Charger circuit breaker flips after a minute or two of charging

[haveaclubcar]

This is my first post, I have read several threads but did not see my problem. Just bought a 2002 club car third hand(it had been turned into a stretch in 2007). The charger will click on about 5 seconds after plugging the cart into the charger. A little while later(like 3 minutes) the charger circuite braker (the 15 amp one) trips. If I try to reset it imediately it will not set but a few minutes later i can usually reset it and it starts charging again. i can usually get a full charge after doing this cycle 8 to 10 times (eventually it will keep charging). When i got the cart the batery indicator was blinking the left two most bars(that symbolize the lowest charge) in an alternating manner(left then right then left....). The person who sold it to me said i just needed to replace that indicator. I removed the indicator and it reset itself when i reattached it( and seemed to work for that charge) it shows the battery level but does not seem to be accurate(showing full charge when it is not).
I am ready to buy a new indicator but wanted to know if i have a deeper problem. they said the battery's were completely dead when i bought it and the cart had not been used in a while(so left uncharged for a long time) so they charged them for me. the batteries are 3 years old(and it is a 48 volt system). Thank you for helping newbies like me out! this is an awesome forum!!
Thanks in advance!

[shadowman]

always start with the basic,s check water level if needed add distilled water only to about 1/8 inch over plates in battery.......... check all battery cables.....give each one a tug and make certain they are clean and tight.......depending on how dead they were it may be to late for them so when you charge it let the charger go till it shuts off and than check battery voltage of each battery, take notes how long charger ran and each battery voltage # and than load test the batteries and also make certain the batteries are wired correct pos to neg pos to neg.............if its tripping the breaker on charger i think your gonna find you have a battery problem.......................post all your voltage #,s and keep in mind if its a 48 volt cart that 48 volts is a dead cart each battery if good should read close to 9 volts and even at only 3 years old if they wern,t maintained they might be shot..................................

[haveaclubcar]

cool! thanks, i will take the measurements this week. not sure how to do a load test (do you mean measure the DC voltage while the system is connected or do i need to apply some kind of load to the battery when testing each?) i am an electrical engineer but it has been a really long time since i did any power electronics so i am reall rusty here:)

[shadowman]

you want a load on them..............................

[rusty]

Welcome to the forum haveaclubcar................

[haveaclubcar]

thanks for the advice. i did check every connection(all are sound). i tested each battery(with as much charge as i could get) and they all are between 8.38 and 8.40V.
are these batteries shot?
thanks in advance

[haveaclubcar]

oh yea, i checked water level(all are about 1/8th above plates but when it is successfully charging(happens every 20 or so times i try to charge it) I hear bubbling in the batteries(pretty loud bubbling) is that normal?

[haveaclubcar]

the batteries are Excide shipped in Jan 05

[rusty]

Yes, bubbling is normal as long as batteries are not getting hot to the touch.

[biglar2753]

I repair carts part time for a golf course and am still a novice, but twice I have had that problem and it was a weak circuit breaker. It is easy to replace and under $15.