YABT (Yet Another Battery Thread) '03 Kat 600

[Sagan]

First, Yea!! I found the site! Somehow the page rank needs a bumb so it actually shows up on Google... :P

Now, I could some help trying to see my problem is more than just another dead battery... I'm on my 2nd battery now, a sealed Yuasa model. I replaced it just before the big Rains in LA, so the bike sat for about 2 months. It wouldn't start (turned over a few times, then puttered out). I have a 1.5A charger/tender, and hooked it up for about 12 hours or so. Now it would turn the bike over OK, but took a good 20 seconds on the start button to fire up the engine... I rode for 2 days and things seemed OK.

Fast forward about a week and 1/2 and I couldn't get on the bike, I try to start it and the battery is dead again. I hook up the tender on Sat, and leave it until Monday morning. It starts, and I take the bike to work. Try to start it 8 hours later, and it will not start again (I triple checked I didn't leave the parking lights on)... I get it bumped and the lights dim very noticeably on idle. I make it home OK tho...

That was yesterday.... So... What do the experts here think, should I just get a new battery, or is there maybe something else wrong with the bike. The 1st battery (same model) did the same, it only lasted about 9 months, so I'm thinking there is something wrong with the alternator charing the battery...

[The CyberPoet]

(A) You do need to replace the battery. And the charger. Why? Because the battery, like all standard car/motorcycle batteries, loses about 25 - 40 % of it's long term storage capacity every time it goes dead. Thus, the battery is toast. Replace the charger, because your battery (98+ Kats) shouldn't be charged at a rate higher than 0.9 amps from more than an hour at a pop; charging it for 12 hours at 1.5 amps can overheat it, which will also kill storage capacity, and may cause the case to deform or even lead to an explosion. Best deal: Deltran BatteryTender Waterproof 800, charges at max of 0.8 amp/hours, has three charge levels, auto-switching, float (you can leave it on for weeks, even in the rain since it's waterproof).
KNOW THIS: Typical motorcycle batteries are reliable for two years, after which heat and vibration will have taken their toll enough to make additional years questionable. Cold reduces a battery's output temporarily, but heat, vibration and deep-discharge is what actually kills a battery's ability to store a charge in the first place.

(B) What is killing your batteries is a combination of the California model after-run fan (which produce a large drain on the battery after the engine is shut off) and the fact that you're not riding it enough.
You have several choices:
(A) Disconnecting the leads to the fan,
(B) installing a switch inline with the powerfeed to the fan;
(C) disconnecting the thermostatic control for the fan circuit (wiring harness plug at front left of the engine);
Any of these will let you remove that draw, increasing your battery's lifespan greatly.

Keeping the battery plugged into a suitable charger (see recommendation above) will keep the battery topped off, which will extend it's lifespan substancially and insure that your bike is ready when you need it.

Finally, as to the long-time-to-start after sitting:
Some or all of the fuel in the carb bowls probably evaporated. Switching the petcock to PRIME for 15 to 30 seconds, then switching back to "ON" before starting will let them refill, so there is sufficient gas in the carbs to start up quickly. In your case, you had to run the starter long enough that the engine vacuum (build in this case of the starter turning the engine) could hold open the petcock vacuum diaphram sufficiently to refill the bowls... then it wanted to start. This is a problem that is particularly prevelent in hot and dry areas; your area is both hot and dry.

Cheers
=-= The CyberPoet

[Yellow]

Did you check the charging voltage/current while the bike is running? It's quite easy to check if you have a multimeter (and they are cheap too), so you might as well do it to know whether you need a new alternator/rectifier pack... (especially once you got a new battery in there)

Use CP's write-up on bike electrical diagnosis on his site (link in his signature).

[WildKat]

I always put my battery on the batter tender if it's going to sit for anything longer than a week. Just to be on the safe side.

[Sagan]

OK, none of the local dealers have a battery in stock ... I'll try to get this one charged once more just to start the bike and test the volts its getting while running to see if it's charging (as per Cyber's site)... If that is OK, then I'll chock it up it to the 20 mins the fan run and try to rig a switch for it (I don't think I can just disconnect it, I tend to get into stop and go traffic to often riding home...) Is there a site with a how-to for riggin a switch already?

But for the charger/tender I have, do you really think I need a new one? The battery is rated for 4A fast and 1A slow charging, so I figured 1.5 should be OK.. It's a auto charger, switching to trickle/tending after a full charge...

[SweetLou]

You don't need to get your battery through a dealer. Most auto stores will carry, or can order your battery from there warehouse. May save you a few bucks too.

[The CyberPoet]

OK, none of the local dealers have a battery in stock ...

That's odd, since it's a very standard battery used in quite a few bikes. You might want to try Walmart, a battery store and mail order. I think the Yuasha is the best by design (highest CCA's for the size), but others will work.

If that is OK, then I'll chock it up it to the 20 mins the fan run and try to rig a switch for it (I don't think I can just disconnect it, I tend to get into stop and go traffic to often riding home...) Is there a site with a how-to for riggin a switch already?

The fan has nothing to do with temps the engine sees when running. It is strictly a pollution control measure for after the bike is shut off to prevent excess fuel from vaporizing hydrocarbons into the atmosphere. Other than those bits of pollution control, your engine is exactly the same as those for the one for the other 49 states, which don't ship with the fan & extra pollution controls.
To rig a switch, follow the leads from the fan to the pigtail connector, splice the wire between the fan and the pigtail and add a switch. Install the switch whereever you want (under the seat, in the gauge surround, etc). Just disconnecting the fan is equally effective.

But for the charger/tender I have, do you really think I need a new one? The battery is rated for 4A fast and 1A slow charging, so I figured 1.5 should be OK.. It's a auto charger, switching to trickle/tending after a full charge...

If the battery can store 10 amp-hours, and max rate for charging over 1 hour is 0.9 amps (4 amp fast-charge for max 1 hour), then charging for hours on end at 1.5 amps is (by definition) overheating the battery, and the charger will run at full charge rate (1.5 amp-hours in this case) for several hours if it has to charge up a dead 10 amp-hour battery.
On a full battery, maintaining a charge shouldn't kick the charger on long enough to make a significant difference, but on a truly dead battery, that charge rate would be high enough to be problematic.

Cheers
=-= The CyberPoet

[Sagan]

OK after starting it up, the battery reads 12.4 (flucating about .15 on ether side) at idle, and a steady 14.4 at any RPM above idle. So, by looking at Cyber's site, it looks like all might be good?? So I'll check the a few places and the dealer next to my work and see if they have a new bat, and pull the fairing and disconnect the fan today..

Thanks for saving me a bunch of money guys...

Edit: Found a place that has one in stock.. Would the 1.5A charger be OK to charge up the new battery for a bit?

[The CyberPoet]

Edit: Found a place that has one in stock.. Would the 1.5A charger be OK to charge up the new battery for a bit?

Up to an hour at a pop; let it rest for another hour before reconnecting.. basically cycle it, so it won't overheat.

Cheers
=-= The CyberPoet