New Battery - drained after sitting for a day or two

[gs500Faddicted]

I have a 2006 GS500F.  Put a new battery in about 2 months ago. Bike rides great, and battery stays charged once I do a long trip on it. However, if it sits more than 48 hours, it's dead when I try to start, gives a little try at turning then clicks.  Have to charge it or jump it then it's fine after a 3-4 hour ride.

Again, however...I charged, started, and rode just 20 minutes to work last night and 4 hours later, was dead.

Any help is greatly appreciated.  It does have a lojack on it that came with it from previous owner if that might make a difference. 

[BockinBboy]

Pull the charged battery out of the bike, and measure the voltage with a multimeter.  Let it sit out of the bike, and see if the voltage drops as it does when its hooked up.  If it doesn't drop outside of the bike, then its not the battery, but a draw from somewhere on the bike.

Try to refrain from jumping if you can, because it is hard on batteries, and will likely speed up its replacement time.

- Bboy

[Kerry]

I don't know much about the LoJack system, but the Wikipedia article I read said that the device emits a 200ms "chirp" every 10 seconds.  (Every second when it's "activated".)  Over a 48-hour period that adds up to about one hour of "broadcast time", in addition to some level of trickle current to keep the device "alive".

(FYI, I gave up on my Digital 5 Function Volt Meter pretty quickly for a few reasons ... one of which was the constant battery drain.)

Without knowing the wattages involved it's hard to compare the current drain against, say, a taillight that stays on when you accidentally turn the key to the "Park" position.  But the possibilities certainly warrant some experimentation.  In addition to BockinBboy's suggestion, you might see if it's possible to disconnect the LoJack temporarily and see how long a fully-charged, in-bike battery can sit and still start the bike.

It's possible that after 2 months of "deep discharges" the battery may have a hard time recovering even if you figure out the source of the problem.  But that's a call you can make a little later in the game.

[GI JOE]

I had the same thing happen. I got a battery at the end of January, ran the bike every 2-3 days when I wasn't riding it. After giving up when is died I took it back and it was shot. The store replaced it from the warranty, so if you bought it recently and it fails the test try to have it replaced. Only difference is I don't have any alarms or whatnot.

[weedahoe]

I have a MotoBatt AGM battery I bought a few months back off ebay. I have LoJack on mine, a 2way alarm and an LED controller. I havent had any issues of a dead battery but then again, I dont let it set any more than a few days at most.