36v to12v converter issues and questions

[TroutCart]

Hi guys- brand spankin' new to the forum and first time cart owner. I just purchased a 91 club car and installed a 36v to 12v converter for it as I have lights, radio etc... ive got the converter directly tied to 36v on the battery pack and then on the output side i have the positive going into a fuse block. The output negative is tied into the other negatives from the lights and radio. the question/problem I have is that I seem to be getting about 10 volts out of the negative output side of the converter. I've tested this by removing the fuses from the fuse block and using my volt meter. I touch the negative lead to the negative output on the converter and then touching any tab on the fuse block with the positive lead from the voltmeter. Is this normal and more importantly, safe? My thought is that the converter is faulty but I'm not strong with electrical at all.

I hope that I've included enough detail for someone to jump in and help! Either way, excited to be here. Thanks in advance.

[Fairtax4me]

Sounds like you may have a poor connection somewhere, or the converter is not getting enough supply voltage.

Where is the 36v negative for the converter attached? That needs to go back to the main pack negative, Or to the B- terminal on the controller whichever is easier depending where you have the converter mounted.

What converter did you buy? Can you give us a part number or link?

[TroutCart]

First off, nice bass in the avatar photo. Hardcore bass guy here.
I actually have the negative tied into the battery pack directly. The positive is tied to exact opposite end. The converter is the standard one I've seen a lot of people buying on Amazon. Link is here https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

What do you think?

[WalterM6]

Sounds like your overloading the converter. You needs to increase the size of the converter, 120 watts is not enough. Depending on the size of your audio system you will need 300 watts or more. Incandescent lights alone will use 110 watts.

[Fairtax4me]

Originally Posted by TroutCart

First off, nice bass in the avatar photo. Hardcore bass guy here.
I actually have the negative tied into the battery pack directly. The positive is tied to exact opposite end. The converter is the standard one I've seen a lot of people buying on Amazon. Link is here https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

What do you think?

Those cheapie reducers don't have the greatest record for quality. That said, I've installed a handful of them and they seem to work well enough for LED headlights and that's really all I use them for on my carts.

Could be as Walter said. When checking that voltage are you checking that with the lights and radio ON or with them off? Make sure your connections are good and you are indeed getting 36V or more at the converter when the converter is on and the lights, etc. are on. If the supply voltage is dropping that will indicate a poor connection. Don't check at the battery, check that at the wire terminal just beyond your crimp connection to ensure you are getting good voltage through the connectors. A poor connection there will show lower voltage on the wires after the crimps.

Next would be to isolate the 12V side and check voltage on the 12V + and - without being connected to anything else. Then connect it back to your accessories and see if there is a drop in voltage. That could either show a bad connection, or that the reducer can't handle the current demand. Try checking that with just the radio on, or just the lights on. If you have low voltage on the output side with neither on, or better yet with neither even connected, there's a good chance the reducer is faulty. Send it back.


I always run mine through a switch on the high voltage side, which turns the reducer off when it's not being used to avoid drawing current from the pack when the accessories are not needed. Also be sure you have fuses on BOTH the 36V positive, and 12V positive sides.

Something to consider is ScottyB's 30A converters with Remote turn-on and Radio memory functions. http://www.cartsunlimited.net/12v-reducers.html
High quality, excellent customer service, and you don't need to worry about these drawing down your pack as much when not in use, because they're switched on/off with the key. Plus it retains KA voltage for your radio so it doesn't reset every time you turn the cart off.


Thanks for the compliment on the bass! She was a beauty, and former PB that I almost lost in the lilly pads on a local lake. She only fueled an obsession.

[TroutCart]

Guys, awesome input! Thank you. I've always checked everything with the lights and radio isolated. Is it possible I'm performing my checks incorrectly? Like I said, I take the volt meter to the negative output on the converter and the fuseblock on the positive side. With the fuse removed i get 10v
I put the fuse back in and it measures 12v. Funny thing is that when I have the negatives from the radio, lights and out put negative of the converter tied together with the fuse pulled from the light circuit, the light on the light switch still lights up.

[WalterM6]

Do you get a lot of noise on your radio? That might indicate a problem with a ground/common connection which it sounds like you have.

[TroutCart]

No, ive only had the cart a short time and the radio has only been played once. I'm not really even done with the install of it.

[Mooncarter]

Troutcart, is everything working? Are you sure your meter is correct?

[TroutCart]

I'm assuming the meter works correctly. It seems to measure voltage correctly everywhere else I've used it. Are there any checks I could do to confirm?