What is the difference between amps and cold cranking amps?

Answer 1

Answer 1No difference, but cold cranking amps is what is in battery to start. Answer 2Answer 1 is correct so far as amps are amps. However, the ambient temperature to which the battery is exposed greatly affects the amount of amps and rate at which current can be released.

Therefore, most batteries have specifications on a decal for the cranking amps for which they are capable.

The first spec ["Cranking Amps"] is at a "normal" temperature of [I think] 70 degrees F. The second spec ["Cold Cranking Amps] is at freezing [32 degrees F, or 0 degrees C].

Since the battery output is lower at lower temperatures, the Cold Cranking Amps will be less than the Cranking Amps.j3h

As per the JIS specification for automotive batteries, Cold Cranking Current in Amps is tested at -18deg C and not at 0deg C. depending on the different Ah capacity, each 12V battery will have different CCA amps and duration

The battery will be brought to -18 deg C and then it will be discharged with the specified current, say 350, 400 ,450 A until the voltage on discharge drops down to the specified value. The duration in secs to reach the end voltage is noted and compared with the specified values in the spec.

Answer 2

you cant

my car has a 45Amp hour battery

this means if i leave the door open the 1 amp the dome lights take will kill the battery in 45 hours

the 300 cranking amps 45amp hours /300amps =.15 hour or 9 minutes

this 300 amps is the current the battery can deliver into a short

it will not deliver this for more than a few seconds

with a several minute wait to let the conductors cool down and the gasses to bubble up to the surface it may be able to do it again

its determined by the area of the links between the cells and the area of the plates the thickness of the separators

cranking amps is measured under laboratory conditions and if one 45ah battery says 250 and another 300 chances are the second has lower internal resistance

it doesnt say which will last longer

which will hold a charge

which will have the plates separate from the busses

which will grow little whiskers to short the plates

The least distance between the plates givies the highest cranking amps

it also leaves the most chance for shorts

the separators need to be in sulfuric acid and not have pinholes for the life of the battery

the case must hold the acid for the life of the battery let gas out keep water vapor in

the railroad signals have edison cells in glass cases that have been in service for 100 years

there are also lead acid cells in glass cases 100 years old

these have large separations between plates and low cranking amps

they are also easily spilled and more fragile

Answer 3

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