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more chargin problems

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bryguy00b

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new alt, new batt., still not charging right, its not consistent, sometimes it will be on 13, other times its to low, but today this battery which is new was dead so its obviosly not doing its job. voltage regualtor is what one person suggested to me...could it be? i dunno..should i just go get another alt? ive checked voltage at the connections and all that as mentioned in my other post about it and it all looked good.
 
I am assuming you have check all the connections and they are good? With the vehicle running what is the voltage on the battery? Should be 13+ volts. Turn the headlights on, if the voltage drops then picks back up your voltage regulator is fine and you need to look elsewhere. If it drops and doesn't pick up then that is problem. Which it is in the Alt so take it back and have them give you a new one it's bad. Be sure it is getting juice to start. There will be at least 3 wires (unless you have a 1-wire which is doubtfull) going to alt. 2 of these will be a in a plug that plugs into the side. The red wire should have voltage when key is on, if it doesn't then that is your problem. An alt. (unless a 1 wire) needs voltage to start with to get going to charge. Easy check to see if alt is working is start it and unhook battery, if it dies then alt. isn't working. If it keeps running alt. is working something else is problem. Dirty cables are most common problem and can cause charging issues look for corrosion inside connecters, not uncommon to cut open the premade ones and find them corroed inside why I always use bolt on battery connectors and make my own cables.
 
Now that you have anew battery and alternator installed, charge the battery overnight, and take it down to an auto parts store that checks charging systems for free. Sometimes you do get a bad alternator. Have them check out the system and see what kind of voltage and amperage the alternator is putting out, also what it does when it load tests it. Other than that make absolute sure you have all wires reconnected, i did this once, forgot to hook up the wire with the plug on it. /forums/images/graemlins/doah.gif
 
i dont beileve there are any type stores that check the system for you..just ur battery..maybe ill call around though and see if any shops can check it out. i will check to see if the voltage drops and does/doesnt pick back up though..rainging right now..
 
yes..but i didnt think they did that...i dunno though i go in there almost everyday and i think i would get laughed outa there if i brought my truck for a test haha
 
You should be able to bring just the altenator in to be tested. The vltage regualtor is internal to it, so you will find out right away if its good or not. Most likely it sounds like a problem with the wiring somewhere. Start by testing the obvious (and easy) first, and move from there. /forums/images/graemlins/waytogo.gif
 
their machine only tests for voltage, it does not test for amperage, the best way is to take the whole ride down there and test it on the vehicle.
 
autozone can test for ampage if you take it in. I saw the machine yesterday and it actually has a belt that spins the alternator. They advertise that they can check in vehicle also so hit them up.
 
You cannot test the current that an alternator puts out. If you guys had ever used an ammeter you'd understand why. It must be used in series (you have to disconnect the alternator and put the meter in between the disconnected part) with the load, and very few DC ammeters can measure 70-150 amps that an alternator can put out safely.

There is no reason to check current flow anyway.

I used to work at Autozone as many of you know, but I'll tell you the most efficient way to test your alternator, and you can do it anywhere.

Put a VOLTMETER across your battery (voltmeters work in parallel) and turn on all of your electrical accessories. That means headlights, wipers, heat, radio, the whole nine yards. If at any time the voltage drops below 13, your alternator isn't charging your battery as it should.

You can test your battery's state of charge with the engine off, too. 12.6 volts is a 98% state of charge. 12.0 is a completely discharged battery.
 
Btw guys, "amperage" although I'm sure is a word is really not a correct way to refer to electrical current. The correct term would be, "current" or at least that's the way it has always been referred to around me.
 
am·per·age ( P ) Pronunciation Key (mpr-j, mpîr-)
n.
The strength of an electric current expressed in amperes

Amperage or current can both be used Ampere(A) is the measurement of current(I).
 
Like I said, I'm sure it's a word, but I have never heard anyone that knew what they were talking about refer to it that way.

The "I" you refer to is commonly used to represent current in an equation. "I" stands for, "intensity".

Typically you'll see, I = E/R or something along those lines. "I" = intensity/current, expressed in Amps, E = Electromotive force, expressed in Volts, and R = resistance, expressed in Ohms.

Worthless electrical know-how, I suppose. /forums/images/graemlins/rotfl.gif /forums/images/graemlins/thumb.gif
 
well when i just sit there and look at the volt gauge it will be on 13 sometimes, sometimes not, but whe i turn the heat on or allmost anything it goes down to far..shouldnt move at all really..
 
the belt seemed pretty tight when i checked it and yes that thought was one of the first to go through my head..ill recheck it..the belt did have a LOT of cracks in it though..but it may be loose cause i can sometimes hear it sqeel at high rpms even...
 
change that belt. that could explain why your seeing drops in volts sometimes(when it slips)
 
put youre meter on it while it is running and check youre wires that hook to the alternator I have had two different tks that the plug are the wires that go into the plug for the alternator have broke and are only touching half the time the first truck went through 3 alternators before I figured it out. /forums/images/graemlins/whistling.gif /forums/images/graemlins/crewcab.gif /forums/images/graemlins/k5.gif
 
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