12
Digital Display
The Digital Display gives a digital indication of voltage, current or time,
depending on the DISPLAY function chosen.
Display Button
Use this button to set the function of the digital display to one of the following:
•
VOLTS (Voltmeter)
The voltmeter indicates the voltage at the battery terminals. If the
reading is less than 10.5-volts, the battery may be bad or the
connection at the charger may be poor. If the reading is 10.5 volts to
12.7 volts the battery is low – recharge it. If the reading is 12.8 volts or
more the battery is charged.
•
AMPS (Ammeter)
The Ammeter indicates the amount of current, measured in amps, that
is being drawn by the battery ( 2 amps). For example, in a 20 amp
charge rate, a typical discharged battery will initially draw
approximately 20 amps. As the battery continues to charge, the
current will taper down. At full charge, the battery may draw less than
one amp.
NOTE:
The 70 amp charge rate cycles between 20 amps and 70 amps
during the charging process and the ammeter will show this. This is a
normal condition.
•
TIME (Timer – Range: 10 min to 120 min)
Used only in manual mode, the main function of the timer is to prevent
over charging while allowing a battery time to obtain a satisfactory
charge. To properly set the timer, you must know the size of the
battery in ampere hours or reserve capacity in minutes and the state of
charge. Often the state of charge is not known, this is one reason why
the timer was limited to 2 hours. With the aid of a battery load tester,
the state of charge can be obtained within a few seconds. For example,
the average size automotive battery at a 50% state of charge will
require 1 to 1½ hours of charging at a 40 amp rate to reach the full
charge state. For the same battery with the timer set to its maximum, 2
hours, over charging will occur, but is not likely to cause harm to a
battery that was otherwise in good condition. When the charge state is
not known, start out with a timer setting of one hour or less.
