SOK Battery 112v on a 12V battery?????

[HighTechLab]

Sometimes, you just have to ask the community, WTF???

Quote from customer inquiry:

We had one battery reading 112v. He placed the battery outdoors. This morning the battery is reading 125v. We checked the voltage meter against several other batteries using 4 voltage meters. Only one voltage reader would read up that high, the other 3 meters would not read. We moved the battery farther from the house due to the increased reading when we expected a drop from being out overnight.

Please advise us as to what to do with this battery. If it has a short, should we attempt to lift the top? Do we have any other options or just wait for it to catch fire?

In my mind, the battery cannot create a voltage this high, and if it could, it would have been on fire a long time ago...Any speculation or thoughts on how a battery that is disconnected could be reading a voltage this high? I'm out of ideas. I suspect it's the low-cost meter, but how can a meter be a full order of magnitude off?

Any suggestions much appreciated.
Pictures - Meter testing good battery showing 10.7v and on "bad" battery showing 125.9v with the same settings

 

[corn18]

Looks like the second meter reading is in mV (that's what is showing on the display).

 

[dr.diesel]

BMS disconnected the cells and reading mV like posted above?

I've also seen cheap meters read way off just before they shut off due to low battery.

 

[Bud Martin]

Looks like the second meter reading is in mV (that's what is showing on the display).

Yep! 125 mV. I think the customer should read the meter user manuals.

 

[Steve_S]

I can replicate that Really Easy, just put the DVOM on the wrong setting.
BUT

We checked the voltage meter against several other batteries using 4 voltage meters. Only one voltage reader would read up that high, the other 3 meters would not read.

with 4 Other meters ? oi, what can one say... But 1 Batt reads 10.7 and the other 125 without settings changed, with that Kobalt DMM. I dunno Kobalt but I know its the cheap house brand for a big-box right. If the other meters were same brand, then... Get a REAL dvom and learn to use it would be my suggestion to them. A decent $50 brand name will serve well for years.

WTF???

Exactly. If it did such a crazy thing it would have caught fire long before. Now an Ultra High Amp dump from LFP is quite possible but a totally different thing. I have to say, if this is one of your clients, I wish you the absolute best of luck my friend. There are several good vid's on YT that cover everything generically.

 

[HighTechLab]

Looks like the second meter reading is in mV (that's what is showing on the display).

DOH!!!! You got it, this is EXACTLY what was going on. I am amazed I missed this!

Battery 1 autoranged properly. Battery 2 went to MV range because BMS was cut off. This is why the other 3 meters woldn't read because they are not auto-ranging meters.

 

[JRUD]

Probably the smiley tat on wrist

AGREED. My recommendation would be to buy lots of long sleeve shirts to cover that bad, prison tat.