Charging Issue

[dazzybabie]

Hi All,
So a question.
I don't get too many opportunities to ride these days, and the battery goes flat. Im guessing this is because of the drain caused by the alarm. SO I have been charging my battery using a normal charger (Mistake, I know now - blessed is hindsight) Anyway, I bought a proper charger for gel batteries, complete with a test circuit to tell me if said battery is shagged.
If I charge the battery using this charger, all is well, and the battery will hold charge for a week or more.
However, if I go out for a ride, park up, the bike wont start the next day and the battery needs a charge.
So my question is, how do I go about identifying the problem. I know a few mechanics, and the advice I have been given is as follows...
1) load test the battery, if the battery is good, the voltage? shouldn't drop?
2) check the output of the charging system with a multimeter. it should be 14Volts or above
3) check the wiring loom ground, as this could be corroded. A sign that this is the case would be it getting very hot.
Has anyone had any experience of this as an issue, and what are the steps to take. I have Tunecu, which I think reads the output of the charging system anyway.
What I don't understand is why the battery holds charge, but loses it when the bike is run.
I would appreciate your thoughts and suggestions about this.
Thanks
Daz

 

[Mittzy]

If the charging system is working. It will be either your battery or alarm. If your battery passes a load test, your alarm might be the issue.

 

[Pedro]

Have you checked the green 30 amp fuse. if this blows the battery will not be charging. check all relays for correct fitting in connection or a short to ground.
Maybe Regulator/rectifier has packed a sad

 

[barbagris]

If the battery holds charge - but depletes when ridden then I suspect a connection problem twixt regulator/rectifier and positive terminal on battery or the earth to negative terminal.

Just because the charging light goes out IT DOES NOT MEAN that sufficient AMPS are being fed into the battery to cover the actual running requirements of the bike. There is a strong chance that on a longer ride the bike could simply run out of power.

Had a VERY similar issue on a different vehicle in August. The earth wire had about two strands intact.

ADD A BIG FAT EARTH WIRE. SEE WHAT HAPPENS. And clean all power wire contacts.

UNTIL OTHERWISE PROVEN - ALL ELECTRICAL FAULTS ARE EARTH FAULTS.

 

[TURBO200R4]

how old is your bat . you might try to monitor your bat checking voltage before you start,while you are trying to start.
what does it do when it fails to start. if it just clicks you might have an ign prob.
if you have good bat volts when cranking try monitor the fuse for the ign. if the voltage is down there you may have ign switch prob.,
herman

 

[dazzybabie]

Hi All,

Im going to check all the straps to the battery. Ive had the battery load tested, and its dropping by 2 volts under load.
The battery reads about 13 amps on the bike and upto 14.2 when charging. It drops to about 14.1 when I switch on the heated grips.
So I know its charging correct, I know it can handle the heated grips, and I know that the battery is good.
I can only guess its the leads to the battery. I think the earth will be my first point of enquiry.
Thanks for your ideas folks

Daz

 

[CanberraR3]

I know this sounds really simple, but it worked for me. In addition to the above, I'd also look at changing the terminal bolts on your battery. I have a few wires attached to mine and the bolts were only just long enough to do up. Plus a small amount of crud had built up on them. I got some new, slightly longer bolts and it seemed to make the world of difference. Depending on the way you connect your charger, it could be making a direct contact with the terminals, whereas your other wires depend on the bolts for connection. Just a thought and something really simple to do. I should say that the other thing I did was more regular riding but I had been plagued with none starting for 2 winters whether I rode or not. The tender I was using was connected via a pigtail and once or twice hadn't charged the battery overnight. This made me think of the bolts, and it fixed it.