Too much charging from the stator?? Or rectifier??

[Dav]

I've been having some charging issues on my 2nd Gen and found I had a faulty R/R. replaced it with the Ricks R/R....I've been monitoring the status of the battery while riding by attaching a volt ohm meter to the pig tail i use for charging. My meter is Sometimes showing 14.8+ volts and sometimes 15v while I'm riding at higher RPMs. It's a 2nd Gen, so no tach....but maybe 60+mph in 4th gear....

Is that okay, or will generating Too much voltage cause me other problems?

Dave (Dav?)

[Marcarl]

Guess to give to a true answer we would need to know particulars.

- are you sure your meter is correct?

- what do you have turned on electrical wise?

- what happens when you turn everything on that you can?

 

You can do all your testing on the side stand, full charging should happen just over 1500rpm to 2000 rpm.

[etcswjoe]

Seems high to me, mine runs around 13.6 once I am up to speed. Double check your R/R connections for burnt pins, I went through several R/Rs before I realized it was the connector.

[BlueSky]

My electronic multimeter will read higher than actual voltage when the 9 volt battery is low. I checked my battery voltage one time and it read 18 volts! So, I checked a couple of other vehicles batteries and they also read 18 volts. Changed the 9V battery in the multimeter and it read correctly. So, compare the reading with other vehicles to see if they are the same.

[MonsterBiker]

I have a double USB charging port with voltmeter hard wired into my battery so I can keep an eye on it. At cruise it reads just over 14 volts, at idle just over 13 volts. This pic was taken a few minutes ago with the bike off.

 

[Dav]

Wow, you guys are great! thanks for the responses.

The meter....I am going to buy another one and recheck it....I need another one anyways. Everyone needs more than one, right?! thanks for the thoughts on that...the 9 volt is old for sure, and I really don't if it's accurate...going to start from scratch...

 

The connector looks really good at the R/R. Also, looks good at the TC as well. (I've had it out more than once...yuck!)

 

A couple particulars...I only had on the radio, (stock everything)...and I think I was using the cruise control, (on and off....) Outside of my headlight, I don't have any running lights on the front, just 2 running brake lights on the rear. So, I guess I had on everything that i could....no intercom solo riding that day. I did have my A/C on though....LOL

 

LONG story short...the other day, I got stranded after riding for over 2.5 hours straight....had it parked for 1.5 hours. got back on and rode for 1.5 hours at which time my cruise control began turning off ...I'd reengage it...etc...then I lost radio power, then the speedometer died....and then the bike....dead battery. I was able to get a tow home....by a great good friend. T/S stator, R/R and the R/R came up the problem. I only question the R/R being the only issue is because I removed and replaced the R/R 500 -800 miles ago because of a similar scenario. That time I had only ridden it a short distance/time and it only sat for a short time, but when i attempted to start it ....it had a dead battery...I didn't do as an extensive T/S procedure as i did this time, but I replaced the R/R because I read that was the weak link and it was easy to get to, and relatively inexpensive. ( I cheaped out and possibility bought a sub quality one....Coil Spec). So....I'm hoping it was strictly a sub quality part so I purchased another one, a Ricks, which I heard is a good quality one this time....

 

Thanks guys....

Dave (Dav?)

[Flyinfool]

I have wired in a digital volt meter on ALL of my vehicles. if the charging system dies it will give you nearly an hour warning.

 

A good battery should read 12.6 before you start and charge should be real close to 14V when at cruising RPM of 1500 +.

 

As mentioned if you are getting weird readings from your meter check your car battery should be the same numbers.

[slowrollwv]

I have a double USB charging port with voltmeter hard wired into my battery so I can keep an eye on it. At cruise it reads just over 14 volts, at idle just over 13 volts. This pic was taken a few minutes ago with the bike off.

 

https://www.venturerider.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=119411

 

You have it hard wired to the battery so it stays on all the time. How much draw is on the battery if you leave it set for a week or two?

[MonsterBiker]

You have it hard wired to the battery so it stays on all the time. How much draw is on the battery if you leave it set for a week or two?

 

None, actually. What is not visible in the pic is the On/Off switch on the backside. I turn it off when not in use. And a perk of living in Florida is that I almost never let it sit for two weeks without riding it.

[Dav]

thanks everyone for your input!!

 

Still wondering though if anyone has ever had a high output voltage like that and it indicated something else to look at???

 

Jeff, where can I get a good meter to attach to the bike, do you have something like MonsterBiker? Or MonsterBiker, where did you get yours?

 

I just bought the new multimeter and will check it out today...

 

Dav? (Dave)

[MonsterBiker]

 

MonsterBiker, where did you get yours?

 

 

Dav? (Dave)

 

Amazon. I was going to post a link but I do not see it listed in my past orders. It may have been before I signed up for a Prime account. If you go on Amazon and search for "usb charger for motorcycle handlebars" many similar products will pop up.

[Dav]

Thanks Dave, I'll check it out!

Dave (Dav?)

[saddlebum]

13.6 to 14.2 is normal charging range for most vehicles. Start getting into the 15+ range, more so above 16 volts, though it will not harm any electrical devices on the bike for the most part, you will, start boiling your battery dry. The higher the overcharge the faster you boil your Battery. On that note Before jumping to conclusions as earlier stated check voltage at the battery with a known accurate voltmeter. You should not overcharge with everything turned off but also you should not under charge with everything turned on. Also when checking charging voltage, Don't take reading right after starting the bike. The battery needs to build up full charge before you can get an accurate reading. Right after starting the bike you should see the voltage gradually climb as it charges the battery. Eventually holding steady when it reaches its max. charging voltage.

 

Also a Regulator controls the ALt charging voltage based on the voltage it senses at or from the battery. If there are dirty or poor connections between the battery and regulator, the regulator will will sense a low voltage condition causing the Alternator to overcharge.

[Condor]

thanks everyone for your input!!

 

Still wondering though if anyone has ever had a high output voltage like that and it indicated something else to look at???

 

Jeff, where can I get a good meter to attach to the bike, do you have something like MonsterBiker? Or MonsterBiker, where did you get yours?

 

I just bought the new multimeter and will check it out today...

 

Dav? (Dave)

 

Generally if you're showing over voltage it's the rectifier.... or the connections... Had a similar situation right before leaving on a trip to Cody Wy. from the west coast... Show'd 17vdc but didn't have time to deal with it. Volts were there but no amps. You shouldn't show more than 13.4 vols with the batt fully charged and 14.2 when the batt's a little low. It took 3 days before the battery went dead. And luckily across the street from a Southern Auto... Bought a fresh battery and went the final 80 miles to Cody. Changed out the rectifier at the motel and didn't have a problem on the trip back. The rectifier is kinda sorta easy to get to. Right under the radiator inside the frame. Two 10mm bolts hold it in.

[Patch]

the last paragraph of post 13 it is in other words the switching loop for the rectifier ..

[Dav]

Generally if you're showing over voltage it's the rectifier.... or the connections... Had a similar situation right before leaving on a trip to Cody Wy. from the west coast... Show'd 17vdc but didn't have time to deal with it. Volts were there but no amps. You shouldn't show more than 13.4 vols with the batt fully charged and 14.2 when the batt's a little low. It took 3 days before the battery went dead. And luckily across the street from a Southern Auto... Bought a fresh battery and went the final 80 miles to Cody. Changed out the rectifier at the motel and didn't have a problem on the trip back. The rectifier is kinda sorta easy to get to. Right under the radiator inside the frame. Two 10mm bolts hold it in.

 

 

Hey Condor...thanks....I have replaced the Rectifier and am monitoring the voltage; not the amps though...not sure how to do that....If a amp meter is needed, I don't have one of those. unless there's another round bout way to measure amps....

Anyways, the meter I'm using is not an expensive one, but it's new, and the voltage is high 13's just riding around the city, going through 4th gear, using the power band from time to time, having fun....Im hoping the rectifier was the final end all solution, and even thou the charging is a little high, it won't harm anything...when it died this last time...I know it didn't boil the battery, cuz I charged the battery when i got home, and the next day it was good as gold....

thanks for your input!!

 

Dave (Dav?)

[Dav]

13.6 to 14.2 is normal charging range for most vehicles. Start getting into the 15+ range, more so above 16 volts, though it will not harm any electrical devices on the bike for the most part, you will, start boiling your battery dry. The higher the overcharge the faster you boil your Battery. On that note Before jumping to conclusions as earlier stated check voltage at the battery with a known accurate voltmeter. You should not overcharge with everything turned off but also you should not under charge with everything turned on. Also when checking charging voltage, Don't take reading right after starting the bike. The battery needs to build up full charge before you can get an accurate reading. Right after starting the bike you should see the voltage gradually climb as it charges the battery. Eventually holding steady when it reaches its max. charging voltage.

 

Also a Regulator controls the ALt charging voltage based on the voltage it senses at or from the battery. If there are dirty or poor connections between the battery and regulator, the regulator will will sense a low voltage condition causing the Alternator to overcharge.

 

 

Hey Ben, thanks for your info....I'm really hoping the rectifier is going to be the end all solution to my current issues! I bought another multimeter, not an expensive one, but it is showing a charge a little higher than my craftsman multimeter, so I'm not big time concerned....I did buy another USB/volt meter that will be handlebar mounted so to monitor every ride, and not have my multimeter sitting on my tank....looks a little hookie....whatever....LOL. I'm just hoping the handlebar meter will be a good enuf meter and accurate. I paid like 24.00 for it on amazon. should be here in a day or so...It was advertised for Harleys....so I'm thinking it will be decent....Not from china...

By the way, I'm comfortable saying the connections are clean and tight. I also applied a small amt of white grease to the connections on the rectifier and also on the TC, under the battery.....I had that out a few times in my T/S moments....

I'm actually running around with a new battery in the compartment (well packed), just in case this battery takes a dump again....Hopefully my confidence level will come up and I can leave the battery at home....

thanks for your input!!

Safe travels

Dave (Dav?)

[Dav]

the last paragraph of post 13 it is in other words the switching loop for the rectifier ..

 

thanks Patch!!

[cowpuc]

thanks Patch!!

 

IMHO,, another thing to easily check is whether or not you have AC sneaking thru to the battery leads.. You should be seeing DC there and an AC presence indicates a diode/rectifier issue.. Also,, if it were mine, due to the issues I have had with stators getting hot and slowly loosing resistance between the windings in the coils,, I would also check the regulators responsiveness both at cold start up and in a full on,, hot,, up to operating temps environment.. IMHO,, a "lazy" or slow to respond regulator in warmed up condition often indicates its new stator time regardless of how the stator ohm tests read.. You should see a consistant,, instant snap up in voltage when the R's cross 2 grandish.. Laziness there is a Murphy, 1000 miles from no where,, party waiting to happen..

[saddlebum]

Hey Condor...thanks....I have replaced the Rectifier and am monitoring the voltage; not the amps though...not sure how to do that....If a amp meter is needed, I don't have one of those. unless there's another round bout way to measure amps....

Anyways, the meter I'm using is not an expensive one, but it's new, and the voltage is high 13's just riding around the city, going through 4th gear, using the power band from time to time, having fun....Im hoping the rectifier was the final end all solution, and even thou the charging is a little high, it won't harm anything...when it died this last time...I know it didn't boil the battery, cuz I charged the battery when i got home, and the next day it was good as gold....

thanks for your input!!

 

Dave (Dav?)

Here is simple explanation without getting too technical. A volt meter and ammeter or amp meter work differently. voltmeter indicates the state of charge while an ammeter indicates the load placed on the electrical system. Take a very low battery for example. as it begins to charge voltage will be low increasing as it reaches full charge. On the other hand the ammeter will read high and drop off as the battery reaches full charge. Turn on additional accessories and the voltmeter will go down while the ammeter will go up. in simple terms the ammeter indicates the demand placed on the electrical system while the voltmeter indicates the available power to meet that demand.

[BlueSky]

Here is simple explanation without getting too technical. A volt meter and ammeter or amp meter work differently. voltmeter indicates the state of charge while an ammeter indicates the load placed on the electrical system. Take a very low battery for example. as it begins to charge voltage will be low increasing as it reaches full charge. On the other hand the ammeter will read high and drop off as the battery reaches full charge. Turn on additional accessories and the voltmeter will go down while the ammeter will go up. in simple terms the ammeter indicates the demand placed on the electrical system while the voltmeter indicates the available power to meet that demand.

 

I understood voltage and amperage by equating it to a water system. Voltage is analagous to the water pressure and amperage is analagous to the water flow rate. With no demand you have full voltage in an electrical system and full pressure in a water supply system. When you start using the electricity, the amps go up and the voltage goes down comparable to a water system when the water is being used, the pressure goes down as the flow rate goes up. Helped me understand.

[saddlebum]

When working with apprentices I often use plumbing instead getting too high tech when trying to get them to understand circuits. Works extremely well.

[cowpuc]

I understood voltage and amperage by equating it to a water system. Voltage is analagous to the water pressure and amperage is analagous to the water flow rate. With no demand you have full voltage in an electrical system and full pressure in a water supply system. When you start using the electricity, the amps go up and the voltage goes down comparable to a water system when the water is being used, the pressure goes down as the flow rate goes up. Helped me understand.

 

:thumbsup::thumbsup:

[Patch]

NO NO GUYS, its like pennies, the battery is the piggy bank, shaking the pennies out is the consumption of amperage!

[saddlebum]

NO NO GUYS, its like pennies, the battery is the piggy bank, shaking the pennies out is the consumption of amperage!

and the harder you shake to get more pennies out at one time the higher the amperage and the faster the piggy bank empties.

 

Sooo Patch, how much amperage did it take to empty your little brother's piggy bank eh?

I figure there had to be a reason you chose that analogy seeing as one tends to choose what comparison one understands best