Thought I'd run this by you electrical guru's......
The old Nova sits a lot during the winter but gets taken out when it gets warm enough.
I use a trickle charger on the battery.
Yesterday, temps get into the 60's, so off comes the car cover for a little cruisin.
The volt meter pegs all the way into the red zone 16.........and after some driving it comes back more into the green area 15 & under.
I am assuming this is because the battery still has a ways to go before being fully charged?
Should I look for a better trickle charger?
Do I have battery issues?
Thoughts............?

Thom,

i don't know how long the car sat without the trickle on it so the charge could be down. if the trickle has been on it for sometime i'd say the battery isn't up to snuff or it's the charger... but the charger should be automatic on/off as the battery requires it, right ???

check to see if the battery is going bad, maybe the trickle charger.


ya know good clean battery connections are a must for the trickle charger to fully deliver it's trickle ;) check those too (just in case)




or ya might have bad windshield wipers :eek:


Johnny (tryin' ta cover) all the bases :D

Thanks Johnny
It's a Sears trickle charger and I have it on the battery 24/7 during the winter months.
I just noticed over the weekend the volt meter pegging more into the red zone.
I'm thinkin battery right now and will probably be havin it checked soon.......no biggee.......just like things right when possible.
Send me some your warm weather and I won't be havin these issues......:D

what's warm weather ???

i'm freezin' :eek:

Littlerock, CA

Forecast Details:
42F, Partly cloudy. Windy this evening. Low near 25F. Winds WNW at 25 to 35 mph, becoming SSE and diminishing to 5 to 10 mph.

I am going to list some of our warm weather on eBay. Probably have a high reserve since the demand this time of year is great. How much would pay for a weeks worth of sunny 72 degree days and 45 degree lows overnight?

Thom check your voltage before you start the car next time. Is it possiable that the battery is being over charged? That could cause a high reading

Is it a straight trickle charger? If so it is very possible it is being overcharged. You need a float charger that brings it up to full and then maintains that level of charge. I use a Battery Tender Plus (http://batterytender.com/product_info.php?products_id=2) on the Harley. It came with 2 sets of leads, one that attaches to the bike battery with a lead that hangs out under the seat to plug the unit in andanother set with clips I use on the El Camino. They cost about $60 and work well to keep the battery charged without overcharging. IMO you can not get a better unit for stored batteries.

Hey Jim and Phil
Thanks for the heads up........didn't even think about the over charge situation.......and might make sense since it was on there for quite awhile.
I'll look into the battery tender.......might be something I'll spend my new government check I'm getting in May (or not:D)

so i guess MY suggestion about the wipers was chicken poopies !!???

my feewings are huwt !!! :(


ahahahahahahaha ;)

so i guess MY suggestion about the wipers was chicken poopies !!???

my feewings are huwt !!! :(


ahahahahahahaha ;)

Aw heck Johnny.......now I'm feeling bad.......ok hold on......
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Yep.....wipers are good to go.........thanks:D

wheeew, i thought for a second there were deeper issues... might have been a low tire :D


Be Good Thom, i'm glad they hooked ya up ;)

I don't remember the exact volts but the alt.-regulator shouldnt charge around I think its 14.1 or 14.2 volts.
Batteries are designed to be charged at a exact voltage otherwise they will not take a charge if its low it doesn,t charge properly and if its high it doesn't charge properly and boils the acid out of the battery.
I would check out the alt. & regulator or have them tested.

Update........
Got me a digital battery charger....those things rock!
It tested my alternator as being good.
Switched out the voltage regualtor......and that's the culprit.
I can't believe it's been bad for two years.....my volt meter needle would always jump around when starting and final stabalize a bit when running.......and always was in the 15 range.
With the new regualtor.....needle pegged right at 14 and stayed with a steady reading.
The old regualtor was an AC Delco....new one is a Standard but one probably makes the other as they both has the same physical appearances.
Anyway thanks for all the feed back......it's all good now.

Standard/Blue Streak is an aftermarket manufacturer... one of the best in the field (in my opinion) in their regulators they generally have extra ballasts (i believe that's what they are) built inside... stocker would have one where the Std unit has two...

a higher quality unit than stock...

http://www.smpcorp.com/

glad ya found the problem ;)

Standard/Blue Streak is an aftermarket manufacturer... one of the best in the field (in my opinion) in their regulators they generally have extra ballasts (i believe that's what they are) built inside... stocker would have one where the Std unit has two...

a higher quality unit than stock...

http://www.smpcorp.com/

glad ya found the problem ;)

I was amazed how well behaved the volt meter worked after installing the new voltage regualtor and that digital battery charger is really nice item to have around.
Didn't even knew they existed till last week......and they're not that expensive.