With winter approaching, one of the most common questions we get at Battery Mart is about proper handling of booster cables. Below is a short (about 3 minutes) video on how to safely connect to vehicles with booster cables, brought to you by QuickCable, the makers of the popular Rescue Jump Packs.
Transcription of video:
Jumpstarting a vehicle with a dead battery is relatively easy and quick. But, it’s important for you to follow the correct procedures to prevent personal injury or damage to your vehicle. This video will show you how to properly jumpstart a vehicle, step by step, using a pair of rescue booster cables.
Be sure your car battery is actually dead before you decide to jumpstart it. If your ignition turns over or your cars lights or windshield wipers still work, the problem is not a dead battery. To Jumpstart your vehicle, you will need: a working vehicle with a good battery and a good set of booster cables. Always wear eye protection, and nitrile or rubber gloves when working around lead-acid batteries. Battery acid can cause severe burns and blindness. Remove any metallic jewelry from your hands and wrists before attempting to jumpstart a vehicle. Electrical contact with jewelry can cause serious injuries.
Okay, let’s start with the vehicle with the dead battery. Be sure the vehicle is in park, the ignition is off, and all electronics are turned off, such as lights, stereo, wipers, and air conditioning. If your vehicle has a manual transmission, put it in neutral with the parking brake set. Next, position the working vehicle close to the vehicle that needs jumping. Be sure the two vehicle are not touching. Put the working vehicle in park or neutral with the parking brake set and turn off the ignition.
Next, identify the positive and negative clamps and battery terminals. Rescue booster clamps are color-coded red for positive and black for negative. Battery terminals are usually marked positive, POS, or a plus sign for positive and sometimes color-coded red, or they are marked negative, NEG, or with a minus sign for negative.
Connect one end of the positive cable to the positive terminal of the dead battery. Connect the other end of the positive cable to the positive terminal of the good battery. Next, connect the negative cable to the negative terminal of the good battery. Finally, connect the other end of the negative cable to the engine block, vehicle frame, or some other metallic non-moving ground of the vehicle with the dead battery.
Start the vehicle with the good battery first. Let it run for a few minutes, then try starting the dead vehicle. Once the vehicle has been successfully jumpstarted, you can begin to remove the cables. Remove booster cables in the reverse order of connection, starting with the negative clamp connected to the ground. Be careful of moving engine parts as you disconnect cables.
For complete instructions on jumpstarting a vehicle, download the booster cable instruction sheet on quickhowto.com.
