I had my battery tested at Valvoline today and the battery is not the recommended rating. The problem
Is the battery is almost a year old... I had at one time a 500 watt amp and single sub hooked up to the car professionally. The amp and sub were taken out and sold because I didn’t want them anymore but the wire to the battery remains Hooked up and capped off. Even though the wires that run to the amp and sub are capped off, the power wire is still connected to the positive terminal. The tech at Valvoline says it can significantly drain the battery and another reason could be the heat shield around the battery for cold months? I bought the ca in Ohio but now reside in Florida. So my question is... out of those 2 options the tech told me, which one can cause the battery to drain? Both? Or one of those options? (My alternator is good already checked) any help is appreciated thanks!
Answers & Comments
The Valvoline oil change tech apparently knows NOTHING about electricity. The only way the wire would drain the battery at all is if there was a short, in which case it would be a constant drain and you would likely have to jumpstart the car more often than starting it normally.
Out of those options, NEITHER is on the top 25 list of possible causes.
It can if it has rubbed through somewhere. It could be grounding out intermittently while driving or when stopped. It certainly wouldn't hurt to disconnect it at the battery to remove any doubt.
No. Of course not. Having a wire dead-end does absolutely nothing as long as it is capped off. Think of it this way. In a building there are dozens of electrical outlets in the walls. Do you think the ones that have nothing plugged into them still use electricity? I hope you don't. Furthermore the heat shield around the battery isn't going to drain the battery. How could it, right? It's like saying the box of Cheerios sitting on top of your fridge is making the milk go sour.
It's not your job to understand electricity but it wouldn't hurt you to read a couple of Wikipedia articles such as this:
https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrical_circu...
The "mechanic" at Valvoline is trying to sell you parts and labor that you don't need. Batteries should last 4 to 5 years. I have had them go ten. Take your car somewhere else before he tries to sell you blinker fluid, a carburetor rebuild and new king pins.
The battery may not be charging. It could be a bad alternator or simply a bad connection. There also may be something draining the battery, like the glove compartment or trunk light. The light may be staying on and you can't see it. The switch could be broken or there may be something like papers causing the lid to not close fully. Take it to an "auto electric" shop or an independent mechanic with a good rating. Not Valvoline. Valvoline is for oil changes and flat tires.