TecMate Optimate TM500, Instructions For Use Manual

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12. PREPARING TO CHARGE

a) If necessary to remove battery from vehicle to charge,always remove grounded terminal from battery first.  

Make sure all accessories in the vehicle are off, so as not to cause an arc. 

b) Be sure area around battery is well ventilated while battery is being charged. Gas can be forcefully blown away by using a piece of 

cardboard or other non-metallic material as a fan.

c) Clean battery terminals.Be careful to keep corrosion from coming in contact with eyes.

d) Add distilled water in each cell until battery acid reaches level specified by battery manufacturer. This helps purge excessive gas 

from cells. Do not overfill. For a battery without cell caps, such as valve regulated lead acid (VRLA) or absorbed glass mat (AGM) 

batteries, carefully follow manufacturer’s recharging instructions.

e) Study all battery manufacturer’s specific precautions such as removing or not removing cell caps while charging and 

recommended rates of charge.

f) Determine voltage of battery by referring to vehicle or other user’s manual and BEFORE MAKING THE BATTERY CONNECTIONS, 

MAKE SURE TH AT THE VOLTAGE OF THE BATTERY YOU ARE GOING TO CHARGE MATCHES THE OUTPUT VOLTAGE OF THE CHARGER.

13. CHARGER LOCATION.

a) Locate charger as far away from battery as DC cables permit. 

b) Never place charger directly above battery being charged; gases from battery will corrode and damage the charger. c) Never allow 

battery acid to drip on charger when reading gravity or filling battery. Do not operate charger in a closed-in area or restrict ventilation 

in any way.

d) Do not set a battery on top of charger. IMPORTANT : Place charger on a hard flat surface or mount onto a vertical surface. Do not 

place on plastic, leather or textile surface.

14. DC CONNECTION PRECAUTIONS

a) Connect and disconnect DC output clips only after setting any charger switches to off position and removing DC cord from supply. 

Never allow clips to touch each other, however should this happen no damage will result to the charger circuit & the automatic 

charging programme will just reset to «start». 

b) Attach clips to battery and chassis as indicated in 15(e), 15(f), and 16(b) through 16(d). 

NOTE : This battery charger has an automatic safety feature that will prevent it from operating if the battery has been inversely 

connected. Set charger switches to off position and/or removeDC cord from the DC supply, disconnect the battery clips, then 

reconnect correctly according to the instructions below.

15. FOLLOW THESE STEPS WHEN BATTERY IS INSTALLED IN VEHICLE. A SPARK 

NEAR A BATTERY MAY CAUSE BATTERY EXPLOSION. TO REDUCE RISK OF A 

SPARK NEAR BATTERY :

a) Position AC and DC cords so as to reduce risk of damage by hood, door or moving engine part.

b) Stay clear of fan -blades, belts,pulleys,and other parts that can cause injury to persons.

c) Check polarity of battery posts.POSITIVE (POS, P, +) battery post usually has larger diameter than NEGATIVE (NEG, N,–) post. 

d) Determine which post of battery is grounded (connected) to the chassis. If negative post is grounded to chassis (as in most 

vehicles),see (e). If positive post is grounded to the chassis,see (f).

e) For negative-grounded vehicle, connect POSITIVE (RED) clip from battery charger to POSITIVE (POS, P, + ) ungrounded post of 

battery. Connect NEGATIVE (BLACK) clip to vehicle chassis or engine block away from battery. Do not connect clip to carburetor, fuel 

lines, or sheet-metal body parts. Connect to a heavy gage metal part of the frame or engine block.

f) For positive-grounded vehicle, connect NEGATIVE (BLACK) clip from battery charger to NEGATIVE (NEG. N , -) ungrounded post of 

battery. Connect POSITIVE (RED) clip to vehicle chassis or engine block away from battery. Do not connect clip to carburetor, fuel 

lines, or sheet-metal body parts. Connect to a heavy gage metal part of the frame or engine block.

g) When disconnecting charger, turn switches to off, disconnect AC cord,remove clip from vehicle chassis,and then remove clip from 

battery terminal.

h) See operating instructions for length of charge information.

16. FOLLOW THESE STEPS WHEN BATTERY IS OUTSIDE VEHICLE. A SPARK NEAR THE BATTERY MAY CAUSE BATTERY 

EXPLOSION. TO REDUCE RISK OF A SPARK NEAR BATTERY :

a) Check polarity of battery posts. POSITIVE (POS, P, +) battery post usually has a larger diameter than NEGATIVE (NEG,N, -) post.

b) This battery charger has an automatic safety feature that will prevent it from operating if the battery has been inversely connected. 

The charger does not allow charge current unless a voltage of at least 1V is sensed.  

c) Connect POSITIVE (RED) charger clip to POSITIVE (POS, P, +) post of battery.

d) Connect NEGATIVE (BLACK) charger clip to NEGATIVE (NEG, N, -) battery post of the battery.

e) Do not face battery when making final connection.

f) When disconnecting charger, always do so in reverse sequence of connecting procedure & break first connection while as far away 

from battery as practical.

g) A marine (boat) battery must be removed & charged on shore. To charge it on board requires equipment specially designed for 

marine use.

SAFETY US & C

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