Car Battery Still Good?? Left headlights on...

My sister needed to use my car to drive to work in, so I let her use it. Well, it was raining today and she left the lights on. So my mother was out in her car and went over to help jump start it because the car would not start. They finaly got the car started, but now I am worried if I need a new battery or not? This is the first time the battery has been run down like this and the battery is around 2 years old.

So I am wondering if I need to replace the battery or if it will be fine??
or what should I do..

thanks

-fro

If it were mine I'd put a small (1 - 4 amps ) battery charger on it for a few hours, then check it with a digital voltmeter.
Rex in Fort Worth

Approximately 10/11/03 14:11, afro uttered for posterity:

Drive it around a coupla hours, then get someone close with a set of jumper cables or spare battery. Shut it off, wait a few hours and try it again. If it spins up fast as normal, I wouldn't worry about it....

...except that batteries have a bad habit of failing suddenly and without warning pretty much on schedule, depending on whether they are cheap OEM's or more expensive aftermarkets.
The only thing that differs is the time before they disappear.

If nervous, have an alternator repair shop check it. Sears auto stores will also do so, some are extremely honest, some will insist you need a new DieHard.

So If it starts up fine for the rest of the week I shouldn't worry about it?

Approximately 10/13/03 18:36, paint8oy uttered for posterity:

Sears has also been hit several times in the USofA for pushing unnecessary repairs. Possibly something to do with putting the shop manager and sales types under a commission structure that makes it hard for them to eat regularly unless they sell.

Still, for getting an alternator or battery checked, they do pretty good. And I'm not saying *all* of them are crooked or unduly aggressive.

A consumer protection agency in canada recently rated a sears in calgary as the worst shop in the entire country. Their test car came out with $1500 in unecessary repairs and they actually did more damage than good to the vehicle.

Just to be sure, charge the battery at a low rate (around 2-12 amps) over night, then take the vehicle to have the battery tested. Most auto parts stores can do this at no cost to you.

Good Luck

Might not be the battery. Might be dirty battery connections. Remove both, sand all surfaces, tighten back.

I use 12v car batteries for alternative power in places with no electricity. This is what I've learned:
a 2 year old battery is getting old but depending on conditions may give you lots of healthy cranking. Things that shorten battery life are low fluid levels (unless it's a sealed "maintenance free", hot climates, original quality (usually more $$ will get you a longer performing battery), repeated cranking without a full charge between, misuse of rapid charge devices, and dirty terminals.

sooo, if your battery was of fair to good quality to begin with and you've driven enough to charge it up between uses, and you've kept it clean and the fluid's been good, your battery will not be affected by your sister's mistake. The best way to charge a lead-acid (your car battery) is slowly. I agree with 1)drive it around for an hour and 2)if the terminals are clean but starting is slow, trickle charge it at2 amps overnight. FYI: 12V lead-acid batteries should charge to over 13V and should not be discharged much under 11.4V. Test equipment is a voltage tester or multi meter set to DC and maybe a hygrometer to test longevity of battery fluid.