After the battery died in my van I decided to pull it out myself and replace it with another battery that I had salvaged from a car I sent to the wrecking yard. Although the two units appeared to by the same size and are indeed both 12 volts the posts that connect to the positive and negative cables were reversed so when I dropped in the salvaged battery and connected the negatively charged cable to the positive battery post the car blew a very important fuse. A master fuse that allows the power from the battery to control everything from the lights and windshield wipers to the speedometer on the dashboard was fried. Because I had not noticed the small imprints in the battery that indicated the positive and negative charges that I connected in reverse I ended up with a costly repair bill to diagnose and fix the master fuse that in my haste I had blown out.
Hoping for a quick fix to the problem of having a dead battery I learned a valuable lesson about auto mechanics and a costly one at that. When dealing with dead batteries Denver residents that are looking for a replacement for their car can remove the dead battery safely, but when it comes to the installation of a new unit the shop that is taking in the worn out battery can off some helpful advice. My mistake was not realizing that every battery is alike. Although each car battery Denver drivers have in their cars are the same voltage the size and orientation of the battery can be different as I discovered the hard way. After removing the old unit and taking it into the garage the mechanic can check the size and orientation of the positive and negative posts by referencing the year, make and model of the car and delivering the correctly sized battery to the buyer.
When installing the battery them self a driver that is limited in the understanding of engines should make sure that the negative lead connects to the negative post and the positive lead connects to the positive post. Secured in place to prevent movement the battery is ready for action although the driver will have to program all of their radio stations again and reset the clock on their dashboard. While I learned a pricey lesson about proper installation I have come to respect the power that a battery delivers and know that the next time I have to change the battery I will be prepared to use the same size and type of connection that will keep my car running smoothly.