---
title: Testing Batteries with a Carbon Pile Load Tester
description: <p>Today we are covering carbon pile load testers.&nbsp;We use carbon pile load testers for load testing lead-acid starting lighting ignition batteries.</p>
image: https://blog.cdnrg.com/hubfs/Carbon%20Pile%20Load%20Tester.png
---

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# Testing Batteries with a Carbon Pile Load Tester

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![](https://blog.cdnrg.com/hubfs/Carbon%20Pile%20Load%20Tester.png)

Today we are covering carbon pile load testers. We use carbon pile load testers for load testing lead-acid starting lighting ignition batteries. 

So, before we load test a battery with a carbon pile tester we need to ensure that the battery we are testing is fully charged. So, whether the battery is new off the shelf, it's been sitting for a while, or it's a return from your customer that you're testing for warranty, we need to ensure that it's at 100% state of charge. This means that the battery should be sitting at about 12.6 volts or greater after sitting for a period of time.   
    
 Next, we need to determine, what is the cold cranking amp rating of the battery we're testing? We need to do this because, according to BCI specifications, we need to load test the battery to one-half the rated cold cranking amp. So if the battery is rated at 600 CCA, we're going to put a 300 amp load on that battery.   
    
 Before testing batteries, we need to ensure that the terminals are clean and free of corrosion. The reason we need to do this is so that we get a good connection, so we don't have any arcing or sparking and that we get an accurate load test.   
    
 When load testing side terminal batteries in a Group 31 stud battery, we need to ensure that we use the proper adapters. This will ensure that we have a good lead-on-lead connection. We don't want to attach to the fastening device, which on a 31 stud, the stud is the fastening device. Again, we need to make sure that we're clamped onto the lead or we want to use the proper adapters.   
    
 We're using, in-house, an AutoMeter SB/5 Carbon Pile Load Tester and this is what we're gonna use for our demo test. [https://goo.gl/U5oAaX](https://goo.gl/U5oAaX) (1:56).   
    
 So we've ensured that our battery is charged sufficiently for testing. We're going to connect the battery, engage a 15-second timer, and apply half to the rated load for 15 seconds.   
    
 Fifteen seconds is up, load test is complete, and battery tested as good.   
    
 So we can see that test is pretty easy, Just fifteen seconds. You need to make sure that the battery is fully charged before launching the load test. 

 

So, for more information on deep cycle batteries and lead-acid batteries, visit us at cdnrg.com. And, check out our video on this subject here: [https://goo.gl/U5oAaX](https://goo.gl/U5oAaX)

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