any good way of finding a short??

[salmonite]

so my 70hp johnson killed my battery the other day while trolling so i thought that was odd... so got home charged it and yes it is drawing the battery down with nothing turned on. My question to you is how can i find this short that is drawing down the battery???????? any tips what so ever

[holy mackerel]

Maybe a hand held temperature gauge. The kind an electrician uses to find overloads. disconnect battery, charge it and connect to a cold motor. I haven't tried this but a short will get hot quick and spark. You may find it in the dark also.

[G-Daddy]

Are you sure it is the OB? It could be an accessory. Disconnect one at a time until you find the culprit.

[salmonite]

all accessories were disconnected and only the main motor cables were connected and it took less than a day to drain it with nothing on...

[Buko]

Hook up a 12v bulb or test light inline on your positive(red) battery cable. The brighter it glows the more current is being drawn (a short). Try to half-split the circuit by disconnecting connectors/wires halfway between the battery and motor until the bulb dims alot or goes out. A dimmed or outened bulb indicates no current flow/no short.

Try the starter wire, alternator wire, keyswitch wire, on board charger etc until the bulb dims or goes out and you wll be close to the culprit my friend.

Tom

[dewey123]

I have the same problem with something drawing power off my battery while it is not being used and I cant find it so I always took out the battery after using it and put it back in when i wanted to go out. I just bought a battery switch so i can turn the switch off when im done and on when im ready to go. If you cant find the problem this is a simple fix.

[jimski2]

Is the battery any good? Did you test it?

[salmonite]

Is the battery any good? Did you test it?

yes i did... took it to an autozone and did a load test. here is just an idea but my battery sits on my aluminum decking could adding a battery box help? my grandfather aways told me to store batteries on wood never thought about aluminum sucking the life out of it??

thoughts

[TyeeTanic]

Use tongue...

[LongLine]

Do you mean you turned the ignition to the on position or you had the engine running at home when you saw it was being drawn down?

1. Are you sure you're charging?

2. Many electronics, i.e. Fish finders, radios, GPS etc have memories & will draw some power even though you have them switched off. I had to put in some isolation switches.

3. Did you check every wire for fraying or cracks, etc? Did you pull fuses from holders & check for corroision?

4. Call Hank

Tom B.

(LongLine)

[salmonite]

key is in off position and it is still drawing down the battery..

1. yes i am charging but been told the outboard rectifiers really only charge when rpms are high which mine is charging as i checked with a volt meter

2. all other electronics are not hooked up to battery

3. yes but not with a fine tooth comb.. Knew there was a draw somewhere and was hoping there was an easy way of looking

4. i might have too... lol

[LongLine]

Charging should happen at all RPM. If RPM is increased then charging voltage will increase. IE if at idle & charging at say 12.8v then goose it & it should jump up to something like 15 or so.

R U sure other boat circuits aren't on i.e gas gauge, tilt indicator, lights? There aren't any other symptoms?

Other than the obvious visuals, I'm afraid you're going to have to splurge for a volt/ohm/ampmeter & chase it down.

Tom B.

(LongLine)

[Sean Youngblood]

I had a short once in my control box from the choke switch arching to the metal housing.Could be something to check.

[salmonite]

well always ask your son if he was messing with the lights in the front bow and dad cant see them on

Going to turn them off and see if it stays charged.. ugh!

[ERABBIT]

...... .......glade you found it.....darn kids... .......here try this.......

[LongLine]

... oops...That'll take care of discharging with the key off, however it won't explain the dying while trolling unless all your electricals are drawing more current than your engine is putting out or battery is accepting.

Tom B.

(LongLine)

[salmonite]

tom.

that is exactly my thoughts... well at least i can start eliminating things with bias

[ Post made via Mobile Device ]

[LongLine]

Off the wall thought, make sure your key switch is fully returning to the run position when you let go of it when starting.

[Knotlost]

Thats funny in a pound your head type of way...