problem with battery

[1996TalonEsi]

OK, my battery is only about 1 year to 1.5 years old. 2 nights ago, I went to work out, and accidentally left my interior light on for about an hour and a half. So it was dead, and i got a boost. It started fine the next day, and then that night after about 4-5 starts that day, it dies again. I noticed the terminals had a lot of dust on them, so i cleaned them off. It was dead again tonight after another 4 or so starts today. Any help? Do I need to add water or something, I guess I'll check that tomorow, thanks for any help.

 

[420Adriver]

If you have time you can always take it to autozone and have it checked real quick to see if it was not overcharged because that good be a good reason why its not holding any "juice".

 

[98evoIIIpwr]

What was on your terminals probably was not dust. If you dont keep your terminals clean they can accumulate a lot of "CORROSION" which will result in a bad connection. Try buying new terminal ends and that will most likely solve your problem. Put it on charge for a while after you buy them and you shouldnt have that problem again.

 

[luv2rallye]

A good battery can run an interior light all night and still start your car. If it still happens after you clean the connections you probably have a weak battery or a short. If your battery is the kind you add water to (6 removable caps) check to see if the levels are up touching the bottom of the plastic inside each hole (add distilled water and then charge it up again).

 

[Defiant]

A good battery can run an interior light all night and still start your car.

Mmm, pretty iffy, there. A dome light will often be enough to drain a battery.

We can't see inside your caps from here, but top up the electrolyte with distilled water, get a kit from anywhere that includes felt washers that go under the battery lugs, and the small aerosol can of red junk that you spray over them. Your corrosion issues will be banished.
Check your alternator, it may have been killed by this loading- or, it may be why your battery went soft in the first place.

 

[95talon_in_ma]

Obviously as mentioned above, check the battery, Alternater, and then Starter.

If all that checks out, a loose or frayed wire could slowly drain the batttery.
If anything stopped working recently, I'd check those wires first.
If you did any wiring to the vehicle prior to this, whether it's a day or a year since you did it, then check those wires.

If you still find nothing, there is a procedure you can do that will eliminate the possibilities.
Disconnect the positive cable Connect a wire with a light on it from the cable to the post. If you have anything on the light will be on because power is going through the line. Make sure the doors are closed and the key is off etc..
Start unplugging one fuse after the other until the light goes out. This will tell you at least what circuit to start looking at for the bad connection..

Hope this helps...
Duane