capacity test

A controlled constant-current discharge of a battery to measure the amp-hours it actually delivers against its rating.

The capacity test discharges the bank at constant current from full charge down to the final discharge voltage, timing how long it takes. Current times time gives the real amp-hours, compared against the nameplate value corrected for temperature.

It is the only test that truly answers the question that matters in a backup system: how long the bank will hold when the supply fails. Float voltage, internal impedance and conductance are useful, quick indicators, but none replaces a real discharge.

IEEE 450 for vented batteries and IEEE 1188 for valve-regulated ones set the frequency and the criterion: end of life is taken as capacity falling below 80 % of rating, because beyond that point the decline accelerates. The usual discharge current corresponds to the C/8 or C/10 rate.

Equipment for this measurement

See the range