Remember safety using tools around cell terminals...

[Supervstech]

Dang it... I was just tinkering working on my “generator” I’m building...

I figured a few quick twists with my leather man tool wouldn’t be a problem... just a tiny slip...

 

[Supervstech]

Kinda melted my pliers...

 

[Supervstech]

I am blaming it on poor decision making and lack of dexterity from working on it at 1AM...

 

[cass3825]

I used to think folks that put heatshrink on all of their tools were just being “safety sallies”, until I dropped a wrench across my bus bars. Now my battery tools are either cut short to not reach adjacent busses, or wrapped in tape.

 

[ghostwriter66]

Hey it ain't a REAL tool until there's either blood or burnt marks on it ...

A couple weeks ago one of the guys accidentally dropped a wrench on a relatively LARGE battery and it crossed the terminals perfectly -- I heard a huge POP and one of the oil guys was looking up saying "NASA - we have a launch" ... the force it blew that tool 20 feet into the air was a damn good reminder to never take any of this stuff for granted -- AC or DC -- it will still kill ya ...

(we are still trying to figure out why it blew the tool up in the air and not just welded it -- weird)

 

[cass3825]

(we are still trying to figure out why it blew the tool up in the air and not just welded it -- weird)

My best guess would be “arc blast”. Vaporized copper expands by a factor of 67,000 in volume, which is enough force to launch dang near anything!

 

[SolarRat]

Last month I rolled my BBQ grill right into a LA battery I had lying on the floor...stainless steel metal frame perfectly contacted both terminals...ZZZZZZZZAP! Melted holes in the BBQ, battery terminals melted a bit but still useable. Not the first time I did something stupid like this, and I'm pretty sure it won't be the last time either...

 

[ghostwriter66]

Last month I rolled my BBQ grill right into a LA battery I had lying on the floor...stainless steel metal frame perfectly contacted both terminals...ZZZZZZZZAP! Melted holes in the BBQ, battery terminals melted a bit but still useable. Not the first time I did something stupid like this, and I'm pretty sure it won't be the last time either...

I'm really trying to figure out how you did that -- it may require a reenactment with video or sketches .... LOL

 

[Sgt Raven]

I used to think folks that put heatshrink on all of their tools were just being “safety sallies”, until I dropped a wrench across my bus bars. Now my battery tools are either cut short to not reach adjacent busses, or wrapped in tape.

50+ years ago, I did a lot of battery installations at service stations I worked at. I had a 1/4" ratchet I used a lot for this. After shorting it out a few times connecting/disconnecting the positive lead. I wrapped the handle with electrical tape. I still have the ratchet and it's still wrapped with the electrical tape.