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Testing v-lock batteries


Jonathan O'Neill

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Hi I have some v-lock battery which are starting to age. Is there a test which can be performed on them to find out their health? I'm a bit of a noobie to electronics... I have a multimeter which I know how to test their voltage, but thats not entirely helpful!

Thanks in advance.

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Rental houses use battery testers to discharge a battery at a nominal current and measure how long it takes for the battery to be depleted. Once a battery drops to around 70% of the spec capacity they get retired.
In the absence of a battery tester you could just compare how long a battery lasts compared to a new one running the same appliance and retire them once they drop to below 60-70% of the run time. Or if you know the current draw you could roughly calculate the capacity based on the time it takes to run down and compare it with the battery specs. 
Some batteries are rated in Amp- hours or milliAmp-hours, which means they will supply that many Amps or mA for about one hour (or half that current for two hours, etc). If a battery is rated in Watt-hours, it means the same only in watts, which is just the current times the voltage.

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Great, thanks for this. Can chargers of a different brand to the battery damage the batteries? I’ve exclusively used the 4 way idx charger with my idx batteries, but bought a smaller hawkswood 2 way charger for its lightweight appeal. One of my batteries is no longer holding a charge. Just wondered if this is possibly related? 

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It’s more likely that the battery cells just reached the end of their lifespan, but that can happen sooner if a charger is not suited to the battery. Some batteries are more finicky about the charger than others. I mean it’s probably safest to use the same brand charger with smart batteries, but lots of people don’t. Does the Hawk Woods charger specs say it’s compatible with IDX batteries? 

How you store batteries and how deeply you drain them can also affect battery life.
I’m sure a battery specialist could give you more specific advice.

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