7
Sch 517
Preparing your battery to be charged
It is important that you read and follow these guidelines
while you are preparing to charge your battery.
•
Make sure that you have a 12 volt or 6 volt lead-acid
battery. Set the volt/amp selector switch to match the
voltage rating of the battery to be charged.
•
Clean the battery terminals. Be careful to keep
corrosion from getting in or around your eyes.
•
If you have a battery with removable cell caps, if
required, add distilled water to each cell until the
battery acid reaches the level indicated by the manu-
facturer. This will help purge excessive gases from
the cells. Be careful not to overfill. If you have a
sealed battery without cell caps, no action is neces-
sary. Continue to the next step listed below.
•
Take time to read all battery manufacturer’s specific
precautions, such as removing or not removing
cell caps while charging, and recommended rates
of charge.
• Wear safety glasses. See additional "Personal Safety
Precautions" on page 2.
•
Be sure that the area around the battery is well
ventilated while it is being charged. If ventilation is
poor, gas can be manually blown away by using a
piece of cardboard or other non-metallic material as
a fan.
•
If it is necessary to remove the battery from the
vehicle to charge it, always remove the grounded
terminal from the battery first. A spark may be caused
if all accessories in the vehicle are not completely
turned off.
NOTE:
A marine battery installed in a boat must be
removed and charged on shore.