Why do I need a battery tester - automotive?
Discussion
Hello, electronics has never been my strong point, so I've got a question for anyone who can satisfy my curiosity.
Background
I bought a battery tester that turned out to be a bit bogus, giving me readings that were useless (e.g. a brand new fully charged battery it said to replace, a 5 yr old battery past its best it said had 100% life). Despite some very clever tricks the cheating little bwastiards who sold it to me ended up having to give a full refund...and now they have negative reviews on top as well. I looked at other makes but have started to wonder if I even need one?
My Set Up
I have 4 old motorbikes on battery tenders / optimisers - some lead acid vented, one sealed.
I have a 2007 XKR on a CTEK 10A - these cars use a battery the size of a power station, and they seem to run an entire eco-system off these batteries. Here there be monsters, and the whole thing has made me get more clued up electrically than I ever imagined was possible.
Battery Testing
I know I can test a battery in 3 modes - stand alone after a couple of days (is it holding charge?); firing up (does it have enough juice to start the engine?), and running (does it have enough in house to run the car?).
I can test this with a volt meter.
When its goosed
The car battery situation is a new phenomenon for me, I'm a biker in the main. What I do know from general knowledge and experience is that between 5 and 10 years the debris from the cell plates screws them, a cell stops performing, and nothing is going to stop the quick decline - its a bit like a human whose organs are packing up - there isn't a whole lot you can do about it.
When this happens I change the battery for a new one - because no amount of charging, love, psychology will make things better, without taking the battery apart I can't do anything to reverse the situation.
My question
So as I have a voltmeter and good battery tenders / maintainers or whatever they are called (which shout when a battery has had it anyway) - what could a battery tester do for me? Do I actually need one?
The only benefit I think one could give to me is to tell me I'm wrong, that my battery isn't on its way out, that there is something I can do to reverse this situation - but I'm struggling to see what / how?
Any informed answers appreciated, thanks.
Background
I bought a battery tester that turned out to be a bit bogus, giving me readings that were useless (e.g. a brand new fully charged battery it said to replace, a 5 yr old battery past its best it said had 100% life). Despite some very clever tricks the cheating little bwastiards who sold it to me ended up having to give a full refund...and now they have negative reviews on top as well. I looked at other makes but have started to wonder if I even need one?
My Set Up
I have 4 old motorbikes on battery tenders / optimisers - some lead acid vented, one sealed.
I have a 2007 XKR on a CTEK 10A - these cars use a battery the size of a power station, and they seem to run an entire eco-system off these batteries. Here there be monsters, and the whole thing has made me get more clued up electrically than I ever imagined was possible.
Battery Testing
I know I can test a battery in 3 modes - stand alone after a couple of days (is it holding charge?); firing up (does it have enough juice to start the engine?), and running (does it have enough in house to run the car?).
I can test this with a volt meter.
When its goosed
The car battery situation is a new phenomenon for me, I'm a biker in the main. What I do know from general knowledge and experience is that between 5 and 10 years the debris from the cell plates screws them, a cell stops performing, and nothing is going to stop the quick decline - its a bit like a human whose organs are packing up - there isn't a whole lot you can do about it.
When this happens I change the battery for a new one - because no amount of charging, love, psychology will make things better, without taking the battery apart I can't do anything to reverse the situation.
My question
So as I have a voltmeter and good battery tenders / maintainers or whatever they are called (which shout when a battery has had it anyway) - what could a battery tester do for me? Do I actually need one?
The only benefit I think one could give to me is to tell me I'm wrong, that my battery isn't on its way out, that there is something I can do to reverse this situation - but I'm struggling to see what / how?
Any informed answers appreciated, thanks.
Edited by wsn03 on Sunday 6th December 10:29
trickywoo said:
A good battery tender will essentially have a tester built in and also do the necessary charging rate to recover the battery if necessary or just keep it topped up if not.
I wouldn’t bother with a separate tester.
Thank you, much appreciated. This confirms my thinking, looking out for any answers challenging or contradicting this.I wouldn’t bother with a separate tester.
Just found this which I thought was very useful:
https://haynes.com/en-us/tips-tutorials/how-test-c...
https://haynes.com/en-us/tips-tutorials/how-test-c...
We have posh chargers at work that will happily show charging issues (if they are present) all day long, but equally they will charge a tired battery (or 'recondition' it) when the battery is actually knackered and should be replaced.
For testing a battery you want a tester that can apply a load (with a big heat sink). Batteries that will appear find when connected to a posh charger will often fail under load from the load-providing tester.
For testing a battery you want a tester that can apply a load (with a big heat sink). Batteries that will appear find when connected to a posh charger will often fail under load from the load-providing tester.
ChampionRabbit said:
We have posh chargers at work that will happily show charging issues (if they are present) all day long, but equally they will charge a tired battery (or 'recondition' it) when the battery is actually knackered and should be replaced.
For testing a battery you want a tester that can apply a load (with a big heat sink). Batteries that will appear find when connected to a posh charger will often fail under load from the load-providing tester.
Thanks for your answer. My situation of course is different for me in that a) I'm on a home mechanics DIY budget that limits me to the worst China can throw at me tester wise and b) I'm dealing with my own batteries that I see perform regularly rather than customers batteries coming in from outside (if that is your situation)For testing a battery you want a tester that can apply a load (with a big heat sink). Batteries that will appear find when connected to a posh charger will often fail under load from the load-providing tester.
Again this answer suggests I'm ok as I am so far.
Something like this will test it under load easily, it's basically a big resistor and a volt meter.
https://www.machinemart.co.uk/p/clarke-cvt2-12v-ba...
https://www.machinemart.co.uk/p/clarke-cvt2-12v-ba...
I use these on a few of the batteries I have: https://www.ctek.com/uk/products/car/ctx-battery-s...
Not cheap, but super convenient and let's me monitor condition over an extended period.
Not cheap, but super convenient and let's me monitor condition over an extended period.
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