Weird charging problem. Or maybe not?

Stemar said:
Maybe the village idiot could, but I've sailed with intelligent people who couldn't. My last boss, an extremely competent deputy director of finance for a large NHS trust, freely admitted that, with a screwdriver in his hand, he became a public danger.
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I have a pal like that ... extremely intelligent .... but woe betide any car that becomes his !!

I lent him a car for about 7 - 8 months. Opel Zafira .... with the strict instruction that he was NOT to try and fix anything on it ... any fault etc - call me and I'll get it fixed by Car service ... he laughed and agreed !!

I got car back .. ignition key unit in steering falls out now if not careful. There are now two Fobs needed and two keys needed ... one key to lock door - other key to start engine ... one fob to remote lock car, other fob to remotely unlock car ...
Basically according to him - the ignition unit came out of steering and he lost it walking away from car ... reckons it must have been on the key and fell off !
He got another ignition unit and tried fitting it himself ... so now I have the above mess !!
 
DoubleEnder said:
It’s a Yanmar 1GM10 engine. Not sure of the make of the alternator, but is going to be something pretty basic. I’ll be back on board in a day or two with a meter and see what I can deduce. I’m pretty ignorant of electrics. Is the diode board inside the alternator or external?
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Hi a 1GM alternator is £80 new on ebay and £50 second hand. Just Google Yanmar 1GM alternator and have a look for yourself. Cheers
 
PaulRainbow said:
Judging from the amount of "salt environment" comments you make, you must really have a damp/wet/smelly boat.

A boat alternator is in a nice warm engine compartment, away from salt spray. A car alternator is under the bonnet, out in the fresh air, exposed to the weather and road grit spray.

The regulator/brush holder on a typical alternator is held on with 2 screws. The local village idiot could check them/change them.
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Sorry but not worth a reply. As usual you are trying to provoke a response and I think the moderator should deal with these deliberate insults.
 
PabloPicasso said:
Circuit test meter thingys arrrr cheap these days.

I have one aboard, and another at home.
Buy one and keep it on board

£8.65 for a digital.multi.meter on amazon. If thats too much you could probably get them cheaper elsewhere.
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Do not buy this 9.99 xyz cheep things - get you a reliable, good and quality multimeter: It is very valuable for many things on board and all electrical mesurements: With 30 euros you will be very ok and it will last for years ...
 
I do question the environment bit though .....

I think a boat alternator has just as hard a life as a cars .... given that the boat is in salt laden air ....

I know my starter motor on the Perkins has a band fitted to close up the case against the salt laden air ... and I only have to look around the engine bay and see coorosion from same ..

But anyway .... as another says - get the alternator off and take to a Car Electrics service and have it run up and checked ............
 
Shaz77 said:
Hi a 1GM alternator is £80 new on ebay and £50 second hand. Just Google Yanmar 1GM alternator and have a look for yourself. Cheers
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So much less expensive than the Yanmar price. Do check that the pulley size will be the same as you have on the suspect alternator. They are sized to allow the lowly 1GM10 to turn over without too much load upon start-up.
 
Skipper Felice said:
Do not buy this 9.99 xyz cheep things - get you a reliable, good and quality multimeter: It is very valuable for many things on board and all electrical mesurements: With 30 euros you will be very ok and it will last for years ...
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Cheap multimeters to my mind extremely accurate and reliable. More expensive ones may give more functions and even auto ranging. I have several and like the cheap ones except perhaps for the smaller readout size. get several for the price of an expensive one. ol'will
 
DoubleEnder said:
The thing is, the light glows brighter as the revs increase
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This is the main item ... the light should extinguish as the alternator energises ... basically cancelling out the power to the light.

If the light is increasing as revs increase - this indicates that something is wrong in the regulator side of the alternator ... rising light shows the alternator is pushing out energy .. maybe not good output - but its pushing something out.

Auto Electrics shop is the answer ... get it checked out .... cheaper than even a 2nd hand alternator....
 
Refueler said:
rising light shows the alternator is pushing out energy .. maybe not good output - but its pushing something out.
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Err.?..I thought the light gets brighter because the PD across the light is increased....therefore indiicating the alternator is giving less output.
It was (maybe the electronics wizardry has superseded my understanding) I believe the equalised PD, not "the switching off" .
 
billskip said:
Err.?..I thought the light gets brighter because the PD across the light is increased....therefore indiicating the alternator is giving less output.
It was (maybe the electronics wizardry has superseded my understanding) I believe the equalised PD, not "the switching off" .
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Go back and read my WHOLE post ....

The light should go OUT as the alternator works .... but OP has the light increasing as alternator works ... which to me indicates a fault in the alternators regulator ..... a strange one as the light INCREASES as alternator rpm goes up .. which is opposite to what it should do.

The only way the light can increase as alternator rpm goes up - is if the alternator output is falling with increased rpm allowing battery power to light the lamp more ... or the alternator / lamp wiring is at fault with alternator increase causing light to increase ..
 
Refueler said:
Go back and read my WHOLE post ....

The light should go OUT as the alternator works .... but OP has the light increasing as alternator works ... which to me indicates a fault in the alternators regulator ..... a strange one as the light INCREASES as alternator rpm goes up .. which is opposite to what it should do.

The only way the light can increase as alternator rpm goes up - is if the alternator output is falling with increased rpm allowing battery power to light the lamp more ... or the alternator / lamp wiring is at fault with alternator increase causing light to increase ..
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I did read the whole post, it doesn't change the fact that you wrote what I quoted.
You said Quote "rising light shows the alternator is pushing out energy "
My understanding is the "rising" light as you put it, means the opposite, being that the alternator is not "pushing out energy "

the PD across the light is equalised by the output therefore reducing the brightness or the light going off.
 
billskip said:
I did read the whole post, it doesn't change the fact the you wrote what I quoted.
You said Quote "rising light shows the alternator is pushing out energy "
My understanding is the "rising" light as you put it, means the opposite, being that the alternator is not "pushing out energy "

the PD across the light is equalised by the output therefore reducing the brightness or the light going off.
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It can be either as we have no idea of whats wrong in the alternator regulator wiring ... I agree with your post .. if the alternator is failing as rpm goes up ..

Removing and giving to Auto Electrician is the answer ...
 
Refueler said:
It can be either as we have no idea of whats wrong in the alternator regulator wiring ... I agree with your post .. if the alternator is failing as rpm goes up ..

Removing and giving to Auto Electrician is the answer ...
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A high percentage its the brushes in my experience.
 
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