its that charging issue again :)

Ok folks i have a strange problem. (no not that one one with my bike) Bike is fine. Running fine etc etc. However for the hardy bikers run i fitted heated grips. So yup that old chestnut!

Nowthen after the run on that day the bike was layed up and when it came to start it the following day it struggled. Nothing thorght of it till a couple of months later (theres a thread on here somewhere) when after a run i came back. Parked it up on the Sunday and on Monday morning it wouldn’t turn over. So i took a look at the reg rec and battery and everything and in the end replaced the battery.

Everything was fine and dandy after that and i hadn’t been on many long runs or been using my headlight much (its summer) everyhtings been fine with the bike and its coped with the 4 mile commute just fine and the odd run out.

So comes the ar09. I think ill pop the fuse back in the heated grips for the run down and as its going to be a long run its going to be fine charging the battery isn’t it? Well i didn’t use the grips once and after about 50 miles i lost all the clocks as i pulled up to a round about. It started with the rev counter switching on and off to my indicators. Then as i hit the brakes i lost the lot! Not really impressed.

Went to the next services and with the help of leedsmatt managed to bump it. Pulled the fuse on the grips and after another 80 miles or so the battery was charged and could restart the bike as normal. Strange hey?

So i got to thr ar and everyone i spoke to said aye its the regrec. Ive ordered one off ebay and fitted it but just thought i would test them to see how different they are. At 5krpm with the lights on theres only 0.2v between them (old one was 13v new 13.3v). So im actually thinking its nothing to do with the regrec but why would the grips stop my battery from charging? The output from the alternator is a healthy 70+v and the resistance is about 0.9ohms. nothing going to ground.
Soooo i looked at the current leakage with nothing connected its about 1mA (just above) with the alarm its about 2.4mA ok thats to be expected. With the heated grips plugged in but not running its 10.4mA However again i can see why this would drain the battery as its stood but all the problems i get are after the bike has been run.

Im stuck. I know i can just leave the grips off but winter is coming soon (ok its not) but i would like them on. So whats up with it? What can i test?

[dizzyblonde]

have you sorted out the loose connection in your rear tail light yet?

Yea it seems to have dissapeared after a bit of connector cleaner

[yorkie_chris]

At 5k with the lights and grips on you should still have 13.5>14.5V at the battery.

just under even with a new regrec

Actually come to think of it. with the old regrec it was about 13v to 13.4 with the new one it went up to 13.98 at one point.


Could be the rec afterall then? but surely 13v would still be chargine the battery?

[yorkie_chris]

Check the alternator output. I have some spare ones if you're in the shizz.

Check the main earth and charging leads also. (voltage across them), it is possible you have a high resistance somewhere.

Start at the beginning (alternator AC out), work towards the battery. There's an ace picture of the diagnostic procedure flaoting about somewhere...

[Dave20046]

Originally Posted by AndyBrad

Actually come to think of it. with the old regrec it was about 13v to 13.4 with the new one it went up to 13.98 at one point.


Could be the rec afterall then? but surely 13v would still be chargine the battery?

Best way is to test it in real life. I faffed abut for ****ing ages after fitting a new regrec to mine, I had took the week off, got the new regrec fitted on the first day it was sunny all week but I never left the garage as the 'multimeter said no'. It was getting worse readings then before. Eventually I thought balls to it and rode it anyway (at first using no lights or indicators and sparing on the brake) eventually I got more and more confidence in it and used it as normal with no problems.
Fair enough there's a good chance I could be wrong but if I was in your shoes I'd just ride it til it don't no more. Did a fair few thou miles since with no issues.

hmmm interesting.

Ill have a looksee.

[embee]

13V isn't enough to charge a 12V lead acid battery, it needs a certain amount above its own voltage before the chemical changes will start(which is what the charging is really). IIRC the threshold is around 13.2V, may be wrong on that.

I'd be inclined to thoroughly check and clean all the connectors and fuses, any poor connection will drop volts, the more the current teh greater the drop, and you don't need to drop much before the charging will be compromised.

To check the reg/rec you really need to measure the voltage directly at the output of the reg/rec. Compare that to what you measure at the battery terminals, the difference should be minimal if all connections are sound.