Help with an electric leak

[bobhamlin]

Somewhere I have a slow drain on my battery. I usually put the bike on the battery tender when I park for the night, so it's not been a real problem--more of an annoying nit.

The other day, I forgot to tenderize it and, 24 hrs later, I barely had enough juice to start up. I got a new YUASA battery over the winter and the symptoms are the same as with the old battery, so I think it must be something that I've inadvertantly wired wrong.

I've added a Stebel horn, Baron's tach, J&M CB communications set-up, alternating flashers, an extra fuse box, air mod, and a Dobeck fuel manager. But I think the problem was going on prior to these additions.

Is there a diagnostic process to isolate the leak? A troubleshooting method for tracking down the problem without yanking individual wires?

[ringadingh]

To find out for sure you can check with an amp meter to see how much of a draw you have. Then Id start pulling each fuse one by one to see if this changes the reading on the meter.
This will only work if the problem is in a fused circuit. It may be in a different part of the harness and will have to be searched out further.
Check to see if a relay or your alternating flashers, Tach light, etc, that you may have added is constantly powered even if the key is off. You may have something powered up constantly without knowing it.
Also check the wiring harness for chafing along the LH side of the bike at the top of the rear cylinder & gas tank area. They have been known to rub through if they are not cable tied properly.

[cnc]

Two other possibles in addition to Ring's suggestions are that your battery is not really charged as well as you think it is, or even though it is new it may have a short in one of the cells. Battery maintainers are good at maintaining, but not really charging up a battery. You could disconnect the battery from the bike and charge with a proper charger. After removing from the charger let the battery sit for a few hours to prevent the surface charge from giving a false reading and test. 12.5 -12.7 is full charge. Test again after sitting over night, if there is a change to below 12.5, this would indicate a problem with the battery. You could then get it load tested to be sure.
A blown diode in a charging system could also be the cause of an electrical leak.

[AlabamaNomadRider]

I thought there might be a hole somewhere and all the electricity was running out and evaporating in the air. Just kidding. Steve and CNC gave some good advice. Something is pulling the power out of the battery or a weak cell in the battery. I would start with the easy part and check the battery. If it is good you will have to do what Steve said.

[macmac]

Ring could be right, and so could cnc.

In steps i would start with cnc's words of advise, to get the battery parts right the first time.

Then i would buy a Amp meter add pig tails and place it in line. What this means it you buy a 30 amp meter and mpint it to (+) then mount the battery cable and anything else on the battery cable to the other pig tail.

This is for testing, and not a permanent install. The meter needs to read in finer detail so it needs more marks than D, -30, -15, 0 15, 30, C.

Then start pulling fuses one by one as just installing the meter should show a D (discharge)

Now this might not be, but once i worked hours on a Willieys that ended up having the tach wired wrongly to be ON all the time. Not the light, but the meter itself, and it drew enough over night to stop the starter from working, and that was on a big truck battery.

One problem on that Willies was every cable and every wire were all one color yellow. Every single one was yellow... and then it had ever meter known to man mounted on a cheesy looking stainless steel dishwasher dash board.

It is likey one or another after market deives you had installed was wire to be hot all the time and is sucking the life out of the battery at 1 amp.

There are inductive amp meters as well, and if you can find a clip on meter in 1 to 5 amps, it might really help a lot more than a 0 to 30 meter will.

[qmaster234]

You can put a test light in between the negative post and the cable and it will show a draw. Start pulling fuses and wires until the test light goes out. If it does not light you do not have a draw and it is the battery.

[macmac]

I forgot the wires to the clock and trip meter need to be disconnected to start with. They do draw all the time. The test light method is valid too, I just have never done this that way.

[bobhamlin]

Thanks all.

Hopefully, this weekend, I'll be able to track this down.

[AlabamaNomadRider]

Good luck Bob, be sure and let us know what you find out.