Do I need a 2nd battery isolator? Or whats wrong?

[UndercoverPunk 5,000+ posts]

I've had dual batteries for years, and have never had this problem. Sucks to be you.

 

[DidUHearThat? 10+ year member]

A few things come to mind;

Do you "bump" much with the engine off?

Do you normally only drive short trips, with no extended periods with the engine on?

How big is your alternator?

It's possible that your draining your batteries and then not giving them a chance to recharge properly.

Also are you sure your amp is turning off when the HU is off? If you hear a "thump" when you turn your stereo on then your amp may not be powering off, which would drain your batteries.

 

[ngsm13 5,000+ posts]

I've had dual batteries for years, and have never had this problem. Sucks to be you.

As have I, for nearly 5 years... Including mixed batteries at various times (red/yellow tops, optima/kinetik, and now all optima).

It sounds like what someone else said, one of the batteries is bad and is draining the other battery.

Have the batteries load tested individually at an auto store.

nG

 

[porksoda 10+ year member]

A few things come to mind;
Do you "bump" much with the engine off?

Do you normally only drive short trips, with no extended periods with the engine on?

How big is your alternator?

It's possible that your draining your batteries and then not giving them a chance to recharge properly.

Also are you sure your amp is turning off when the HU is off? If you hear a "thump" when you turn your stereo on then your amp may not be powering off, which would drain your batteries.

I hardly ever listen to music with my truck off.

I usually drive short trips just from home to work and work back

I have a 130amp alternator. About 4 months old.

I believe my amp is turning off when i turn the car off.

Ill double check everything as soon as it stops raining here //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/frown.gif.a3531fa0534503350665a1e957861287.gif

 

[porksoda 10+ year member]

As have I, for nearly 5 years... Including mixed batteries at various times (red/yellow tops, optima/kinetik, and now all optima).
It sounds like what someone else said, one of the batteries is bad and is draining the other battery.

Have the batteries load tested individually at an auto store.

nG

Cool man ill test them out soon.

 

[DidUHearThat? 10+ year member]

I hardly ever listen to music with my truck off. I usually drive short trips just from home to work and work back

I have a 130amp alternator. About 4 months old.

I believe my amp is turning off when i turn the car off.

Ill double check everything as soon as it stops raining here //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/frown.gif.a3531fa0534503350665a1e957861287.gif

130 amp should be plenty for your rig. I don't know. It seems you have a problem with your electrical system, not the amp.

Either one of your batteries is not charging for some reason or one has gone bad. Have batteries tested and double check all your battery wires and grounds.

When you get your batteries working again, look for any devices you've installed that arent' turning off that could drain your batts (neons, e.q., etc).

 

[porksoda 10+ year member]

Ok I took out the optima and took it to autozone and i guess it crapped out on me.

So looks like that may have been the problem. When I get a new battery we will see what happens.

 

[porksoda 10+ year member]

To test out my Kinetik what would the guy at the parts store have to put it under? And how many cca's is it?

 

[ngsm13 5,000+ posts]

If the optima is under warranty, see if you can trade up to a yellow top //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif...

nG

 

[porksoda 10+ year member]

If the optima is under warranty, see if you can trade up to a yellow top //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif...
nG

The battery came in the truck. So I dont think they can warrenty it. The battery sticker says it was made ( 11/05)

 

[DidUHearThat? 10+ year member]

It won't recharge? I would still be looking for what killed your batteries. I think something else is going on.

 

[porksoda 10+ year member]

It won't recharge? I would still be looking for what killed your batteries. I think something else is going on.

Now that i checked i acidently left the light on that lights up my bed //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/frown.gif.a3531fa0534503350665a1e957861287.gif I think that is what may have killed my battery upfront. And now that i looked more i noticed that my fuse to the 2nd battery snapped so i need a new fuse. So my subs cut out at high volumes is because it was only running off of my kinetik. So now i need to wait til tomorrow to buy a new fuse.

 

[DidUHearThat? 10+ year member]

Sounds like you are finding the culprit(s). I know everyone here says you don't NEED a battery isolator, which is true, but IMO it helps to prevent some of these headaches in the future by eliminating many common problems like batteries draining each other, and still leaves me with a second fully charged battery if I accidently kill one.