replacement battery questions

The first one I recovered read 12.52 volts tonight after being off charge for about 48 hours.

The second one, that 8D battery is still only drawing about .5 amps after 24 hours. I need to get in there and check the waster / acid levels. My
attempt today failed. So Tomorrow I'm going to build a support for the battery out of some scrap 2x4's and drag it 1/2 way out of there. I looked it
up today and the 8D weighs 162 pounds.

You asked and I told you how it was done. I learned that from the guy that repaired our industrial batteries that ran lift trucks moving steel coils
off of the rolling line in a steel mill where I worked s an electrician. The batteries were approximately 4 ft by 6 ft by 3 feet high. We lifted
them off of the lift trucks with an overhead crane at the end of every shift and replaced them with recharged ones. It was a 20 shift a week
operation and one electrician worked every shift doing nothing but tending and recharging batteries.
--
Ken Burton - N9KB
76 Palm Beach
Hebron, Indiana
 
>
> The second one, that 8D battery is still only drawing about .5 amps after 24 hours. I need to get in there and check the waster / acid levels.
> My attempt today failed. So Tomorrow I'm going to build a support for the battery out of some scrap 2x4's and drag it 1/2 way out of there. I
> looked it up today and the 8D weighs 162 pounds.
>

Ken,

Not that you are prone to doing stupid things, but please be careful.

Some 8Ds are 162, but I have had two over scales that were 172 and 174. Even 4Ds that are supposed to be 140 come in heavy. So heavy that to get
them out of the boat, I would often rig lifting gear of booms, spinnaker poles and halyards to do the job. If you have to put it in a dingy, you have
to count it as a person. This is just part of why I am such a proponent of using GC2s and the like. (And, you can get GC2s at Sams/Costco.)

I am bringing your scales, and my handtruck to Elkhart. Thank you, I may ask for more help at the next work rally.

Matt
--
Matt & Mary Colie - '73 Glacier 23 - Members GMCMI, GMCGL, GMCES
Electronically Controlled Quiet Engine Cooling Fan
OE Rear Drum Brakes with Applied Control Arms
SE Michigan - Twixt A2 and Detroit
 
Had the neighbours old 12V marine battery on the charger for over 48 hrs. This morning I checked in and it has reached the 75% mark (haven't checked
the voltage yet) on the charger (btw, charger runs at 1.1 amps) - but I heard a faint sizzling/crackling sound. Not knowing what it might be, I have
disconnected it! Sounded like someone was frying bacon in there somewhere.

In the meantime, have picked up (figuratively) 2 6V 230 AmpHr / 448 minute reserve golf cart batts - didn't realize they were that big! - and will be
installing everything when I get back tonight. Didn't pick up a bridging cable yet because I wasn't sure if my PO had 1 or 4 gauge cables back there.
Knowing him, it was possible he used 1 gauge and there was no point getting a 4 gauge bridge.
Also need to sort out a tray of some sort.

Question - if I have to put a series system like that on a charger - do I approach it like one big 12V battery and go from the + on one to the - on
the other and set the charger for a norm 12V? Or disconnect the bridge and charge them individually as 6V?

Got the adapters for the starter cables and that is going in as well. At least if the fires come my way, I will be able to start up and pull out.

Next step - bringing her in to Cummins next Friday to have them do a troubleshoot on the Onan and maybe get that happening, so by spring, I might have
a snowball's chance at going somewhere :)
--
Deb McWade
"Li'l Sister"
'77 Kingsley, 403, EBL EFI;
TZE167V101404
It's Bigger on the Inside!
 
I you put a charger on one do just like you have detailed. Put the + cable to the + on one battery and the - cable to the - post on the other battery.

In a 12 volt battery you have 6 cells connected from the + of one to the - of the next one and so on. With two 6 volt batteries you have 3 cells in each. One cell in the first battery is connected from the + to the - of the next cell.
3 cells are connected internally this way then there is an external connection from the + post of one battery to the - post of the other battery, then the three cells in the second battery are connected in series the same way.
When done, the two six volt batteries has six cells connected exactly as the six cells would be in a single 12 volt battery.

When you were charging the neighbors marine battery the sizzling sound was the liquid boiling in the battery. The battery was likely very hot as you had been charging it for 48 hours. Disconnect the cables and let it cool and then reconnected it again.

Any Cummings dealer that I have dealt with has been extremely expensive and not that good on their service.
I would suggest that you find another GMCer who is familiar with servicing the Onan and get them to help you.
I have worked on many GMCers Onans and have solved a lot of problems. I recently replaced a capacitor and diode in an Onan control panel and it now works fine.
Your signature line doesn’t give your location. With that I might be able to recommend a GMCer in your area that could look at it.
Or, if you are going to go the the GMCMI convention in Elkhart I could look at it there.

Emery Stora
77 Kingsley
Frederick, CO

>
> Had the neighbors old 12V marine battery on the charger for over 48 hrs. This morning I checked in and it has reached the 75% mark (haven't checked
> the voltage yet) on the charger (btw, charger runs at 1.1 amps) - but I heard a faint sizzling/crackling sound. Not knowing what it might be, I have
> disconnected it! Sounded like someone was frying bacon in there somewhere.
>
> In the meantime, have picked up (figuratively) 2 6V 230 AmpHr / 448 minute reserve golf cart batts - didn't realize they were that big! - and will be
> installing everything when I get back tonight. Didn't pick up a bridging cable yet because I wasn't sure if my PO had 1 or 4 gauge cables back there.
> Knowing him, it was possible he used 1 gauge and there was no point getting a 4 gauge bridge.
> Also need to sort out a tray of some sort.
>
> Question - if I have to put a series system like that on a charger - do I approach it like one big 12V battery and go from the + on one to the - on
> the other and set the charger for a norm 12V? Or disconnect the bridge and charge them individually as 6V?
>
>
> Got the adapters for the starter cables and that is going in as well. At least if the fires come my way, I will be able to start up and pull out.
>
> Next step - bringing her in to Cummins next Friday to have them do a troubleshoot on the Onan and maybe get that happening, so by spring, I might have
> a snowball's chance at going somewhere :)
> --
> Deb McWade
> "Li'l Sister"
> '77 Kingsley, 403, EBL EFI;
> TZE167V101404
> It's Bigger on the Inside!
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> http://list.gmcnet.org/mailman/listinfo/gmclist_list.gmcnet.org
 
Deb,

DEFINITELY treat the two 6 VDC batteries as one 12 VDC -- aside from
maintenance, just forget those two jumpered terminals exist -- as if they
were inside one big battery case, which is, in effect, what you have.
Incidentally, using a 1 gauge jumper with 4 g. elsewhere would in no way
(other than cost) be a bad thing. Considering the length, even a 4 g. with
1 g. elsewhere wouldn't be very bad -- since it's not a starting battery,
you're never going to approach full current load anyway.

Good luck getting your OLD Onan serviced by Cummins. Unless they happen to
have someone OLD working there, you'll be lucky if they know anything about
it. Previous reports have not, in general, be favorable.

Ken H.
Americus, GA
'76 X-Birchaven w/Cad500/Howell EFI & EBL,
Manny Brakes & 1-Ton,
​Troy-Bilt APU, ​
etc., etc., etc.
www.gmcwipersetc.com

> Had the neighbours old 12V marine battery on the charger for over 48 hrs.
> This morning I checked in and it has reached the 75% mark (haven't checked
> the voltage yet) on the charger (btw, charger runs at 1.1 amps) - but I
> heard a faint sizzling/crackling sound. Not knowing what it might be, I
> have
> disconnected it! Sounded like someone was frying bacon in there somewhere.
>
> In the meantime, have picked up (figuratively) 2 6V 230 AmpHr / 448 minute
> reserve golf cart batts - didn't realize they were that big! - and will be
> installing everything when I get back tonight. Didn't pick up a bridging
> cable yet because I wasn't sure if my PO had 1 or 4 gauge cables back there.
> Knowing him, it was possible he used 1 gauge and there was no point
> getting a 4 gauge bridge.
> Also need to sort out a tray of some sort.
>
> Question - if I have to put a series system like that on a charger - do I
> approach it like one big 12V battery and go from the + on one to the - on
> the other and set the charger for a norm 12V? Or disconnect the bridge
> and charge them individually as 6V?
>
>
> Got the adapters for the starter cables and that is going in as well. At
> least if the fires come my way, I will be able to start up and pull out.
>
> Next step - bringing her in to Cummins next Friday to have them do a
> troubleshoot on the Onan and maybe get that happening, so by spring, I
> might have
> a snowball's chance at going somewhere :)
> --
> Deb McWade
> "Li'l Sister"
> '77 Kingsley, 403, EBL EFI;
> TZE167V101404
> It's Bigger on the Inside!
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> http://list.gmcnet.org/mailman/listinfo/gmclist_list.gmcnet.org
>
 
Thank you. I figured that it would be considered one single 12V - but still like to check.

Regarding the Onan - I am going to see who comes out to check it. If its anyone under 50, I will likely just turn around and walk away. :) I will
let them give it a trouble shoot - that is worth it to me, but may or may not go any farther than that.

And I unplugged the 12V from the charger this morning. I will give another go tonight and see if it has calmed down any. If not, I can alway use it
for a core charge refund on the golf cart batts.
--
Deb McWade
Logan Lake, BC, CAN
"Li'l Sister"
'77 Kingsley, 403, EBL EFI;
TZE167V101404
It's Bigger on the Inside!
 
> Any Cummings dealer that I have dealt with has been extremely expensive and not that good on their service.
> I would suggest that you find another GMCer who is familiar with servicing the Onan and get them to help you.
> I have worked on many GMCers Onans and have solved a lot of problems. I recently replaced a capacitor and diode in an Onan control panel and it
> now works fine.
> Your signature line doesn't give your location. With that I might be able to recommend a GMCer in your area that could look at it.
> Or, if you are going to go the the GMCMI convention in Elkhart I could look at it there.

Thanks Emory - unfortunately its going to be hard to try anything other than Cummins right now. I will give them a shot at the troubleshooting - and
see from there.
I am hoping to get to the Harrison rally in a couple of weekends with Cascaders - perhaps someone there can give me some pointers as well.

And I have added my location to my signature - hadn't even thought about that! Thanks for the reminder. I'm up in BC - about 2-3 hours from the
nearest GMCer - my biggest limitation is time and space - that and the fact that I am not an electrician :) and it seems at this point to be an
ignition problem (but not necessarily the ONLY problem!)
--
Deb McWade
Logan Lake, BC, CAN
"Li'l Sister"
'77 Kingsley, 403, EBL EFI;
TZE167V101404
It's Bigger on the Inside!
 
When the GMCMI convention in Elkhart? Where can I find the info for the
convention?

> > Any Cummings dealer that I have dealt with has been extremely expensive
> and not that good on their service.
> > I would suggest that you find another GMCer who is familiar with
> servicing the Onan and get them to help you.
> > I have worked on many GMCers Onans and have solved a lot of problems. I
> recently replaced a capacitor and diode in an Onan control panel and it
> > now works fine.
> > Your signature line doesn't give your location. With that I might be
> able to recommend a GMCer in your area that could look at it.
> > Or, if you are going to go the the GMCMI convention in Elkhart I could
> look at it there.
>
>
> Thanks Emory - unfortunately its going to be hard to try anything other
> than Cummins right now. I will give them a shot at the troubleshooting -
> and
> see from there.
> I am hoping to get to the Harrison rally in a couple of weekends with
> Cascaders - perhaps someone there can give me some pointers as well.
>
> And I have added my location to my signature - hadn't even thought about
> that! Thanks for the reminder. I'm up in BC - about 2-3 hours from the
> nearest GMCer - my biggest limitation is time and space - that and the
> fact that I am not an electrician :) and it seems at this point to be an
> ignition problem (but not necessarily the ONLY problem!)
> --
> Deb McWade
> Logan Lake, BC, CAN
> "Li'l Sister"
> '77 Kingsley, 403, EBL EFI;
> TZE167V101404
> It's Bigger on the Inside!
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> http://list.gmcnet.org/mailman/listinfo/gmclist_list.gmcnet.org
>
 
>
> Regarding the Onan - I am going to see who comes out to check it. If its anyone under 50, I will likely just turn around and walk away. :) I
> will let them give it a trouble shoot - that is worth it to me, but may or may not go any farther than that.
>

Deg,

So far you are demonstrating exceedingly good judgement.

I will suggest that you look for a friendly small engine person. Get all the Onan stuff you can find on GMCnet and particularly that your go to
http://www.bdub.net/oddsnends.html and download the Onan Control Board Operation by Duane M Simmons. It is possible that nothing there will make any
sense to you, but if the person helping can decipher it, then it could be valuable.

Matt
--
Matt & Mary Colie - '73 Glacier 23 - Members GMCMI, GMCGL, GMCES
Electronically Controlled Quiet Engine Cooling Fan
OE Rear Drum Brakes with Applied Control Arms
SE Michigan - Twixt A2 and Detroit
 
> >
> > Regarding the Onan - I am going to see who comes out to check it. If its anyone under 50, I will likely just turn around and walk away. :)
> > I will let them give it a trouble shoot - that is worth it to me, but may or may not go any farther than that.
> >
>
>
> I will suggest that you look for a friendly small engine person. Get all the Onan stuff you can find on GMCnet and particularly that your go to
> http://www.bdub.net/oddsnends.html and download the Onan Control Board Operation by Duane M Simmons. It is possible that nothing there will make
> any sense to you, but if the person helping can decipher it, then it could be valuable.
>
> Matt

Thanks Matt. My neighbour did a lot of small engine work, and did use the monster Onans way back when in the bush, and he helped me with the
mechanicals of her up to this point. But he isn't as comfortable with the control board part of life. Once Cummins has a peek at it, I will look
around and chat a few folks up and see about tracking down someone with the experience & willingness to explore (unless for some reason Cummins has a
magic bullet, or the laying on of hands does the trick!)

The PO did leave me with a LOT of Onan material - much of which, Yes, makes little sense to me at this point.
--
Deb McWade
Logan Lake, BC, CAN
"Li'l Sister"
'77 Kingsley, 403, EBL EFI;
TZE167V101404
It's Bigger on the Inside!
 
Deb -
I've had Cummins maintain a lot of large gensets over the years. They aren't attuned to the small stuff, but their labor rates are quite high. Let
me suggest, download Duane Simmons' troubleshooting guide and go through it step by step. Invest in a cheap voltmeter if you haven't already - at
times they can be had from Harbor Freight for free. Using it and Duane's guide you can at least pinpoint your problem(s) to a specific area. You
will pay Cummins around $110 US per hour to do the same, and they don't have Duane's guide. You aren't likely to hurt it trying.

--johnny
--
76 26' Eleganza(?) with beaucoup mods and add - ons.
Braselton, Ga.
"I forgive them all, save those who hurt the dogs. They must answer to me in hell" - ol Andy, paraphrased
 
Yes, They are expecting us to weigh coaches again. So please bring my scales.

I haven't figured out how I'm going to lift that battery yet. The coach is right next to the wall and unmovable right now. So I can not get an
engine lift in there. Every time I ask for help the people run the other way. I'll get it done eventually.
--
Ken Burton - N9KB
76 Palm Beach
Hebron, Indiana
 
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