All of a sudden i noticed my battery leaking yesterday. Ive only had it for about 5 months. I see this puddle on the ground under where my battery is. I poured some baking soda on it to neutralize it but I don't really see where its coming from. It's a orange or red color when i poured the baking soda on.I don't see it from the top so the case must of cracked or something. does anybody know what could of caused it?

and can the battery explode if a spark's created at the terminal when the battery is leaking?

 

If I saw that, I wouldn't hesitate to either head back where I bought the battery, or if you installed it, I'd pull it and do a quick inspection of the case. Don't wait for it to eat your battery tray and inner fender away before looking it over!
The color sounds weird, and may be that it'a already doing some damage, so get to it quick!

 

Yes it could since a cell in the battery would now be low. A low battery is a dangerous one because the open space would be filled with explosive gas instead of electrolyte. Sparks and batteries aren't a good combination. That very situation caused a battery to explode on me while driving my tractor. Back of my left calf looks like a shark bite. The only battery I like now is the Optima, but it isn't always in the budget.

 

ok well i took out the battery but i don't really see where its leaking from. I checked around the coolant reservoir since the color that was left on my garage floor is similar to the red coolant type but i don't see any liquid around it only around the battery so I'm going to assume its the battery and take it to wal mart for a replacement since they said i could without a receipt as long as it says the manufactures date on it

the battery tray is really corroded so I'm going to take it out and replace it. I took off the 2 bolts that hold it against the core support, now all i see is a big bolt on the bottom of the tray and a black plastic spike sticking up from the bottom of the tray. Do I need to take the black plastic spike off?

 

here's what it looks like after i put some baking soda over it

 

If it was the battery, I would expect the tray to be all wet. Was the liquid on the ground red before you put baking soda on it? If it was from the battery, the soda would have instantly made a big fizzy puddle. Did it? Any chance it could be automatic trans fluid, leaking from one of the cooling lines from the radiator? Or power steering fluid maybe?

 

yeah the tray was pretty wet. well i think it was red before i put the soda on it but it smells like battery acid. and yeah it did fizz and bubble when i added the soda but i don't really see a crack or where the leaks coming from.

 

If the battery checks out, you might want to check the alternator. If it's over-charging, it can make the battery overheat and leak out the vent holes on top. Does your battery have covers that you can pop off, to see where the level is at?

 

If you mix some baking soda with water in a spray bottle, you can wipe the outside of the battery case down, and then spray it with the mix. Any leaks or cracks will fizz or foam and tell you where it's leaking.

 

good idea Vall. i just might try that

The big bolt on the bottom of the battery tray is really hard to get off. do I need to take that off and the black plastic spike/pole on the other side of the big bolt to take the battery tray off?