged is essential to maintain its working capability. Even if you don’t use your snowmobile for weeks or months, you can keep its battery alive and functional by keeping it charged. Maintaining the full battery even when the snowmobile is not in use will not only elongates its life and save it from being dead but also keep the snowmobile prepared to take out in the snow.
How can you retain a fully charged battery when the snowmobile is not in use? It’s simple. You can use an automatic charger or battery maintainer to achieve it. It will charge your battery to the max and automatically switch to maintenance mode. It is designed in a way that your snowmobile battery will stay charged. It connects easily with your battery, and you must keep it connected after each ride.
Keep The Battery Hot
Batteries cause a lot of problems starting during winter. Batteries get cold and cannot provide sufficient energy to the engine. It’s common with all automobiles and is the same for snowmobiles. As snowmobiles are used in icy areas, the problem is more frequent with them. To avoid this problem, it’s best if you can park your snowmobile in a heated garage. Suppose you don’t have one, it’s okay. You can try other ways of maintaining the temperature.
The most simple yet effective way is to use a battery heater. The heater will keep the battery hot and save you from dealing with a cold battery. Using a battery heater with an automatic charger or batter maintainer boosts your snowmobile battery’s health.
Prevent Corrosion
Corrosion in snowmobile batteries is a common but preventable problem. It occurs when the battery’s acids react with the metals on the terminal, and chemical salts build up. It decreases the conductivity and affects the battery’s health.
Although cleaning dirt and dust prevents corrosion, a little precaution is always reasonable to avoid this big problem. You can spray a WD-40 rust inhibitor on the metallic parts to avoid rusting and keep the battery cover in order to avoid corrosion due to weather.
Conclusion
A malfunctioning or dead snowmobile battery can screw the winter fun. It’s pretty expensive to invest in a new battery each season, while it’s possible to take some precautionary measures and make it last longer. Preventing corrosion, keeping the battery clean, hot, and fully charged, and using the battery maintainer are some simple tips to maintain the battery’s life.
If you found this article on snowmobile battery maintenance helpful, be sure to check out our other articles on snowmobiles here.
