81 g1, starter gen, batt

[makobuggie]

Hello everbody, i have a 81 g1 and is it normal to charge the batt like 1 time a week? The batt about a year old, and the starter is about 2 years old, it will run fine 4 a few days great but its not like all the way dead, just slow, would it hurt to install trickle charge on the cart? And plug it in at night? I was thinking about when i trickle charge it, it will be hooked with other wires on the batt term, im not sure if it should be ok like that? Thanks.

[patthesoundguy]

My g1 battery is super old and the battery never needs to be charged even over the winter driving through snow and cranking tons to start in -15celcius. I would trickle charge it and get it up fully charged. Then see how it goes. The starter/gen may not be enough to get the voltage up high enough when the voltage is really low. Battery can still be a dud even if its only a year old too.

[slonomo]

You need to get the volt meter out and check the battery with a load. Even a newer battery can be bad. Or take it to the auto parts store and have it tested. Also check voltage while the cart is running. Above 2000 rpm you should be at 13.2-14.5 volts somewhere. The closer to 14v you are the better. If you are over 14v it's too much. The starter/gen doesn't charge that effectively if the battery is low to begin with. If you drive the cart a lot it will keep the battery charged. If it sits more than it's driven it will slowly loose some volts.