Battery issues and questions

[Æon]

I sold my friend my 2000 GS500 and she's having trouble with the battery. It seems that it doesn't want to hold a charge, and if she leaves it for a couple days it doesn't want to start. Turns a little and then dies.

I had a newer battery in there that I bought maybe 3 months ago or so. The shop I got it from, though, is rumored to sell old, crummy batteries, so I learned. I took it back to him and he said it's fine. He charged it and then said it had a strong charge almost a full day after he had taken it off the charger. He also said that it shouldn't matter if the battery was "old" when he sold it to be, because they're sealed until they install it... So, is there a known issue with the GS putting a small load on the battery and slowly draining it? She says is turns a little bit but not enough to start, so it's not like she's leaving the parking light on for several days. I figure that would kill it completely...

Thanks

[bsheppar]

I bought a duraboost battery (one that you manually add in the acid) and it only lasted me about 3 months. Once i got tired of having to put it on the charger every night, I went and picked up a sealed battery from walmart - 6 months and still going strong.

[Higgins13]

I bought a duraboost battery (one that you manually add in the acid) and it only lasted me about 3 months. Once i got tired of having to put it on the charger every night, I went and picked up a sealed battery from walmart - 6 months and still going strong.

Ive run a "duraboost" for over a year and it works great!

[bigfatcat]

I sold my friend my 2000 GS500 and she's having trouble with the battery. It seems that it doesn't want to hold a charge, and if she leaves it for a couple days it doesn't want to start. Turns a little and then dies.

I had a newer battery in there that I bought maybe 3 months ago or so. The shop I got it from, though, is rumored to sell old, crummy batteries, so I learned. I took it back to him and he said it's fine. He charged it and then said it had a strong charge almost a full day after he had taken it off the charger. He also said that it shouldn't matter if the battery was "old" when he sold it to be, because they're sealed until they install it... So, is there a known issue with the GS putting a small load on the battery and slowly draining it? She says is turns a little bit but not enough to start, so it's not like she's leaving the parking light on for several days. I figure that would kill it completely...

Thanks

You should have a multimeter to help diagnose this kind of problem,  but in the meantime you could try disconnecting the negative lead overnite, and see if the problem persists, or not. 

If the battery doesn't discharge overnite when disconnected, then the bike may suffer a chronic current drain when the battery is normally connected.

[burnchassis]

To check If the bike is drawing power without a meter...unhook the + cable,then in a dark(er) area when you re-attach the + cable,you will see a slight spark .
-CS

[Worm]

A bad battery will hold a charge for a long time then fade immediately with the load of starting. Charge the battery overnight then take it to Autozone and have them load test it. That will tell you if the battery is bad. Then if it is, buy a good battery instead of the walmart special.

[adidasguy]

To check If the bike is drawing power without a meter...unhook the + cable,then in a dark(er) area when you re-attach the + cable,you will see a slight spark .
-CS

Yes - everyone needs a meter even a cheap $5 harbor Freight one.

Unless you have added equipment, the GS500 is totally dead when turned off. The only way for power to drain is leaving it in park or shorts in the wiring (which would cause other problems).

Only other possibility is a defective voltage regulator. It does connect directly to the battery. If it were bad, you would have charging issues, too.

A meter is your friend. Use it and monitor the voltage.

Don't go cheap on a battery.

[twocool]

Take the battery to Advance Auto....They will do a free diagnostic test to determine the condition of the battery and if it needs replacement, or just charge, or whatever........The test results give you a coupon for $5.00 off the purchase of a new battery.


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[jestercinti]

Get a Shorai battery.  It will most likely outlast the bike.  NEVER worry about it again.

If you like drama, heartache, and intermittent problems, buy a cheap battery.

[sledge]

Now for the the easy way 

Unplug the reg/rect when you leave the bike.......if the battery stays up the reg/rect is toast.