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Schumacher SC-12000A User Manual

Page 11

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10

USING THE BUILT-IN BATTERY TESTER

OVERVIEW

This battery charger has a built-in battery

tester that displays either an accurate

battery voltage or an estimate of the

battery’s relative charge based on the

battery voltage and the Battery Council

International scale.
TESTING SEQUENCE

There are four basic steps required to

use the SC-12000A as a battery tester.

1. Connect the charger battery clamps to

the battery. Be sure to follow all of the

precautions listed under “OPERATING

INSTRUCTIONS”.

2. Connect the charger power cord to a 120V

AC 2-prong wall outlet. Again, be sure to

follow all of the precautions listed under

“OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS”.

3. If necessary, press the BATTERY

TYPE button until the correct type is

indicated.

4. Read the voltage on the digital display

or press the DIGITAL DISPLAY button

to set the tester to BATTERY % and

read the battery percent.

TESTER AND CHARGER

When first turned on, the SC-12000A

operates only as a tester, not as a char-

ger. To continue to use it as only a tester,

avoid pressing the CHARGE START

button. Selecting a charge rate activates

the battery charger and deactivates the

tester. Pressing the CHARGE START

button when the ENGINE START LED

is lit (except during the 180 second cool

down) will shut off the charger and acti-

vate the tester.
POWER-UP IDLE TIME LIMIT

If no button is pressed within 15 minutes

after the SC-12000A is first powered up,

it will automatically switch from tester

to charger, if a battery is connected. In

that case, the charger will be set for the

SMALL BATTERY charge rate and 12V

REGULAR battery type.

TESTER WITHOUT TIME LIMIT

If either the DIGITAL DISPLAY or BAT-

TERY TYPE button is pressed within the

first 15 minutes after the SC-12000A is

powered up, it will remain a tester (not

a charger) indefinitely, unless a charge

rate is selected.
TESTING AFTER CHARGING

After the SC-12000A has been changed

from tester to charger (by selecting a

charge rate), it remains a charger. To

change the SC-12000A back to a tester,

press the CHARGE START button until

all charge rate LEDs are off.
TESTER STATUS LEDs

When the SC-12000A is operating as

a battery tester, the status LEDs light

under the following conditions:

• The CHARGED (green) LED will light if

a charged battery is tested.

• The CHARGING (yellow) LED does not

light in the battery test mode.

• The CONNECTED LED lights if a properly

connected battery is detected.

• When the tester digital display is set to

VOLTAGE, the CHARGED and CHARG-

ING LEDs won't light (it could be testing

a battery or an alternator).

INITIAL PERCENT CALCULATION

When a battery % is calculated for the

first time after connecting a battery, the

digital display will show three dashes

(“---”) for a period as long as several

seconds while the tester analyzes the

battery.
NOTES FOR TESTING BATTERY %

A recently charged battery could have a

temporarily high voltage due to what is

known as “surface charge”. The volt-

age of such a battery will gradually drop

during the period immediately after

the charging system is disengaged.

Consequently, the tester could display

inconsistent values for such a battery.

For a more accurate reading, the surface