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Old 04-19-2006, 11:46 AM   #1
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well this has been an ongoing problem for a couple of years now, and no one has seemed to be able to find the problem. So i found this forum and figured i would give it a shot. I have a 1996 winnebago brave. A couple of years ago our motorhome died out of no where coming home from flordia. Somehow there must be a short in the electrical somewhere that drains the batterys dead. sometimes it may last a couple hours on other occasions a couple of seconds. Where should i start to trouble shoot trying to find the problem. The alternator has been replaced 3 times now, and it still checks out fine. I have looked under the dash and all of the wires seem to be where they should be. thanks for help in advance!
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Old 04-19-2006, 11:46 AM   #2
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well this has been an ongoing problem for a couple of years now, and no one has seemed to be able to find the problem. So i found this forum and figured i would give it a shot. I have a 1996 winnebago brave. A couple of years ago our motorhome died out of no where coming home from flordia. Somehow there must be a short in the electrical somewhere that drains the batterys dead. sometimes it may last a couple hours on other occasions a couple of seconds. Where should i start to trouble shoot trying to find the problem. The alternator has been replaced 3 times now, and it still checks out fine. I have looked under the dash and all of the wires seem to be where they should be. thanks for help in advance!
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Old 04-19-2006, 03:16 PM   #3
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Delaware Brave -

First, welcome to the Winnebago Forum. I know that you are about to be swamped with some very good ideas to troubleshoot your problem. I'll start with a couple of ideas:

1. Are both the chassis battery and the coach batteries discharging or is it just the chassis battery or the coach batteries.

2. Check the batteries. If you can't load test them, take them to a battery dealer and have them load test them. If one cell in a battery is shorted, it will drag all of the cells down with them. Since they are discharging so quickly, one simple check would be to attempt to charge them and then disconnect them. If one is bad, the battery voltage will deteriorate very quickly.

3. Are you blowing fuses in any circuits? If so, that's where you need to look for the short. Since the batteries are discharging so quickly, it must be a very low resistance and high current. I'd be surprised that you aren't blowing fuses or circuit breakers if its not a battery.

4. Check the output of the converter when you are plugged in. It should be around 13 volts DC. If it isn't, then you will have a difficult time recharging the batteries except when you are driving.

5. It sounds like you have already covered the possibility of a bad alternator. It is curious why you have had more than one replacement alternator installed. Again, if the replacement alternators are blown, you must be drawing alot current, and it keeps pointing to a bad battery. A sort anywhere else that discharges a battery that quickly is drawing alot of current, and something must be overheating.

Hope this gets you going in a direction. I'm sure that many other members of the forum are going to check in with some other good ideas.

Good Luck

W8RLM - Bob
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Old 04-19-2006, 03:34 PM   #4
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we have replaced the batterys a couple of times too, batterys test fine... it drains all of the batterys coach and chassis.nothing is blowing any fuses, i pulled them all out today and they all were fine..
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Old 04-19-2006, 03:36 PM   #5
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do you know if the voltage regulator is built into the alternator? the reason for multiple alternators is because the first time thats what we thought the one we took out tested fine, another was because a buddy borrowed it and went out west and it died on him across the country, so the shop replaced the alternator.
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Old 04-19-2006, 03:40 PM   #6
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if we run a battery charger only 6 amps while it is running, it runs right around 10-12 volts, we are tryin to get it ready so we can head down to myrtle beach for bike week next month. I had a temporary solution and wanted an opinion on this too. If i went and bought a battery charger that puts out 25 amps if i hooked it up to the coach battery, and powered it to the chassis battery, wouldnt this act like an extra alternator in a sense. Do you see any problems in this for a temp solution, because all three batterys are connected in one way or another so the power it would pull from the aux. battery would in a sense charge itself correct?
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Old 04-19-2006, 03:55 PM   #7
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I'm a little confused with your description. What do you mean when you say sometimes it only lasts for a couple of seconds? If the batteries are completely discharging you wouldn't be able to start it back up. When it dies have you taken a voltage reading directly at the batteries?

Paul
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Old 04-19-2006, 04:10 PM   #8
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I was going to ask the same question. If this is an intermittant situation where the engine dies for a "couple of seconds", you may be looking at an itermittant problem rather than a short.

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Old 04-19-2006, 04:25 PM   #9
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when it dies, it will start back up IF i charge the batterys back up. Everytime we go get new batterys, they just go dead. so somewhere they are getting drained by something
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Old 04-19-2006, 04:33 PM   #10
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do you guys know about the voltage regulator deal if it is built into the alternator? another question if the engine is running, and i disconnect the batterys, it should still run correct?
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Old 04-19-2006, 04:44 PM   #11
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That being the case, and both the batteries and alternator test okay it sounds like a faulty wire between the alternator and battery. I assume the engine dies only after you've been on the road for a while. If that's the case, I'd temporarily run a new B+ wire between the batteries and the alternator and see if that cures the problem.

Paul
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Old 04-19-2006, 04:50 PM   #12
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with the engine running i disconnected the battery and it shut off. so your thinking its in the wire between the alternator and battery? ill have to take a look.
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Old 04-19-2006, 05:22 PM   #13
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The regulator is internal to the alternator. If you're handy with a voltmeter you can check the output of the alternator. With the engine running it should read around 14 volts. You should also see that same voltage reading back at the batteries. In answer to your charger question, yes, you could run your generator and plug in a battery charger to charge the battery, but you would have to watch your 12 volt usage. No running at night, in the cold, or in the rain. Headlights, heater blower and windshield wipers draw more than the 25 amp output of your charger.

Paul
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Old 04-19-2006, 05:27 PM   #14
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so if i charge my battery, and then i check the output of the alternator and it is around 14 volts, and the battery (which will drain) when its running, and the battery isnt reading around 14 volts, then the first thing i should do is try and replace the wire from the batterys to the alternator as you stated before correct?
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Old 04-19-2006, 05:46 PM   #15
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Yes, with the engine running and you've got 13.8 volts at the alternator and only 12.5 volts at the batteries you've got a problem in the wiring. You should also check to be sure you've got 12 volts at the alternator without the engine running, if not there may be a fusible link that is blown.

Paul
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Old 04-20-2006, 08:31 AM   #16
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ok i did some testing today, i dont think it is in the the wires, it must be the alternator once again. but is there anything that can cause an alternator to go bad? With the engine off, it reads around 13.15 at the battery and the alternator. When it is running it has about 12.8 at both the alternator and the battery. I had the batterys tested and all three were fine. so do you guys think it is the alternator?
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Old 04-20-2006, 03:18 PM   #17
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You're right, no output from the alternator. Is there just a single wire connected to the alternator? Before you go for alternator number four I'd take it to a rebuild shop and have them bench test it. If it is bad they'll be able to tell you what's wrong and probably why. They should be able to rebuild it also.

Paul
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Old 04-20-2006, 03:38 PM   #18
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I'd try to find the root problem before replacing any more alternators or batteries. It doesnt sound like replacing those is fixing the problem. they appear to be going bad as a result of whatever is shorted.
I'd go back to this statement you made ...
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content"> . it drains all of the batterys coach and chassis. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
To me, that points to a problem in your battery isolation solenoid/relay. I'm not familiar with Winnebago's specific system, but there is something in there that should be isolating your house batteries from the chassis batteries when either is being discharged. sounds like its contacts may be shorted. compare voltages at the chassis battery to the house battery voltage, when its discharging. if theyre always the same, that would also indicate the isolation relay isnt working and something in it is shorted.

Jim
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Old 04-20-2006, 04:25 PM   #19
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well boys i appreciate all the responses, it took me all afternoon to work it out but i finally ended a 3 or 4 year problem and countless trips to electrical shops for them to charge me 80 bucks an hour and then tell me we cant find the problem.

i took the alternator to the shop to get bench tested, it broke my heart when they said it was fine.he mentioned somethign about it was probably in the ground, and said check where the motor grouns and what not. i checked out the wiring diagram and noticed the ground for the batterys we right behind the box so i got to wrenching in that tight spot. took me 30 minutes to get 2 bolts off it was so bad! i figured even if it wasnt the problem it would help if i sanded it down some to help. hooked it back up and what do you know i was running over 14 volts when it was running. so i decided to take them back off sand the brackets down some more and the connections (took about an hour) and presto 13.8 on the money running! thanks for all the responses once again and i know with my next problem right where ill go!
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Old 04-21-2006, 02:21 AM   #20
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Rock and roll

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