I removed the battery, cleaned the posts, then put it on charger. 2nd I removed the alternator, and had Advance to check it out on their test machine, It tested ok! 3rd reinstalled battery, and alternator, but noticed when I hooked up the neg post on the battery, I had a spark, or voltage drop. I checked the drop between the neg battery cable, and the battery the reading was 11-12 volts. I checked all fused circuits under the hood, as well as the board inside the cab. Nothing showed up, until I removed the charge wire and brush wire from the alternator. The question I'm asking? Can the alternator show ok, but still have a large enough voltage draw to drain the battery in short order?... Thanks in Advance Brandy
Yes,the voltage regulator is bad,
SOURCE: I have a draw from my battery how can I find it?
Could be a ground problem; I send you a drain test to check it, you will need a digital volt and ohm meter to perform a battery draw test.
WARNING: Do not attempt this test on a lead-acid battery that has recently been recharged. Explosive gases may cause personal injury. Failure to follow these instructions may result in personal injury.
CAUTION: To prevent damage to the meter, do not crank the engine or operate accessories that draw more than 10A.
NOTE: No factory-equipped vehicle should have more than a 50 mA (0.050 amp) draw.
Check for current drains on the battery in excess of 50 milliamps (0.050 amp) with all the electrical accessories off and the vehicle at rest for at least 40 minutes . Current drains can be tested with the following procedure:
NOTE:
Many electronic modules draw 10 mA (0.010 amp) or more continuously.
Use an in-line ammeter between the negative battery post and its respective cable.
Typically, a drain of approximately one amp can be attributed to an engine compartment lamp, glove compartment lamp, or interior lamp staying on continually. Other component failures or wiring shorts may be located by selectively pulling fuses to pinpoint the location of the current drain. When the current drain is found, the meter reading will fall to an acceptable level. If the drain is still not located after checking all the fuses, it may be due to the generator.
To accurately test the drain on a battery, an in-line digital ammeter must be used. Use of a test lamp or voltmeter is not an accurate method due to the number of electronic modules.
When the battery has been disconnected and reconnected, some abnormal drive symptoms may occur while the powertrain control module (PCM) relearns its fuel trim. The vehicle may need to be driven to relearn the strategy.
Make sure the junction box(es)/fuse panel(s) is accessible without turning on interior or underhood lights. Drive the vehicle at least 5 minutes and over 48 km/h (30 mph) to turn on and activate the vehicle systems.
Allow the vehicle to sit with the key OFF for at least 40 minutes to allow modules to time out/power down.
Connect a fused jumper wire between the negative battery cable and the negative battery post to prevent modules from resetting and to catch capacitive drains.
Disconnect the negative battery cable from the negative battery post without breaking the connection of the jumper wire.
NOTE: It is very important that continuity is not broken between the negative battery post and the negative battery cable when connecting the meter. If this happens, the entire procedure must be repeated. Connect the tester between the negative battery cable and the post. The meter must be capable of reading milliamps and should have a 10 amp capability.
NOTE:
If the meter settings need to be switched or the test leads need to be moved to another jack, the jumper wire must be reinstalled to avoid breaking continuity.
Amperage draw will vary from vehicle to vehicle depending on the equipment package. Compare to a similar vehicle for reference.
No factory-equipped vehicle should have more than a 50 mA (0.050 amp) draw.
Remove the jumper wire. If the draw is found to be excessive, remove fuses from the central junction box one at a time and note the current drop. Do not reinstall the fuses until you are finished testing. To properly isolate each of the circuits, all of the fuses may need to be removed and install one fuse, note the amperage draw, then remove the fuse and install the next fuse, etc.
If the current draw is still excessive, remove the fuses from the battery junction box (BJB) one at a time and note the current drop. Do not reinstall the fuses until you have finished testing. To properly isolate each of the circuits, all of the fuses may need to be removed. After removal of all of the fuses, install one fuse, note the amperage draw, then remove the fuse and install the next fuse until each circuit has been tested. When the current level drops to an acceptable level after removing a fuse, the circuit containing the excessive draw has been located.
Check the wiring schematic in the wiring diagram for any circuits that run from the battery without passing through the junction boxes. This could find in the Service Manual or Haynes books. If the current draw is still excessive, disconnect these circuits until the draw is found. Also disconnect the generator electrical connections if the draw can not be located. The generator may be internally shorted, causing the current drain.
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Parasitic drains can be hard to locate, a test light is not the best tool to use, you really need a multimeter capable of reading current. There are a number of electronic boxes in the Envoy that will draw some small amount of power even when the truck is off, so be aware that there can be somewhere around 100 to 150 mA of current draw normally. Check some obvious things like the glovebox light or the courtesy lights in the visors.
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