Battery Tester

camodude1954

Can a regular 6v/12v battery tester be used to check the status of 8v batteries? If so, what should the reading be if the batteries were good? 8 volts on the 12 volt scale?

BGW

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scottyb

Not sure which tester you are asking about specifically but, generally no. The 8v battery reads above the 6v and below the 12.
What tester are you wanting to use?

camodude1954

I have a cheap 6v/12v battery tester. When I put the clamps on the proper posts, I do get a 8 volt reading on each battery on the 12 volt scale. This doesn't really mean I have a fully charged battery, does it?

Scooter Cushman

Does it have a load test? If so try it.
I charged the batteries this morning and I checked at 6pm They read 9V. With load test they would slowly fall to 8.5

My meter is not digital but the needle type

camodude1954

This does have a load test, but when you flip the switch, it gets hot, and I do mean HOT. It will drop from 8 to about 7.4 on the only battery I did this on. I just bought the cart, and was told the batteries were 2 years old. Having reading on this forum, I have since determined that they will actually be 6 years old this Dec. Thus the reason for wanting to see what these batteries have left in them. Looks like one of Scott's battery meters is what I really need.

Scooter Cushman

check them all

The load test will get the meter hot. The instructions say hold for 10 seconds.
I think I have the same type meter it will work fine,

camodude1954

Sounds like we do have the same load tester. I checked them all about 8 hours after charger kicked off. They all started out at 8 volts on the 12 volt scale. With the load test switch on, they each dropped to 7.2 and 7.4. These batteries will be 6 years old this Dec. Does this sound like normal readings for batteries that are that old and hopefully still have a little life left in them? I am thinking seriously about the Scotty's Battery Meter as a possible project to keep a closer eye on the batteries. I think with that meter, each individual battery can be monitored also. Not sure.

Scooter Cushman

I like the meter, It looks like a great tool.

I think it will only tell you the battery pack voltage, not the voltage for each battery in the 6. Then , if I read right the description you can flip a rocker switch to check your axillary 12V battery voltage. That is if you run a auxiliary battery.

I'm not positive, but I think that anything below 7.4 during the load test is pretty weak.

camodude1954

Thanks. Sounds like these might be just on the cutting edge. Hopefully they will get me thru this year. I think you are right on the Scotty Meter. From what I just read, it is the pack voltage and not individual voltage. I guess what I was thinking was the Aux battery individual reading. Still sounds like a good investment. I don't currently run an Aux battery, but I don't currently have a radio system on the cart yet either. That would be when I would need an Aux battery, wouldn't it?

Scooter Cushman

Lights if you drive at night would be the only reason for me.

I use a Ipod or smart phone for radio with a set of amplified speakers. I think that's the best way to go for me. Then I don;t have to worry about the weather doing any harm to it.