USING THE BUILT-IN BATTERY TESTER
OVERVIEW
The charger has a
TESTING SEQUENCE
There are four basic steps required to use the charger as a battery tester.
1.Connect the charger battery clamps to the battery. Be sure to follow all of the precautions listed under “OPERAT-
ING INSTRUCTIONS”.
2.Connect the charger power cord to a 120 VAC outlet. Again, be sure to follow all of the precautions listed under “OP-
ERATING INSTRUCTIONS”.
3.If necessary, press the Battery Type button until the correct type is indi- cated.
4.Read the voltage on the digital meter or press the display mode button to set the tester to “Battery %” and read the battery percent.
TESTER AND CHARGER When first turned on, the charger operates only as a tester, not as a charger. To continue to use it as only a tester, avoid pressing the CHARGE RATE switch button. Selecting a charge rate activates the battery charger and deactivates the tester.
POWER-UP IDLE TIME LIMIT
If no switch button is pressed within ten minutes after the unit is first powered up, the unit will automatically switch from tester to charger, if a battery is connected. In that case, the unit will be set for the 2A charge rate and REGU- LAR battery type.
TESTER WITHOUT TIME LIMIT
If either the DISPLAY MODE or BAT- TERY TYPE button is pressed within the first ten minutes after the unit is powered up, the unit will remain a tester (not a charger) indefinitely, unless a charge rate is selected.
TESTING AFTER CHARGING
After the unit has been changed from tester to charger (by selecting a charge rate), it remains a charger as long as it has power. Disconnect and reconnect the power to change the unit back to a tester.
TESTER STATUS LEDs
When the charger is operating as a battery tester, the status LEDs light under the following conditions.
•The CHARGED (green) LED will light if a fully charged battery is tested.
•The CHARGING (yellow) LED does not light in the battery test mode.
•The CHECK (red) LED will light if a battery is not properly connected.
•When the tester display mode is set to voltage, none of the Status LEDs light (it could be testing a battery) as long as a voltage greater than one volt is detected.
INITIAL PERCENT CALCULATION When a battery % is calculated for the first time after connecting a battery, the digital meter will show two dashes
NOTES FOR TESTING BATTERY %
A recently charged battery could have a temporarily high voltage due to what is known as “surface charge”. The voltage of such a battery will gradually drop during the period immediately after the charging system is disengaged. Consequently, the tester could display inconsistent values for such a battery. For a more accurate reading, the surface charge should be removed by temporarily creating a load on the battery, such as by turning on lights or other accessories.
The battery % ranges from 0 to 100.
The battery tester is only designed to test 12V batteries. Testing a device with a rapidly changing voltage could yield unexpected or inaccurate results.
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