Date: Sat, 12 Dec 2009 02:30:11 -0600
Reply-To: Mike South <msouth@GMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Mike South <msouth@GMAIL.COM>
Subject: Re: blower fan and wipers not working after aux. battery
installation
In-Reply-To: <4b202108.0407c00a.78c3.0e81@mx.google.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
Thanks Loren, and David, that was a huge help to me. Looks to me like the
alternator was the problem, I guess it's on the way out. Let me address a
couple of these other issues just to close them out though:
On Wed, Dec 9, 2009 at 4:07 PM, David Beierl <dbeierl@attglobal.net> wrote:
> At 11:37 AM 12/9/2009, Mike South wrote:
>
>> the trip mentioned above) was before the aux battery installation.
>> Negative
>> starter battery post to frame is 1.6 ohms (measured because I read
>> something
>> about a poor grounding causing that kind of thing)
>>
>
> Mike, you need to recheck this. 1.6 ohms is an outrageously high value for
> the battery ground -- it should read 0 on a regular ohmmeter. The practical
> way to check its quality is to measure the voltage across the connection
> while you put a load on the circuit. I'd hope to see less than a quarter
> volt across there while cranking, for example.
>
>
OK, so, it occurred to me to check the resistance by touching the probes to
each other--it was not zero :). So I don't think that reading means
anything. My multimeter is a cheap one I picked up in a hobby shop a long
time ago. I don't think it has a way to "zero" the meter, but I guess I can
use the value with the probes touching each other as zero and just subtract
it from any other reading.
>
>
> It's 26 degrees Fahrenheit today. The voltage across the posts of the
>> starter battery was 12.18 cold. Immediately after I started it, while it
>> was running, it measured 11.51 volts..
>>
>
> So, it's not charging. Is the alt light on? What's the voltage at the
> alternator?
>
First I had to check to make sure that what I thought was the alternator was
in fact the alternator. It was. (Putting that in to make it clear exactly
how newbie I am). Then I guessed probably the big red wires were where I
would check the voltage. Zero. I didn't know if it was actually just not
working or if I was putting the probes in the wrong place or whatever (later
one probe broke and I haven't been back in there yet).
Reading up a bit more about the alternator, someone said a simple test was
to just rev the engine and see if the light went off. In all my testing up
to now I had just started it on the driveway and left it idling there.
Well, having read that, I gunned it after starting and the light went off,
and everything was working again.
So, one thing I didn't tell you about (but, in my defense, I did actually
take video of when I went out to test the voltage, so I could upload it so
you could hear it) was this mysterious clicking noise
(click-click-click-click-click-click, constant and fast paced) that I had
never heard until I started it up after the installation of the aux battery.
Coming from somewhere in the engine compartment but I couldn't pinpoint it.
My current theory is that that was the alternator testing its death rattle
for imminent future use. I have had some squeal recently as well, and now
that I know to search on alternator, I'm seeing that this could mean a
bearing. I will also be checking voltage (I couldn't re-check after it
started working again because one of the probes on my multimeter broke--just
got a replacement at Fry's a few hours ago) and belt tension tomorrow.
I'll report back with what I find. I just wanted to send this to let you
know that your suggestions were very helpful and got me into good enough
shape that I was able to drive to an event I had bought a ticket for in
advance and very much didn't want to miss (merely pointing me to the
alternator was what got me to the search that led me to try punching the gas
which I guess reminded the alternator what it was supposed to be doing).
Thanks!
mike
PS The noise mentioned above, btw, went away when things started working
again. If anyone thinks hearing it would tell them anything, I would be
happy to post it.
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