i'm having trouble holding a charge with my battery overnight so i think i'm drawing too much current when the car is off. anyone have an idea what a normal current draw would be when the ignition is off? also, i wanted to test each fused circuit with a test light. are there any off-the-shelf test light units available or do i have to make up my own? if i have to make one, what sort of bulb should be used?
car is an 89 240sx btw.
battery drain test light
Your ignition off draw should be less then 50mA. You use a volt meter to conduct this test. Note the test should be done so the battery does not loose contact when you testing it. This is done by placing the neg lead of you volt meter directly on the center of the battery post. The red lead should be attached to the clamp around that same post. You should already have the clamp loose but still in contact with the battery post. Now you lift the clamp straight up off the battery terminal while holding your other lead through the clamp and touching the terminal. This will give you an accurate measurement of off draw as long as you never break contact with the 2 during the test.
As far as test lights go most auto parts stores carry a suffecient one.
As far as test lights go most auto parts stores carry a suffecient one.
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brooklyn240
- Posts: 25
- Joined: Mon Mar 21, 2005 1:35 pm
- Car: 89 240 sx
Re: battery drain test light (brooklyn240)
looks like i'm gonna need a couple extra hands for that test, lol. thanks for the info. about that light, i'm looking for something i can clamp on to the post and clamp so i dont have to hold anything while i'm pulling fuses and still have some visual cue that there is current being drawn. i went to autozone and they had no idea what i'm talking about. does it have a more specific name that i should be asking for? is there one online that i can look at?
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brooklyn240
- Posts: 25
- Joined: Mon Mar 21, 2005 1:35 pm
- Car: 89 240 sx
Re: battery drain test light (brooklyn240)
i made up my own test light with an led and 1k resistor and i started pulling fuses. the light got very dim when i pulled the alternator fuse. i couldn't check the current because it blew out the fuse in my multimeter (200mA i think). i guess it's safe to say that it is more than that. what could be wrong with the alternator that would cause it to drain the battery.