Any accessories? Security system, etc? Do you have the FSM Wiring Schematic? Maybe start by by pulling fuses or disconnecting items?
Ignition off, but drawing 12+ volts in negative battery cable
Hi all,
1995 Electra Glide Ultra Classic. Hoping to check my electrical system for parasitic drain, I placed my voltmeter in series between the negative battery post and the negative cable. With the ignition off and the starter relay wires out of the picture (not connected), I'm getting 12+ volts showing on the meter. No wonder my battery will be dead if I don't take a good long ride at least every two days! The manual says there should be less than 15 milliamps (radio and CB memory, and I don't have a CB). I don't even know where to begin to troubleshoot.
Any ideas where to begin troubleshooting would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Kerpdog
1995 Electra Glide Ultra Classic. Hoping to check my electrical system for parasitic drain, I placed my voltmeter in series between the negative battery post and the negative cable. With the ignition off and the starter relay wires out of the picture (not connected), I'm getting 12+ volts showing on the meter. No wonder my battery will be dead if I don't take a good long ride at least every two days! The manual says there should be less than 15 milliamps (radio and CB memory, and I don't have a CB). I don't even know where to begin to troubleshoot.
Any ideas where to begin troubleshooting would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Kerpdog
1 - 19 of 19 Posts
You need to measure amperage for parasitic drain on each circuit, not voltage.
Brand'd,
Good idea re pulling fuses and disconnecting things. No accessories other than the stereo, and I do have the FSM.
Good idea re pulling fuses and disconnecting things. No accessories other than the stereo, and I do have the FSM.
How many amps is it drawing? while sitting. disconnecting circuits one at a time,, as in check for power through the fuses or breakers,, a vom or test light can be used to locate the problem circuit..
Hi Alan S,You need to measure amperage for parasitic drain on each circuit, not voltage.
I did the procedure listed in the FSM. With the ignition off, shouldn't there be no voltage? An open circuit?
Thanks.
To be honest, I'm not even sure what I would disconnect. There's the radio, the lights, and not much else. At some point someone removed the cruise control. Also, I know where the main fuse is, but can't say I've noticed any other fuses anywhere else. Is there a fuse block somewhere?How many amps is it drawing? while sitting. disconnecting circuits one at a time,, as in check for power through the fuses or breakers,, a vom or test light can be used to locate the problem circuit..
you prob need to remove the seat have a look...remove outer fairing....think 96 was dutshe connectors but you have old style..i think...i have 91...feel the breakers on the rack...warm one?..or clicking on/off...then pull the radio conn and pwr...then go from there...look under the rear fender wires from grinding on the tire...mine did that....and any wires rubbing anywhere....hope this helps...oh!... also disconnect the starter(all pwr conns)...and see results..do all one at a time and put back each connection if no change....have fun
Parasitic drain is measured in amps, not volts.
You got saddle bags? Can you remove the left one? And the seat? and then the left side cover?
You should find your fuse box behind that cover. There should be a whole board of mini fuses inside. Also, there is a snap on fuse box cover.
And like has been noted, you're looking for current in amps (probably milliamps). If your DVOM doesn't read that, you need to get one that does.
You can use volts, but it isn't very precise. And to make it so, you would have to hook up resistors and diodes and do some not-to-basic math. Thank Mr. Ohm for his Law.
You should find your fuse box behind that cover. There should be a whole board of mini fuses inside. Also, there is a snap on fuse box cover.
And like has been noted, you're looking for current in amps (probably milliamps). If your DVOM doesn't read that, you need to get one that does.
You can use volts, but it isn't very precise. And to make it so, you would have to hook up resistors and diodes and do some not-to-basic math. Thank Mr. Ohm for his Law.
You are going to show 12 volts putting your meter in line with the battery terminal and negative lead like that because you are completing the circuit and giving a path for current to flow even the 15 milliamperes of parasitic drain that is still 12 volts, like others have stated already meter goes on amps not volts
Hi RootinTootin,You got saddle bags? Can you remove the left one? And the seat? and then the left side cover?
You should find your fuse box behind that cover. There should be a whole board of mini fuses inside. Also, there is a snap on fuse box cover.
And like has been noted, you're looking for current in amps (probably milliamps). If your DVOM doesn't read that, you need to get one that does.
You can use volts, but it isn't very precise. And to make it so, you would have to hook up resistors and diodes and do some not-to-basic math. Thank Mr. Ohm for his Law.
Thank you, I'll be doing that this Friday or Saturday.
Hi Stovebold 55,You are going to show 12 volts putting your meter in line with the battery terminal and negative lead like that because you are completing the circuit and giving a path for current to flow even the 15 milliamperes of parasitic drain that is still 12 volts, like others have stated already meter goes on amps not volts
Got it, I'll update my methodology accordingly. Thanks.
Well, here are the results of my efforts, ignition switch off.
I'm measuring .14a between the negative battery post and the negative cable. My vom gives the amp range as 0-10a. Does .14a at the negative terminal represent excessive parasitic drain?
In the fuse panel, the fuses on the left, measured across the fuse holder with the fuse removed:
0v and 0a across the "pod pwr" fuse. Any idea what the "pod" is?
.03v and 0a across the "cb pwr" fuse. There is a hardwired intercom of some kind on the bike, with a control panel of some kind on the right side of the rear seat. Would that be related to the cb? Again, there is no cb radio on the bike, only an fm radio.
11.5v and 0a across the "cb mem" fuse.
To the right of the fuses is a series of plugs, labeled from top to bottom:
"pwr in" (white plug)
"to cb" (red plug)
"to pod" (black plug)
"to acc" is an empty socket missing a plug. Seems like there should be something there?
Is there anything I should be testing in these three plugs?
I didn't test across the starter because I wasn't sure which connections to test. Across the solenoid (photo)? Somewhere else?
Thanks for any thoughts.
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I'm measuring .14a between the negative battery post and the negative cable. My vom gives the amp range as 0-10a. Does .14a at the negative terminal represent excessive parasitic drain?
In the fuse panel, the fuses on the left, measured across the fuse holder with the fuse removed:
0v and 0a across the "pod pwr" fuse. Any idea what the "pod" is?
.03v and 0a across the "cb pwr" fuse. There is a hardwired intercom of some kind on the bike, with a control panel of some kind on the right side of the rear seat. Would that be related to the cb? Again, there is no cb radio on the bike, only an fm radio.
11.5v and 0a across the "cb mem" fuse.
To the right of the fuses is a series of plugs, labeled from top to bottom:
"pwr in" (white plug)
"to cb" (red plug)
"to pod" (black plug)
"to acc" is an empty socket missing a plug. Seems like there should be something there?
Is there anything I should be testing in these three plugs?
I didn't test across the starter because I wasn't sure which connections to test. Across the solenoid (photo)? Somewhere else?
Thanks for any thoughts.
Radio draws power when off to keep memory. My 2 cents.
You should try this.
Hook your DVOM like you had it for the 140 mA. reading. Milliamps is abbreviated mA. That was the .14a reading you got at the start. Inline between the battery ground post and strap.
Then start pulling fuses, one at a time. That 140 mA should stay the same if there is no current going through a fuse or drop by a certain amount when you pull one on a circuit that has a current flow. Make note of any drops so you can investigate that circuit closer after checking all of them. You can include that main fuse too. Just to rule it out. And there might be more than one circuit with a current flow. Even at the end, you might end up with a flow. Some vehicles will have a small amount by design.
140 mA is definitely enough to kill a battery in a few days. That will do a number, even on a full-sized car battery. And it sounds more ominous if you use the right terminology.
Not knowing your history with the bike, there might be some equipment added sometime during the last 28 years or so. There could be some fused wiring tucked out of the way that draws power from some other source on the bike. People sometimes like to take the easy route when installing that cool add-on.
Hook your DVOM like you had it for the 140 mA. reading. Milliamps is abbreviated mA. That was the .14a reading you got at the start. Inline between the battery ground post and strap.
Then start pulling fuses, one at a time. That 140 mA should stay the same if there is no current going through a fuse or drop by a certain amount when you pull one on a circuit that has a current flow. Make note of any drops so you can investigate that circuit closer after checking all of them. You can include that main fuse too. Just to rule it out. And there might be more than one circuit with a current flow. Even at the end, you might end up with a flow. Some vehicles will have a small amount by design.
140 mA is definitely enough to kill a battery in a few days. That will do a number, even on a full-sized car battery. And it sounds more ominous if you use the right terminology.
Not knowing your history with the bike, there might be some equipment added sometime during the last 28 years or so. There could be some fused wiring tucked out of the way that draws power from some other source on the bike. People sometimes like to take the easy route when installing that cool add-on.
WILCO! I'm going to do that today, since I left the battery connected yesterday after I finished some other things I was doing.You should try this.
Hook your DVOM like you had it for the 140 mA. reading. Milliamps is abbreviated mA. That was the .14a reading you got at the start. Inline between the battery ground post and strap.
Then start pulling fuses, one at a time. That 140 mA should stay the same if there is no current going through a fuse or drop by a certain amount when you pull one on a circuit that has a current flow. Make note of any drops so you can investigate that circuit closer after checking all of them. You can include that main fuse too. Just to rule it out. And there might be more than one circuit with a current flow. Even at the end, you might end up with a flow. Some vehicles will have a small amount by design.
140 mA is definitely enough to kill a battery in a few days. That will do a number, even on a full-sized car battery. And it sounds more ominous if you use the right terminology.
Not knowing your history with the bike, there might be some equipment added sometime during the last 28 years or so. There could be some fused wiring tucked out of the way that draws power from some other source on the bike. People sometimes like to take the easy route when installing that cool add-on.
Well, I'm feeling pretty frustrated at the moment. I pulled the fuses, one by one, no change to the 140 mA. Then I pulled each of those plugs. No change. Then I started unplugging any connectors I could find- to the cruise control, the four or five connectors under that side cover that each had ten wires going who knows where, the little plugs going to the stereo speakers, the plugs I think had wires going to the intercom. No change to the 140 mA with any of them.You should try this.
Hook your DVOM like you had it for the 140 mA. reading. Milliamps is abbreviated mA. That was the .14a reading you got at the start. Inline between the battery ground post and strap.
Then start pulling fuses, one at a time. That 140 mA should stay the same if there is no current going through a fuse or drop by a certain amount when you pull one on a circuit that has a current flow. Make note of any drops so you can investigate that circuit closer after checking all of them. You can include that main fuse too. Just to rule it out. And there might be more than one circuit with a current flow. Even at the end, you might end up with a flow. Some vehicles will have a small amount by design.
140 mA is definitely enough to kill a battery in a few days. That will do a number, even on a full-sized car battery. And it sounds more ominous if you use the right terminology.
Not knowing your history with the bike, there might be some equipment added sometime during the last 28 years or so. There could be some fused wiring tucked out of the way that draws power from some other source on the bike. People sometimes like to take the easy route when installing that cool add-on.
Am I correct that unplugging those connectors would have the same effect as pulling a fuse? That is, to separate whatever component the wires go to from the battery?
Yesterday I had the outer fairing off and I wish I had been aware of this technique then, I'd have pulled every plug I could find in there as well. That was no fun taking that apart and putting it all back.
I really appreciate the guidance you've given so far. I feel like I'm at least ruling some things out.
Kerpdog
This isn't the FSM, but the Electrical Diagnostics Manual.
99948-96_en - Wiring Diagrams & Electrical Troubleshooting Guide - 1995 & 1996 All Models | Harley-Davidson SIP
You might want to download a copy. All the wiring diagrams are near the end. A lot of good stuff in there. Probably more than you ever wanted to know.
Back later.
99948-96_en - Wiring Diagrams & Electrical Troubleshooting Guide - 1995 & 1996 All Models | Harley-Davidson SIP
You might want to download a copy. All the wiring diagrams are near the end. A lot of good stuff in there. Probably more than you ever wanted to know.
Back later.
1 - 19 of 19 Posts
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