Saturday we went to the city to handle a side job started the truck in the morning no issues besides a belt squeak, get downtown no problem shut down at 09:00 truck sat until 13:00 when the job was complete.  We went to start up and truck was very weak but started volt meter on dash showed in range but on low side sitting on the line after 2-3 seconds it bumped to over 14.

Get home no issues, at this point I'm not thinking alternator since it's showing its charging and made the trip home.

The shortened long story on this truck is it doesn't have it's original cab or any original sheet metal for that matter it was apart for years, has a 1/2 ton body with a 3/4 ton chassis and wiring harness shoe horned in place.  It's been on the road for about a year now and electrical problems have been my only issues.

When put back on the road two new batteries were installed from napa all connections were cleaned and so on...  

That Saturday when I got home I checked voltage on both batteries passenger side showed 13.3 and drivers side was down to 12.4 not even 15 minutes after driving an hour home

Had a friend load test the batteries to find passenger side fine drivers side failed.

Questions are is this a random occurrence where the battery failed premature or is excess load being placed on the drivers side battery some how?  Also I have been getting heavy corrosion on the drivers side connections with little to none on the passenger side.

Edited May 1, 20177 yr by WiscoRedkneck

Did you keep up on the electrolyte level in the batteries?

 

If you don't the surface of the plates that are exposed to air are permanently damaged and there is no way to repair or recover the plate surface to functional. 

 

Do you make sure to charge the batteries every time you start the truck?

 

All too often do I see people fire up and drive a very short distance like less than 5 miles and shut down. The engine isn't even warmed up nor is the batteries. So all the time during the cold battery state it resists charging and takes longer to recover. 

 

Did you at any point allow the rest voltage to fall below 11.0 volts?

 

If the battery voltage falls below 11.0 volts permanent battery damage occurs. The longer its left in this state the more permanent the damage to the battery. Battery must be charged immediately to prevent damage to the battery.  

 

Do you "equalize charge" your batteries if you add distilled water?

 

Any time you add distilled water to a battery it will stratify or remain separated. So what you do is proform a equalize charge to the battery which is basically a over charging of the battery till it boils. So for 12V batteries Equalize Charge will be 15.0 to 15.5 volts till low amp charge occurs. Also be aware of the battery temperature and not let it overheat either.  

Yes on everything besides ensuring full charge every time I start and drive due to the fire department.  I make sure to take real good care of them last set lasted 9 years

Heck 9 years old not bad for a failure...

No this set of batteries is one year old and one battery of two failed.

The set before this was the same brand and lasted 9 years that's what I don't get. 

Sorry I was not more specific the first time, I just find this odd and want to make sure I'm not missing something 

The failed battery is going back to the original vendor tomorrow to see what they say.

Edited May 2, 20177 yr by WiscoRedkneck

I have had this same thing happen to me as well. Years ago, I use to sell auto batteries (about 100 X 180 months) and seen this happen to customers as well.

Vendor told me battery is fine and they can do nothing for me yet I clearly see the truck starting better with the deep cycle battery out of the camper stuffed under the hood.

On that note when I get the money I will be replacing both batteries with a different brand likely duralast.... 

It just sucks because I personally know the owner of the parts store and he wasn't there so I had to deal with one of his lackeys and after that experience I don't want to buy their parts anymore.  Either way I will speak with him and see what he has to say on the subject...

Thanks for the replies 

Edited May 3, 20177 yr by WiscoRedkneck