how to check charging -2002-600

[H-2 CHARLIE]

o.k. i left my lights on for three min. but the cooling fan was on for some time earlier right before i started the bike ...dead battery so i pushed it started right up , on the way home lost the tac and speedo ...got home tried to restart bike ..nothing , ...so replace battery or check charging system .......... prior to last mo. when i got the bike the battery was dead no water in some of the cells , added disstiled water ,took a charge and ben o.k till now

[kevin2502000]

You need over 12v to charge a battery, closer to 14v. Rev the bike up with a multimeter on the battery and it will tell u the volts. If it is over 14.5 the regulator isn't working.

[H-2 CHARLIE]

o.k. unpuged the cooling fan ..battery came up in 45 min. and back on the road with no money spent ..checked battery when running shows 12.5-14.5 volts so alls fine

[The CyberPoet]

o.k. i left my lights on for three min. but the cooling fan was on for some time earlier right before i started the bike ...dead battery so i pushed it started right up , on the way home lost the tac and speedo ...got home tried to restart bike ..nothing , ...so replace battery or check charging system .......... prior to last mo. when i got the bike the battery was dead no water in some of the cells , added disstiled water ,took a charge and ben o.k till now

(A) 98-06 Kats have sealed maintenance-free batteries that NEVER LOSE WATER unless they massively overheat and blow-out an emergency blow-out door in the side of the lid. If you added water, you messed it up (either that, or the previous owner put in the wrong kind of battery -- easy way to tell: maint free batteries do not have a drain on the cap anywhere).

(B) Battery charging for 98+ Batteries - 800 milliamps for 14 hours should fill it without overheating it. 1 Amp/hour charger max (more than that, and you need to cycle the charger on/off to let the battery cool).
NEVER USE A STANDARD AUTOMOTIVE BATTERY CHARGER ON A MOTORCYCLE BATTERY -- it'll cook it.

(C) Batteries become temporarily weak when they get cold, but lose power permanently when they get too hot, and from being run too low (every time they discharge fully, they lose 25-40% of their remaining storage capacity). To test a battery you suspect is OK, charge it to full, then measure the voltage (12.7 volts or higher; if lower, replace) and leave it sit disconnected for 12 hours. Now remeasure voltage (needs to be the same or higher than it was before; if lower, replace).

(D) Generally, if your gauges actually go dead while riding, that battery is toast for good. Replace ASAP.

More on my website here:
CyberPoet's Motorcycle Battery, Charging System Testing and Troubleshooting.

Cheers,
=-= The CyberPoet

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