This is driving me nuts. Maybe about every 2-3 months I come out to my work truck and the battery is dead....I mean so dead it won't even unlock with the remote. I jump it and all is fine for months...then it will happen again. Nothing is left on, I have ran countless amp test in line with the negative cable and after all is asleep ( about 50 minutes) it is a solid 0.02...which is spot on. It happened the other night when it was -15 below F. and it would not jump start in the morning. Took the battery out and put it inside...put another battery in from a stored car...all was good. Pulled the caps to charge it and it was slush inside. Figured it was wrecked but it charged and has been fine (1000-850cca battery) With these temps I am just pulling the negative cable each night just in case. The only thing I can think of is the altenator, but why only occasionally? It's my truck in my sig. line....I use it in my construction business every day....so it has to always run.....Anything else you guys can think of. Charging system is solid as is the connection....it's got me..

 

Be careful with a discharged battery. They will freeze as you noted, and no attempt should be made to jump start or charge a frozen battery as they may explode in this situation.

Bring it in someplace warm and thaw before charging. Just a few complete discharges will usually ruin an auto start lead-acid battery is the problem.

Here's a good outline on alternator and parasitic draw testing, Maybe there's some tricks or tips you haven't tried. Let us know what you find.

http://www.aa1car.com/library/charging_checks.htm

http://www.aa1car.com/library/battery_runs_down.htm

 

Thanks for the advice. I know better than to jump a frozen battery but I totally spaced that out when I did it.....Good thing I didn't blow it up. I thawed it out, took it back to where I bought, they ran all the tests and said it was good....so far OK. Have run all the tests in those articles. I even had a voltmeter hooked to the cig. lighter for weeks as I drove around to watch voltage ...all was good. I don't know, something has to stick on someplace to do this. I mean it sucks it dry overnight. If it would just happen for good I could find it....but once every couple months....geez! Something that has always bothered me on this truck is the CD player ( it works, but I don't use it). Anytime you use something electrical like lights...etc.... the CD fan runs. When I shut the truck off it runs for 10 seconds or so then stops. That always seemed odd to me.

 

That part about the CD sounds like a clue, maybe.

Might try disconnecting it, especially if not used. It's remarkable how a tiny fault in some cheese dick part can draw a battery down and ruin yer day. And then maybe the battery, and doesn't do the charging system any good... Etc.

 

I don't know why it runs like that. Even when I unhook the negative cable to put my meter in line, you can hear it run and watch the meter jump to about 1.80 amps for about 7 seconds and then it drops to normal when it stops. With these -15 below nights, I can't try too much other than unhook the cable for the night so I know nothing will suck it down and freeze it.

 

Yeah, I'd 86 that thing, esp. for troubleshooting purposes alone. Why would a CD player need a fan, at 15 below Zero anyway?

 

It's the OEM radio-CD player all in one. It's a nice unit with premium sound....which I seldom use. When temps warm up some...(might be awhile) I'll either pull the radio fuse, or if other stuff is on that circuit, I'll just pull out the radio and unplug it. I don't understand that fan...or whatever is in that unit...that runs when any current is drawn. Even if I just turn the ignition switch to Acc. that fan starts running.....radio is off. Turn on the parking lights....fan will run.....even with the key off. For now...as mentioned I just pull the neg. cable each night, plug it in and I am good in the morning. The high today was -3 below with a wind...unreal trying to work outside in this stuff....don't need the aggravation of a dead truck in the morning also.

 

I feel your pain . Living in MN. in the winter sucks, eccept for ice fishin'. Seems that you might have a short somewhere maybe. That fan shouldn't come on at all till you turn the unit on if you ask me. I'd unplug the thing and see what happens. At least pull the fuse. Being a carpenter myself I know how it is. Hope you figure it out soon. Good luck.

 

Yeah, that fan thing bugs me, but I started another thread about that and someone else with a similar truck said that theirs does that also. I left it hooked up Friday night and all is still OK. But it will go 6-7 months sometimes and not do it, or happens twice in a week. I had the #8 COP go out Friday...gotta' love these below zero temps for breaking anything weak. But as you said, it's great for making ice.

 

I had a Bulldog remote unit go bad in one of My trucks. Once in a while the fan would stay on ,or would run without even being turned on. Scott

 

I have a Viper remote start/alarm that came with the truck. When I got it it had two Viper remotes and no OEM ones. If you locked the door from the inside, then shut it, about 45 minutes later when the battery saver circuit kicked off the Viper alarm would go off. You had to always lock-unlock with the Viper alarm. I finally got sick of that and ordered 2 OEM ones and programmed them in...putting the Viper remotes on the shelf. I don't use the remote start, although I could, and still use the OEM remotes. I do keep a Viper remote in the truck for if by chance something is scfrewed up and I need it.....maybe that is my problem...thanks!