Portable jump starters transfer power directly from the portable battery to a vehicle’s discharged battery. These devices work by connecting special booster cables directly into a 12-volt power port on one end and to a car battery using clamps identical to traditional booster cables on the other end.

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If you are asking “How do long should I keep the engine running after jump-starting a dead battery?” then the answer varies. If the battery is minimally drained, you should drive the vehicle for roughly 30 minutes. Do not just idle with it parked.

The good news is this: You may not need to replace the battery right away. If the battery dies around the five year mark, you should definitely get a new one. After jumping the car, let it run for at least 20 minutes to let the engine recharge the battery. If it holds the charge, you should have nothing to worry about.

Bad Battery Symptoms If the cranking of the engine is sluggish, like your vehicle is harder to start on cold mornings, it starts inconsistently, or there’s no sound and interior lights when you try to start, suspect a failing battery, a loose or corroded connection or electrical draw.

A car battery can never recharge itself. After heavy use the battery may “rest” and recover a little but will need to be recharged from an external charger or by the car’s engine running. If the battery is exhausted to the point it will not start the engine either you must recharge it or jump start the car.

Driving a vehicle through water that is deep enough to splash or flood the alternator can damage the alternator shaft bearings and possibly the brushes and electronics inside the unit as well. Water can also cause corrosion that over time will damage the wiring and bearings inside the alternator.

Recharging a dead car battery can take at least 4 hours, and even up to 24 hours depending on the power of the charger and the size of the battery. Usually, battery chargers put out around four amps, but there are more powerful chargers out there.

Remember to thank the person who helped jumpstart your car! The vehicle with the dead battery should be allowed to run for 30 minutes if possible. This will let the alternator fully charge the battery.

When the jumper cables are incorrectly connected, the polarity of the electrical system on the vehicle with the dead battery will be reversed for a few seconds. This can irreparably damage many of the sensitive electronic components that are common on today’s vehicles, such as on-board computers and electronic sensors.

Connect the clamp on the red jumper cable to the positive terminal on your car battery, and the black one to either an unpainted piece of metal in the engine or directly to your car’s chassis (the frame of the vehicle). Don’t attach the negative (black) clamp to the negative terminal of the dead battery.

It’s important to disconnect the negative side of the battery first, otherwise you can cause an electrical short if the positive is removed first.

Each battery has two metal terminals. One is marked positive (+), the other negative (-). There are also positive and negative cables in the jumper cable set. The red one is positive (+), the black one is negative (-).