Great Planes Triton EQ Charger - GPMM3155 - Manual (Page 7)

7
Notes for charging NiCd and NiMH batteries:
•
A battery which is approaching- or has reached full charge should become warm to the touch, but never get HOT. If overheated,
the battery has likely reached an overcharge condition and should be disconnected from the charger immediately!! Allow the
battery to cool before use.
• Lower current means it takes longer to charge, but it’s less stressful on the batteries, tends to result in more fully charged
batteries, and helps to maximize the battery’s lifespan.
• Larger “sub-C” size cells can handle peak charge currents up to 5.0 amps with little heat generation. Smaller “A” and “AA” cells
overheat more easily and should be charged at much lower currents. Even smaller “AAA” and “N” cells should be charged at
lower rates. Refer to the table on page 6 for recommended charge currents.
• For packs having more than 8 cells, the actual amount of current delivered to the battery might be limited due to the charger’s
maximum rated output power. This is normal.
• It’s a good idea to discharge NiCd batteries before charging on a regular basis, to maintain good operating condition.
• Always recharge NiMH batteries just prior to use.
• The “deltaV” peak detection method is used to charge NiCd and NiMH batteries up to 95-98% full charge. A trickle charge current
will automatically be delivered to the battery after peak charge ends. This trickle charge is designed to help the battery safely reach
100% full charge. Trickle charge is applied only after an individual peak charge (not after discharge or cycle), and will remain on
until the pack is disconnected. The trickle current value is fi xed at a rate being the regular charge current setting divided by 20. A
fast charge current of 1.0A will result in a trickle current setting of (1000mA / 20) 50mA. A fast charge current of 600mA will result
in a trickle current of (600 / 20) 30mA, etc.
• Charge can be stopped manually by pressing ENTER, or disconnecting the pack.
• A backup safety timer will also automatically stop charge if peak has not been detected in 1.5 hours. This timer can be shut off
in the DATA VIEW menu. See page 14.
DISCHARGING NiCd or NiMH BATTERIES
1. To discharge a NiCd battery, fi rst fi nd the “NiCd CHARGE” screen. Then press Ð to fi nd the “NiCd DISCHARGE”
screen and skip to step 3.
2. To discharge a NiMH battery, fi rst fi nd the “NiMH CHARGE”
screen. Then press
Ð to fi nd the “NiMH DISCHARGE”
screen.
3. Two values can be adjusted in the discharge screen.
Press the ENTER button until either the discharge current
value or discharge cutoff voltage value starts to fl ash.
a. For current, press INC or DEC to change this value (0.1
– 1.0 amps). See the chart on page 6 for recommended
discharge current settings. Note that “0.4A” is the same
as 400mA…”0.9A” is the same as 900mA, etc.
b. For cutoff voltage - the voltage of the entire pack (not
per cell) where discharge will end – press INC or DEC
to fi nd the desired cutoff point. NiCd and NiMH cell
manufacturers recommend discharging batteries down
to 1.0-1.1V per cell. See the chart at right to determine
the discharge cutoff point for your battery. Once set,
press ENTER, or wait 5 seconds and TritonEQ will
automatically confi rm both settings.
4. To START DISCHARGE, press and hold ENTER for 2
seconds. “BATTERY CHECK, PLEASE WAIT…” will show
briefl y as TritonEQ evaluates the condition of the battery.
If the battery is ready, discharge will start automatically at
which time you’ll see a screen like shown below.
DSCH =
Discharging
Battery
Type
NiCd DSCH 760
8.1V 0.8A 057m
Discharge
Current
Output
Voltage
Discharge capacity: This is how much capacity (energy, in “mAh”) has been
delivered from the pack during discharge. For a battery which previously had little
charge, this number could be low. For a battery which previously had been fully
charged, this number should be high (ideally within 10% of the battery’s own
mAh rating).
Elapsed discharge time: This is the number of minutes the battery has been on
discharge. For a battery which previously had little charge, this number should be low.
For a battery which previously had been fully charged, this number should be larger.
DISCHARGE CUTOFF SETTINGS - NiCd & NiMH
# cells
in the pack
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
Rated
Pack Voltage
1.2
2.4
3.6
4.8
6.0
7.2
8.4
9.6
10.8
12.0
13.2
14.4
15.6
16.8
*Cutoff
Voltage
1.1
2.2
3.3
4.4
5.5
6.6
7.7
8.8
9.9
11.0
12.1
13.2
14.3
15.4
*Cutoff volts based on 1.1V/cell for NiCd/NiMH