Alternator doesnt charge....

[jsbartley]

In Jan of last year, I bought a 1996 Benny Oceanis 400 which was lacking TLC for some time, prior to taking a hit from Irma. Previous owner not too cooperative with tech info (or doesn't know.)

Hard to pinpoint symptoms, but will try. Original alternator was burning belts..... I took in for rebuild and then the alternator "burned" (i.e. melting of coils, black smoke, etc). Replaced with another alternator 55A which charged for a couple of weeks, then stopped charging. Rebuilt that one, but charging still would drop off, ultimately reaching zero. Took it back in to shop and they showed me it was fine, but somehow, not charging.

One theoriy is that the previous owner, who had a LOT of gadgets on the boat, had a high output alternator with an external regulator? Is it possible that when I connect a new alternator with internal regulator, this one is conflicting with another regulator in the circuit? How can I find out if there is another external regulator that's tied into the charge circuit? Is there any other theory on why this is happening?

Sorry for my poorly described scenario, which serves to illustrate that I am not an expert in this field! But I do need to sort this out before my next cruise! Thanks for any advice on troubleshooting and diagnosing this recurring problem.

Frustrated in Coconut Grove!

[smac999]

follow the alternator wires. if they go to a regulator you will know.

some alts only have a pos battery cable. is so. then defiantly not. some have an ignition, lamp, tach etc. the reg will probably be within 5' if its' there.

the alt droping sounds like a typical interal alt to me. what is your SOC and voltage when it's droping to 0a?