battery draw

[silverbackexpo]

Hey everyone the newest problem is a draw. The battery dies overnight wat can cause this.

 

[1997SCEBFEX]

How old is it?
Is you serpentine belt tight?
Are you sure EVERYTHING is off and compartments shut that might have a light inside?
Have you tried putting it on a charger?
What does your volt/ammeter do when driving it?
....

 

[Thermo]

silver, is the floor at the driver's feet wet after a rain or washing the truck? If so, you have the dreaded windshield leak. This will get water on the GEM Module and cause it to pull current when the truck is off. After that, have you done any wiring modifications to the truck recently? If so, start there.

If this doesn't fix things, then let me know and I have a fairly simple way to atleast narrow it down to a specific circuit. From there, you will more than likely have to take it to a shop to have them fix it unless you know something about wiring.

 

[silverbackexpo]

No I have not done any wire modifications except the radio. It's a 97 the belt is tight and once I put a jumper pack on it it will start right up. I will check everything that u guys suggested.

 

[panda24619]

alternator. the ford alternators like to drain the batterys power when it goes out. so get the alternator checked. its the easiest alternator i have ever replaced.

 

[Tuner710]

I had a similar problem, only it would have a flat battery in 3 days if I didn't start it before then just to charge it up. Did a lot of troubleshooting, checking wire bundles and connections, even pulling fuses and checking draw with a fluke meter on each circuit on the advice of the Electrician I work with....turned out that my battery had 2 dead cells and couldn't hold a charge! Funny, I just KNEW that it wasnt the battery. So I guess the moral is check the obvious things as well. Good luck!

 

[walnuts4x4]

i'm still gun shy about this issue...lol **knock on wood** since charging my battery for a couple hours and actually driving my expy mine has been starting fine... but it is raining so off to go feel the carpet...lol

 

[splintrcel]

I had my battery randomly die on a valentines date. Lucky i had just enough juice to crank her back up. It also died again after i charged it a couple months later. I had my battery checked for health and it turned out fine. I used baking soda mixed with some water so i had a baking soda paste and put it all over my battery terminals and clips to remove all the crap and then bought a $9 anti corrosion battery lead kit at walmart. I havent had an issue since.

 

[CARO'S98EB]

It is important to note that if your battery has been slowly discharged, like over a few weeks, by normal key off loads then it will take several hours to recharge with a proffesional charger more for average ones.
to test for a draw remove the neg cable and use a good digital amp/meter 10A minimum and hook it to the neg terminal [vice grips work good], then attach the other to the cable. the amps will read like .8 or so then they should drop as modules go to sleep mode after about 45 min it should be below .05A if not start removing fuses until you see it drop down.
like others have said make sure the battery is not the problem and also the alternator.