Thanks a lot to everyone who replied with suggestions. I troubleshot the
radio, & a few other areas & never found a significant draw. Took the boat
out today, ran great all day. Played the radio while we were stopped for a
swim, & engine still cranked right up. One of those mysteries, I guess!

The ammeter still only reads 10.5V while running, even at speed. I'm
guessing the meter is bad. Any suggestions on how to get to it? There are
no obvious screws on the dash or underneath the console in which to remove
in order to get to the instrument cluster. See make & model of boat below.

Thanks,
Mike


"Christine" wrote in message
nk.net...
Vessel: 1999 Maxum 1900SR
Engine: 4.3l Mercruiser w/Alpha I drive
Issue: Battery is being drained by ____(something).

Details: Installed a new 550 CCA Marine Battery about 3 weeks ago. Ran
great when first installed. Boat sat for 2 weeks, tried to start -
"click".
Nothing. Was able to jumpstart from the truck, ran it for about 15 min
top
charge. Voltmeter on the boat dashboard reads 10.5 volts. Hand-held
voltmeter at battery reads 13.98; test at alternater reads the same.
Took
battery back to dealer & had tested. Battery OK, fully charged.

So, I think the alternator is OK. No visible frayed wires & such. My gut
tells me that the voltmeter in the dash is suspect since it reads
differently than the hand-helds.

Any sugggestions as to what could be draining the battery or anything else
typically to look for?

Thanks,
Mike

"Christine" wrote in message
k.net...
Thanks a lot to everyone who replied with suggestions. I troubleshot the
radio, & a few other areas & never found a significant draw. Took the
boat
out today, ran great all day. Played the radio while we were stopped for
a
swim, & engine still cranked right up. One of those mysteries, I guess!

The ammeter still only reads 10.5V while running, even at speed. I'm
guessing the meter is bad. Any suggestions on how to get to it? There
are
no obvious screws on the dash or underneath the console in which to remove
in order to get to the instrument cluster. See make & model of boat
below.


An ammeter reads amperage or amps, and a voltmeter reads volts. Either way,
if your gauge is a standard 2 1/8" round gauge, it is probably held to the
dash from behind by a "U"-shaped keeper that is held tight by one or two
nuts on the back of the gauge. Remove the nut(s) and the keeper and the
gauge will pull forward through the dash.

Oh, sorry...it is a voltmeter. And I can probably remove & replace it if I
can figure out how to get to it. Again, no obvious screws on the face of
the dash or underneath it. Anyone have a clue as to how to access the
instrument cluster?

Mike

"RG" wrote in message
m...

"Christine" wrote in message
k.net...
Thanks a lot to everyone who replied with suggestions. I troubleshot
the
radio, & a few other areas & never found a significant draw. Took the
boat
out today, ran great all day. Played the radio while we were stopped
for
a
swim, & engine still cranked right up. One of those mysteries, I guess!

The ammeter still only reads 10.5V while running, even at speed. I'm
guessing the meter is bad. Any suggestions on how to get to it? There
are
no obvious screws on the dash or underneath the console in which to
remove
in order to get to the instrument cluster. See make & model of boat
below.


An ammeter reads amperage or amps, and a voltmeter reads volts. Either
way,
if your gauge is a standard 2 1/8" round gauge, it is probably held to the
dash from behind by a "U"-shaped keeper that is held tight by one or two
nuts on the back of the gauge. Remove the nut(s) and the keeper and the
gauge will pull forward through the dash.

On Mon, 26 Jun 2006 00:45:10 GMT, "Christine"
wrote:

Oh, sorry...it is a voltmeter. And I can probably remove & replace it if I
can figure out how to get to it. Again, no obvious screws on the face of
the dash or underneath it. Anyone have a clue as to how to access the
instrument cluster?

Mike

"RG" wrote in message
om...

"Christine" wrote in message
k.net...
Thanks a lot to everyone who replied with suggestions. I troubleshot
the
radio, & a few other areas & never found a significant draw. Took the
boat
out today, ran great all day. Played the radio while we were stopped
for
a
swim, & engine still cranked right up. One of those mysteries, I guess!

The ammeter still only reads 10.5V while running, even at speed. I'm
guessing the meter is bad. Any suggestions on how to get to it? There
are
no obvious screws on the dash or underneath the console in which to
remove
in order to get to the instrument cluster. See make & model of boat
below.


An ammeter reads amperage or amps, and a voltmeter reads volts. Either
way,
if your gauge is a standard 2 1/8" round gauge, it is probably held to the
dash from behind by a "U"-shaped keeper that is held tight by one or two
nuts on the back of the gauge. Remove the nut(s) and the keeper and the
gauge will pull forward through the dash.




All of my instruments are mounted in a panel that is removable. Somewhere
there must be a panel or doorway that would enable access to the
instruments. Some instruments are held in with a threaded ring. If you
posted a picture, there are folks here who could tell you how to do it.

We post lots of pictures over in alt.binaries.pictures.sports.ocean.
--
John H

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