Thread: 47-55.1 Battery charging issues
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Old 01-11-2021, 06:00 PM   #5
1project2many
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Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: Lakes Region NH
Posts: 3,158
Re: Battery charging issues

Quote:
What are your opinions on battery tenders?
Do you have anything electronic in that truck? Clock? New radio? Are you using a solid state voltage regulator or a mechanical points type? If there's nothing drawing power the battery should remain charged for a *long* time. My Plymouth sits through the entire winter without a charge and the four year old battery will usually crank the engine enough for it to fire off with starting fluid! Some simple checks include visually looking at the top of the battery for water/acid which can discharge the battery across the terminals, and watching for sparks when reconnecting the battery cables. If you have sparks, confirm nothing is switched on then suspect stuck points in the regulator as previously mentioned. If the points are stuck the generator may be trying to turn the engine and will get warm to the touch.

One other thing to note is that charging voltage is important with old or reproduction lead-acid batteries. Generator systems with mechanical regulators tended to need tweaking to match the type of driving the vehicle sees most. If you do more highway driving you would set the regulator for voltage on the lower end of the scale to prevent the electrolyte from getting too warm and evaporating out of the battery where it will condense on the top of the battery. If you find the battery is wet then suspect the charge voltage is climbing too high. Clean the battery then begin testing.

Keep the manual handy!

Also, if you'd like to make some modifications to your system which can be hidden from sight, there are a number of solutions to put a solid state regulator into the system. It might be worth it to convert...

Last edited by 1project2many; 01-11-2021 at 06:11 PM.
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