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Post by Deleted on Aug 10, 2020 11:37:34 GMT
Hello I’m new to the boating world I’ve had my narrowboat about 2 months and loving the live aboard life. Anyhoo to the point. The engine on my boat is an Isuzu 38hp with twin alternators, a 70amp and a 110amp. I also have solar. In the last couple of days the auxiliary or battery light on the control panel has started glowing very faintly( I noticed it going through a tunnel) both engine battery and 4 leisure batteries are getting charged(test meter on the terminals with engine running at night) over 14v. Any ideas as to why the light is glowing? And If one of the alternators is dodgy how to pick the correct one?
thanks for your combined knowledge 😉
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Post by naughtyfox on Aug 10, 2020 11:43:17 GMT
bumped to top of list, as this is a more important matter - an expert will be along shortly
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Post by Deleted on Aug 10, 2020 11:55:35 GMT
Not familiar with that engine but if there are two alternators there should be a lamp for each one.
If there are not two lamps then I would suggest the lamp is referring to the smaller alternator as that would be the standard one. The bigger one was probably an optional extra.
Faint glow usually means diode problem in the rectifier I believe.
As for the second alternator lamp it might be cable tied behind the dash panel if no hole was available on the panel for a second alternator indicator lamp.
ETA just noticed it is the "aux battery" lamp which is glowing. Presumably that means it is the bigger alternator. The other one being the engine battery, usually.
The fact all batteries are getting a charge must mean there is a split charge system in there somewhere.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 10, 2020 12:39:10 GMT
Thanks for the help. There is only one lamp, hence my query as to how do I know which one is faulty. So I suppose I will just have to take them off and have them tested individually.
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Post by naughtyfox on Aug 10, 2020 12:44:18 GMT
Thanks for the help. There is only one lamp, hence my query as to how do I know which one is faulty. So I suppose I will just have to take them off and have them tested individually. You say you've had the boat 2 months. How old are the alternators? Do you know anything of their history? How about belt tension? Are there any electricians near you who can come to look, or where would you take the alternators to be tested? Does it matter if a light is glowing slightly? -if the batteries are charging normally, just put a piece of black tape over it and forget?!
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Post by Deleted on Aug 10, 2020 13:21:02 GMT
Thanks for the help. There is only one lamp, hence my query as to how do I know which one is faulty. So I suppose I will just have to take them off and have them tested individually. I reckon there might be a other lamp but due to the control panel situation it may not have been fitted. Have a look round the back if you can.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 10, 2020 13:26:15 GMT
Interesting question for the slightly more electrically knowledgeable like Telemachus. Can two alternators be excited by one lamp or do they need one each? I assume they need one each but don't know for sure.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 10, 2020 13:41:16 GMT
Interesting question for the slightly more electrically knowledgeable like Telemachus. Can two alternators be excited by one lamp or do they need one each? I assume they need one each but don't know for sure. Not all alternators need a lamp. My domestic alternator is self exciting I only have one lamp for the starter alternator, this sometimes glows and the buzzer sounds slightly when the batteries are fully charged, nothing wrong with the alternator (its been checked) but could in my case be due to the VSR and a miniscule difference in alternator voltages.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 10, 2020 13:43:07 GMT
Thanks for the help. There is only one lamp, hence my query as to how do I know which one is faulty. So I suppose I will just have to take them off and have them tested individually.  You say you've had the boat 2 months. How old are the alternators? Do you know anything of their history? How about belt tension? Are there any electricians near you who can come to look, or where would you take the alternators to be tested? Does it matter if a light is glowing slightly? -if the batteries are charging normally, just put a piece of black tape over it and forget?! Afaik the alternators are 16 years old the same as the boat. Belt tension is OK I check every day before I start the engine. To test them I would take to an auto electrician that does testing. Does it matter? I have no idea, I'm hoping the knowledge base on here can answer that.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 10, 2020 13:44:57 GMT
Interesting question for the slightly more electrically knowledgeable like Telemachus. Can two alternators be excited by one lamp or do they need one each? I assume they need one each but don't know for sure. Not all alternators need a lamp. My domestic alternator is self exciting I only have one lamp for the starter alternator, this sometimes glows and the buzzer sounds slightly when the batteries are fully charged, nothing wrong with the alternator (its been checked) but could in my case be due to the VSR and a miniscule difference in alternator voltages. Interesting, so the lamp could be for the engine battery 70amp alternator.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 10, 2020 14:09:36 GMT
Yes that is a possibility.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 10, 2020 14:13:00 GMT
Hi Grobag, great screen name.
Everything so far posted is pure speculation. Some of it might be right but what you need is a bloke (or girl) with lots of luvverly testing equipment and who claims to be an expert.
So unless you can convince Telemachus (who has yet to make an appearance on this thread) to drop by your boat, instead register with a facebook group called T.I.M.E.A and re-pose your question.
PS disregard anything NaughtyFox says as a matter of general policy.
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Post by naughtyfox on Aug 10, 2020 14:30:05 GMT
You say you've had the boat 2 months. How old are the alternators? Do you know anything of their history? How about belt tension? Are there any electricians near you who can come to look, or where would you take the alternators to be tested? Does it matter if a light is glowing slightly? -if the batteries are charging normally, just put a piece of black tape over it and forget?! Does it matter? It would be my first thought, to take them to be tested. 16 years is a long time to be turning & churning. Our car went for it's 180,000km service on Friday and the water pump is leaking, so they say. They also said water pumps generally need changing every 100,000km. Our car is 8 years old. Of course, you can't always trust the testing places, they might be wanting to sell you new alternators and see a potential 'victim'.
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Post by naughtyfox on Aug 10, 2020 14:33:24 GMT
PS disregard anything NaughtyFox says as a matter of general policy. This would be the naughtyfox who has no problems with his alternator, eh?
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Post by Deleted on Aug 10, 2020 14:42:20 GMT
PS disregard anything NaughtyFox says as a matter of general policy. This would be the naughtyfox who has no problems with his alternator, eh? Not through any technical ability I'm sure.
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