Electrical Drain???

[PANTERA]

Just replaced a six year old battery. I recharged the old battery, only to have the battery dead the next day (no driving) So after I replaced it I drove to Auto Zone to have the alternator checked, and he told me he cannot check the alternator unless the battery's fully charged, which he said was only 60% charged! WTH??? So he took the battery in to recharge it to 100% I reinstalled it and then he checked it, the battery dropped to about 80% engine not running. He asked me if I left anything on in the truck. Everything was off, so he suggested that "something" might be draining the power of the battery. I'm at a loss. Any ideas?

 

[Earl43P]

http://flashoffroad.com/electrical/Batteries/BatteryDrain.html


I use a shortcut method.
Remove the Neg Bat terminal,
Slowly draw the removed terminal toward the battery until it touches,
note how bright the spark is when it jumps the gap and makes a snap sound

Pull fuses until that spark and snap is so minute that you can barely tell it happens (less current draw).

In that article, it mentions the alternator. Do yourself a favor and rule it out FIRST, then do the fuses dance.

 

[PANTERA]

Thanks for the link Earl. Tonight after work the battery was drained to the point where I had to push start the truck. On the way home the battery gauge was reading low and wasn't moving up and the lights were dim. So I'm taking your advice and taking the alternator off to have it tested first, and go from there. Thanks again