Ok, so here's the deal.

I just got a new 120 amp alternator put on, and I just got 2 new batteries in July. The problem I was having was that if I let it sit overnight with the battery terminals attached, good luck on starting it the next morning. After I got the new alternator, it more or less fixed the problem...but only to a point. Yesterday afternoon I went to go and start it and noticed the voltage was lower than normal, and sure enough, as soon as I started to crank her, I could tell it didnt have as much juice as it should. It almost didnt start, but she turned over and it was fine.

I got new battery cables in november last year, as well as a new solenoid, and I think its a called a GP relay? Something is killing the batteries at night and I dont have anything inside the truck that would drain it except my amp for my stereo, but I'd leave my amp on all the time....and wouldn't really make a difference at all. I would start just as normally as before. When I got the alternator changed, they tested the batteries, and apparently everything was fine, but I think they were BS'ing me and conned me into spending 450$ on a new alternator(which I did). I took a multimeter to the battery terminals when the "wait to start" light was on, and I'd get an average of 8-10 volts, and when the relay would start clicking I got about 12, and finally when the engine was running it was 14.3.

I've brought this issue up on here a couple of times and couldnt get the right information that would fix this pain in the a** problem.

Is it true that a crappy alternator will more or less make the batteries non functional after a short period of time? I remember when I got them before I changed the alternator that when I turned the key, the voltage meter shot up a hell of alot faster than what it normally did, and after a couple days, it started acting like its old self again.

I'm like on my knees to get this darn thing fixed as its been an ongoing problem for months and its really getting on my nerves that my truck cant sit for a couple of days without being dead.

Help!?

 

Take a test light and unhook the positive cable on the battery. Then hook your clamp from the test light on the positve post and touch the cable and if it lights up you got a drain on your battery. If it does look at things that have direct power going to it.

 

Ok...so lets say that there is a drain, where would be a good place to look?

 

First look at any accesories. Oh and if there isnt a drain look at the wires on the alternator and make sure their isn't any of them damaged and make sure you have good connections.

 

Accessories as in what...?

 

radios, clock, dome light, glove box light, brake controller .... anything that might be on or draw power with the key off would be a good place to start. Try unhooking the stereo and amp altogether (at least while sitting...) and see if it helps the problem. Also, try unhooking the alternator and let it sit a couple days and see if it improves.

 

What would unhooking the alternator do?

 

agememon unhook both grounds at batt. turn everything off hook test light from ground post to loose cable end light will come on if you have a clock pull the fuse make sure you ues something to keep dome light switch in start pulling fuses 1 by 1 until test light goes out then you will know witch circuit to look for trouble in .usually something simple. do you have trouble with anything electrical now.

 

No, not at all. Everything electrical works in tip top...and thats what's weird about it. So am I supposed to take the test light to the fuse box when the battery cables are unhooked?

 

no hook test light to ground on batt the other end to loose cable end then pull fuse 1 by 1 until light goes out in test light that circuit is the one that has a drain.

 

Ok...now is this the fuse box inside the cab or is there one underneath the hood?

 

inside make sure your dome light switch is blocked off.

 

how do you do that? just take out the doom light fuse?

 

the ECM will use very small amounts of power, even with the key off. Your better off getting a cheap DMM, and seeing if the current draw is any more then 25 miliamps

 

In english please lol...