By Riordion Victor
What is a Jump Starter?
Ever heard this word? Well, a jump start is called a boost. It is given to the cars by connecting the cables to the portable jump starter of one vehicle to another while the car is still in the discharged position. Jumpstart is also given to some other external power.
While the external supply of electricity recharges, the vehicle’s battery gets the charge. Once the vehicle has been started after a little recharging, its normal charging system will resume.
Why use a Jump Starter?
A jump starter is used to jump start any vehicle. This is because if any vehicle by chance loses its battery by keeping the headlights on or may be by some other reason, you are required to jump the vehicle. And the vehicle will resume its normal operation. You should use a jump starter in case of emergency. Motorists may carry jumper cables in case of accidental discharge of the vehicle battery (for example, by headlights or ignition switch left on while the engine is not running).
Safe procedures for connecting and disconnecting cables are given in the vehicle manual. Jumper starters or cables are also known as booster cables. The best jump starters are lithium ion jump starters. These are a pair of insulated wires which give sufficient amount of power supply to boost-charge the discharged batteries.
There are some clips attached to these booster cables which are called “The alligator clips” are covered with lithium ion insulation to prevent inadvertent shorting. Alligator clips are marked by black negative and red positive to indicate the polarity.
Limitations and Operations
· The combination of lead and acid operates the operation of the discharged battery.
· But in the case of overheating of battery or overcharging of the battery, the battery might produce flammable gas which can be hydrogen.
· This has to be prevented by seeing that the battery does not get overcharged or does not overheats.
· Electrolysis of water inside the battery causes it to produce flammable gas.
· We recommend reducing the overcharging of battery to escape this situation.
· You should read the manual before using any jump starter.
· You should keep in mind that if a jump starter is igniting a completely dead battery, it should not be damaged.
· If it is then chances are there that the jump start will not take place and the battery might explode.
Things You Should Know
· You should know that if a jump starter is the best thing to keep in your car, you should also know about limitations.
· Your battery should always be equipped with cables and charger which can be used with other vehicle’s battery. This is the main requisite you should always know before keeping a jump starter in your car/vehicle.
· A jump box contains a battery which can be connected directly to the battery of that engine which needs a jump start or a boost.
· There are various other portable boosters which are multi-functional at the same time and can be used in various vehicles and other electronic devices. You
· Battery packs portable chargers or power boosters which are fully equipped and attached with cables and chargers can be used with some other vehicle’s battery as well. An independent jump box contains a battery that connects directly to the battery of the engine that needs a boost.
Try to store your jump starter at a moderate temperature. Exposure of the jump starter in extreme temperatures may be harmful to the batteries.