Which Battery Tester

[Greatwhitewing]

I have narrowed my battery tester choices down to 2

Midtronics PBT-300

And the ESI 725

Nearly identical in cost and features look very similar. I really like the idea of the testing the charging and starting system. I know Tooltopia is a few bucks cheaper.

Just went through several battery/Alternator issues where one of these things would have saved me time in the decision process.

 

[bigdav160]

I have that midtronics as a cheap example of a conductance tester. The down side to that tester is the battery has to have a pretty good state of charge to test unlike the more expensive midtronic models. Ours has been reliable but doesn't always agree with the results from a heavy load test.

I know nothing of the other model. Alternator ripple can be checked with a DVOM though.

 

[theoldwizard1]

IMHO, the BEST battery/charging/starting system tester was the old SUN VAT (various models). 2 key features that I have not seen on ant other tester since then.

• Carbon pile adjustable load cell
• True "inline" ammeter

 

[Greatwhitewing]

IMHO, the BEST battery/charging/starting system tester was the old SUN VAT (various models). 2 key features that I have not seen on ant other tester since then.

• Carbon pile adjustable load cell
• True "inline" ammeter

I know there are BETTER ones out there and if were a professional I would invest in something more capable but for home use I need to balance budget vs performance. These two candidates seem like a reasonable compromise between the two.

 

[dnschmidt]

Midtronics, this is what they do better than anybody.

 

[wild cowboy]

for the money, the HF carbon pile tester is hard to beat, along with my Fluke 87's ammeter, have had both for a long time. $38 after 25% off coupon!

www.harborfreight.com/500-amp-carbon-pile-load-tester-91129.html

 

[Tarheelgarage]

I use and recommend the Solar BA9 by Clore
It is also rebadged and sold by the tool trucks for a lot more....

It is able to test all battery types



http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00IZFNJ6Y/?tag=atomicindus08-20

 

[signcrafter]

for the money, the HF carbon pile tester is hard to beat, along with my Fluke 87's ammeter, have had both for a long time. $38 after 25% off coupon!

I wasn't sure I'd ever say this but I agree with you on this one!

There are a few different ways to test a battery and charging system. Stick did a really nice write up a few years ago if you search this site for post by him. A carbon pile and a good meter can load test the battery and also load test the charging system. A midtronics style tester is a nice fast easy way to test most batteries. For a shop that tests lots of batteries the midtronics is the way to go since it's quicker. For a home guy the carbon pile and DMM is probably the way to go. I have both and use both at different times.

 

[Jdsmith]

I have the Harbor Freight carbon pile and I use it with a Fluke 87 to measure battery voltage. I also use a Fluke 337 to measure the current. As I recall the ammeter on the tester was off by 25% or so. Since I already had the meters the total investment of $35 results in about the most accurate and trustworthy way to test a starting battery, other than the big associated carbon pile unit or trended conductance measurements like we take quarterly on big flooded UPS batteries in data centers.


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