Post by motomech on Apr 23, 2008 21:18:51 GMT -5
Copied from a trouble-shooting post I made;
Voltage is potential. To use the water/electricity analogy, voltage is "water above the damn"(amperage is flow). Voltage, by itself, cannot determine if a battery is good, but it can determine if a battery is faulty. In the case of the above poster, 7 volts is way too low, irregardless of the state of charge. These batteries have 6 cells of approx. 2 volts each and his reading of 7 volts would indicate the 2 to 3 of the cells have shunted, sulfated. Sulfating, often indicated by white spots showing though the opaque batt. case, usually occurs when air comes in contact with the plates. In the case of a new faulty battery(never happens with a Yuasa), it could be that the tape seal was not air-tight.
Specific gravity(hydrometer), like voltage, doesn't not indicate if a batt. is good or bad. It only measures "state of charge".
The only true test for a batt. is to put it under a load(load-tester).
Having said that, someone who as been around enough batteries(like myself, and I have the holes in my jeans to prove it)can get a pretty good idea how the batt. is by combining the lenght of charge time, the heat given off during charging, hydrometer reading and voltage reading, before and after charging and after sitting overnight.
New batteries-A batt. will only be as good as it's first charge and the procedure is important. Whether it is a "sealed" type or an acid/lead type, electrolite will have to be put in. A sealed batt. will have a packet of electrolite to install. A good shop will often ask a customer to wait or come back in 25 minutes because they do this correctly. What they do is, fill the battery, wait 10 minutes, then give it a charge. You can do this too, especially with a sealed type and it's packet. Regular batt. acid is usually sold in Gal. containers, so this procedure is not as simple for the end user.
I would recommend against buying a batt that is ready to go "off the shelf". You don't know how long it has sat with being charged and may end buying a batt with a shortened service life.
A sealed bett, as it's name implies, should never be opened to add water. Regular batt.s ocassionally need to have some distiled water added.
All new batteries should have the contact area of the terminals cleaned with a small file. There is some kind of coating on the lead.
Always use the supplied lead bolts(check the box when purchasing to make sure they have not been robbed) and always route the drain tube below the MC/scooter(with lead-acid batteries).
And although the batt. bolts have Phillips slots in them, the final tightening should be done with a wrench.
Note;
A scooter/MC that has a properly working charging system, a good batt. and that is ridden at least once every two weeks, should not need to be continuiously put on a charger(like a Battery Tender). The chronic dead battery problems experienced by many here is likely due to very small drains(milliamps)that do not show well with a voltmeter. The best way to determin if there is a "micro-drain", is to "strike" a battery wire across the terminal in the dark(with the key off). A small spark would indicate a drain.
Micro-drains usually aren't a problem if the scooter/MC is ridden on a near daily basis.
Voltage is potential. To use the water/electricity analogy, voltage is "water above the damn"(amperage is flow). Voltage, by itself, cannot determine if a battery is good, but it can determine if a battery is faulty. In the case of the above poster, 7 volts is way too low, irregardless of the state of charge. These batteries have 6 cells of approx. 2 volts each and his reading of 7 volts would indicate the 2 to 3 of the cells have shunted, sulfated. Sulfating, often indicated by white spots showing though the opaque batt. case, usually occurs when air comes in contact with the plates. In the case of a new faulty battery(never happens with a Yuasa), it could be that the tape seal was not air-tight.
Specific gravity(hydrometer), like voltage, doesn't not indicate if a batt. is good or bad. It only measures "state of charge".
The only true test for a batt. is to put it under a load(load-tester).
Having said that, someone who as been around enough batteries(like myself, and I have the holes in my jeans to prove it)can get a pretty good idea how the batt. is by combining the lenght of charge time, the heat given off during charging, hydrometer reading and voltage reading, before and after charging and after sitting overnight.
New batteries-A batt. will only be as good as it's first charge and the procedure is important. Whether it is a "sealed" type or an acid/lead type, electrolite will have to be put in. A sealed batt. will have a packet of electrolite to install. A good shop will often ask a customer to wait or come back in 25 minutes because they do this correctly. What they do is, fill the battery, wait 10 minutes, then give it a charge. You can do this too, especially with a sealed type and it's packet. Regular batt. acid is usually sold in Gal. containers, so this procedure is not as simple for the end user.
I would recommend against buying a batt that is ready to go "off the shelf". You don't know how long it has sat with being charged and may end buying a batt with a shortened service life.
A sealed bett, as it's name implies, should never be opened to add water. Regular batt.s ocassionally need to have some distiled water added.
All new batteries should have the contact area of the terminals cleaned with a small file. There is some kind of coating on the lead.
Always use the supplied lead bolts(check the box when purchasing to make sure they have not been robbed) and always route the drain tube below the MC/scooter(with lead-acid batteries).
And although the batt. bolts have Phillips slots in them, the final tightening should be done with a wrench.
Note;
A scooter/MC that has a properly working charging system, a good batt. and that is ridden at least once every two weeks, should not need to be continuiously put on a charger(like a Battery Tender). The chronic dead battery problems experienced by many here is likely due to very small drains(milliamps)that do not show well with a voltmeter. The best way to determin if there is a "micro-drain", is to "strike" a battery wire across the terminal in the dark(with the key off). A small spark would indicate a drain.
Micro-drains usually aren't a problem if the scooter/MC is ridden on a near daily basis.