There has been a lot of questions about charging batteries lately. Lets look at it this way. A D3100 is around $350. A multimeter or volt meter can be purchased for $40 to how ever much you want to spend on one. IMHO it would be a good investment to get a multimeter/volt meter to make sure the batteries are being charged at the correct voltages.

Multimeter/volt meters are just good things to have on hand for any electrical situation. You can usually find some pretty good deals in pawn shops on stuff like this.

You can get a very good one for 20 bucks at harbor freight.

That was the first thing on my list of things to buy

My charger has its own meter built in but I still stay on top of the voltage with a DMM at the terminals. I'm going to type from the original caution page that comes with my new XSpower battery, hopefully this can help people understand things a little better. I would assume this practice applies to other AGM brands.

CAUTION! CAUTION! CAUTION!

Proper Charging is crucial! Charge before initial use!

- It is very important that proper charging techniques be used when charging AGM batteries. AGM batteries

are designed for use with AGM battery chargers with MAXIMUM output voltage of 2.4 volts per cell (14.4v

for 12v batteries, 16.8 for 14v batteries and 19.2v for 16v batteries). AT NO TIME during charging should

the battery be subjected to more than 2.4 volts per cell. Voltages above this will cause the battery to "gas"

and once the oxygen is vented it cannot be restored.

- Under-charging AGM batteries is equally damaging to the life of the battery. Take special care to ensure

that the battery is properly charged before the initial use by verifying the open circuit voltage is above 2.1

volts per cell (12.6v for 12v batteries, 14.7 for 14v batteries, and 16.8 for 16v batteries). Improper charging

can cause that is permanent and will VOID THE WARRANTY. If you are unsure if your charger is

AGM compatible, please contact the XS Power Tech Support Department at 855-688-5953, or email us at

[email protected] for more details.

Do Not Over-tighten Battery Terminals!

Whether using the automotive post adaptors, bolts or screws, the tightening torque should never

exceed 8 ft-lbs max on any XS Power battery!

There is also another paper that comes with is brand of battery and it says,

Care of XS Power 12-volt AGM Battery

1) Charge voltage is not to exceed 14.4 total for extended periods of time

(5 min. max)*

2) The charger used MUST HAVE an automatic shut-off.

*Some AGM chargers may climb to a maximum voltage of 15.5VDC for a short period of time

( usually less than 5 min.) but will resume charging at or near 14.4 VDC _+_ .3 VDC for the duration

of the charge cycle.

for ease of use they recommend using the XS Power IntelliCHARGER p/n 1005

"Care of XS Power 12-volt AGM Battery

1) Charge voltage is not to exceed 14.4 total for extended periods of time

(5 min. max)*"

Is this referring to the initial charge or the constant charging from the alt?

"Care of XS Power 12-volt AGM Battery

1) Charge voltage is not to exceed 14.4 total for extended periods of time

(5 min. max)*"

Is this referring to the initial charge or the constant charging from the alt?

Someone else said that chargers do 15 to 16v to "stimulate" the battery and from my own personal use my charger will keep it around 15v for less than 5 minutes and then keeps a steady charge around 13 to 14v until its done. just keep an eye on the time and voltage. They explain how the battery can "gas" if charged longer than 5 minutes at 15v and once it "gases" you can't replace what you lose.

Edited September 26, 201014 yr by crunkjuice1