Ever recycle lead from a car battery?

Rick

Rick

Moderator
Staff member

Salvaged battery lead should be avoided at all costs. Since the advent of the maintenance free battery the lead content has been reduced and elements such as strontium, calcium and others have been added. Most of these elements cast very poorly, ruin a pot of good alloy they are blended with and are extremely toxic. The quantity and quality of lead from batteries is not worth the risk or the effort.

From "Linstrum" on the Castboolits forum - Maintenance free/low maintenance batteries use calcium metal-doped lead to catalyze the hydrogen gas. The lead alloy used in batteries also contains a bit of antimony and arsenic to help harden and strengthen the lead. When hydrogen comes in contact with arsenic and antimony, the hydrogen reacts to form ammonia analogues called arsine and stibine, AsH3 and SbH3. In World War One the Germans experimented with these as war gases. As such they were highly effective since they are deadly in amounts too small to easily detect. Do yourself and everyone else in the vicinity a favor and DO NOT use batteries. Severe lung damage and even death could result. Sell the batteries to a recycler and let the professionals deal with the risks.
 
N

nanuk

Member
In my town, there is a business that does numerous battery sales and recycling

I wonder if I could make a deal with them to get the lead posts and cable ends…. Hmmm….
 
JonB

JonB

Halcyon member
There ARE sources nowadays...
prior to 2020, you could get various Lead (COWW or range Lead) mail ordered for $1 a lb.
Today, inflation has made that $1.30 to $1.50 lb.
 
fiver

fiver

Well-Known Member
telephone companies, hospitals, some medicine containers, oil field tracers.
last i bought was from our local print shop, before that i hounded the recycler off and on for about 3 years before they said yes.
 
T

ten-mile

New Member
The bad culprit in battery plates is Calcium. If you try to salvage the lead the dross will contain an intermetallic compound calcium antimonide (and arsenide if there is any arsenic present). Either of these compounds will react with water vapor or liquid to form stibine or arsine. Both are gases and extremely toxic at very low concentrations. Melting reclaimed shot presents a different hazard. Shot can contain about 1% arsenic and several% antimony. The arsenic can oxidize and form a liquid on the surface at casting temperatures. The liquid is volatile so you get to breathe the fumes.
 
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B

burbank.jung

Active Member
I recycled lead from dead car batteries when I was in High School. From what I remember, there was a lot of slag and waste. COWW has much less slag. Find the ranges in your area and try to get their lead. I have a friend who owns a range and his son retrieves lead from their berm, casts, and sells lead ingots. If you want his email address, let me know.
 
trapper9260

trapper9260

Active Member
I get my soft lead from the salvage yard . Just need to watch if there is any zinc mix in it. Other wise if you got the money you can get all you want . Then I get the alloy from ROTO for my mix .
 
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