Bad bartterys?

[Ranger Jay]

Hey quick question...I was on the lake today and my trolling motor quit! When I got home the I plugged the charger in and it only took an hour for the green lights to come on but the motor turn once and stopped! I put the meter on it and the battery's have 15 16 volts but at the plug I'm getting 33 volts! Bad battery's? Thank you!

 

[Don S]

Re: Bad bartterys?

Sounds bad, get it load tested, that will give you the final answer and works better than guessing.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Bad bartterys?

And just what type of trolling motor do you have? 12 volt, 24 volt, 36 volt. Always measure battery voltage with a load on it (as in the motor running).

 

[jopes]

Re: Bad bartterys?

If your loosing that much voltage, I would suspect a bad connection between the motor and the batteries.

 

[MH Hawker]

Re: Bad bartterys?

Their not in common use any more but the old style cheese grater load testers have worked very well for years and you can test them with out pulling them out of the boat. Or you can pull them out and have it loaded tested at most auto parts stores.

Battery Tester - Harbor Freight Tools

 

[laotou]

Re: Bad bartterys?

The green light may give you false information. I charged my battery today until the green light was on. It took less than 15 minutes. The voltage was 12 v. I took the battery to AutoZone and they told me the battery was dead.

I took the battery home and opened the caps. The liquid in a cell was really low. I used my specific gravity meter to check the electrolyte. Only one cell was charged. Other five cells were not. In other words, the green light or the multimeter may foul you to think the battery is full.

I added some electrolyte to the battery from another battery and filled the cells with distilled water. Guess what? My battery now is 22 v.

 

[glenn property of pam]

Re: Bad bartterys?

The green light may give you false information. I charged my battery today until the green light was on. It took less than 15 minutes. The voltage was 12 v. I took the battery to AutoZone and they told me the battery was dead.

I took the battery home and opened the caps. The liquid in a cell was really low. I used my specific gravity meter to check the electrolyte. Only one cell was charged. Other five cells were not. In other words, the green light or the multimeter may foul you to think the battery is full.

I added some electrolyte to the battery from another battery and filled the cells with distilled water. Guess what? My battery now is 22 v.

22v on a single battery is a false reading add a small load then read the voltage again if it still reads 22v you have a bad meter. if you took the reading just after unplugged the charger then the charger is putting out to much voltage and is boiling the battery. i would be worried if i ever read 22v on my boat especially if the motor was running as the black smoke is a expensive sign.

 

[coolbri70]

Re: Bad bartterys?

test while running the motor(put a load on it) the voltage shouldnt go below 9 1/2 on a full charge

 

[matt167]

Re: Bad bartterys?

12v battery puts out 2.1v per cell. 22v is bad, but I don't see it happening for more than a couple seconds. Unregulated charge voltage ( old outboard, lawnmower engine ect... ) can pump upwards of 17v into the system where the volt meter will read it, but the battery will never put out that voltage for more than a few seconds without the charging system working.