10 years old Die hard Gold

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cchrishefish

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Ok, my battery is a group 24 F Die hard Gold battery which has had a pretty long life. This is the first year the battery lost its charge while garaged during a very cold Upstate NY winter. I have found a really great deal from Pep Boys for a Bosch AGM battery, however, I am thinking, if Die Hard has been such a good battery, why not buy another one. The Die hard is not a AGM. Also, I can get a really good deal on a Interstate battery, also not a AGM. I will not be considering an Optima battery, too much money for me. So which one would you choose?
 
10 years on any battery is amazing. I was told that die hard batteries had a patented bottom that collected the misc gunk that acumulates prolonging it's life from shorted cells. Like they said in High School Musical, stick with what you know. (Teenaged daughters 5 years ago!)
 
Want to save the Die Hard? Here's how. If you want to be all greenie about it, dump the electrolyte in something and dispose of it properly......however that is. Or you can just dump it out in the dirt.

Then, rinse it out with a garden hose and a strong nozzle. Wear eye protection. Rinse it until it stops puking out crap and the water is CLEAN. Then drain it of all the water. Now, go to your local O'Reilly (see how I worked that plug in?) and buy some fresh battery acid. It comes in a six quart container and it's CHEAP. Refill the battery and slow charge it overnight. It will likely last another ten years. My best friend has one Daddy bought new in about 1974 "or so". I did the above procedure to it when I got it from Daddy in 1982 "or so". Then I emptied it out and gave it to my best friend about 1995 "or so". It was still good. It still is good. He keeps it on his work bench as a decoration because it was made with colored plastic and it looks super cool. No stickers. I guarantee you he could refill it charge it up tomorrow and it would still be good. They go bad from all the crap and mineral buildup from over the years. If you flush that out before the battery completely dies, you have a very good chance to save it. You'll be trading down if you get rid of that battery. They don't make them like that anymore. I would try to save it if it was mine. The acid is less than 20 bucks and the labor is free.
 
Want to save the Die Hard? Here's how. If you want to be all greenie about it, dump the electrolyte in something and dispose of it properly......however that is. Or you can just dump it out in the dirt.

Then, rinse it out with a garden hose and a strong nozzle. Wear eye protection. Rinse it until it stops puking out crap and the water is CLEAN. Then drain it of all the water. Now, go to your local O'Reilly (see how I worked that plug in?) and buy some fresh battery acid. It comes in a six quart container and it's CHEAP. Refill the battery and slow charge it overnight. It will likely last another ten years. My best friend has one Daddy bought new in about 1974 "or so". I did the above procedure to it when I got it from Daddy in 1982 "or so". Then I emptied it out and gave it to my best friend about 1995 "or so". It was still good. It still is good. He keeps it on his work bench as a decoration because it was made with colored plastic and it looks super cool. No stickers. I guarantee you he could refill it charge it up tomorrow and it would still be good. They go bad from all the crap and mineral buildup from over the years. If you flush that out before the battery completely dies, you have a very good chance to save it. You'll be trading down if you get rid of that battery. They don't make them like that anymore. I would try to save it if it was mine. The acid is less than 20 bucks and the labor is free.


Now this is some good information, but I am thinking that some good cheap distilled H2O from Walmart may be the flushers choice. Should I give this a trial run?
 
Now this is some good information, but I am thinking that some good cheap distilled H2O from Walmart may be the flushers choice. Should I give this a trial run?

Use tap water to flush. no need to buy water. Since you're not leaving it in the battery it doesn't matter. You'll be filling it with fresh acid only.
 
Well, times have changed. About 2 yrs ago my father called me to have me come install a die hard gold he got from sears. . Almost 300 bucks. I told him he was crazy...........
It was NFG in 6 months.
 
The old batteries were great. I myself have done the flush and refill like Rusty said and have had mixed results. As long as it is just junk on the bottom of the battery that is shorting out the plates you do have a good chance of saving it. Best I have got was 9 years out of a battery. Now the new batteries are shitty for sure.
 
Personally I go up to the battery Exchange and get a reconditioned battery. For 40 bucks it comes with a one-year warranty and I never had one die on me yet. I sold my gold Chevy truck about 3 years ago and it had one in it for 6 years until I sold it working fine. I put one in my last Durango 4 years ago and just sold it with that 74 truck and it started it just fine. My-2
Personally I'm not going to flirt with battery acid for 40 bucks or to save 20 which I would never save Because by the time I actually poured it into a container and drove it all the way to the proper disposal place and pay the $5 disposal fee I would be out more gas money and time then I would ever save.
 
Diehard Gold in my mower is 9 years old. Still worked last season, but think it's getting tired. Need to work on the mower before I try it again though. 1994 Wizard with a 20hp Kohler. Think its time for a new carb. Maybe a couple other things... Was just thinking about it looking at the grass this morning. Not growing yet, but can see it greening up a little. Couple warm says and it will go nuts. Might be push mowing first cut...
 
My next door neighbor sells batteries for lawn mower,cars,tractors, trucks ,etc, he is a distributor,i was complaining about batteries in my mower lasting about 2 years and then having to jump start them,and replacing them every 3 years, he said in a lead acid battery when i got it new to put an aspirin in 1 of the cells and it battery life would be extended, so 8 years ago ,i paid $24 for a battery ,put in the aspirin and after i junked the craftsman i had it in, i moved it over to my cub, and it starts every spring without charge and sitting all winter, my neighbor who told me that said he was on 12 years on his mower battery, so i am curious to see how long mine last, but as for now started last week and i got the leaves from my oaks mulched up .
 
I read an article which indicated that AGM batteries do not usually recover after losing a charge. For someone who stores their vehicle during long harsh winters, this is a concern. Is this a true fact?
 
My friend has a 94 Dodge pickup that he bought new in August of 1993 and it still has the original battery in it.
 
Best I can tell, the red top in my Duster is from the mid 2000's, so going on 15 years old. I've killed it a few times down to 3-4 volts when the brake lights stayed on, a super slow trickle charge has brought it back to life a few times. Now that i said something, I'll probably be in the market for a new one this spring. Lol
 
So, my Die Hard Gold 24 F battery cost me $80.00 after tax in 2009 therefore, it has a yearly cost of about $8.00. Current cost is $120. Doing the same math on a Red Optima, current cost $232 minus 50%, which should be the price in 2009 if compared to the Gold battery current increase, now we are at $116.00, divided by 15 years, equals a yearly cost of $7.73. Very close in bang for the buck if the 2009 price is accurate. See, math can be fun!
 
I'll regret saying this. I haven't replaced a car or truck battery in over 20 years. My vehicles are all driven A LOT though, and never sit. Motorcycle and tractor batteries I change like socks though.
 
Personally, i like Rusty's idea of dumping the old acid in the dirt and flushing it out with clean water.
You could probably fill a 5 gallon pail with the old stuff including the flushings and drive across town to dump it so you don't get caught dumping it near your home.
I would go at midnight, under a full moon, and dump it in your least favorite politician's back yard or alley.
And then howl at the moon..................
Awoooooooooooo!
 
Or perhaps, since it is an acid, maybe I can neutralize it with a base. Baking soda?
 
The old batteries were great. I myself have done the flush and refill like Rusty said and have had mixed results. As long as it is just junk on the bottom of the battery that is shorting out the plates you do have a good chance of saving it. Best I have got was 9 years out of a battery. Now the new batteries are shitty for sure.

I've been with O'Reilly now 4 years in May. We have a very low warranty return rate for the Super Start batteries. They are made by two companies. Johnson Control and East Penn Battery company. Most of our cores are the Autocraft batteries from Advance. We get very little Duralast batteries from Autozone. It might be a regional thing, because we live in a pretty mild climate. I do agree 100% that batteries are nothing like they were.......but then, what is? Corporations figure out that they can make product cheaper and cheaper and consumers will still buy it.
 
Good battery acid is about 35% sulfuric acid. Used in drain cleaners at 80-90%. I'd pick your worst drain and use it. I never did it, so not sure how the reaction will compare, I would take same precautions. Ventilate ,cover drain etc... I have used the heavy duty drain cleaner, which will boil, spit, make nasty gas etc. and should not put it in a septic tank could screw up the bacteria.
Yes it can be neutralized with baking soda.
At the warehouse, our battery room drains filtered through a pit of limestone so no separate washdown area was needed. That was only intended for washdown and minor overflows though. Not dumping. For a direct spill we usually threw baking soda on it. If
you are going to start a battery revival business, you will need a way to handle the waste acid. Or you might not have any metal pipes left after a while.
 
OR take the battery acid to a hazardous waste dump? Same place used oil goes, it costs me the price of fuel to drive and dispose of it.
I have 3/4 of a box of new acid I've had for 15 years. Can't find batteries with the pop tops anymore....
 
I had a Mopar battery in my 75 360 Duster for 12 years! I drive aprox 500 miles a summer and the car is stored in the winter. The only reason I changed it, was a mechanic friend said "one day it will let you down at a car show"! I didn't want that to happen! Yes, I replaced with another Mopar battery! Hopefully, will last as long.
 
You can simply neutralize it as outlined with baking soda. Cheap enough. Then just let the ground absorb it. Won't hurt a thing. We use soda ash at work to neutralize acid spills. Same thing, just in a cheaper bulk form.
 
Hazardous waste/dangerous goods is called that for a reason. You cant neutralize all of it by sprinkling baking soda when you dump it on the ground lol. It might work for a contained area.
Mother Nature is a great "filter" but we abuse the **** out of her.
This is the reason I went to tree hugger school, job security lol
 
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