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AKRISONER
January 25th, 2011, 06:27 AM
Hey guys

So recently I've noticed that something seems to be draining my battery when I am not driving. If I let my car sit for any more than a couple days, my battery seems to be depleted. So my question is, can a capacitor in really cold weather slowly pull power from the car battery? Or should it not affect the battery unless the stereo is on?

I'm wondering if this is what's draining my battery or if I have a short
Brian MP5T
January 25th, 2011, 08:16 AM
Is the Battery New or Old?

The Battery itself could have a slow short inside..
red-i
January 25th, 2011, 08:22 AM
happened to me and it ended up being a short in the alternator, causing it to constantly drain. what tipped me off was that my mechanic tested the alt and it was charging fine, but he coudn't get a test on the battery with the car off (snap-on diagnostic read 'interference, check accessories').

now in my case, i had my engine and tranny swapped, so i'm not sure if the alt just happend to bunk out or if they messed up something during install. The shop that did the install traced the issue to the alt, and swapped another alternator in and the issue was gone.
Azi
January 25th, 2011, 08:38 AM
how about your alarm?
AKRISONER
January 25th, 2011, 11:47 AM
I've actually disengaged the alarm in to reservation mode to see
But I'm not sure if that still keeps the alarm semi active. I have been suspicious of that...the alternator was installed in august so It shouldn't be failing, the battery is a 2 year old optima red top...it shouldnt be toast yet
CulRidr
January 25th, 2011, 11:52 AM
It shouldn't be, but get a load test to start and see if anything comes up.
Hacker
January 25th, 2011, 12:42 PM
Refer to this thread for measuring backup current drain: http://www.toprotege.com/forums/showthread.php?t=56482

J.
midnitehour
January 25th, 2011, 09:46 PM
probably the alarm.

The compustars are notorious for draining batteries even when it isn't armed. mine drains the battery in about a week of non use.
red-i
January 26th, 2011, 09:30 AM
^ no way, i had no idea the drain was that significant with the compustarz.
Mike_Moss
January 26th, 2011, 09:42 AM
Teh Starz are 222brite!

+1 for drain, caved and went back to a normal size battery.
typhoonk
January 26th, 2011, 03:54 PM
I had a cap that was draining - pulling 35ma all the time. It was old, but ya they can go bad. They usually have the bottom push out a bit and are squishy when damaged (mine didn't but I've seen them like that).
Azi
January 26th, 2011, 04:05 PM
with my alarm, my battery will only last 4 days max.
CulRidr
January 26th, 2011, 04:13 PM
NEVER had an issue with my Ungo alarm after 4 years...
AKRISONER
January 26th, 2011, 05:10 PM
I'm thinking of just ripping the damn alarm out what a piece of shit
Brian MP5T
January 27th, 2011, 05:33 AM
You can also get one of those Solar Things that offset the alarm...
non_event
January 27th, 2011, 12:32 PM
You can also get one of those Solar Things that offset the alarm...

Are you talking about the solar things that sit on your dash and plug into your lighter socket? Do those actually work? I've always been curious about them.
red-i
January 27th, 2011, 12:48 PM
Are you talking about the solar things that sit on your dash and plug into your lighter socket? Do those actually work? I've always been curious about them.

according to this:
http://uk.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20100329071553AAPqc6U

it won't work with the car off because the power to the lighter socket is cut off from the battery. you'd have to so some rewiring, or connect the solar panel directly to the battery.
AKRISONER
January 28th, 2011, 06:24 AM
Is anyone aware of what the standard battery voltage is when the car is off, specifically on an optima red top?
991.8l
January 28th, 2011, 07:44 AM
Is anyone aware of what the standard battery voltage is when the car is off, specifically on an optima red top?

Should be between 12-12.5 volts.
AKRISONER
January 28th, 2011, 07:46 AM
Alright at least I can check that off mines spot on 12.4
AKRISONER
February 3rd, 2011, 06:30 AM
So I disconnected the capacitor and it still looks like I'm pulling about 30ma Is that high enough to be a short?

Is there any way to tell if it's just the battery that's messed up? I mean I was driving around all day yesterday and then parked over night and my car hardly started this morning once again. The thing is even at 30ma the battery should not be that dead after only 8 hours. This is not good at all.
red-i
February 3rd, 2011, 10:25 AM
How old is the battery? If its been drained a few times maybe its not holding as good a charge as it used to.
AKRISONER
February 3rd, 2011, 12:06 PM
Battery is 3 years old? It's an optima it's only been drained 2 times now
Brian MP5T
February 3rd, 2011, 12:30 PM
The only way to find out is to install a new Cell and see if the problem persists..
991.8l
February 3rd, 2011, 12:45 PM
Battery is 3 years old? It's an optima it's only been drained 2 times now

Get a battery load test done. When they tested mine, it was down to 220 CCA which wasn't enough to give me a clean start. If its bad, get it replaced under warranty.

Check out the poor man's load test:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=viltQBg2jOQ
AKRISONER
February 3rd, 2011, 01:14 PM
Interesting, does anyone know if there is somewhere that does load tests on batteries without having to bring the whole car in
CulRidr
February 3rd, 2011, 01:42 PM
Any good battery shop should be able to do this.
AKRISONER
February 3rd, 2011, 01:48 PM
Battery shop? Where have you seen a place that exclusively sells batteries
Mike_Moss
February 3rd, 2011, 01:52 PM
Pretty sure CTC does load tests if you bring the battery in.
CulRidr
February 3rd, 2011, 02:39 PM
In Ottawa? A couple of places. Don't know about the GTA...
But as Mike said, C.T. does load tests...
Brian MP5T
February 3rd, 2011, 02:46 PM
A load test will not show you if there is a short... just that it can make power...

The only way to test for a short is to leave the cell alone on a bench (Wood) and watch it drop voltage over time..