Battery maintenance help

[bud37]

Source of the post Speaking of batteries. How do you determine the "state of health" of a bank of 5 batteries. Do you need the disconnect each battery? Is there a special test instrument? Or do you use a load tester like you would with a car?

What type of batteries do you have in that bank?

If you have lead acid batteries then a Hydrometer is best imo to check the individual cells, be sure to have the bank fully charged first. Do not use a resistive tester like for a car in a boat engine compartment ( risk of explosion due to contained battery and fuel fumes).

[km1125]

Yes, you should disconnect them and do independent tests on each battery. That also allows you to fully inspect those connections, which could still be an issue even if the batteries were at 100%.

You can get a relatively inexpensive battery conductance tester. They will give you an estimate of the cranking amps available. If you test them periodically (annually?) and write the numbers down you'll get a much better picture of where you are at in the battery's lifecycle.

This is not the one I have, but I have something similar and have used it for several years with satisfactory results. The clips were really cheap and I had to replace them, but otherwise it's been good.
https://www.amazon.com/Veepeak-Automotive-100-2000-Alternator-Motorcycles/dp/B0BLRZFDQK/ref=sr_1_9?sr=8-9