If you have high charge voltage, please read

[john from md]

I just recently purchased a 1985 Bayliner with a Force 85hp engine. From the start, I have been experiencing high charging voltage. I did some research on this subject and decided to do my own testing. All of my connections are clean and my batteries terminals were as well.

Several people on the web have stated that, since the alternator only delivers 9 amps, it cannot harm the battery. Others stated that the problem was that the battery terminals were corroded or the battery was shot. I wanted to find out the real story.

On Friday, I installed a brand new Exide Marine 730 amp battery. I had previously checked, water lever, specific gravity of the fluid, voltage and did a high rate test on it. This battery was new and in great condition. As stated before, all of my wiring is also in good condition.

Friday, the Chesapeake was pretty calm for this time of year so I ran around for 1.5 hours with no particular destination. During this time, my volt meter read 16.5 volts. At the end of this time, I opened the battery box and found water puddled around the battery. The sides of the battery were warm and the voltage read 13.9 volts.

I suspected that overcharging was occurring as I found water in the battery box before. At that time, the box cover was not on and I thought that it might have been water splashed in from that damn swim platform that floods the boat constantly. However, I took the swim platform off for this trip and no water came into the boat.

Since several people on the net had replaced the rectifier and experienced no change, I decided to put in a regulator instead. The regulator part number is Universal 090-5. It is made for an ATV but will work on the Force engines. I obtained this information from several posts where the posters had the same problem and the regulator corrected it. The reported voltage after installing the regulator is 14 volts. In years past, I have done the same thing with Suzuki and Honda motorcycles and it also served to bring the excessive voltage down.

The regulator costs $45 but I feel it is well worth it. Batteries are not cheap these days and I want mine to last as long as possible. Additionally, I don't want to be in the middle of the Chesapeake and hear click, click when I turn the key.

I hope this helps some of you with charging problems. For what it's worth, I am a professional aviation mechanic.

Regards,

John

 

[puddle jumper]

Re: If you have high charge voltage, please read

Hay John
Thanks for the info. I checked that part number and it said for maual start only. I gess what im asking is does this matter if you have eletric start.
Also how did you wire it in to the wiring so it would work. Im havinng the same charging problem with my 50 horse.

 

[john from md]

Re: If you have high charge voltage, please read

I think the only difference is that the one made for starters has a bigger diodes and will charge faster. This is needed to compensate for the high amps used when starting with a starter. The non-starter regulator probably will not charge at as high a rate so it will take longer to charge your battery.

I connected the + and - wires to my red and black wires and the other two I attached to the stater wires with the ~ simbol. It doesn't matter how those two are hooked up as it is the AC side of the regulator. The wire colors didn't match mine but as there are only four wires, it wasn't hard to figure out what was what. I attached it to the exhaust box by replacing two of the bolts with longer bolts.

I'm sure glad I did this. Now I get a constant 14.2 volts and no boiling batteries.

Hope this helps,

John

 

[puddle jumper]

Re: If you have high charge voltage, please read

So you just put the regulator in place of the rectifier. Sounds simple Thanks again for the info
Kerry

 

[yfz450guy]

Re: If you have high charge voltage, please read

can we get pics and wiring diagrams and a source for the part?
thanks.

 

[john from md]

Re: If you have high charge voltage, please read

The universal part number is 090 or sometimes 090 with a dash number. This regulator is used in snowmobiles and can be found on several snowmobile sites on the web. The one for the electric start is the recommended version but I believe the manual start version will also work but will charge slower.

As far as hook up goes, it is simple. There are four wires on the existing rectifier. Two are AC and don't care how they are connected, the others are a black for ground and a red DC positive.

Connect the black and red to the black and red wires on the regulator. Then connect the other two no matter what color the wires are. As I said before, these are your AC supply lines and polarity isn't an issue.

Take a bolt out of the exhaust plate and get one 1/4 inch longer at the hardware store. Clean the paint from the area around the bolt head so the regulator will have a good heat sink. The exhaust box is only warm until the thermostat opens and then it is cool and a good heat transfer point. Make sure you coat the bolt with anti seize compound before installing and don't overtorque it.

That's all there is to getting a reliable 14.2 charging system.

Mine is still going strong and I no longer have boiled batteries.

Good luck,

John

 

[gn83tm]

Re: If you have high charge voltage, please read

That's great info, John. Thanks for the post

 

[pnwboat]

Re: If you have high charge voltage, please read

I ran into the same problem with my 1988 125 HP motor. 16 plus volts = Boiled battery. I used a regulator/rectifier from a later model force motor. Now my max charging level is 14.5 volts. Worked great.

 

[john from md]

Re: If you have high charge voltage, please read

Here is a link to a place that sells the regulator.

http://www.mfgsupply.com/m/c/01-090-1.html

John

 

[Mark42]

Re: If you have high charge voltage, please read

John, thanks for sharing that. I have been looking for a regulator to swap in, but all the outboard regulators are expensive. My 85hp Force reads 18V at WOT turning about 5000 rpm. I haven't had boil over issues, but then I haven't used the boat much yet.

Getting a constant 14v out of the regulator will let me add additional electronics, like marine radio, stereo, etc that could be damaged by 18v.

This will be a nice upgrade to the old Force.

 

[john from md]

Re: If you have high charge voltage, please read

Glad to help.

I have to correct one of my previously stated instructions. You have to remove two bolts from the exhaust plate as the regulator has two ears, one at each end.

I also discovered that the regulator for snowmobiles WITHOUT an electric starter are AC ONLY. They will not work as a replacement on the Force engines.

Regards,

John

 

[MikDee]

Re: If you have high charge voltage, please read

Hey John, Does that mean the one in the link you put up don't work for a Force motor? Do we need a different part number? I've been following this post because I'm getting ready to buy a new battery, as the one that came with my boat last year, is a "forbidden" sealed battery and it's almost toast now. I was unaware of the overcharging issues, until recently, and now it's too late for this one, (and this boat was bought from a dealer too?) you'd think they'd know better?

 

[roadrunnr]

Re: If you have high charge voltage, please read

Thanks for the post and info John! My 85 hp Force is putting out 16.5 V at WOT. I think this will be my improvement for the year before I put my boat in storage for the winter.

 

[john from md]

Re: If you have high charge voltage, please read

The part numbers vary depending who you buy the regulator from. The name of the regulator is Universal and the basic part number is 090. Beyond that, I have seen -0, -1 and -5 dash numbers on them.

You are looking for a regulator that says it is for snowmobiles with electric start. They have four wires, are made of aluminum in a square shape with two mounting ears at each end.

The link I posted earlier has a picture of the correct regulator.

Regards,

John

 

[MikDee]

Re: If you have high charge voltage, please read

The part numbers vary depending who you buy the regulator from. The name of the regulator is Universal and the basic part number is 090. Beyond that, I have seen -0, -1 and -5 dash numbers on them.

You are looking for a regulator that says it is for snowmobiles with electric start. They have four wires, are made of aluminum in a square shape with two mounting ears at each end.

The link I posted earlier has a picture of the correct regulator.

Regards,

John

Thanks for clearing that up John, I gotta get me one of those

 

[Matthew A.]

Re: If you have high charge voltage, please read

Great thread John...perhaps should be considered for a "sticky" by the moderators.

 

[john from md]

Re: If you have high charge voltage, please read

I really can't take complete credit for the idea.

Another fellow did it and I just expounded on it a bit. As far as making it a sticky, I think that would be a good idea but I'm afraid I am not computer literate enough to know who to ask.

It is a cheap fix for a problem that vexes earlier Force engines.

Regards,

John

 

[john from md]

Re: If you have high charge voltage, please read

Fellow force owners,

I will be happy to take a picture of my setup but I need someone to post it.
I am not good at posting pics to forums. If you can do this, email me at johnandnanc182@yahoo.com and I will forward the picture to you for posting.

Thanks,

John

 

[Jimmy627]

Re: If you have high charge voltage, please read

I have a 1990 120hp L-Drive would you know if this regulator work on it also.

 

[john from md]

Re: If you have high charge voltage, please read

I am not familiar with the L drive engines but it should be the same. If you have a bridge rectifier, the small square unit with four wires, then this regulator will replace it and regulate your system at 14.2 volts.

Does an L drive use the same type of powerhead as other Force outboards?

Regards,

John