what is the right gauge for battery?

[rollyic]

yung car ko pong nissan series 3 ay may almost 2 yrs. nang motolite enduro 2SM maintenance free na battery.

nung pina check ko sa isang battery dealer, sabi nya ok pa naman daw yung battery ko at baka umabot pa ng another 1 yr. pa ang buhay.
ang problema daw is yung alternator ko. hindi daw nagka karga kasi 12-13 lang daw yung reading. dapat daw nasa 14.
ni-recommend nya kong ipa check sa isang auto electrician malapit sa tinadahan nila.
sabi ng auto electrician, di nga daw kumakarga. dapat daw talaga nasa 14 ang palo.

medyo duda ako sa sinabi ng auto electrician, kaya pina check ko sa dalawang auto electrician na nadaanan ko along the way. sabi ng dalawa, ok lang naman daw ang karga ng alternator ko. dahil sasabog daw ang battery kung nasa 14 ang reading.

ano po ba ang tamang reading?

[jick.cejoco]

yung car ko pong nissan series 3 ay may almost 2 yrs. nang motolite enduro 2SM maintenance free na battery.

nung pina check ko sa isang battery dealer, sabi nya ok pa naman daw yung battery ko at baka umabot pa ng another 1 yr. pa ang buhay.
ang problema daw is yung alternator ko. hindi daw nagka karga kasi 12-13 lang daw yung reading. dapat daw nasa 14.
ni-recommend nya kong ipa check sa isang auto electrician malapit sa tinadahan nila.
sabi ng auto electrician, di nga daw kumakarga. dapat daw talaga nasa 14 ang palo.

medyo duda ako sa sinabi ng auto electrician, kaya pina check ko sa dalawang auto electrician na nadaanan ko along the way. sabi ng dalawa, ok lang naman daw ang karga ng alternator ko. dahil sasabog daw ang battery kung nasa 14 ang reading.

ano po ba ang tamang reading?

charging systems are designed to put out 13.5 to 14.5 and on some toyotas, the output is up to 15 volts. it depends on your make and design. the most common ones are between 13.5-14.5 volts. check your battery output by disabling the fuel delivery and cranking for 15 seconds while observing your battery terminal voltage. while doing this, the voltage should not drop below 10.5 volts. your pcm and other computers only operate with a minimum of 10 volts regardless you are cranking, cruising or decelerating. once the voltage drops below threshold, engine operation ceases

[miked]

^^mine's charging at 14.2 Volts at idle no load....goes down to 13.8 V at full load (A/C, Radio, all lights including hazard)......75A 12 V alternator.

[rollyic]

so meaning, talagang sira yung alternator ko?

[jick.cejoco]

so meaning, talagang sira yung alternator ko?

don't be so easy to condemn your alternator! check your belt for tension and condition first. then check your battery. remember: the alternator DOES NOT work without a battery. it is the battery that supplies the field coil to make it a moving electromagnet. then check your terminal for cleanliness and tightness

[yebo]

for any lead acid battery the normal minimum voltage for charging is 2.3volts and maximum is 2.6 volts PER CELL. since there are 6 cells in a 12-volt battery then minimum is 2.3 x 6 = 13.8 volts and the maximum is 2.6 x 6 = 15.6 volts. that means that for a charging system to work it has to have a voltage of between 13.8 - 15.6 volts. so tama sila na sira na alternator mo kasi mas mababa na sa normal minimum charging voltage.

note i said normal minimum charging voltage. that is because may tinatawag na "trickle charge" or "float charge" which is just at 13.4 volts. this is for systems that are on stand-by, like on UPS systems.

[rollyic]

don't be so easy to condemn your alternator! check your belt for tension and condition first. then check your battery. remember: the alternator DOES NOT work without a battery. it is the battery that supplies the field coil to make it a moving electromagnet. then check your terminal for cleanliness and tightness

bago po yung belt...kapapalit ko pa lang po.

[rollyic]

for any lead acid battery the normal minimum voltage for charging is 2.3volts and maximum is 2.6 volts PER CELL. since there are 6 cells in a 12-volt battery then minimum is 2.3 x 6 = 13.8 volts and the maximum is 2.6 x 6 = 15.6 volts. that means that for a charging system to work it has to have a voltage of between 13.8 - 15.6 volts. so tama sila na sira na alternator mo kasi mas mababa na sa normal minimum charging voltage.

note i said normal minimum charging voltage. that is because may tinatawag na "trickle charge" or "float charge" which is just at 13.4 volts. this is for systems that are on stand-by, like on UPS systems.

mukhang sira na nga yung alternator ko...
kasi binuksan lahat, aircon, headlight, car stereo pati hazard...pumalo lang sya sa 12v.

kaso sabi ng 2 technician, normal lang daw sa 12v. kasi ginamitan nila ng isang klaseng gauge na nasa gitna lang ang palo.
pag under daw or di nagcha-charge, nasa kaliwa daw dapat ang palo ng gauge. saka di naman namamatay ang makina pag tinatanggal nila yung battey terminal.

ano po sa tingin nyo? sira naba talaga ang alternator ko? o dahil bagong palit ang belt at masikip pa kaya medyo hirap ang alternator?

[rollyic]

sabi nga din pala nung unang technician na, sira daw yung IC nung alternator. yun lang daw ang papalitan.
tama po ba sya? mag ok na po ba kung yung IC lang ang papalitan?

maraming salamat sa lahat.

[miked]

an alternator that is not charging is usually due to worn out carbon brushes. (if it's pegged at 12.6 V or lower).a simple replacement of the brushes will bring it back to life....one that overcharges is one or a combination of the ff: defective IC, burnt stator insulation, defective rotor, etc. etc.

yes, a surgery of the alternator will reveal everything if the readings are out of specs.

aside from the points stated, check first the simple ones like a loose wiring connection, belt tension even if it's replaced hours ago or days ago, batt terminals tightness and cleanliness, etc.....

plus how old is your battery? you may want to buy a pocket size digital multimeter in the near future as your basic diagnostic tool in your cars electrical system. it really helps.

[rollyic]

another suggestion nung isang technician, meron daw syang surplus na nissan alternator. medyo mas malaki kesa sa existing alternator ko. sabi nya mas maganda daw yun kasi mas malakas ang bato ng kuryente. ia-adjust na lang daw nya adjuster para magkasya.

tama po ba yung sinabi nya?
hindi nya sisirain ang battery ko or ang mga electricals sa kotse?

[rollyic]

dagdag ko lang po....
hindi naman sya mahirap mag start sa umaga. one click nga lang po.

natatakot lang kasi akong mamatayan sa kalsada kaya nagwo-worry ako.

[oj88]

another suggestion nung isang technician, meron daw syang surplus na nissan alternator. medyo mas malaki kesa sa existing alternator ko. sabi nya mas maganda daw yun kasi mas malakas ang bato ng kuryente. ia-adjust na lang daw nya adjuster para magkasya.

tama po ba yung sinabi nya?
hindi nya sisirain ang battery ko or ang mga electricals sa kotse?

Using an alternator not meant for your car model is a hit or miss thing. Unless you know the trade, it's usually not worth the headache later.

Case in point, my kid brother's Hyundai Getz broke down due to a faulty alternator (dead rectifier/regulator module, to be exact). Being a non-techie, he went ahead with the Banawe technician's suggestion of using a used alternator from a Hyundai Besta. It charged the battery alright and for the most part, it did its job. However, we started noticing that the engine idles funny when we switch on the hazard lights. We later concluded that this is likely an incompatibility between the engine's ECU/electrical load sensor (if equipped) and the field coil. He shelled out about 4k for everything but only got to use the replacement alternator for 6-7 months before it too, died.

With my influence, we decided to go with a brand new OEM alternator and the car has been running ever so smoothly since last November. Expensive, but well worth it.

OT: Funny thing with my bro's Getz... the battery warning idiot lamp did not light up during the two incidents the alternator conked out. But the idiot lamp works with the ignition on and the engine off. Go figure. As a workaround, I just got him a 700-peso cigarette lighter plug-in voltmeter. I just told him that if the voltage goes below 12V with the engine running and all accessories turned off, drive it to the nearest gas station, just to be on the safe side.

[rollyic]

Using an alternator not meant for your car model is a hit or miss thing. Unless you know the trade, it's usually not worth the headache later.

Case in point, my kid brother's Hyundai Getz broke down due to a faulty alternator (dead rectifier/regulator module, to be exact). Being a non-techie, he went ahead with the Banawe technician's suggestion of using a used alternator from a Hyundai Besta. It charged the battery alright and for the most part, it did its job. However, we started noticing that the engine idles funny when we switch on the hazard lights. We later concluded that this is likely an incompatibility between the engine's ECU/electrical load sensor (if equipped) and the field coil. He shelled out about 4k for everything but only got to use the replacement alternator for 6-7 months before it too, died.

With my influence, we decided to go with a brand new OEM alternator and the car has been running ever so smoothly since last November. Expensive, but well worth it.

OT: Funny thing with my bro's Getz... the battery warning idiot lamp did not light up during the two incidents the alternator conked out. But the idiot lamp works with the ignition on and the engine off. Go figure. As a workaround, I just got him a 700-peso cigarette lighter plug-in voltmeter. I just told him that if the voltage goes below 12V with the engine running and all accessories turned off, drive it to the nearest gas station, just to be on the safe side.

sir san po pwedeng makabili ng cigarette lighter plug-in voltmeter?

[oj88]

sir san po pwedeng makabili ng cigarette lighter plug-in voltmeter?

Bought it from a member at TeamFD. Found at least a couple of sellers on Sulit. Just search for "voltmeter". What you want is something that can be plugged into the cigarette lighter.

Exact pic of it installed on my bro's Getz.


Good luck!

[rollyic]

sir bakit ang reading 12.25v lang? thus it means may problema din sa alternator yung getz ng bro. nyo?

[oj88]

sir bakit ang reading 12.25v lang? thus it means may problema din sa alternator yung getz ng bro. nyo?

The engine wasn't running when I took the pic. I Just turned the key to ACC for this demonstration. With the engine running, it goes up to ~14V.