Rope Damage from Jumper Cables

So I went to grab my rope that I had thrown into my car the day before, and I realized that I had placed it on top of my jumper cables. I'm not sure if there was any exposure to the teeth of the cables. I'd hate to retire my beautiful new rope. Do you think there's enough sulfuric acid on the teeth to do some real damage? Thanks!

You gotta ease into a forum before starting a troll thread. Just jumping in the day you start a new account is too obvious.

There's a good way to find out... tie one end to a brige, tie the other around your waist, nice and tight, and jump!!!

If it's no good you'll know fairly quickly.

Kim Schreiber wrote:So I went to grab my rope that I had thrown into my car the day before, and I realized that I had placed it on top of my jumper cables. I'm not sure if there was any exposure to the teeth of the cables. I'd hate to retire my beautiful new rope. Do you think there's enough sulfuric acid on the teeth to do some real damage? Thanks!

Unless those cables are brand new and have never come close to a battery, I wouldn't even consider using the rope again.

kennoyce wrote: Unless those cables are brand new and have never come close to a battery, I wouldn't even consider using the rope again.

Yup. That rope is done. Is your life worth $200?

I'm surprised by these answers. I know of the extreme danger that sulfuric acid poses to rope, but even if they've been used, why would there be acid on the jumper cables? When a battery explodes or overheats the acid can get everywhere, but if they're your cables then you would know if that had been the case.

My car has the battery inside the rear trunk, which makes me nervous, but I make sure to always put my ropes on the far side of the trunk from the battery. The jumper cables are in there too, but I don't worry too much about them.

Bill Shubert wrote:I'm surprised by these answers. I know of the extreme danger that sulfuric acid poses to rope, but even if they've been used, why would there be acid on the jumper cables?

You've clearly never seen the heavy sulfuric acid deposits that collect on car battery terminals over time. On a new car, you won't see them. Similarly, on a car with a trunk-mounted battery, where it is much more shielded from water and the elements, you also won't see much in the way of deposits. This might explain why you think this is a non-issue?

Either way, Kim - Retire the rope. While the odds of damage are relatively low (dry acid, minimal contact area), it's still not worth the risk. I would most likely continue to use the rope as a TR anchor (only when part of a redundant system) but its days as your primary climbing are finished.

Good point, Jon, My car is 22 years old, but the battery terminals have never gotten any corrosion, probably because of the trunk mounting of it. But right, now that I think of it, I've seen batteries in other cars with white crud crusted on the terminals. I'll take your word that this crud has acid in it, and be more careful from now on to keep my jumper cables away from my ropes and draws.

if those jumper cables have been used ...

ask yourself how much your PARTNERs life is worth ... forget about yours

just keep you cables, oil, and any other automotive equipment in a duffel or other bag next time and you wont have this issue

;)

Jon H wrote: You've clearly never seen the heavy sulfuric acid deposits that collect on car battery terminals over time.

The white corrosion you see on battery terminals is usually lead sulfate, this forms when the lead reacts with Sulfuric Acid. If it's the green corrosion, it's probably more galvanic corrosion with some copper. Either way, the corrosion is the result of the environment there - salt, humidity, fumes, acid, etc.

I doubt there's much active acid in it, that it's all converted/reacted, but i'm not a chemist. I'd keep it away from my rope, but if it just incidentally touched the cables... i'ld check if there was crud on the jumper cables and inspect my rope... and, well, the saying is something like "if there's any doubt, throw it out"

Larry S wrote: ... i'ld check if there was crud on the jumper cables and inspect my rope... and, well, the saying is something like "if there's any doubt, throw it out"

What he said

What Larry said. If there is a problem from acid (unlikely as acid is in the battery, what you see on terminals is corrosion) you will see it.

... oh and buy a ropebag.

David Sahalie wrote:What Larry said. If there is a problem from acid (unlikely as acid is in the battery, what you see on terminals is corrosion) you will see it. ... oh and buy a ropebag.

Hey David, I am not sure about that. I recall a story from a few years back where a rope failed in a gym. Analysis of the rope by the manufacturer suggested acid from a car battery might be the culprit. I remember the owner of the rope thought the role was in good condition and had been stored safely. If all of this is true it suggests that damage from sulfuric acid is not always visible.

I sure would hate to retire a brand new rope under the same circumstances, but I would do it.

I can't comment to how much damage the rope would take from the jumper cables. Keep in mind though that the reason you use baking soda to clean a battery is to neutralize the acid that collects on the top of the battery and the terminals.

Geir wrote: Hey David, I am not sure about that. I recall a story from a few years back where a rope failed in a gym. Analysis of the rope by the manufacturer suggested acid from a car battery might be the culprit. I remember the owner of the rope thought the role was in good condition and had been stored safely. If all of this is true it suggests that damage from sulfuric acid is not always visible. I sure would hate to retire a brand new rope under the same circumstances, but I would do it.

huh. good to know.

Hate to respond to a troll thread, but just take the jumper cables, rinse them in a cup of water, and test the water to see if it is acidic (ph paper is $6.75 on amazon)...this might not tell you if the rope is ok, but certainly will end the argument about whether or not there is acid on the jumper cables.

Like LARRY said the accumulation of corrosion is generally lead sulfate and is not an acid. The corrosion occurs because of the release of hydrogen ions and the interaction between the lead and the hydrogen.

If your battery has sulpheric acid on the outside, either a vent is open or there is a crack in your battery.

A rope exposed to lead sulfate or most general corrosive material shouldn't be damaged. Think about it like this: Basically the corrosion is lead rust, if it is dangerous to your rope so is exposing your rope to a rusted piece of steel or iron.

With that, I would climb on the rope, if the OP is worried shoot me a PM, I will gladly pay shipping and take the rope off your hands!

Geir wrote: Hey David, I am not sure about that. I recall a story from a few years back where a rope failed in a gym. Analysis of the rope by the manufacturer suggested acid from a car battery might be the culprit. I remember the owner of the rope thought the role was in good condition and had been stored safely. If all of this is true it suggests that damage from sulfuric acid is not always visible. I sure would hate to retire a brand new rope under the same circumstances, but I would do it.

I don't know about the rope/acid incident, but there's an interesting account of acid damaging a harness on the BD website.

blackdiamondequipment.com/e…

Geir wrote: Hey David, I am not sure about that. I recall a story from a few years back where a rope failed in a gym. Analysis of the rope by the manufacturer suggested acid from a car battery might be the culprit. I remember the owner of the rope thought the role was in good condition and had been stored safely. If all of this is true it suggests that damage from sulfuric acid is not always visible. I sure would hate to retire a brand new rope under the same circumstances, but I would do it.

Yep, I remember this incident, and it's the reason I wouldn't climb on the OP's rope.

Joshua Jones wrote:Like LARRY said the accumulation of corrosion is generally lead sulfate and is not an acid. The corrosion occurs because of the release of hydrogen ions and the interaction between the lead and the hydrogen. If your battery has sulpheric acid on the outside, either a vent is open or there is a crack in your battery. A rope exposed to lead sulfate or most general corrosive material shouldn't be damaged. Think about it like this: Basically the corrosion is lead rust, if it is dangerous to your rope so is exposing your rope to a rusted piece of steel or iron. With that, I would climb on the rope, if the OP is worried shoot me a PM, I will gladly pay shipping and take the rope off your hands!

This could be tested pretty easily. I'd be willing to put scrapings from a battery terminal on an old rope and pull test it. We might not arrive at a definitive answer everyone is satisfied with, but it never hurts to check things out.

For what it's worth, though, the only way to determine for sure what's on the OP's jumper cables is to take it to a lab.

Just look at the damn thing. If the sheath is discolored, melted, cracked, funked up, softened, whatever, it's probably not good. If it looks and feels fine, than it probably is fine.