30
ACTIVATOR 80 CHARGER USER’S GUIDE
This mode is used for discharging 1 to 15 cell NiCd or NiMH batteries in either
AUTO mode or MANUAL mode. Discharging is typically used to determine
the residual capacity of the battery or to lower the voltage of the battery to a
pre-defined level.
NiCd batteries are said to suffer from memory effect. If they are partly used
and recharged before the whole charge is used, they remember this and next
time will only use that part of their capacity. They prefer complete cycles. Fully
charge them, then use them until empty or discharge them. Do not fully
recharge before storage. Allow them to self-discharge during storage and give
them an occasional short charge to keep them above the 0.85V per cell
minimum. NiMH batteries have less memory effect than NiCd batteries, so it’s
not as much of an issue with NiMH batteries.
nICD
/nImH bATTERy DISCHARGInG
nICD
/
nImH bATTERy pROGRAmmInG
nICD
/nImH bATTERy CHARGInG, COnTInUED....
3) To switch between AUTO and MANUAL
modes, press the ENTER button. The current
value will flash. While the current value is
flashing, press and HOLD the DEC and INC buttons at the same time until
the mode indicator changes, then release the buttons.
4) The charge current or current limit value will
flash depending on whether you’re in AUTO
mode or MANUAL mode. Press the DEC or
INC buttons to select the desired charge current or current limit, then press
the ENTER button to store that value.
• Charge current and current limit values range from 0.1 to 7.0 amps. We
recommend 1C to 2C or less, but this can vary. Check with the battery
manufacturer first.
5) Press and hold the START button for more
than 3 seconds to begin the charging
process. An automatic battery check will
be performed. If you receive an error, press the STOP button to go back to
the previous screen, then carefully check the battery and connections.
When the charging process begins, the
Status screen will be displayed. This screen
shows various data about the current
process. Press the INC and DEC buttons to
view additional process information.
