badlands1

I have a quick question I dont run a rear hatch on my xj with my full cage just havnt cut the back off yet Ive read on here when you mount a battery in the rear you need to put a air vent out to the passenger compartment because of the gasses the battery puts out.Is this neccessary when ur running no hatch?I know it sounds dumb but is it safe to do this?Can this affect passengers even with the back open like this?I have a full exo and outercage built around the back and sides ect.

mud-dog27

id say your safe, the reason for venting is because batteries put off hydrogen gas when charging and hydrogen gas is highly explosive so you dont want it building in a confined space where there is potential for ignition.....or else you will be going boom

badlands1

Thanks.Im actually not even hooking it up with the charging system just mounting it in the bach to run a small air compressor that fills a 5 gallon air tank.I fill the tank at home before I leave and never use it just doing this for piece of mine.Im not worried about it running down the optima all that much no more than Ill ever use it.Unless you would be.Its just a harbor frieght little compressor with it hooked up to the air tank.Sounds half a$# I know

Gorillaxj

Optima battery's are sealed battery's which makes it safer as the gas doesn't vent out of the battery (or at least shouldn't) as long as the door is off (large vent) and the battery is sealed I wouldn't worry about it.

DeftwillP

Optima suggests venting their batteries to the outside.
http://www.optimabatteries.com/product_support/faqs.php

Gorillaxj

Every battery manufacturer will say this for liability reasons, and it should be vented, hence the lift gate is off, I wouldn't recommend this in a sealed cabin. Optima battery's should not "gas" unless the vehicle has charging malfunctions. I don't know your Vehicle safety laws but in UT it's Illegal to run a battery inside a vehicle unless its properly vented with its own dedicated vent. Optima's Don't have Removable caps like a lot of cheaper batteries which can/will leak and vent very easily.

I am sure a removed rear hatch will vent more air then a 5/16ths Hose hooked to the battery for a vent... (the size most vehicles come with from the factory when mounted inside)

From linked site.

"When used with a properly regulated constant voltage charging system (such as an alternator) the OPTIMA will usually not emit hydrogen gas. However, gassing can occur when charging at higher voltage levels or in extreme high temperature conditions. In automotive applications this typically will not happen if the alternator/regulator stay below 15 volts."

5-90

Ideally, yes. If you're running a battery in the passenger cabin with you (an enclosed space, not a "chopped truggy" with a missing bulkhead,) you're going to want to vent the battery. When you're recharging a lead-acid battery, you'll get outgassing of hydrogen as a byproduct of reversing the chemical reaction that generates electricity. Hydrogen is colourless and mostly odourless, and is lighter than air - so it will collect around your head first, and it will displace oxygen in the air (but not in your body. Haemoglobin has no affinity for hydrogen, unlike for carbon monoxide.)

If you've got no hatch, it's less of a problem - run a window down so you've got a draft longwise through the cabin, and the hydrogen gas is being pushed away from you.