Jim,

        Please give us a update.  And, why do you think this happened?

I once knelt on the back seat of a 74 super beetle and had a similar experience.  covering one of those terminals was a lesson I learned the hard way at age 18.

funny thing is the car started and we drove that way to sears to get a new battery!  that is we did once the smoke cleared.

Eric Caron 
85 GL Auto Westfalia 

> On May 2, 2015, at 2:40 PM, Stuart MacMillan <stuartmacm@GMAIL.COM> wrote:
> 
> Ouch!  Sulfuric acid does not evaporate!  The water it's mixed with does, leaving concentrated sulfuric acid behind, which will do incredible damage to you and the van.
> 
> Suit up in old clothes, wear a face mask and rubber gloves, remove what's left of the battery, and wash everything down with a solution of baking soda to neutralize the acid.  Then take a shower and wash the old clothes, or they will be full of holes the next time you see them.
> 
> Stuart
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of Jim Felder
> Sent: Saturday, May 02, 2015 9:27 AM
> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> Subject: Boom! Started my day with a little nitric acid
> 
> Charged the battery overnight in Fifty Shades of Brown in anticipation of getting the pump primed this weekend. When I hit the key it sounded like a
> 12 gauge shotgun in the back. It literally blew the top off the battery and sent acid all over the place. Glad I was at the switch and not back there.
> 
> Jim