Interstate Battery Question HELP!!

[Fender929]

Hello All,

So I posted a few weeks ago that I was restoring a boat, (thanks for all your help dOb) you saved me some blood sweat and tears. I didn't continue with restoring that boat. I wanted to be in the water fishing this summer not working on a boat. So I ended buying a 1985 bayliner open bow. So all it really needed when I bought it was a new battery. So I bought an Interstate 24 m Cranking battery. Took it out to the lake for the day with the wife and had no problems. I came home and parked the boat. Came out 3 days later and the battery was deader than a door nail. So I went out and bought a charger knowing that I would need it anyways to keep the battery topped off. My question is, is when I hook it up to the charger set on deep cell charge and set the amps to 10 the meter drops to zero and doesn't seem to be charging. I then set it at 2 amps and the meter goes almost to a 100% but hasn't quite tripped the fully charged LED light. Does anyone know what I should be charging this thing at and why would it go dead in 3 days? I left it hooked up to the boat when it sat but the only thing it runs is the fuel pump and to start the boat. The fuel pump switch was off so I don't see how it would drain the battery that fast. Any help is greatly appreciated.

 

[haulnazz15]

Re: Interstate Battery Question HELP!!

Why do you have an electric fuel pump on that boat? The battery is getting drained somehow, so it must be something drawing the charge.

 

[MH Hawker]

Re: Interstate Battery Question HELP!!

Not sure whats going on with the charger, but you do have something on the boat thats drawing power, a full charged battery should sit for at least a mounth and not drop more than 5 %. What makes you think its dead the way the charger acts sounds like its full charged

 

[LippCJ7]

Re: Interstate Battery Question HELP!!

You need a Digital Volt meter, none of your readings mean anything without knowing the facts, this light means this that meter gives you a percentage, blah blah blah, you need a DVM go to Lowes or Home Depot and get one. we can teach you how to make the measurements we want you to take which will give us the information we need to tell you where we think the problem is.

Also you have a bayliner open bow which means nothing to us, what would be more important to us is what motor and what electrical accessories you have in the boat, how many batteries, do you have a battery switch or an ACR, start with the DVM and then when you have time come back and we will tell you what to measure and how, be prepared to run the motor in other words have a set of muffs ready to go.

Don't assume your battery is dead all you know is that you turned the ignition and nothing happened, maybe you tried the stereo and still nothing so your assuming your battery is dead, and this could well be your biggest mistake.

 

[tboltmike]

Re: Interstate Battery Question HELP!!

Take the battery back to the dealer..still in warranty..just to make sure there is not a problem and have them give it a good charge.

Next try to find parasite draws. Things like radios and other electronics may continue to draw even if off.

Check the alternator charging system, you may have been going the battery capacity on your first run. Wetness can allow charge to track to ground. Consider installing main battery cable shut off switch to isolate the battery.

 

[MH Hawker]

Re: Interstate Battery Question HELP!!

And until you sort it out you should disconnect the battery it wont take many times of being discharged to kill a starting battery. personally I have never had much luck with interstate, but others get good service from them.

 

[Fender929]

Re: Interstate Battery Question HELP!!

Thanks everyone for the feed back, I charged the battery last night and it is back at full charge, I already have a volt meter and I checked the Battery before I charged it and it was around 12.16 now it is at 13.36 and the green LED light came on on the charger that it is fully charged. @ haulnazz15 I'm not sure why they put an electric fuel pump on it. It was like that when I bought it. But I definitely agree that power is being drawn from something. The only electric devices I have on the boat are the fuel pump and the electrical that runs from the throttle box back to the engine. I will definitely install a switch to the battery until I figure it out. I did have a fish finder hooked up when the battery died but it was off but I think that is the culprit. The reason being is that when I first took the boat out to the lake the fish finder was not hooked up to any power. When I got it back home I hooked up the fish finder turned it on and checked it out and then turned it off but never disconnected it from the battery.The boat is a 1985 Bayliner capri with a 75 hp Johnson. @ Lipcj7 I already have the muffs. Thanks in advanced for any insight you have on this. And a little instruction on where to test with the DVM.

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Interstate Battery Question HELP!!

When you check the voltage of your fully charged battery let it sit for 30 minutes after you take it off the charger so you aren't measuring a surface charge. 12.6V is normal for a fully charged battery.

 

[Fender929]

Re: Interstate Battery Question HELP!!

When you check the voltage of your fully charged battery let it sit for 30 minutes after you take it off the charger so you aren't measuring a surface charge. 12.6V is normal for a fully charged battery.

Okay thanks, Yeah I actually checked it again about 10 minutes later and it had went down a few volts, and I started wondering if the battery just wasn't holding a charge. I'm pretty sure it was the Fish Finder that drained it, but I'm just curious, when I stopped messing with the fish finder I did unplug the negative wire going from the fish finder to the battery but I left the positive hooked up can that still drain the battery with the negative un hooked but the positive still hooked up?

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Interstate Battery Question HELP!!

Remove one of the battery cables and put an ammeter between the battery and the cable and see what you are drawing. Then at that point you can start pulling fuses to see which item is drawing power. Until you do that, you are going to be clueless.

 

[Fender929]

Re: Interstate Battery Question HELP!!

Remove one of the battery cables and put an ammeter between the battery and the cable and see what you are drawing. Then at that point you can start pulling fuses to see which item is drawing power. Until you do that, you are going to be clueless.

Okay thanks, I will give that a shot and let you know what I come up with. My buddy is an electrician so I bribed him with beer to come check it out tonight!! Haha!! I will let you know what our findings are. Electrical is just not my area of expertise.