Battery losing charge problem

[Wojciech Kacprzyński]

1 hour ago, GeeBee said:

I am not familiar how the J is wired but 2.9 amps through the field circuit with the master switch off is not normal. That will deplete your battery. That is 72 amp hours per day.

That was with master swich on, however I don't think it should be draining so much. 

[Wojciech Kacprzyński]

7 minutes ago, David Lloyd said:

.63A is way too much for any keep alive circuit or clock. It’s probably enough to pull in a relay.

any ideas on what to do?

[GeeBee]

25 minutes ago, Wojciech Kacprzyński said:

That was with master swich on, however I don't think it should be draining so much. 

Whoa, Ok, I understood your post to be 2.9A with the master switch off. In any event David Lloyd is correct, even .63 is too much. Did you remove all the fuses as well as pull the breakers? You got a draw from the hot bus somewhere. Clocks, reading lights, cargo lights, master solenoid  anything that is powered by the battery while the master switch is off is a likely candidate and they may and likely to be protected by a fuse, not a breaker. Does your airplane have an electronic ignition system installed in place of one of the magnetos?

[Wojciech Kacprzyński]

42 minutes ago, GeeBee said:

Whoa, Ok, I understood your post to be 2.9A with the master switch off. In any event David Lloyd is correct, even .63 is too much. Did you remove all the fuses as well as pull the breakers? You got a draw from the hot bus somewhere. Clocks, reading lights, cargo lights, master solenoid  anything that is powered by the battery while the master switch is off is a likely candidate and they may and likely to be protected by a fuse, not a breaker. Does your airplane have an electronic ignition system installed in place of one of the magnetos?

I don't really know where the fuses are. No, it does not have an electronic ignition system

[GeeBee]

Maybe someone who is familiar with the J can tell him where fuses are located. I would start at the battery and trace down stream from there. I am sure there are some near the battery, some behind the panel and some in the engine compartment.

[PT20J]

Sounds like something is draining the battery. Are you sure the overhead cabin lights are off.  As @Ragsf15e mentioned, they are wired directly to the battery through a fuse and don't go through the master switch.

[Wojciech Kacprzyński]

35 minutes ago, PT20J said:

Sounds like something is draining the battery. Are you sure the overhead cabin lights are off.  As @Ragsf15e mentioned, they are wired directly to the battery through a fuse and don't go through the master switch.

yesterday i was there at night to see if enything lights up with the master off, but noting seems to be, anyway the ameter reads 0A when master is off so I don't know, last thing that I did was to disconnect the battery and it will stay that way till friday so that i can rule out or confirm the bad battery theory.

[ArtVandelay]

Maybe someone who is familiar with the J can tell him where fuses are located. I would start at the battery and trace down stream from there. I am sure there are some near the battery, some behind the panel and some in the engine compartment.

I have 2 in the battery compartment.

[PT20J]

58 minutes ago, Wojciech Kacprzyński said:

yesterday i was there at night to see if enything lights up with the master off, but noting seems to be, anyway the ameter reads 0A when master is off so I don't know, last thing that I did was to disconnect the battery and it will stay that way till friday so that i can rule out or confirm the bad battery theory.

When you go to put the reconnect the battery, connect a multimeter between the battery + terminal and the battery cable and measure the current with the master OFF. It should be very small (like a few milliamps) for the clock and maybe a SureFly if you have one. If it isn't, then you'll have to find out what's causing it.

[Ragsf15e]

8 hours ago, Wojciech Kacprzyński said:

yesterday i was there at night to see if enything lights up with the master off, but noting seems to be, anyway the ameter reads 0A when master is off so I don't know, last thing that I did was to disconnect the battery and it will stay that way till friday so that i can rule out or confirm the bad battery theory.

To expand on what @PT20J said above, with the master off, there are still a couple very small things that are powered.  Any of these could be left on or partially grounded at a chafing wire which will drain the battery.  The typical culprits are the baggage light and the clock.  They should be wired with a fuse and connected to a “hot” terminal on the master solenoid.  If you do what @PT20J suggested when reconnecting your battery, you’ll be able to measure any current leaving the battery with the master off.  That’s what you’re looking for.

[FredG]

How about this memory store on the fuel flow totalizer?

[carusoam]

Sure…

The keep alive circuit powers many small draws on power… memory of all the electronics from Fuel totalizers and radio frequencies…. But, they take more than a month to drain a battery…

Lights left on in the cabin can drain a battery in a day….

Things left plugged in the cigarette lighter like ADSB-in devices can drain a battery in less than a day….

Worn batteries can show a full charge, but can’t hold it for a day….

all stuff I have seen around here…

The worst batteries are the Gill… they typically last two years before dying….

Compared to Concorde that seem to go seven years or more…

There are a couple of recent pireps for the new style Gill…. But, probably don’t have two years of pireps yet.

 

See if you can get a current meter on the wires on the back of the circuit breakers….

Or put it on the battery cable, and switch off every CB until the current stops flowing…
 

PP thoughts only, not a mechanic…

Best regards,

-a-

[MooneyAcolyte]

yesterday i was there at night to see if enything lights up with the master off, but noting seems to be, anyway the ameter reads 0A when master is off so I don't know, last thing that I did was to disconnect the battery and it will stay that way till friday so that i can rule out or confirm the bad battery theory.

Hi Wojciech, all, thanks for the good discussion, which I find very helpful - having the same issue. Wojciech, have you ever solved your problem? I’ll check the baggage light, fuel memory, and clock tomorrow evening CET.


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[Wojciech Kacprzyński]

Just now, MooneyRookie said:

Hi Wojciech, all, thanks for the good discussion, which I find very helpful - having the same issue. Wojciech, have you ever solved your problem? I’ll check the baggage light, fuel memory, and clock tomorrow evening CET.


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Hi, Turns out it's the Gill battery fault. Changed to Concorde and no problems since

[MooneyAcolyte]

Hi, Turns out it's the Gill battery fault. Changed to Concorde and no problems since

Thanks for sharing. However, that’s not it for me. I’ve bought a Concord replacement. Still the same issue. I’ll report here what I’ll find.


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[MooneyAcolyte]

Thanks for sharing. However, that’s not it for me. I’ve bought a Concord replacement. Still the same issue. I’ll report here what I’ll find.


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Ouch! That was stupid!


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[DonMuncy]

1 hour ago, MooneyRookie said:

Ouch! That was stupid!


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You should install one of my timers. Never happen again.