1989 Johnson 120 Not Charging

[chap]

" Hello,
Went to use the boat

" Hello,
Went to use the boat and the battery was totally dead. Unknown cause. Boat had more water than usual from storm and it was just hauled, may have left the finder on. Anyway, the battery was dead; I charged it, and the in dash voltmeter now only shows 12 volts instead of 14+ volts when running. Where to look first? Battery connections are good as is the battery. Twin setup without a switch, yet.
Thanks for any help in advance.
Chap "

 

[joereeves]

"Chap.... Although you've

"Chap.... Although you've indicated that the batteries are good, it's worth mentioning that a faulty battery will drag the remaining battery down.

My first thought would be that the "Water Cooled Regulator/Rectifier" that is located on top of the powerhead" (under the powerpack) has failed. However, if this was the case, you should notice a problem with your tachometer (in most cases), and there would be no indication of charging whatsoever. You made no mention of the batteries dropping in voltage, but rather implied that they were simply holding their own. That leads me to suspect that the charging system is operatable but a battery drain is taking place.

Your charging stator on that engine should be a low 9 amp system (not a hot 35 amp) and I have never heard of those stators failing.

I'm assuming from what you've said that you have two batteries, wired in parallel, without a switch, which results in a normal 12 volts, but with double the amperes of a single battery, with the end battery having its positive terminal being the main source of power. If so, there might be a severe battery drain which can be checked as follows.

To check the system out for a battery drain, remove the cables/wires from the positive battery terminal that leads to the engine etc. Insert a volt meter between the positive battery terminal and the wires you just removed. (you may need to set the voltmeter on a lower scale than 12v to obtain a drain reading). If a drain exists, it will show up on the meter, and it will now be a process of elimination to find the source of the drain.

The possibility of a faulty regulator/rectifier exists, but in a case such as yours, it's usually a battery drain. Let us know what you find.

Joe

"

 

[jon]

" Chap,

Joe's the

" Chap,

Joe's the man, in agreement with him, but here's a couple other things to look into. Recently I had about the same thing happen to mine, batteries where definitly getting low (slow cranking), but I am allways running equipment and tend to drift fish with the engine off most of the time. My charging system is an 18 amp. The volt meter was showing 9 volts when the cranking was slow, and didn't go past 11.5 after running the engine for a while. Batteries had pleanty of water (check yours if they are not maintanance free). I put a multi-meter on the batteries and realized the multi-meter was showing 12.5 volts when the volt meter showed 11. Bad volt meter, no other problem so far and I've been out on a few trips.

Also, if the boat had a ton of water in it, you may want to look into your pump(s)/automatic switch (probably a float type - very unreliable by nature); if the switch is stuck on, or the pump is not pumping water, you will have a constant drain on your battery, as the switch will keep constant power on the pump(s).. If the switch and pumps are sufficient and working correctly, you shouldn't have much water in the boat at all. My boat's a 21 footer (old leaky aluminum) w/ two 1000 gallon an hour pumps - about a 10 amp draw, over night my car battery will die with the interior light on - about a 2 amp draw, doesn't take much over time to drain a battery. My .02,

Jon "

 

[chap]

" Hello,
I checked back and y

" Hello,
I checked back and you guys have been busy, thank you very much.
I think I need to clear up some things that may have been poorly explained on my part.
The boat has two batteries and two engines with no switches. One battery is wired for the electronics etc. and was the dead one. Nothing was on, fishfinder, lights, compass and radio.
Sounds like I need to look for an electrical drain. Someone there that day told me to check my grounds.
Tachs are both fine and operational. Electrolytes etc. good with the battery.
I jumped the dead motor/battery(starboard) from the other motor/battery. The good motor/battery charges on the guage at 14+ while running and the other stays at 12. I am unsure if it is remaining at 12 because I charged it fully with a charger and that's its state of charge. Maybe it is holding its own? Would I notice a significant drop after starting the motor 3 times?
When I look at the volt guage in the dash am I correct when I say that turning the key but not starting the motor shows the battery's state of charge and after firing up the motor I am seeing the "charging" of the battery volts, which should be 14+? The dead side stays at 12 while running. Both used to state 14+ while running.
The boat is a new to me used 1989 Boston Whaler Outrage with NO bilge pumps. I just leave the plug out to drain the deck. The problem of water in the boat occurred when the live well in the stern filled with rain and weighted the stern down. Cover not installed properly. This allowed water for the first time to travel up the wire chase. Maybe some exposed wire up there that made contact with water for the first time and drained my battery? That however wouldn't explain why the charging system is only showing 12 or would it? Does it only read 14+ if the system is charging a charged battery? I think I have a parasite.
The switch would have allowed me to jump the other motor without cables right? Just put it on "both?" Or would I need two switches on "both?"
I'm sorry guys about the wordyness/ignorance. It is however all very interesting to me and a far cry from my Shamrock. I'm picking up a manual immediately and a multimeter.
Thanks again.
Chap "