EdmontonCanada

So I went to start my 2006 Ram 2500 a few weeks back and it was dead. Got a boost, but for some reason it wouldn't turn over right away. I had to let my friend's vehicle "charge" my batteries. Odd I thought. (Something was eating my amperage.)

So I get driving and my voltage starts dropping. I'm thinking, ****! my alternator is gone. So I had the truck towed to the dealership. They tested the batteries and the alternator. No problems! Tech hooked up his voltage meter up and measures amperage, and poof!...blew a fuse in his meter. Truck was drawing over 6 amps for no reason. He played around a bit, thought it might be my brake controller, since this is my only electrical mod (no programmer, chip, etc.). Rechecked the amps, and they were very low...0.27. The truck was fine. Threw out the brake controller (it was cheap and crappy anyway.)

A few days later, I go out for lunch, come back to work, finish work 2 hours later and bam!...my batteries are dead. I make sure all my accessories are unplugged (navigation, ipod, etc.). It has been happening every 2-3 days, and only during the day, either when I leave for lunch, or at the end of the work day...never first thing in the morning or in the evening.

One time when I was driving after I got a boost, I saw the voltage dropping again, but I made it home in time enough to start pulling fuses. I got up to fuse 28, which killed the truck, put it back in, started it, and everything was ok.

Anyway, I just joined and read the "You may have a shorted wire" thread. Maybe that is my problem...I hope so! I am thinking, maybe when I am at home, my truck is backed onto my driveway, and if there is the wire short issue, maybe the angle of the truck is enough that the wire does not touch? Maybe when I am on the grass parking area at work the rough driving causes the wire to touch? Theories.

So if anyone else has had such a problem and fixed it let me know! One dealership said they wanted my truck for TWO DAYS to find the problem...as IF!

Colo_River_Ram

I read a post about a battery that exploded due to a stuck grid heater relay..

EdmontonCanada

Whoa. Better get some safety glasses!

I wonder where one finds that relay. I was thinking about the heating grid, since it does have serious draw and could drain a battery fast! I also wonder if, when I installed a blade runner, I didn't maybe do damage to some something to cause it to intermittently stay on...

Colo_River_Ram

On the inboard side of the passenger side battery (on my 05) .. and yes batteries can do bad things as they create hydrogen gas when charging..Can you say Hindenburg ?

Foxborough

If you don't already have on get an (amp clamp), it's an instrument that clamps around a wire that measures the amp draw. I have seen them at Home Depot here for $60 or so. When you stop and everything is "off", pop the hood and check amps on the battery cables. You could trace the wire from the battery, following the amps. Just make sure the instrument can check DC. It might eliminate some guesswork.

garbri

you can also pop fuses out of their holders and put an ampmeter across the leads when everything is "off". This will usually pinpoint stuck relays and power drainage.

garrett

EdmontonCanada

Sounds like some solid advice! Thanks!

jp8819

I had a grid heater relay stick on mine and kill my battery but did not find it till I went to jump it off and was like you was slow to start back and also smelled hot wiring and go to looking and found grid heater terminal rubber boot so hot that it was melting. One way to check to see if this might be a problem is the intake air horn on mine got extremely hot since grid heater was stuck on and the switch had not even been turned on yet.

hivoltage

Jeeze,I'd think a stuck grid heater relay would be worthy of a recall. After all the truck could burn to the ground if the wires got hot enough.