Crank Battery Drained Again

[user 51826]

I have a 2017 Nitro Z18 bought in the spring of 2017 from Bass Pro in Gurnee IL. Last weekend I was dead in the water due to a dead crank battery. Lukily I was able to troll up to some kind boaters who towed me back to the docks.

Long story short, I have a two bank battery charger that only charges the trolling batteries bridged for 24volts.

I've charged the crank battery in spring and verified it was full. After I got off the water I went to O'Reilly's to have them test the battery and they found it dead. The crank battery wouldn't even read a status after sitting on their charge/test station for close to 45 minutes.

I bought a new battery and all was well. Today I checked the battery and it's completely drained/dead again. I make sure to power off everything on the boat and I verified that the main power switch on the console is off.

Has anyone seen this problem before? This is frustrating since the crank battery is brand new. At this point I'm pretty sure it's something that is draining the crank battery.

 

[cq]

1. Why just a two bank charger for three batteries.
2. You have a short someplace.
3. To verify a short leave the starting battery disconnected over night, if it is discharged the next day check the lid over the battery to ensure it is not touching. If it is still fully charged then you have to start a tedious step in finding your short.
3. You will need a volt/ohm meter, remove all wires from the starting battery and check each circuit separately until you find the shot or grounded component. Search this site for Tracker color code for wiring.

 

[user 51826]

1. Why just a two bank charger for three batteries.
2. You have a short someplace.
3. To verify a short leave the starting battery disconnected over night, if it is discharged the next day check the lid over the battery to ensure it is not touching. If it is still fully charged then you have to start a tedious step in finding your short.
3. You will need a volt/ohm meter, remove all wires from the starting battery and check each circuit separately until you find the shot or grounded component. Search this site for Tracker color code for wiring.

Thank you for your help.

Last night I did further troubleshooting and I believe it to be caused by the onboard charger.
1. I charged the crank battery completely to full
2. I connected it back to the connectors
3. I checked the battery after one hour and found the crank battery in very low state
4. I checked the onboard charger aka the alerternator and it's very hot
5. If the alternator on the motor is hot it means it's drawing a charge, but it should not be hot unless the motor is running

I've attached a picture of the onboard charger to this post.

 

[user 51826]

I've marked the alternator part which was hot to the feel. The motor was not running. In my opinion the crank battery serves one purpose which is to send juice to the motor for cranking. Once the motor is up and running it's all onboard charging that maintains the motor while in idle.

Just like a car if you disconnect the battery the motor should continue to run. I have not tried this since I do not won muffs for running my motor out of water. I believe that the motor would die if I disconnected the crank battery. I know it's not a car engine, but I would assume that the technology would be similar.

I didn't get a 3 bank battery charger because I bought the boat from bass pro during their boat sale in the spring. When you go to bass pro to buy a boat during their "sale" they don't give you the option to add features to you liking. They have cookie cutter options that you can only get. When I asked for a three bank battery charger they told me I can only get a two bank etc etc....

When I called tracker in Gurnee they told me that the boat is not covered in warranty since it's been past one year. Yes I agree, but the motor is covered under warranty for three years plus an additional two should I choose two when the time comes near. I'm stuck at a point where I need to prove that its the motor that causing the drain.

I feel like I'm going in circles.

 

[cq]

Question: How is power getting to the alternator? Check your start circuit should be Start and Run.

 

[cq]

Check your warranty, does it cover electrical or just mechanical.

 

[user 51826]

Question: How is power getting to the alternator? Check your start circuit should be Start and Run.

The start circuit? You mean the positive cable connected to the crank battery?

 

[user 51826]

Check your warranty, does it cover electrical or just mechanical.

I called my local Mercury dealer in town and if it's anything related to the motor the warranty would cover it. If it's electrical then I'd have to pay out of pocket.

 

[Larry Williams]

I have a 2017 Nitro Z18 bought in the spring of 2017 from Bass Pro in Gurnee IL. Last weekend I was dead in the water due to a dead crank battery. Lukily I was able to troll up to some kind boaters who towed me back to the docks.

Long story short, I have a two bank battery charger that only charges the trolling batteries bridged for 24volts.

I've charged the crank battery in spring and verified it was full. After I got off the water I went to O'Reilly's to have them test the battery and they found it dead. The crank battery wouldn't even read a status after sitting on their charge/test station for close to 45 minutes.

I bought a new battery and all was well. Today I checked the battery and it's completely drained/dead again. I make sure to power off everything on the boat and I verified that the main power switch on the console is off.

Has anyone seen this problem before? This is frustrating since the crank battery is brand new. At this point I'm pretty sure it's something that is draining the crank battery.

 

[Larry Williams]

Richard,

I see your post- I had to have BPS change my alternator- It was discharging the cranking battery continuously even with the key off. I discovered that myself accidentally during cold weather noticing that the alternator was staying warm to the touch all the time in the garage. using a meter I determined there was a 3 amp current draw all the time with the key in the off position. I have a three bank charger so I was keeping up with the current draw and never got stranded. I expect that you may find the same thing. Disconnect the Alternator large single wire from the Alternator- that will stop the current flow.
Took it in and they confirmed that find and replaced the alternator. Mercury's Gold warranty does not cover electrical problems. I was lucky to still be under the original purchase warranty when I discovered the problem. I've since gone back and paid to add the Electrical components coverage under the Platinum Warranty plan. If I recall that was an additional $300 charge extending me to a full 5 years on everything.

 

[Larry Williams]

following up on my post about the alternator- The dealership was instructed by Mercury Marine to replace my Engine wiring harness (2017, Merc 150 four stroke) which they did -although shop mechanic didn't think that was the issue. I don't recall the dates but its been many months now with no further problem. This incident did lead me to install a battery isolator switch between the battery and the engine. When not in use, I now disconnect battery from the engine wiring system with the single switch to insure no current draw anywhere.

 

[user 51826]

Richard,

I see your post- I had to have BPS change my alternator- It was discharging the cranking battery continuously even with the key off. I discovered that myself accidentally during cold weather noticing that the alternator was staying warm to the touch all the time in the garage. using a meter I determined there was a 3 amp current draw all the time with the key in the off position. I have a three bank charger so I was keeping up with the current draw and never got stranded. I expect that you may find the same thing. Disconnect the Alternator large single wire from the Alternator- that will stop the current flow.
Took it in and they confirmed that find and replaced the alternator. Mercury's Gold warranty does not cover electrical problems. I was lucky to still be under the original purchase warranty when I discovered the problem. I've since gone back and paid to add the Electrical components coverage under the Platinum Warranty plan. If I recall that was an additional $300 charge extending me to a full 5 years on everything.

Thank you so much Larry! I'm glad to hear back from you on this as this appears to be the same issue that I'm experiencing. I'll be bringing in my boat to the local Mercury marine dealer to have this fixed. I should still be covered on the original purchase warranty and will be asking to add the electrial components coverage as well if possible.

 

[user 51826]

Took the boat in last week and got a call today. They're going to replace the alternator and parts will take 4-5 weeks to get in. Luckily this is covered under my Mercury 3 year warranty. This does leave me in a positive place knowing that the motor and boat is only 1.5 years old and the alternator is already being replaced. Hoping to get back on the water soon enough.

Thank you everyone for helping.

 

[Larry Williams]

Wow, that's a long wait time. I'll bet this is an issue for a number of folks. When I took mine in the dealership had an Alternator in stock so I only had to wait a few days. For those who see these posts it's important to realize that outside the 3 year purchase warranty electrical problems are not covered under Mercury's Gold warranty program that is typically sold with the package. You have to advance to the Platinum plan, at additional cost, to pick up any electrical component coverage.

Richard, I understand your concern about an early problem like this but so far my replacement of the alternator has been the only issue I've had and that seems to be cured.

 

[Mark59]

I'm so grateful to have found this post. I have a 2017 pro team 195. Cranking battery was draining from full to less that half in a matter of hours . After seeing this post I fully charged the battery and put the cables back on. Within minutes the bottom of the alternator was warm. Checked between negative cable and negative post and was getting a huge drain that went away when I disconnected the alternator. I have a new alternator on the way. I hope it fixes the problem. Thanks again.

 

[Larry Williams]

Mark,
Likely that you have found the problem. This must have been a fairly common issue. I have had zero issues since the Alternator replacement. The incident prompled me to install a PERKO battery switch to seperate the engine battery connection when I leave the water.