How long to charge 24v?

[csramsey640]

I drive short distance to work, however my volt gauge never goes into the green, and after a few starts it goes dead. HOWEVER, on a trip to the store after aprox, 1 mile or so, it goes from yellow to green and charges normally. Is there anyt I have to carry too much gear in the winter, so i must drive. Summer id walk.

 

[Westech]

what I have to do to mine is let it warm up for a min, then give it some gas/rev it up a tad to get the alts to "kick" in.

 

[PsycoBob]

If the alts are working properly, it'll stay in the yellow until the glow plugs stop firing. When they do, the meter pops right back into the green.

 

[mangus580]

I drive about 10 minutes to work in the morning... I dont have any issue with charging.

You might want to check your alternators out.

 

[msoumas]

what I have to do to mine is let it warm up for a min, then give it some gas/rev it up a tad to get the alts to "kick" in.

Mine is the same as this. Just start it and let it warm up a bit earlier, and then maybe give the engine a couple good revs before taking off. If you still have trouble, the alternators probably need to be checked out.

 

[LanceRobson]

This is all good info. The glow plugs, for practical purposes, draw as a controlled dead short. Cranking a cold engine draws a lot of power, too.

Given winter temps in PA, your glow plugs could be firing for 2-3 minutes.

I suspect that your short drive is simply not long enough to replace what you've drawn down.

A daily drive around the block may be in order.

All you symptoms could also indicate a bad or insufficient connection hindering the charging process.

Regardless of what you find, I'd take a careful look at the condition of the electrical connections, at both ends of every cable, and make very sure the terminals and connections are clean, bright and properly tight. If the truck has the original, or even an older, battery and starter wires, flex every inch of them looking for an unusually flexible or "crunchy" feeling spot. Sometimes them corrode in mid cable. Don't forget to look at the studs on the buss bars etc. Sometimes they are corroded and get overlooked as a possible source of resistance.

Good luck.

 

[motormayhem]

When I cold start mine I start it and let it idle for a min then rev it and hold it till the gen lights go off. Once they are off my meter goes green in about 10-15 sec.

 

[csramsey640]

ok, that makes sense. Because I have been going an extra even 1/2 mile, and its going into the green. My commute is really short, I mean really short, however it makes for a long walk when I have to carry gear(previous message got cut off) In the summer, I walk because i dont need much. So from now on, ill just go a longer way around to park the truck and let it get into the green.