I have a jet ski and car batteries I use this on. All you have to do is hook up the jumpers to your battery and plug it in. It will tell you all you need to know and charge it for you. This was the selling point for me. 👍👍👍
Awesome video brother. Really explains the whole thing perfectly. I read the comments as well and learned that it won’t jump the car if you’re on the side of the road without a power outlet. Thanks again
Um, the 6v-2v mode is called the battery "tender" mode. Or maintenance mode. Not "tinner" mode. Intuitive use of this charger leaves a lot to be desired. I was wanting to activate the regenerative mode. Supposedly, its is automatic on this charger. Probably more so in the 6v-2v mode. In my past experience, I've found a good heavy charge will help bring a dead non-chargable battery back to life. It seems to burn the sulfides off of the plates better. Then you can go to a lower charge for a full charge. I bought this because my mom confiscated my new Black & Decker 15A charger with Recondition mode. It worked but was slow to charge and I wasn't overly impressed with the recondition mode. Stanley and another company sell the exact same unit, just different colors. If you by one of these, buy the 30A version. Much better and faster charging unit. Harder to come by but worth it. I bought this unit SC1282 for the desulfinate mode. I was taking my batteries to Oriellys and Autozone to have them charge them. Almost everytime, "bad battery" would you like to buy a new one? Nope! I think their charges are setup to show a bad battery for sales reasons. Employee knows no difference and they hopefully sell a battery. Put this on a Duralast Gold battery(AZ) that they said was bad. Only charged to 9.8V. Put it on 6v-2v overnight. Next morning 100% charged. Dropped it on the car and it spun the starter over like mad in a 2009 Chrysler 300. These batteries are located in the trunk and have a long cable pretty much from tail light to headlight. It takes a good battery just to spin these cars over let alone really spin it hard. Saved me $200+ on having to buy a new battery. I have at least 10 more batteries to charge so we'll see how it goes.
OMG Thank you a Year owning this myself and I have been stumped I kind of just wake up and see if its charged in the morning. I thought it was also broken. Thank you so much.
The % your are trying to see is actually the % of charge, not remaining life (expectancy). To get that you will need a good digital load test machine that tests the battery in a working state. You are correct about this being not very intuitive. But thank you for the review. It did answer a few questions about mine (same one). One word of personal advice/ opinion, find a local battery dealer vs parts house/big box store if you are not versed in batteries. Today's cars and equipment will/can suffer if the wrong type is installed and may void warranties. I'm a certified diesel tech. and have first hand experience on that issue. Your local battery store is trained by their suppliers where as parts houses get trained by co-workers and videos. At the very least, your supporting a local business owner.
I've figured out your problem with it not reading on the 30 amp boost mode. This unit will not charge in the 30 amp boost mode when the battery reaches 90 percent or higher. It will only allow you to charge at the lower charge rate until it reaches 100% which is why it shows the percentage when you switch it to the lower rate. So when the battery is over 90% it wont boost charge. I opted for the dedicated marine charger from this manufacturer which is the SC1280 which charges at 15 amps until it reaches 100%. If the 1281 had the 15 amp selection it would make it the perfect charger. It sucks that they don't make one. Also if someone is looking for a smart charger make sure it will charge if the battery is near dead as some chargers will not. These ones mentioned will charge a dead battery. Hope this helps someone.. Please let me know if it did, thanks.
@@SkyHawk2849 Yes it charges a dead battery and yes the boost mode will shut off at 90 percent and automatically go into to slower charging rate till it reaches 100 percent.
Yes I found out the hard way about not all chargers will charge a dead battery. Bought a step down below this one was 60.00 Walmart. Looked like a good charger. Would not charge a dead battery. What is the purpose of a charger not charging a dead battery 😡. So I returned it and bought this on for 80.00 it worked.
Thank you so much for this video. My neighbor has the same model and it works great, so I ordered one. When I went to charge my battery, the % charged indicator did not work in the 30A boost mode. I went back over to my neighbors house to double check if his showed % in 30A mode and it did!! I thought my charger was defective. Googled the internet, searched youtube, called customer service - no luck It's the weekend so I was getting ready to send back to Amazon and decided to try youtube one more time. I found your video with the exact problem I was having! Thanks again! Now I don't have to go through the hassle of sending it back and probably getting another one with the same problem. 😅
You are absolutely right about these chargers. I have the SC1282, even the user manual is not clear on the led lights. For me when I first turn it on, I have 2 led lights that goes to green, but there is nothing the manual that says anything about this. I called Schumacher support and it didn't really help.
Best review that explains the 62A CHARGE and % relationship. 30A BOOST mode never gets to CHARGED/MAINTENANCE either - weird that it doesn't auto switch to 6
Fun story, let's talk about Alternator Testing. This unit "tests" the alternator output while the vehicle is running. 1. Connect the unit properly. 2. Plug into ground 120V AC outlet. 3. Start the vehicle, rev to 2000 rpm for 30 seconds and turn on headlight and/or other accessories. 4. Read the voltage on the digital display, 13.4-14.6v output means alternator should be good. 14.6 might be a problem. Readout only, there is no outright indicator for it. This is paraphrased from the user manual.
It's simple . It shows the percentage of charge as it charges.. You don't have to do anything. What seems odd to me is how it charges a 6 volt battery. It goes off and on constantly and keeps showing 12 volt
I think the word you are looking for is "Tender mode" it is a mode designed to tend to the battery as it needs charge and shuts off when it don't. I don't trust battery tenders.
Thanks for the video. I have the model SE-82-6... I GOT a 6 AMP, and a 2Amp and the super charge. You must have a newer model. I was out doing in my truck and I wanted to hear music so I started my truck and within an hour I noticed it wasn't running. Never had it happen when it's running, which I will go fishing at night and have it started but had it turned off. Do u have knowledge of what could have caused this
Can u please let me know about the 100Amp engine start please ? Does it mean we can keep it on that option and it will supply 100 Amps helping the weak battery to jump start the car ? B'cos usually CCA is around 650 Amps.
The 100 amp engine start boost, only provides the 100 amps when the charger detects the current draw from the starter. That setting won't charge your battery at 100 amps. Also, it only applies the amps for 3 minutes, then you have to wait 3 minutes before you can use it again.
Mine lasted less than 1 year. Now it does not start, no lights, no nothing. No fuse so it's not even serviceable. They don't make anything to last anymore.
I hooked my SC1281 today for the first time. While charging at the 30a setting, my display will read the volts, then the %, then the volts, then %, etc... My Sc10030A's had a separate button for % and volts. All these manufactures are making 'new and improved' products while decreasing useful options. It really sucks. I hate 'new' stuff.
how about a simple instruction on how to hook this up to your battery in your car? The older model Schumacher I have in front of me does not have a ±, just colors. Is the red the positive feed on the battery charger?
When you say % of battery life, do you mean battery life, or do you me the % of charge that is in the battery? I assume the latter. Also when you are saying tennor, I'm assuming you are saying tender? As in a battery tender?
Haha, yes, Tender! I'm in Utah, no accent, but our D's & T's are silent in this region of Utah & Idaho. ;o) I was referring to the 'charge' that is in the battery. Thank you for comment.
My Schumacher SC1281 died it was left in a rain charging. Is there something easy to test that could be an easy fix on it or is it good for the landfill?
My charger I bought Model SC1282 doesn't want to charge my car battery. I press START and the orange light turns on for 10 seconds. It says charging then the light turns Green saying "Charged". Not sure why it keeps doing that. So I had to take the battery to Autzone to get my battery charged.
I know you're biggest complaint is about the percentage of a battery. I'm speculating that manufacturers or programmers are lazy. so they assume certain voltage everyone knows what the percentage of a battery if they have a chart. And that's what I go by. I use a multimeter to check voltage and use a chart (downloaded from Google) to check battery percentage.
Thanks for sharing this info. I also couldn’t figure out how to see the %. Last night I charged my battery (11.6V) at 30A. The next morning it still said charging. It never went to charged/maintenance mode. Do you know if this is normal? I measured the battery with my voltmeter and it was already at 12.8.
This is what mine does as well...It'll keep charging at 30A until I stop it, or switch it to maintenance mode. I once read a comment from someone on here saying they were able to receive a % reading while on 30A charge (I think it should). This same subscriber suggest mine was built on a Monday or Friday. Lol, if that's the case; sounds like yours was built on a Monday or Friday as well. Who knows. Thank you for your comment. :o)
Thanks for the reply. I found out and also read here that the 30A setting is only to boost it in prep to start it with the 100A setting. The 2A/6A setting charged my battery at 100% and automatically shut down. It is also the only way I can get the % reading.
19% is an indication your batter is 'BAD' ... most likely will not hold a charge. If a batter gets below 50% is bad. Might need another battery. You can take your battery to a local auto parts store, and they will test it for you to confirm if your batter is no good or rechargeable. Good luck.
got one last week it sucks"bought a new deep cell marine as well can't keep a charge a light bulb 2 different inverters two different battery's 2 different light fixtures' Whats your bet it's the charger ?
I think it would have been nice if you would have shown all the features on this battery so that people that have this type of charger or perhaps find his charger more appealing if they saw all the different features that this charger offers and also the safety features as well should have been explained that this unit has or doesn't have for the people that charge their batteries at home not in a professional capacity but in a do-it-yourself capacity
Mines says “ 0.0 “ does that mean it’s fully charged ? And do I have to plug in the charger to use it to boost my car ? I need to jump my car right now as we speak
This is a good question. Your battery will charge while connected to your car--However, there is always the risk of causing damage to other electrical components within your car; so I would not recommend charging your battery while connected to anything else...this is the safest way. This unit is also a jumpstart as well. Obviously you'll need to have this battery connected if jumpstarting. But if I have the time and means, I would disconnect and charge first, just to help avoid damage to other electrical components on my vehicle.
How long does it take to charge your battery? Mines been sitting on charge for over a day on any battery i put it on and never reach fully charged mode. I put an ammeter on to see how many amps it pulls and it always less than one amp.
On the 30-amp charge; only about 20 to 30 minutes at the most. Are you sure you're charging from the 30-amp mode? Your battery might be bad..perhaps it's not holding a charge. You could take your battery to a local auto supply store, they'll charge and test it for you at no charge in most cases.
@@fixintodoitall It's not the battery. It finally charged on the other setting. The charger 30A boost is not working. When it's in that mode the wattmeter/minder shows its only pulling like .006 amps. I managed to trickle-charge it on the tenner setting as it was working but barely. It was pulling like only 30 watts at it's highest point the whole time. Took two days. This is probably one of those "just out of warranty" things too because I bought it a couple years ago and never really used it until lately. =(
@homesteader9 I charged my battery at 30A overnight and it never went to charged/maintenance. I thought it was supposed to automatically switch to 2A/6A. I measured my battery’s voltage with an anmeter and it was at 12.8V.
New out of the box mine don’t work. You plug it in. Clamp it to the battery. The way it goes !! Set it to the battery type and on 30amp. And hit start. And it says on then it instantly goes to off. I’m thinking it’s a piece of shiz. ?? Don’t think I’m doing anything wrong.
Sounds like it's not working correctly. I'd take it back to the retailer and either exchange or return it. I'm still pretty happy with my Schumacher; I wish the features were a little more straight forward, regardless it keeps my batteries charged. Thank you for sharing!
Absorbed Glass Mat is the type battery most garden tracker’s and Motorcycle. Thx guy You loose 1% of your battery every month if not used ! #alwaysuseatender
My SC1281 will have a humming, humming, humming noise when plug in the charger with no load. And those humming, humming noise will go away once connect to the battery and start to charge. Is this normal for everyone? Thank you.
@@fixintodoitall thank you. I guess I should've rephrased it. What will happen if I do use an extension cord? I dont have any other means of plugging it in
I think you'll be fine if you use an extension cord if it allows higher amps to pass through. Make sure your extension cord is 12 gauge or 10. 14 gauge might not allow enough amps to pass through for the charger to properly work. This is my guess as to why Schumacher discourages an extension cord. Too hard for most to identify the difference between a 14 gauge vs 12 gauge unless you see it on the package when purchased from a retailer. For example, I don't even know if Walmart sells 12 gauge extension cords. Might have to get one from Home Depot, Lowes or Menards, etc.
@mike, I would follow those instructions. Disconnect your car battery before recharging your car battery. This is the safest option for the electrical on your car.
I believe the reason you can only see the % of battery charge (tender mode only) is because a higher amperage (from supply) would be misleading- as the supply is “supporting” the battery terminal voltage. (My qualification is a bachelor degree in electronics and having been in the industry for 30+ years. Not bragging- just sharing my credentials).
If it's new, return it, exchange it for another, or get your money back. If it's too late to return, my only guess would be perhaps the power source is no good, tripped or something might be wrong with your cord to your unit. Maybe you fried the main board to this unit. It's really hard to say, it could be so many different scenarios. Good luck. Thank you for your question and for your support!
i got the nearly identical $40 model SC1323 its a real pain to get it charge... maybe my connections arent good enough, but eventually it starts charging if i keep trying... horrible little machine.
@@fixintodoitall I bought a used Schumacher SC1281. When I plug it in to charge the unit itself ... no lights come on. I was expecting to see a light showing it charging ... or center LED light turn on telling me something... like how much current charge holding within unit ... something. Result ... nothing lights up. I plug directly into wall outlet ... nothing. Wait a minute or two ... still nothing. Plug into a different outlet know is good outlet ... nothing. Push START/STOP button ... nothing. I'm afraid may have purchased a broken unit. Your thoughts ?
I have an older Shumacher battery charger, model XC75W. The button interface is older and I think slightly more intuitive. But in general Schumacher has mediocre customer support and documentation that is very lacking in their products.
@@fixintodoitall I meant that I wanted to see the cord that charges the charger - I can’t find one anywhere- I apologize -my frustration did make my comment seem gruff
@Daniel Lang I guess you're right--It came out wrong! My mistake in not spending the time editing/correcting it. Awfully critical from someone who's never produced a RU-vid video themselves. I'll tell you what, you win the 'Biggest Jerk' award from the 'Fixin To Do It' channel. Congratulations! Don't forget to share this award with your mom. I'm sure she'll be proud. 😂
