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Argus BB-SBM12 Battery Bug Starting Battery Monitor

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  • List Price: $39.95
  • Our Price: $32.97
  • You save: $6.98 (17 %)
  • Manufacturer: Argus
  • Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
  • Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 Stars
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Product Details

Editorial Reviews

Product Description: Argus Battery Bug Starting Battery Monitor provides real-time information on the health of the car battery or other engine starting battery. This battery monitor checks the battery at every start while it displays the remaining battery life, present battery voltage and alternator or charging voltage. It comes with an alarm which alerts when the battery gets old and nears the end of its life.

Amazon.com Product Description: You count on your vehicle's ability to crank every time, so don't get left in the dark by a dead car battery. The Argus BB-SMB12 Battery Bug Starting Battery Monitor uses advanced CrankCheck technology to test the health of the battery every time the engine is started, tracking the decay of cranking health over time. It clearly indicates battery health on the easy-to-read display, and audibly alerts you when performance begins to drop to dangerously low levels.


The Battery Bug is compact and easy to install.
Extend Battery Life by Avoiding Damaging Charge Conditions
It's a fact: any battery will naturally lose its charge over time, no matter if it's in your daily driver or a garaged beauty. Once fully discharged, a battery will start to permanently lose its overall capacity. This results in weaker performance, even when fully recharged.

The Argus BB-SMB12 Battery Bug Starting Battery Monitor can significantly extend your battery's life by monitoring its charge level. Its on-board microprocessor continuously monitors decay in battery cranking performance and calculates your battery's total state of cranking health. It also monitors alternator and charger performance for damaging over-charge and under-charge conditions. If the battery reaches a low state of charge, the Battery Bug will sound an audible alarm indicating the need for recharge or replacement. Perfect for colder climates, the Battery Bug also measures battery temperature and adjusts the cranking state of health alarm for extreme low temperatures.


The display is easy to read and understand.
Intuitive Display and Alarms Provide a Clear Picture of Battery Health
The Battery Bug's information-packed LCD display shows critical battery health and performance information that's easy to read and understand. A graphical indication of cranking health remaining and the performance of the most recent engine start appear at the top of the display. Below that is a numerical gauge that shows cranking health remaining, battery voltage, and alternator/charger voltage. Low Battery and Replace Battery icons at the bottom of the display indicate what actions need to be taken when the audible alarm is active.

If the battery needs attention, the Battery Bug will alert you with its on-board audible alarm. The Low Battery alarm will sound when a chronic undercharge condition (below 12.1V for more than 30 seconds) is detected. An overcharge alarm will sound when the alternator or charger voltage exceeds 15 Volts. Finally, the Replace Battery alarm will activate if the cranking health of the battery drops below 10%.

Easy to Install in Any Vehicle
The Battery Bug comes equipped with universal "Y" connectors that can be easily attached to most battery posts or clamps. The Battery Bug can also be attached to remote battery terminals without significantly affecting test results. It's engineered tough to survive under the hood, and the coiled cables let you place it up to 18 inches away from the battery. The Battery Bug consumes very little power--about the same amount as your vehicle's digital clock--and will not adversely affect battery performance. The Battery Bug can also be attached to two batteries in parallel, and the preferred installation is to attach it diagonally across the pack. The black wire should attach to the negative post at one end of the pack, and the red wire should attach to the positive post at the other end of the pack.

The Battery Bug is easy to reset as well, just disconnect one of its wires and the memory will be erased. It is recommended that you reset the Battery Bug if it shows the Replace Battery icon. If the Replace Battery icon illuminates again at the next attempted start, you can be confident that a battery replacement is justified.

Choosing the Battery Bug That's Right for You
The CrankCheck and charge level monitoring software embedded in the Argus BB-SMB12 Battery Bug Starting Battery Monitor is designed specifically for cars, light trucks, emergency equipment, generators, and other starting batteries for engines typically larger than 1500CC. For motorcycle, power sports equipment, and other small engine starting batteries, choose the Argus BB-SBM12-PS Battery Bug Battery Monitor for Motorcycles.

The Argus Battery Bug Deep Cycle Series is recommended for marine, RV, worksite, and other heavy-duty applications that involve deep-cycle batteries. Choose the BB-DCM12-300 for applications up to 300Ah, the BB-DCM12-150 for applications up to 150Ah, BB-DCM12-100 for applications up to 100Ah, or the BB-DCM12-90 for applications up to 90Ah.

  • Features: Helps prevent owners from being stranded by a dead battery, Extends battery life by alerting users to damaging charge conditions, Advanced CrankCheck technology tests battery health every time the engine is started, Audible alarms and an easy-to-read LCD screen keep users informed of battery status, Designed specifically for automobile engine starting applications
  • Manufacturer: Argus
  • Part #: BB-SBM12

    • Customer Reviews

     
    Outstanding design; well built. And it works!
    Reviewer: dallas7 (Phoenix AZ USA), Date of review: January 15, 2010
    Avg. Customer Rating: 5 Stars
    In September, 2008 I attached the BB-SBM12 to the Optima battery (new in August, 2006) in my 2003 S-10 at which point the cranking health read 87%. Since then that value has dropped to 81%.

    In May, 2009, I attached the BB-SBM12-PS to the Deka battery (new in August, 2008) in my 2004 Kawasaki Z1000... 92%. Now it's 78%.

    Obviously, they're working! The Battery Bug is worth every penny. Though I haven't yet gotten to a point where the audible alarm would sound, there is no reason for me to believe it would not considering everything else works as advertised and with excellence.
    Don't waste your money
    Reviewer: Alexander Don-Doncow (San Francisco,CA USA), Date of review: January 13, 2010
    Avg. Customer Rating: 2 Stars

    2 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

    The device does not do what it is supposed to do. Failed to provide timely warning of imminent battery failure. Also I could not get it to provide some of the information it was supposed to provide according to the instructions. I feel this device is a gimmick not worth putting on your car, just check your battery once in a while as you should!
    It does provide voltage info, and that is the only reason I gave it two stars...
    replaces a $350 logging DVM to evaluate starting batteries
    Reviewer: HMMWV (santa clara, CA USA), Date of review: January 04, 2010
    Avg. Customer Rating: 5 Stars

    1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

    UPDATE - 3+ months of usage

    I bought this and installed it per the instructions - found an easy place to wedge the + and - cables in.

    What I did not realize was I inserted a .050" gap on the negative lead going to ground. As a result, in a few months it vibrated a bit loose to the point it could be rotated by hand.

    How did I notice this? This thing beeps when your battery life is near (or at) zero!. Alot of stuff in my house beeps, but every day leaving the car I heard a beeping - finally found it under the hood of all places. Before calling the bomb squad I popped the hood and my 35% had suddenly dropped to 0% remaining, yet the car still worked fine.

    I found the loose negative, caused by installing the bug late at night, fixed it (BTW - leave it off a battery for 30 seconds as it counts down to 00 and it thinks you changed batteries). Then I put a high quality charger on overnight and started it the next morning.

    First start was 50% remaining, 4th start was 42% remaining and it's stayed there ever since. And no more beeping.

    -===end of update===-


    Prior to the battery bug the most common way to judge a starting battery's health was to measure the minimum voltage while starting the engine. A logging voltmeter clipped to the battery terminals while cranking was always an effective way to judge how much life was left in the battery. The battery bug effectively does this and alot more. When the engine is not running the display alternates between battery voltage and % life remaining (my 2004 battery in 2010 shows 35% remaining which is about right, I know its time to buy a new battery based on age.) With the engine running the display shows the charging voltage on the battery to help rule out any problems with the alternator, and continues to show the battery voltage with the engine off.

    What I particularly like about the battery bug is that it does not produce erroneous lifetime readings based on the state of charge. As an example of this, I bought a brand new car which came with a bad battery (1 dead cell) - I had to overcharge it to drive it to the dealer where they used their dealer approved battery checker that indicated "battery is fine" since I had just finished overcharging it to drive the car. I drove home, left the headlights on for a few hours, then jumpstarted the car and returned to the service department where the company approved tester showed "battery is bad" which was required to get a warantee replacement.

    The battery bug does display the battery voltage, however the life remaining calculations are made based on the voltage drop during engine cranking so you must connect it then start the engine to get a % life remaining calculation. After that the voltage and %life numbers are updated every time you start the engine.

    For the price (about 1/10 that of a logging voltmeter) and simplicity this offers an easy to read and accurate representation of your battery's state. It's unbiased report is much appreciated since a battery charger doesn't affect the % life remaining readout.
    Little Quick Hook-Up Device
    Reviewer: Slo-Hand , Date of review: December 14, 2009
    Avg. Customer Rating: 4 Stars

    1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

    This small,relatively high priced item hooks up quickly to a standard post car battery. Once you've made the connection it will begin a 30 second countdown. Now you start your engine and come out to see your battery strength as a percentage and the charge voltage. The 1st number tells you if you need to charge your battery or run your charging system and the second number tells you how well your charging system is operating. It recently helped me to get out in front of a 70% charged new battery that barely had enough juice in it to turn over my Subaru Outback Wagon in bitter cold -6 degree F weather. I ran a 6 amp charge for 3 hours and that solved my problem. The 2 amp charge was hardly registering in those cold conditions which is the method of charging I would have normally used. I've observed that that method of charging will raise the battery's charge by 2-3% per hour in milder conditions. If you have an internal post battery like older Chevy's use then you can use gorilla tape on the battery bug's leads to achieve contact and go through the same procedure. I would not recommend leaving this device attached to the battery as you are courting a malfunction exposing it to the elements and engine temperatures. It's best used as an intermittant tool to gage battery health and save time by getting you out in front of potential problems. Be careful working around hot batteries because they will arc and spark if you cross the leads which is easy to do if you're in a hurry or not paying close attention to what you're doing.
    Good gizmo
    Reviewer: Walter Barke (Seattle, WA USA), Date of review: December 02, 2009
    Avg. Customer Rating: 4 Stars

    2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

    I have two of these things, and they work just like the advertising says they will. The quality is good, they are easy to install, and they will solve some of those vexing battery problems that you wonder about. Such as: is the battery reaching the end of it's life? Should I replace it before I get stranded? Stuff like that.