Battery Drain from Power Commander?

[DVH]

I am the same as nogbad, when not in use it is parked up in the garage and left. come winter that means it sits approx 4 month. come spring just press go. batt is just left connected

 

I would try a digital meter set to amps. remove all the pos leads from the batt, then test each one at a time to see what current is been drawn. ( meter is connected in series, 1 probe on pos batt terminal, second probe on the lead to be tested )

[badmotogoozer]

My woman works like that, and I expect the same service from my bike.

59805[/snapback]

 

 

So you're single too! Good on ya mate!

 

Rj

[OldButNotDead]

>The first time it happened, I put a battery tender on it, and after some period of >time, was able to crank the bike, and rode it for several hours. Thereafter, it >seemed OK.

 

>I have been away on business for better than a week, the Guzzi was sitting- and >this morning, the battery was again dead. (I did not leave the battery tender on >it during my absence, but this just reinforces the question about what load is on >it when the bike it shut off). Battery not only dead, but my tender indicated that >there was a fault with the battery, i.e., the tender wouldn't go into normal charge >mode.

 

Bum battery, bum tender? Depends on your choice of standard, no?

 

Maybe not the issue, but my understanding is that once substantially drained, the "glass matt" ("gel") batteries require a high-amp charge to be restored. Most low amp Tenders are great for regular use, but apparently don't work if the battery's lost much capacity. They *appear* to work, since measured voltage comes up to spec and that's supposted to reflect capacity, but in my hands, my partially drained battery didn't hold a charge until I stopped trying the Tender, drained the battery to ~10.5V, then recharged with a Optimate charger (6A , I think). YMMV.

[RacerX]

As has been previously mentioned, the PCIII is on a switched source, along with the ECU... therefore it is impossible for the PCIII to be the battery drain. I'd take the battery (and/or the bike) back to the dealer (or any battery shop) and have them load test it. Sounds like it is indeed very close to its expiration date.

[Baldini]

Battery on my 02 Scura was scrap after 12months - original fitment battery manuf by Hawker but low spec & not up to job, subject of MG service bulletin. I replaced w/ Hawker Odyssey. It is my understanding that you don't run trickle chargers on gel batteries.

 

KB

[Guest whart]

Battery on my 02 Scura was scrap after 12months - original fitment battery manuf by Hawker but low spec & not up to job, subject of MG service bulletin. I replaced w/ Hawker Odyssey. It is my understanding that you don't run trickle chargers on gel batteries.

 

KB

59891[/snapback]

 

BAttery will be replaced and electrical system checked. But i'm fascinated by your statement that you don't trickle charge this type of battery. Not that i'm in a position to disagree- i am ignorant- and would like more info, from you or others, since i don't want to do any wrong.

 

Old-Dead: I also think you are on the money. The trickler showed full charge, but, as they say in the Borough of Queens (that's NY for you Aussies, not a place for gays), i got bubkus.

[mark.gilmore]

Whart, a few rambling thoughts.

 

I'd suggest application of the KISS principle when troubleshooting this.  Check all the easiest stuff first.  For starters, there's a very low probability that the PCIII is contributing to this (although it's not impossible).  Disconnecting it would be an easy way to eliminate it as a possibility, but there are other things I'd try first.

 

Since you've taken the step of ordering a new battery, I'd use a DMM or DVM when the new battery is installed to see if you can get a voltage reading between the positive battery post and each of the many leads (disconneting each from the battery!) that connect to the positive post.  Test each one with the ignition key in the OFF position.  If you find any voltage reading at all on any of them, you will have narrowed down a source of fault to that particular wire.  It's standard troubleshooting procedure from that point forward to isolate a short in a wire or a bad component.

 

It's possible that the old battery was at fault.  In this case - again with the new battery installed, you'll have a high probability of confirming this should you find no voltage at any of the wires in the scenario above, and unless there's a fault with the running circuitry (ignition ON), you're done!

 

It's also possible that you have a bad ground path, preventing your battery from charging properly underway.  Careful inspection and/or re-seating every ground conection is always a good idea.  Dielectric grease is always a good idea to inhibit pesky oxidation at any connector or connection point.  If your battery tender wouldn't charge, it's possible that the battery just got too low for the tender to function.

 

Keep in mind that intermittent electrical paths that may not show up in your garage may show up only when some combination of vibration and heat conspire on the road.

 

Best of luck

59795[/snapback]

Here,here.Your a WIZARD. cheers

[mark.gilmore]

So you're single too!  Good on ya mate!

 

Rj

59858[/snapback]

Good God Iget a good laugh out of you mad bastards.I loveit.

[OldButNotDead]

BAttery will be replaced and electrical system checked. But i'm fascinated by your statement that you don't trickle charge this type of battery. Not that i'm in a position to disagree- i am ignorant- and would like more info, from you or others, since i don't want to do any wrong.

 

Old-Dead: I also think you are on the money. The trickler showed full charge, but, as they say in the Borough of Queens (that's NY for you Aussies, not a place for gays), i got bubkus.

59895[/snapback]

 

And bubkus = diddly squat for the rest of youse. I don't understand why a faster charge rate tops up these batteries and a slower doesn't. Seems counterintuitive if it's just how hard you push electrons and the size of the bucket, but maybe it's the chemistry and not the physics?

 

This page might be of interest: odyssey charging

[dlaing]

This page might be of interest: odyssey charging

59902[/snapback]

And here is a good rant:

http://www.v11lemans.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=4245&hl=

What I learned from it, is the like the above link says, the charger should not fall out of the 14.2 to 14.8V range.

My understanding is that there is nothing wrong with giving it less than 14.2 V, but it won't fully charge without something approaching 14.8 Volts.

The problem with the trickling, is that it may slow cook the battery, and if the battery was discharged too much, the trickle may never bring it to full capacity.

An analogy might be that it is like trying to cook an egg in tepid water....it is going to rot before it cooks, and you would have been better off keeping it cool and fresh and then cooking in boiling water when needed.

(But if the egg is fertilized may analogy goes to pot)

Once a hawker is fully charged, it will maintain enough power to start for many months.

But, after a Winter(two ++ months) it is better to boost it back to full charge before reinstalling.

Although the battery should start the bike after sitting all Winter (Norway excluded), it does need more voltage than a standard battery to bring it back close to 100% charged.

 

P.S. Nogbad, just make sure the neighbor isn't keeping her charged up for you.

Which reminds me, didn't someone post that their father put their OE battery on a charger and toasted it???

[dlaing]

What you fail to realise is PC stands for "Power Consumer". USB refers to the effect this has, namely "Usually Stationary Bike".

 

Hence I wouldn't install a PC USB, as I prefer to save power, and get the bike moving regularly.

 

Toodle Pip!

59774[/snapback]

I suppose ECU stands for, Electronics Confuse Us.

[BrianG]

Not that I don't trust Todd, but I have a PC III on my 2000 V-11 Sport, so I went out with the trusty DVM and measured the current flow across the + battery lead with the key switched off........... nada..... 0.

[Guest whart]

Too add to the intrigue (and without contradicting those of you who said that the trickler was insufficient), i had left it on overnite, and voila, the bike did start this morning. Of course, i've already ordered the new battery and will have the 'lectical system checked.

[dlaing]

What's Up in Space -- 10 Sep 2005

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AURORA ALERT: Coronal mass ejections (CMEs) hurled into space by the solar explosions of Sept. 7th-9th could strike glancing blows to Earth's magnetic field this weekend. Sky watchers should be alert for auroras.

 

ACTIVE SUN: Solar activity is very high. Earth-orbiting satelites have detected five X-class solar flares since Sept. 7th, including one X17-class monster-flare. NOAA forecasters say there's a 75% chance of more X-flares during the next 24 hours, possibly causing radio blackouts and radiation storms.

 

The source of all this activity is giant sunspot 798, shown above flaring brightly on Sept. 9th

(photo credit: Birgit Kremer of Marbella, Spain). The sunspot has grown so large, you can now see it with the unaided eye--but never look directly at the sun. Try these safe solar observing tips.

 

RADIATION STORM: An S2-class radiation storm is underway. Solar protons are streaming past Earth at nearly light speed. These particles were accelerated toward us by the recent explosions at sunspot 798.

 

Here on Earth's surface, we're safe from the protons, except perhaps in areas around Earth's magnetic poles. Astronauts onboard the International Space Station are safe, too, as long as they stay inside the station.

 

Satellites and robotic spacecraft are experiencing some minor problems. For example, the white specks in the coronagraph image (above) from the SOHO spacecraft are caused by protons striking the craft's digital camera, partially blinding the instrument.

 

One place you wouldn't want to be during the storm: walking around on the Moon!

[Guest ratchethack]

ACK! Now we know where Katrina finally wound up... I guess this means I'll have to stay off the moon this weekend, dammit. But here on terra firma, does this cosmic extravaganza make it wiser to fettle, or to ride?!