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So... A hundred and more years ago, when lead acid batteries were made using technologies that aren't even used in era replicas now, they had problems with moisture and damage that could make them lose charge.
So you shouldn't set an Optima battery on the floor of a Costco now. Got it.
On the other hand, there's not a mechanic alive today who ever experienced any form of this phenomenon first hand, but is adamantly passing along complete BS from a chain of mentors at least three or four long. Got that, too.
It's an old myth that doesn't seem to die. Batteries are made of much sturdier materials than years ago and leakage and seepage, which provided a conductive path to drain the power from a battery, is no longer is a risk.
It wasn't actually an old myth it is a new myth about an old problem.
First lead-acid batteries were made of wood with glass cells. Placed on a wet concrete floor the wood would swell and decay and eventually glass would lose support and drop and crack and leak and cause a mess.
Next came the rubber cases that could also create electrical activity in the presence of water causing early discharge of the batteries.
Modern PLASTIC cased batteries, so long as the are not damage, can be placed on a concrete floor with NO problem for extended periods of time. I do it with deep cycle every fall and have had no problems.
Many of ideas that are not correct about batteries. Another one is cold weather is harder on a battery than hot weather. Hot weather will destroy a battery, cold weather will cause it to lose power.
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
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Concrete is not cheap or easy to repair.
My batteries set onto the floor sit on a rubber mat or wooden block. (and always will)
As a teenager... our garage floor had more than one 'battery imprints' (motorcycle size, tractor size, car size...)
(leaking / overflow of acid while charging, and one that exploded when charged.)
Grand-dad and father had owned service stations since 1920's, I would have been BLISTERED for setting a battery on concrete floor, so I avoided the pain. (some battles are not worth fighting)
An old wives tale. I have 3 or 4 sitting on my shop floor, and they hold a charge just as they would if they were not on the concrete.
This myth has been debunked many times but some people still want to believe it.
Yeah, but are they modern plastic-cased batteries, in which case electrical leakage (not fluid leakage) won't be an issue, or hard-rubber-cased batteries, in which case electrical leakage (not fluid leakage) MIGHT be an issue?
What was true? That putting batteries on a concrete floor ran them down?
Not really. The whole thing has to do with the battery's internal temperature, as mentioned by another poster. Batteries lose a little charge each day if not put on a charger of maintainer. This happens even at the store shelves. A leaky battery may at times discharge faster because it loses electrolyte.
How come at battery places (auto parts stores/garages) they never have batteries on the floor, but rather on a rack? Hmmmm
Because it's easier to pick a heavy battery from a rack than from the floor. Also, it helps maintain the gasses they produce when being charged closer to the ground. These gasses are explosive, and that's why the room with charging stations must be ventilated. https://northeastbattery.com/do-ceme...car-batteries/
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(motorcycle size, tractor size, car size...) 
