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13
BATTERY PERCENT AND CHARGE TIME
This charger adjusts the charging time
in order to charge the battery com-
pletely, efficiently and safely. The
microprocessor automatically makes
the necessary decisions. However, this
section includes guidelines that can be
used to estimate charging times.
The duration of the charging process
depends on three factors:
1. Battery State – If a battery has only
been slightly discharged, it can be
charged in less than a few hours. The
same battery could take up to 10
hours if very weak. The battery state
can be estimated by using the built-in
tester (see page 10). The lower the
reading the longer charging will take.
2. Battery rating – A higher rated
battery will take longer to charge than
a lower rated battery under the same
conditions. A battery is rated in
ampere-hours (AH), reserve capacity
(RC) and cold cranking amps (CCA).
The lower the rating the faster the
battery will be charged.
3. Charge rate – The charge rate is
measured in amps. This charger
provides charge rates of 2A, 8A and
12A. The 2A rate is for charging
smaller batteries such as those
used for motorcycles and garden
tractors. Such batteries should not
be charged using the 8A or 12A
rates. The 8A and 12A rates are for
charging larger batteries. The
charger charges at the selected
charge rate and eventually reduces
the charge rate in a controlled
manner. After the charging process
has started, the digital display can be
used to determine charging
progress by selecting the BATTERY
% mode.
There are some important facts to keep
in mind when charging a battery.
• When the display indicates 77%
charged, the battery has been
charged enough to start most
vehicles and has already been
charged as much as by many other
battery chargers.
• When the display indicates 85%
charged, the battery has already been
charged at least as much as by most
other battery chargers.
• The battery % shown in tester mode
is an estimate based on the battery
voltage and a scale set by the Battery
Council International. The battery %
shown in charger mode is an
estimate of the relative charge in the
battery compared to the charge it
should have if the charging process
is allowed to complete.
• The battery % shown in tester mode
can be used to estimate the relative
charge time. The lower the % shown,
the longer the charge time for a given
battery.
• The battery % shown in charger
mode is an indication of the relative
progress of the charging process.
The higher the battery % displayed,
the less charge time remains.
• The more a battery is discharged, the
faster it absorbs charge from a
charger. That means that the battery
% increases faster at the beginning
of the charging process than at the
end. In other words, it takes longer for
the battery to absorb the last few
percent of charge than the first
several percent.