Tool Review: Cen-Tech Battery Analyzer

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Originally Posted By: Donald


I am not all that interested in the charge state of a battery if it just needs charging. If I think a battery is going bad I will charge it with AC charger and then test it. I just want the best way to determine is a battery needs to be replaced.


This is not a matter of saying "charge it up". This is electrochemical analysis of the state of the chemistry INSIDE of the battery to determine if it has gone to a high resistance state and how much of the initial capacity (in Ah and CCA) it has retained/lost.

I dont know how to explain it to you any better than that. You do NOT have to load test a battery to determine if it is good. This sends a specific signal current across the battery to determine HEALTH. Not just charge state.

It is another type of analysis. You have to fully charge a battery for a resistive (carbon pile or other) test, but this is not a resistive test like that. It is a different, newer type of electrochemical impedance measurement. Because it is a DIFFERENT method, it doesnt need to be charged.

Power capability is contingent upon knowing the INTERNAL resistance of the battery. This type of tester does it without having to load the battery with 500A. It is a smarter means of testing the internal characteristics of the battery.
 
I think I'll go snag one tomorrow. 69.99 + 20% off.. with some leftover christmas money. I got my Father cool stuff.. and he gave money but in his defense he worked 3 weeks straight at 85+ hours. SO I just have to buy my own cool stuff
smile.gif
 
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Originally Posted By: eljefino


I agree with you and hate when a battery reads 12.25 Volts and your average Midtronics style tester says "charge it up".


That's one of the benefits of this technique. Its measuring an AC signal across the battery, so it doesnt really care about voltage on the battery itself, since it isnt reallly loading the battery.
 
For what it's worth, a few months back I bought the HF meter and used it on a red-top Optima that I was getting ready to replace anyway. This is the 2nd (and final) red-top I've owned that failed but still started the car. The voltage was low enough to cause some problems with electrical accessories and to hear the starter motor turning slowly, but high and strong enough to start.

The HF meter would not pass the battery, flashing "low voltage" if I remember correctly. The slow starter sound was unnerving so I was going to replace the battery anyway (about 2 years old). I wanted to see if it would call it bad or not, and it did. The replacement battery, a flooded-cell from Costco, it said was making the full CCA plus a little more.
 
Interesting thread.
I think this tester is doing the same thing we used to do at work for several batteries on large ups systems. We had a Alber (spelling) Cell-Corder where we would go along from one battery to the next only waiting for the CellCorder to beep after each battery indicating it was done testing that battery. Tested 480 batteries on one system - then plug it in the PC that had software to download and provide a report and graphs. I believe the graphs were impedance. The other indicator (CellCorder had 3 leads) was the connection down to micro-ohms.
We would just print the reports and it provided the good, marginal & fail batteries. There was no carbon pile load test.
The more I read into this HF tester the more I like it.

Because of this thread, last night I decided to load test my SUV battery which is the Interstate green top 2 years old. The snap on carbon pile tester showed at the low almost borderline on the green scale - like getting close to recommending a new battery - 2 year old Interstate? Hummmm..... I wonder.

Hope to hear/read others who may soon gets this HF battery tester - who knows... sometimes, something like this gets to me and I make sudden move to just go and get it. Weather should be nice today (probably near 60) and I might feel like taking a Harley for a ride. Now there is where the HF tester might come in handy - motorcycle battery. I don't use my carbon pile heat blaster on the small motorcycle batteries.
 
Just checked out the HF Analyzer online and it shows available in store at the HF near me. And getting a close up view, it does have a Micro-Ohm indicator on the display. At a quick glance, looks like one has to enter the CCA of the battery.
Having 3 vehicles and a couple motorcycles, boat, might be a good investment.
 
I would like to learn more about battery testing. Over at the GarageJournal site they argue the pros and cons of conductance (sp?) testing vs. capacitance testing ad-nauseum.

Here is one article I gleaned from their site. It claims (I think) that the values obtained from these meters should be considered as relative vs. absolute. And, that the real value of them is for trending your battery condition....maybe not unlike oil analysis?

Here for discussion: http://4xspower.com/is-conductance-testing-useful/
 
I picked one up today.. google printable 20 percent harbor freight coupon.

79.99-10$=69.99(sale)

69.99-20%= 54.xx + 6.75%tax =
Tested a few batteries. Went to my Dad's shop (I owed him 5# coffee I roasted earlier this wee).

Its amazing what kind of junk he has laying around for being a Wire EDM Machine shop.

I checked his brand new napa battery in his 2005 Ranger it got 3.43mohm 12.74v and was rated 100%(565?cca)

Then I tackled his junk pile of batteries I condemned last year but He is saving for trade ins.

duralast 450CCA 142CCA(40%), 14.33mohm...

the other one was worse.
 
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The HF unit is very light. One could keep it in the box and in the trunk. Maybe do a battery test every time you put air into the spare tire. Or, maybe seeing the box in the trunk will remind you to do a battery check and put some air in the spare tire.
 
Originally Posted By: Rand
I picked one up today.. google printable 20 percent harbor freight coupon.

79.99-10$=69.99(sale)

69.99-20%= 54.xx + 6.75%tax =
Tested a few batteries. Went to my Dad's shop (I owed him 5# coffee I roasted earlier this wee).

Its amazing what kind of junk he has laying around for being a Wire EDM Machine shop.

I checked his brand new napa battery in his 2005 Ranger it got 3.43mohm 12.74v and was rated 100%(565?cca)

Then I tackled his junk pile of batteries I condemned last year but He is saving for trade ins.

duralast 450CCA 142CCA(40%), 14.33mohm...

the other one was worse.


The 100% corresponds to the total energy capacity (Ah). If you hit (I believe) the select button after the test is complete, youll see the entered CCA and the current CCA rating.

I wish the machine gave an Ah number versus a percentage, but it is what it is. The machine gives more info than any other little one I saw.
 
Earlier online I checked out some battery analyzers sold through Graingers (only because I have a Graingers within 15 minutes)- they can get up there in cost - of course those high dollar units could be in a different league.
 
Originally Posted By: Errtt
Earlier online I checked out some battery analyzers sold through Graingers (only because I have a Graingers within 15 minutes)- they can get up there in cost - of course those high dollar units could be in a different league.


i think some of the bigger, more expensive ones will charge and discharge (which is why they are also bigger), plus do tests like this and print out the results.
 
I did see the CCA 140 something
I assumed it was 40% of the entered from the health bar... oops
 
so my 2011 subaru was slow to turn over last few days in the cold. (20f or so)
The overhead light practically goes OUT when turning over.

I tested out the new battery analyser on about 10 batteries now.. and my subaru's is the third worst result

I couldnt find an exact CCA number so I put in 470CCA

The meter said 8.xx mohm resistance 12.32V and 322CCA The "100%" bar was reading about 65%

Translate?

in comparison the 7 year old battery in my friends 2001 taurus was reading 4.55mohm 85% and 533CCA (battery is 600)


I did run the test on my battery 3 times.. every time removing and repositioning the clamps

I did a overnight charge with my smart charger the other night when I accidently left the hatch light on for 4 hours.. so the battery should be fully charged or close.
 
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I picked up one of these battery testers while out on my new TV shopping trip. The buttons were a little finicky initially, but they seem OK after a few uses. All four of our vehicle batteries came up with about 80% on the bar, 80% of the stated CCA, and 4.5 mΩ. I have an AGM utility battery that is nearly dead, and it confirmed that. I'm a little worried that it reads either 80% or dead, but only time will tell.
 
Originally Posted By: Stu_Rock
I'm a little worried that it reads either 80% or dead, but only time will tell.


HUH?

Not sure you have a statistical sampling to determine the range of results yet...
 
Originally Posted By: JHZR2
Originally Posted By: Stu_Rock
I'm a little worried that it reads either 80% or dead, but only time will tell.
HUH?

Not sure you have a statistical sampling to determine the range of results yet...
That's exactly why time will tell.
 
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