Burning up alternators

[Brice]

Hey i have a 08 2500 and i keep burning up alternators instantly i have checked all fuses and looked for possible wiring issues but cant find anything that sticks out. drove it the other day to the dmv and the alternator was what seemed like 500 degrees and smoked. is this a ground issue?

 

[Brice]

also i was driving a six hour drive when this started my alternator went out and i replaced it with a new one and drove 6 hrs back and a couple days later it burned up again i thought that maybe the alternator was bad cause it was a re-man so i replaced it and instantly the new one burned up stunk was smoking and got hot. so am i looking in the right spot with it being a ground issue or could it be something else?

 

[turkeybird56]

CHECK: I would suspect a battery problem or a poor connection between the alternator and battery posts; corrosion on the terminal mating surfaces, corrosion under the cable insulation at the cable ends, etc. Generally speaking, fried alternators mean a chronic high amp draw or a poor connection leading to not much of a load on the alternator and the alt. running away with itself.

If you've got a voltmeter and a battery with removable service caps you can try probing one cell next to another to determine if there is a weak cell which is something that can cause problems for an alternator. Probing the electrolyte in the cells while working your way down the battery 2 cells at a time should show about 2.1 volts each time..

ALSO: Voltage drop check all your major wires. Check for a parasitic draw which could be pulling down your battery. Also get the battery load tested some places will do that for free.

 

[Brice]

Right on yea i replaced the batteries with the new alternator thanks i will check the cables and see if i can find the issue

 

[crash68]

Ditto what above stated about checking all the wiring including especially the grounds. Check to make sure the ground from the engine to frame/body is good also.
Being a Cummins, maybe the grid heater is staying on? They draw a lot of current. Just an idea of something to check.

 

[Brice]

what is the grid heater and there is a ground from the engine to the frame and the frame to the batteries where else would i find the grounds? Thanks for all your help

 

[turkeybird56]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ URL ref grid heater:
https://www.dieselpowerproducts.com...ater-relocation-075-09-67l-dodge-cummins.aspx


https://www.dieseltruckresource.com...discussion-92/what-does-grid-heater-do-37296/

There are grounds all over, just depends, Look at frame points both side of engine well. Since I have a gas Hemi, I cannot help U there.


FRIGGIN the MY 19 5.7's had a Recall due to bad grounding point, that could cause Power Steering to not operate. SO U need to check them all, make sure they are clean, well maintained, some put dielectric grease on the points, I am old school, always just used grease, PROB not a good idea on these new thangs, LOL. ALL ABOVE IMHO...

Grease part definitely IMHO....... U may want to talk to a gearhead on the pro/con's of grease on a ground point.............

 

[Bloody_Knuckles]

The first thing I would do is borrow and amp clamp from an electrician friend and check what kind of amperage you are putting out from your alternator. The amp clamp is used on just one wire at a time, not a bundle. It should spike as soon as you start the engine as it is recharging the battery, but should soon drop down to just enough to keep the voltage at the correct level. If it is continuously at a high amperage, then I would start looking for the source using the amp clamp on individual wires.

 

[crash68]

The first thing I would do is borrow and amp clamp from an electrician friend and check what kind of amperage you are putting out from your alternator.

Make sure the clamp on amp meter is capable of reading DC current.
You might get some form of reading using an AC clamp on but it's not accurate or reliable.

 

[Cold Tooth]

Any resolution on this?