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ELECTRICAL
8A - 7
WARNING:
POISON,
CAUSES
SEVERE
BURNS.
BATTERY CONTAINS SULFURIC ACID, AVOID CON
TACT WITH SKIN, EYES, OR CLOTHING. IN EVENT
OF
CONTACT, FLUSH WITH WATER A N D C A L L
PHYSICIAN IMMEDIATELY. KEEP OUT OF REACH
OF CHILDREN.
CAUTION: A l w a y s disconnect the battery negative
cable before charging battery to avoid damage to
electrical systems. Do not exceed 16.0 volts while
charging battery.
O n diesel models with dual batteries, each
battery must be disconnected and charged sep
arately from the other. The two batteries are
wired in parallel (positive to positive, negative
to negative) in this application.
Battery electrolyte will bubble inside case while be
ing charged properly. I f the electrolyte boils or is dis
charged
from
the vent
holes
while
charging,
immediately reduce charging rate or turn OFF
charger and evaluate battery condition. Battery
should not be hot to the touch. I f the battery feels
hot to the touch, turn OFF charger and let cool be
fore restarting.
Some battery chargers are equipped with polarity
(+ to +/- to -) sensing devices to protect the charger or
battery from being damaged i f improperly connected.
I f the battery state-of-charge is too low for the polar
ity sensor to detect, the sensor must be bypassed for
charger to operate. Refer to operating instructions
provided with battery charger being used.
CAUTION: Charge battery until test indicator ap
pears green. Do not overcharge.
I t may be necessary to jostle the battery or vehicle
to bring the green ball into view i n the test indicator
when the state-of-charge has reached 75%.
BATTERY CHARGING TIME
TABLE
Charging A m p e r a g e
5 A m p s
10 A m p s 2 0 A m p s
O p e n Circuit Voltage
Hours Charging a t 21°C (70°F)
12.25 to 12.39
6Hrs.
3Hrs.
1,5 Hr.
12.00 to 12.24
8Hrs.
4Hrs.
2Hrs.
11.95 to 12.09
12Hrs.
6Hrs.
3Hrs.
10.00 to 11.95
14Hrs.
7Hrs.
3.5 Hrs.
10.00 to 0
See Charging Completely
Discharged Battery
928A-19
After the battery has been charged (green test in
dicator), perform a load test to determine cranking
capacity. I f the battery will endure a load test, return
the battery to use. I f battery will not endure a load
test, i t must be replaced. Clean and inspect battery
holddowns, tray, terminals, posts, and top before
completing service, see Group 8B - Battery/Starter/
Generator Service.
C H A R G I N G TIME
REQUIRED
The time required to charge a battery will vary de
pending upon the following factors:
(1) Size o f Battery— A completely discharged
large, heavy-duty battery requires more than twice
the recharging time as a completely discharged small
capacity battery.
WARNING:
N E V E R
E X C E E D
20 AMPS
WHEN
CHARGING A C O L D (-1°C/30
C
F) BATTERY,
P E R
S O N A L INJURY MAY RESULT.
(2) Temperature— A longer time will be needed
to charge a battery at -18°C (0°F) than at 27°C
(80°F). When a fast charger is connected to a cold
battery, current accepted by battery will be very low
at first. Then, i n time, the battery will accept a
higher rate as battery warms.
(3) C h a r g e r C a p a c i t y — A charger that supplies
only 5 amperes will require a longer charging time
than a charger that supplies 20 amperes or more.
(4) S t a t e O f C h a r g e — A completely discharged
battery requires more charging time than a partially
charged battery. Electrolyte is nearly pure water i n a
completely discharged battery. A t first the charging
current amperage will be low. As the battery charges,
the specific gravity of the electrolyte will rise slowly.
CHARGING COMPLETELY
D I S C H A R G E D
BATTERY
The following procedure should be used to recharge
a completely discharged battery. Unless procedure is
properly followed, a good battery may be needlessly
replaced.
(1) Measure voltage at battery posts with a voltme
ter, accurate to 1/10 volt (Fig. 11). I f below 10 volts,
then charge current will be low and i t could take
some time before i t accepts a current greater than a
few milliamperes. Such low current may not be de
tectable on ammeters built into many chargers.
(2) Connect charger leads. Some chargers feature
polarity protection circuitry which prevents operation
unless charger is connected to battery posts correctly.
A completely discharged battery may not have
enough voltage to activate this circuitry, even though
leads are connected properly. This makes i t appear
that battery will not accept charging current. Refer
to instructions provided with battery charger being
used.
(3) Battery chargers vary i n the amount of voltage
and current they provide. For time required for bat
tery to accept measurable charger current at various
voltages, refer to Charge Rate chart. I f charge cur
rent is still not measurable at end of charging times,
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