Hi all, and hopfully UnknownVT,
I finally decided to purchase a Powerex MH-C9000 WizardOne Charger, and to be honest, it was all going well until I started reading the instructions....
I Decided not to knacker any of my Eneloop's but wanted to do a test with a couple of Vivanco 2400 1.2V AA MaH NiMH's I've got knocking about that I could try the new charger out on. (It's only 2 Batteries being tested/recharged).
I'm really hoping that you have some knowledge of this particular charger. from the instructions, I gathered that it would be best to use the 1st and 4th slots, for the charge I want to use, I was going to try the "Refresh & Analyze" "for one to three times" mode.
But this is where my calculations go awry,
Following the instructions:
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Capacity Storage Memory: 12 (Cycle mode only)
supported capacity: * 100 to 20,000mAh ----------------------- (I think the only one I need to be interested in)
Charger Input power: 12V 2.0A
Adapter Input: 100-240v 50/60Hz
*ALWAYS ENSURE THAT THE BATTERIES CAN ACCEPT THE PROGRAMMED RATES.
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General Battery Education:
What is 0.1c, 0.2c, ect?
"C" stands for the battery capacity and the number preceeding it is the fraction of the battery capacity. For example, 0.1C means 0.1 times the capacity for the battery. For a 2700mAh battery, 0.1C would be 0.1 times 2700mAh which equals 270mA.
Choosing the right charging & discharging rate.
Charging at a rate below 0.3C and above 1.0C is not recommended.
Charging too slow may prevent the charger from terminating correctly.
Charging too fast may damage the battery.
Typically speaking, slower charging rate will yield better battery performance but requires longer time. Faster charging rate may not charge as fully and battery temperature can be higher.
As for the discharging rate, do not exceed 1.0C.
The instructions then go on about "Battery Matching" and Battery Forming" and a whole load of more info.
So far it almost sounds like I know what I'm doing until I looked at the batteries I was going to use.
On the side of the batteries it states:
Standard charge: 14hrs at 220mA
Rapid Charge: 1.4hrs at 2400mA
Would you be kind enough to give me some guidance as to what I should set the charger at for these batteries.
Shortcut for instructions:
http://www.mahaenergy.com/download/mhc9000.pdf
Thanks chaps for taking the time to read this,
all the best
sadsack.