Dead battery.

[Russ_C]

as the title really, been away for 2 weeks, and as it is dry i decided to go for a ride to try out the new gel seat, only to find i have a dead battery, got the fuel pump noise, and all lights/dash came on, and could hear the bike trying to start. checked on here that it was ok to jump from a car, so i did and left the bike running for 10 or so mins, the bike seemed to be running ok so i turned it off, left it till the alarm turned its self on, turnt the alarm off and tried to start the bike again, and all i got was the same as before.
is this my alarm drianing the battery?
should i take the alarm out and get some other kind of security?

i do have a 12v socket conected to the battery aswell but nothing was pluged into this. and i am unable to use a trickle charger as the bike is kept outside under a cover.

[warrenhewitt10]

its very likely the alarm is draining it, disconnect it and see how the battery holds up.

And is your 12v socket one of the ones that has the light on it to tell you it is hooked up? I know it would use tiny amounts of electricity like but worth a look

[Russ_C]

i have no idea how to disconect the alarm, the last time i disconected the battery the alarm did go off though, and the 12v socket doesn't have a light on it.

[WeegieBlue]

Take it for a spin once it's got some charge. I flattened my battery this weekend when fitting a tail tidy. Gave me an excuse to get out for a ride and it's been fine all week now.

[Russ_C]

will try that at the weekend, as i was to annoyed with the bike this afternoon

[fizzwheel]

It could be the alarm, but I've left my GSXR alarmed for a couple of months and the battery on it was good enough to start the bike.

How old is the battery ? Remember deep complete discharge is not good for a battery. Also if your battery is old / getting on it may not be holding its charge that well in the first place. Also it would be wise to check that your charging circuit is working properly. Give the battery the best chance you can.

Also colder weather has been known to finish them off and you do need a decent battery at the top of its game to give yourself the best chance of starting the SV, especially as you leave it outdoors all the time.

[Russ_C]

i only thought it was the alarm because of what i've read on here, but it has been left for similar periods and been fine, maybe the cold weather has taken it's toll on the battery as i can only geuss that it's the original battery, as i've only had the bike since may, so 7 years old. is it worth changing the battery regardless of whats draining it, because of its age?

[Biker Biggles]

You need to get a multimeter to check your charging system and the state of your battery.When you have diagnosed whether the problem is just a sh&gged battery or something wrong with the charging system you will know if buying a new battery will solve the problem or just postpone it till next week or next month.
I would also invest in a trickle charger.You may not be able to plug it in at home,but a few hours on the charger every week or two while parked at work or wherever works wonders for battery life.

[collis]

I recently suffered dead battery syndrome, as i didnt know the history of the old one i replaced the battery, and it's been good since, taken it out a few times etc.
I'm still in fear of the charging system not perfectly working but at the moment all is going good so i'm happy.
Yes i know everyone will instantly say "get a multimeter accross the points" etc, but at the minute finances dont allow it, especially when facing redundancy and just moved home

[Biker Biggles]

Battery---About £50
Cheap leccy meter----About £10

On a bike like the SV which can be prone to charging system issues Id say a cheap meter was an essential bit of kit.

[collis]

Battery---About £50
Cheap leccy meter----About £10

On a bike like the SV which can be prone to charging system issues Id say a cheap meter was an essential bit of kit.
my battery only cost £35, got a nice shiney new one and all seams good to me, the one i replaced was:
Linky to Piccy (http://www.gear4bikes.com/images/batteries/712119.jpg)
If i knew it was replaced only a month ago then i would have left it alone but i suspected it's been in the bike for a long time (more than 3 years) going by how it appeared and knowing that Bike batterys are only rated for a gauranteed 3 years i took the better option to replace and get the bike going again.
Also, judging by some of the wiring in the bike i think the rectifier has been replaced sometime regardless.

[Sid Squid]

If your battery is flat after two weeks there may be no problem at all - it could simply be that your battery is no longer in the first flush of youth and thus does not have the same capacity as when new. A battery in good condition will have absolutely no problem in powering an alarm for two weeks and will also have no problem in starting your bike after that time too.
If your bike is fine when in constant use then this is likely the problem, recharge the battery and put the bike back into its normal use - if it works properly it goes a long way to confirming that as the problem.

i only thought it was the alarm because of what I've read on here.
There's a lot of opinion and not necessarily the same amount of understanding.

[Russ_C]

You need to get a multimeter to check your charging system and the state of your battery.When you have diagnosed whether the problem is just a sh&gged battery or something wrong with the charging system you will know if buying a new battery will solve the problem or just postpone it till next week or next month.
I would also invest in a trickle charger.You may not be able to plug it in at home,but a few hours on the charger every week or two while parked at work or wherever works wonders for battery life.
multimeter on order from amazon http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0001K9UZA/ref=oss_product. if i could disconect the battery with out setting the alarm off i would have it on trickle charge in my room, using one at work is a bit hard as work is only a 5 five min walk and i wont ride/drive that far