We were having problems with our battery always going dead. I changed the alternator because the thing is relatively old and was rebuilt twice. And I changed the battery, but that didn't help. I figured the problem was in the voltage regulator. The clip that plugs into the bottom of the voltage regulator consists of three wires (the fourth wire is for a warning light). The three terminals that are used are labeled F, 2, and 3. I have the F terminal plugged into the F (field) on the alternator. on number 2 I have another wire that is run to the alternator it seems o.k. because I have varying voltage coming out of the wire (the more throttle you give it the more the voltage rises). And on terminal number 3 I have 12 to 12.5 Volts. That is in line with my battery.
When I put in the new voltage regulator, our lift wouldn't even start it acted like it wasn't getting spark. (tests show that we were though). As soon as I unplugged the regulator it started right up. I tried switching the terminals 2 and 3. It started but didn't have a lot of power, when you increased the throttle it would die down and almost shut off. I tried a couple of ways to get it working but to no avail.
Either way I had the wires, I put my meter on the battery terminals, and I have 12.5 V. with the lift turned off. If everything was working right, I would imagine that the battery voltage would go up at least to 13 or 14 Volts. But it goes down to about 12.3 volts. Any ideas or suggestions?
What about my solenoid? Like I said on terminal 3 I have the constant 12 to 12.5 volts from the battery but it runs through the solenoid, so I imagine it isn't bad.
I even took the Amp Gauge out of the circuit in case it was bad.
I don't know where else to look. Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Thanks