Technical information

8
West Mountain Radio Operating Manual
Again Primary Safety Considerations:
• Never discharge a battery at a higher discharge rate than it is
designed for.
• Never use a battery that has poorly insulated or frayed wiring
or exposed metal parts.
• Never connect a battery with reverse polarity.
• Never test a battery near ammable materials.
• Never allow a battery reach a temperature that causes it to
get so hot that it may be too hot to touch.
• Recharge your batteries immediately with an appropriate
battery charger after you have completed your test. Some
types do not like to sit discharged for extended periods of
time.
• Never test or charge your batteries while unattended.
• Have a re extinguisher nearby.
Your CBA has been supplied with a 25 amp fuse installed to give
better protection from an inadvertent reverse polarity connection,
shorting the heat sink to the battery or having external connections
that cause ground loop shorts. A fuse is partial protection, as the
fuse does not always blow as quickly as the FET. It depends on the
voltage and source impedance but ultimately time. We are installing
a 25-amp fuse to give added protection and we have included a
spare 40-amp fuse packed separately.
Do not use the 40-amp fuse unless you plan test a single Lithium
cells in excess of 25 amps. Because of both the CBA’s 100 to 150
watt maximum power limit and its ability to regulate current at low
voltages the only battery that can be fully tested in excess of 25
amps is a single Lithium cell. The practical maximum discharge
rate to maintain constant current regulation with a Nickel cell down
to a .9-volt cutoff is approximately 25 amps. Anything over 4 volts
will exceed the long term power limit of 100 watts (power=volts
times amps).