

| Subject: | Re: Electric mayhem part 2 |
| From: | Jeremy Stovin |
| Date: | Wed, 13 Sep 2017 15:55:44 -0400 |
I'm good. All good advice. Started some advice from a knowledgeable person who accidentally said volts instead of amps and I went with it. I am pausing to clean up and organize the aux wiring as a whole and then tackle the draw, which I think is mostly coming from the radio. There is a 0.01 amp draw from the fridge, but I'll get to that after the stereo. Sent from my iPhone > On Sep 13, 2017, at 1:03 PM, Gabriel Hourtouat <ghourtouat@GMAIL.COM> wrote: > > Jeremy, > Where are you on this? Are you sorted? > > What Kim is saying is that the presence of potential (IE, voltage) doesn't > mean there is a current flow. It would, however, if that voltage was > connected to ground. Does it kind of feel like you're chasing your tale? > Testing for current is a bit troublesome. You need a meter that can > measure AMPS and you need to open each circuit and insert the meter. > > A better test is to use your meter check for CONTINUITY between POS and > ground; and that failing to give usable information, check for resistance > (ohms) to ground. > > Tips: > -Be methodical: disconnect your battery and use the POS connections as > your starting point. Progressively isolate circuits until you find short. > -If you disconnect the battery and test those big leads for a connection to > ground and your meter says that there is no connection (no beeping in > CONTINUITY mode and infinite resistance in RESISTANCE mode) then this > method will not work for you. > -Don't forget that some loads are always ON, like your clocks. > -Use alligator clips or your jumper cables (IE massive alligator clips!) to > connect one of your meter leads ground so you only have to deal with one > lead at a time. > -FREQUENTLY check that your meter and set-up is still working by touching > your leads to a good ground. Your meter should BEEP or read very low > resistance (near zero ohms) when your set-up is correct. > -If you find the short with the continuity feature, it is much easier > because you get an audible response; but for a short which is making a weak > connection, you may have to resort to the resistance feature (IE measuring > Ohms). This is more likely the case because if a POS wire is making a > strong connection with ground, it would probably heat up, smoke, catch fire > or at least blow a fuse. > -You can also use your nose to find a short by sniffing around for that > expensive burnt electronics smell -- we've all smelled it! > -Use your eyes to look for discoloured, broken, crumbling wire insulation. > . > Let us know if this sounds like so much non-sense. Maybe somebody can give > you better instructions. > > Maybe others even disagree with this method or have a better method to > suggest. > > gabby > > > > > >> On Sat, Sep 9, 2017 at 2:15 PM, KIM BRENNAN <kimbrennan@mac.com> wrote: >> >> Volts doesn’t measure current (draw). You would want to put an amp meter >> in between your positive post on the battery and one of the wires you have >> connected to it normally, to identify where your mystery drain is coming >> from. >> >> >>> On Sep 9, 2017, at 1:51 PM, Jeremy Stovin <jjstov@YAHOO.COM> wrote: >>> >>> This is where I show you how much of an idiot I am but hopefully someone >> will be patient with me and teach me what I'm doing wrong. >>> >>> So to sum up where I am. I have something drawing power from the Aux >> battery and currently my Aux batteries (3 wheelchair batteries) are dead. I >> ordered replacements, which came but I ordered the wrong ones. So in the >> meantime, I took one of the new 12v batteries to see if I could find the >> draw. >>> >>> Now I was going to try a modified version of the test of disconnecting >> the ground and using a multimeter between the ground and neg terminal and >> then remove fuses, etc. >>> >>> Since everything is disconnected, meaning the multiple positive >> connections that were attached to the positive terminal, I thought it may >> be easier to try just one positive wire at a time. Connect the positive and >> then test between the ground and neg terminal for Voltage. >>> >>> Well, I tried this and it gives me the full 13v. So must be doing >> something wrong. >>> >>> Can someone please, gently, let me in on the obvious blunder? >>> >>> Jeremy >>> '87 Westy >>> >>> Sent from my iPhone >>
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