Stealing electric power from the battery

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erik_vtr
Posts: 4
Joined: Wed Apr 21, 2021 2:15 pm

Stealing electric power from the battery

Post by erik_vtr »

Hei :)
I recently buy my first Firestorm. The seller told me that it have been working well since last year, but last Monday the battery was almost dead and he could not start up. I bought the bike with this knowledge. First thing when coming home was to check all wires and the voltages. Charging was ok, 14,5V and no peaks when increasing RPM. Took off the Regulator and checked it according to procedure, and it was fine. As normal, it gets warm when engine runs. Charging up battery, install and start once without any problems. Then I leave it to the next morning, trying to start. Engine turn but not starting, and battery fading out. So as the seller, I also suspect something stealing power from the battery. Battery is brand new, 12Ah, CCA180(EN). I am not very clever in electrics, so I need some advice for how to find out what's stealing power from the battery?
I do also look into changing battery to a 14Ah, CCA220(EN) to get more power on cold start. This battery is recommended for big twins like HD etc... I have checked measurements, and I can still get battery case lid and seat on. Only need to do minor modification to fasten the lid (without destroying it of course) Will CCA220(EN) be ok for the bike, or is it to strong for the electrical system?
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MacV2
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Joined: Sun Jan 21, 2007 12:07 pm
Location: Grain

Re: Stealing electric power from the battery

Post by MacV2 »

It's not unknown for a 'new' battery to be bad.

Maybe it's not holding a charge.

Has the bike got an alarm on it ? Or any other aftermarket parts like heated grips ? Anything like that can be a parasitic drain on the battery.
Making up since 2007, sometimes it's true...Honest...
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sirch345
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Location: The West Country.

Re: Stealing electric power from the battery

Post by sirch345 »

Also check the power lead connector on the starter motor for corrosion under the rubber boot.

Chris.
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erik_vtr
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Joined: Wed Apr 21, 2021 2:15 pm

Re: Stealing electric power from the battery

Post by erik_vtr »

Thanks Mac and sirch for your replies.
Mac; Will get a battery analyze to see how the condition is. There is no alarm, heated grips or other after market installations. There have been heated grips before, but I have them in a box :)
sirch; I will check that cable tomorrow, and also have a multimeter engineer to help me checking everything else of cables and connections... :)
- There should be a instrument to install between cables and battery, to monitor if anyone are stealing power from it, so you could print out and read..hehe
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sirch345
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Re: Stealing electric power from the battery

Post by sirch345 »

Getting back to your battery question.

I think the standard 1999 Firestorm battery is 10amp hour.

A popular mod (which I have done to my Storm) is to fit a Varadero battery. It's 15mm taller than the Firestorm battery. I have removed the battery box lid and due to the angle it sits the battery doesn't move without it fitted.

Here's a link to the same battery I use in my bike:-
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Genuine-Yuas ... xy~dNTHvgd

I can't see anything wrong either of the batteries you're thinking about fitting so long as you can get them to fit in the bike okay, as far as I know the more amp hours the better,

Chris.
Ian1801
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Joined: Tue Dec 15, 2020 3:03 pm

Re: Stealing electric power from the battery

Post by Ian1801 »

Hi I’ve had the same problem, found to be a faulty connection on the starter motor 👍

Ian
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