right side battery

[mad rad]

what systems are hooked up to the right side battery on a 94 1 ton?my right battery when engine is running,is only showing 10-11 volts and when not running it shows 13?volt guage is in the red but everything checks out

[DmaxMaverick]

Both batteries are connected in parallel. Neither battery should be powering anything the other isn't.

If you are having voltage drops, check all the cables at both ends. Especially the grounds and bonding straps. Clean or replace as necessary. Dr. Lee had a write-up for an upgraded battery post mod. Reports were that it cured a bunch of voltage problems.

If one battery starts to fail before the other, the votages can be different when charging or discharging. It is important to replace batteries in pairs. A bad, or old battery will kill a new one in a hurry.

[CleviteKid]

I also answered this question, in about the same way, in "Ask Dr. Lee."

Dr. Lee :cool:

[Dvldog 8793]

Howdy
I had similar problems. after chasing corrosion for a year I decided to upgrade the whole system. I used two new Optima red-top batteries, replaced all the cable with high current/temp rated welding cable, replaced all the ends with industrial crimp type top-post ends, then sealed all exposed metal with contact grease. So far after 1.5 years NO PROBLEMS. The engine spins over like a 4 cyl gasser with no compression! :D
I know what I did was probably over kill but it worked for me. The cable that I was amazed by was the one that went to the started. It seemed way to small and also was very heat damaged and brittle.
Hope this helps!
L8r
Conley Janssen

[mad rad]

Thanks,I'm going out this morning to check it out,going to swap batteries first to see what happens first then go from there.thanks again,mike.

[moondoggie]

Good Day!

Dvldog 8793: You

[mad rad]

cleanedall the connecters with wire brush and the guage refuses to move off 14!.this weekend I'll change the bolts and leads,I did the welder wire thing to my jeep and was very impresed with the results,I got the welder leads at attwoods farm and ranch supply number 1 or 2 wire I can't remember,any welding supply or farm store should have it.worth every penny spent!!!!!!!thanks.

[Marty Lau]

It's also a good idea to swap the batteries around once a year, my understanding is that with any dual battery set up one battery will carry more of the load than the other. Changing places adds life to the batteries.

[whatnot]

You can get everything at Delcity (http://www.delcity.net)
I bought 1 Gauge battery cable and tinned copper lugs for mine.
I stayed with side post but they have a real good selection of top post terminals.
I just have Walmart batteries and it spins over faster than any gassers here.

[Dvldog 8793]

Moondoggie-
I'm a welder by trade so I just got the cable from my local welder supply. Try Minneapolis Oxygen in your area. talk to John Bush and tell him that Conley Janssen says Hello. The size that I used was 2/0 I think :confused: The lugs have to be ordered for the specific cable size, Minneapolis O2 might be able to get those for you also. The worst part about it is you have to know an electrician or someone that has the crimp tool for doing the ends properly. The tool itself is WAY expensive! If you do this invest in some color coded seal-tight heat shrink for your ends.
Hope this helps!
L8r
Conley

[moondoggie]

Good Day!

Wow - thanks, everyone. I'm definitely going to look into this stuff.

Blessings!

Brian Johnson, #5044

[LilRed Turbo]

Any auto parts store that carries "Standard Ignition" can get welding wire cables or high temp battery cable. Standard also has solder on cable ends if you don't have acess to a crimp tool. Good quality stuff and if want or need to change post or routes you can customize to your needs. :cool:

[rameye]

I bought I crimper to make connections from a boating supply store it was inexpensive. You basically put the lug and cable in the right spot than whack it with a hammer to make the crimp. I then heat the lug with a torch and solder the joint. Lastly I slide over the waterproof heat shrink and heat it one more time. Works in my boats, never a failure.

[tom.mcinerney]

Soldered connections have least loss when sound.
Sometimes when subject to movement/vibration the wire strands right next to the solder can break--somehow it acts brittle there.

[rameye]

tommac I agree it can get brittle. I forgot to mention that I am a fiend when it comes to adding strain relief at my connection points.

I have done this on the department's boat which has twin cummings 903M's vibrating an aluminum hull..no problems.

Acid free flux is also reccomended.