Does charging circuit cutoff at a certain level?

[bcsman]

Have a 93 Club Car that has had charging issues for awhile. Overcharged to the point I toasted a battery as I found it was getting 16+ vdc. Replaced the voltage regulator and still had the same issue when measuring across the battery posts when running. I tore apart all the grounds and cleaned posts and connectors. Things seem to be working better now but here's my question. When measuring across the battery posts I'm reading 12.50-13 vdc. When I moved my + meter lead to the generator side of the solenoid (large whire wire) I was reading 15+ vdc for a few minutes then it cut down to 1.5 vdc. Does the charging circuit cutoff voltage when the battery reaches a certain level?? According to my test it looks like it. Is that what the yellow wire running from the generator to the voltage regulator controls?? I would think unless it cutout eventually the battery would boil over as mine did. Or am I measuring charging voltage at the wrong point on the solenoid? The 2 smaller posts also read the battery voltage.

[general01]

Mine always reads 14.6 volts when the engine is running.

Anything over that at the battery and your going to nuke the battery.

[bcsman]

1. What exactly am I reading on the large solenoid post that runs to the generator with the engine running?? Mostly looks like 1-2 vdc.

2. So I guess there is 13-14 vdc constantly charging the battery and never cuts off when the battery is fully charged??

[general01]

The solinoid voltage reading should be same as battery post reading when the engine is running.

The cart does have a voltage regulator to prevent overcharging.

[meimk]

If you are getting different voltage readings you have poor contact somewhere in the system - maybe the terminals at the solenoid, or a solenoid going out? The voltage regulator gets it's source voltage from the terminal on the solenoid with the big red wire (battery 12+ cable). If the connection there is clean and tight it should be reading exactly battery voltage. If the solenoid is working correctly, and the terminals are clean & tight, the generator voltage should cross through the solenoid and be exactly the same on both the "big" terminals. That makes the generator voltage and the battery voltage the same whenever the cart is running.

[bcsman]

Thanks meimk, have some checking to do...

[bcsman]

Found out I wasnt getting the ground on the solenoid when pushing the pedal. Fixed the issue by running a new ground wire from the solenoid-regulator ground stud to frame. Good to go again.