The invention discloses a composite tensioning device applied in the heavy plate feeder industry. The whole device consists of a sliding bearing seat, a supporting wheel, a tensioning shaft, an expansion sleeve, a lead screw, a nut, a composite spring, an oil cylinder, a manual oil pump, a pressure gauge and a pipeline, wherein the sliding bearing seat, the supporting wheel and the expansion sleeve are arranged on the tensioning shaft and arranged on a tail rack; the supporting wheel supports a chain on a link plate device; the front of the sliding bearing seat is hinged with the oil cylinder together, a base of the oil cylinder is welded on the tail rack, and the back of the sliding bearing seat is connected with the lead screw; and the lead screw passes through the tail rack and is screwed down through the composite spring and the nut. An operating method for the composite tensioning device comprises that: pressure oil passes through the pipeline, the pressure gauge and the oil cylinder by simultaneous left and right pressing of a handle of the manual oil pump to drive the tensioning shaft, the supporting wheel and the link plate device to move backwards together at the same time of pushing the sliding bearing seat to move backwards on the tail rack, and the nut on the lead screw is screwed down after the chain reaches a certain pre-tensioning force. The device has the advantages of low labor intensity, high strength, long service life of members and reasonable structure, ensures the reliable and safe operation of products, and meets the requirements of process and design aspects.