When would you use one?
On every service call, to rule out the battery as the problem, or a
future problem.
To determine if the battery you routinely replace every 3 years really
needs replacing.
To determine if the “new” one you are using to replace the “old” one is
really good.
To prove to a customer that cheap batteries from “Battery Bob” may not
be a good choice.
What types of
battery testers are available?
Control Panel: Tests battery with a load applied and alerts when
battery is BAD, needing to be replaced. Unfortunately there is no
advanced warning.
Volt Meter: Tests voltage only and is not reliable for
determining health of a battery because a bad 12Volt battery can test as
high as 12Volts or more.
Load Test Meter: A good load test should take 5 minutes and
weakens a sealed lead acid battery.
Conductance Test Meter: Measures the internal conductivity (mhos)
of the battery’s lead plates, without weakening the battery. Two models
are currently available; the ELK-BLT and the IBT made by ACT, exclusive
to ADI.
What makes Elk Battery
Life Tester (Elk-BLT) different?
Electronically, the basic difference in the IBT and BLT is the display.
They display Ah and we display mhos (a measurement of conductivity, the
opposite of Ohms which measures resistance). Why
does that make a difference? First of all you need to understand
that a battery at 70% of its original conductance capacity will not
store a charge and needs to hit the recycle bin. So, if you are testing
an 8Ah battery and it measures 5Ah, it is BAD, it does not
have 5Ah of backup. On the IBT, the dealer sees diminished Ah reading,
not that the battery is in fact DEAD. The ELK-BLT requires no
adjustments, no interpretation, and no calculations. It simply displays
the actual conductivity reading, which is compared to the chart on the
back of the meter to determine if the battery is “BEST”, “GOOD”, “WEAK”,
or “BAD” – all in 6 seconds. Elk also provides a hard case for the
meter's protection, while the ACT meter is in a soft case. The ELK-BLT
also has a lifetime warranty and is made in the USA, not the UK.
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