[preachertom]

I have a dead short somewhere in my 1984 Peterbilt. I replaced the starter, because the parts store said it had a short in it, but it did not fix it. When you hook up the battery cables, the voltage meter goes up, and drains the batteries. I have searched and searched for this, trying every single light, etc, and havent' found it yet. Can anyone give me any ideas??? Please help! thanks. preachertom

[heavyhaulerss]

volt meter goes up as in over charge ? drains batteries when engine off or running ?

[preachertom]

the volt meter goes up to about 12, and drains the batteries when the engine is off.

[cowdoc]

I've been fighting the same thing on a 1995 3406E. Mine is messing up my A/C. All I know to do is test with a KD tester. It's frustrating. Good Luck.

[heavyhaulerss]

12 volts seems low to begin with. mine is on 14 un less I put everything on, then it drops but never below 13 volts. is your volt meter needle constantly shaking back & forth ? batteries need to be checked. alt could also have a short too. it needs to be checked. battery testers can be bought at harbor freight for 20-25.00.

all cables connecting battery to battery should be looked at carefully. also & especially the positive cable to the starter along with the ground cable. a lot of these cables will corrode from the inside & you wont even see it from the protective coating outside. if jumper cables (the ones from batery to battery) are stiff, they need replacing. I replaced mine not long ago due to a short. the long pos cable cost me $20.00 to be made up. it was corroded real bad under the coating, but by looing at the outside it looked fine. I am not a mechanic but have diagnosed & fixed lots of things on my truck. I hope this helps you.. keep us posted.. good luck.

[preachertom]

I have put new batteries in and I've checked the alternator, and put a new starter in, and still have the same problem. Any more ideas?

[pdm]

How long does it take to drain the batteries? Try pulling all the breakers or fuses out of the panel & see if it still drains the batteries. Maybe leave the alternator disconnected as well. How long have you known the truck & is it a new problem? Has any work been done to the elctrical lately? Or anything been put on the truck....

[preachertom]

It'll take overnight to drain the batteries. I did disconnect the alternator, and that didn't fix it. I pulled each breaker out of the panel individually, and that didn't help either. It hasn't had any electrical work lately. The truck had set for 8 years, when I bought it. I've checked out every switch in it, and everything in the sleeper. I'm running out of ideas... Could it possibly be a shorted out voltage guage?
thanks.

[preachertom]

It'll take overnight to drain the batteries. I did disconnect the alternator, and that didn't fix it. I pulled each breaker out of the panel individually, and that didn't help either. It hasn't had any electrical work lately. The truck had set for 8 years, when I bought it. I've checked out every switch in it, and everything in the sleeper. I'm running out of ideas... Could it possibly be a shorted out voltage guage?
thanks.

[pdm]

It's possible that its the voltgage itself, be unusual but never say never. You could disconnect it to try. Is there a spark when you connect the cables? What do you have for testing equipment?