MY system is draining my battrey

[4dr88accord]

i got 3-12" and a 760 watt amp hooked up,,, and i think its draining my battry... my headlights dim when i pound it,,,,whats tha soloution....bigger alternator?.....

[Vanilla Sky]

upgrade your wiring, get a bigger battery, and get a bigger alternator... those 3 play a large roll in your dimming problem...

what guage of wiring are you using, how old is you battery and what are the ratings on it, and can you recall if your alternator has ever been replaced?

[Andy]

The easiest and cheapest solution if its only dimming when the bass hits is to install a 1 farad capacitor.

[Vanilla Sky]

a cap isn't the way to go... and a 1 farad cap is more expensive than new wiring between your alt and fuesebox, and between your battery and amp... you should ONLY use a cap when you still have issues AFTER you ahve upgraded wiring, upgraded alternator, AND upgraded battery...

[2drSE-i]

dont waste ur $$ on a capacitor if you havent upped your alternator or battery, and Derick im pretty sure u can take the kegels off buddy :) when are you gonna swap in EFI? you will love it i promise :)

[POS carb]

i solved my dimming problems, here are the fixes from most effective to least
1) trunk mount battery... I already had a 4 gauge monster power wire running to the trunk so I figured I'd buy the biggest battery at Auto Zone and put it in the trunk. Having the juice right next to the amp was definately worth it for the dimming and as a bonus I have space under my hood for the ignition module and coil

2) Capacitor. Started with a 1 farad unit, now have a 3 and YES it makes a difference, especially with starting the car

3) Hi amp alternator... needed it to keep the big battery charged otherwise it runs low if you love bass like I do. I had a local shop build me a 200 amp unit out of the stock parts for $150

[Magny]

wtf??? a 200 amp unit on your alt??? shit i want that lol. my car has fukin issues with this damn reman alt. damn battery light doesnt turn off for 10 minutes, battery shows voltage and revieving charge, guess the alt aint puttin enough out or somethin, but hell a 200 amp alt would save me from hella problems haha.

[3rdCoast]

easy fix OPTIMA YELLOW TOP BATTERY made for sound systems u can get them at autozone for about $150usd thats a battery u take with when u sell the car lol caps r useless ppl!!!!

[Hash_man_Se_i]

Adding an optima battery wont solve that problem... And yes adding a cap would help a bit, but your best bet is to replace the alternator with a higher amp unit. 200 amp would be awesome... damn

I was having the same issues you are before hand with my amp, its not digital so it draws more current then most digital amps... So, I put in a Monster 1 farad cap, and also had a power wire run right from my deck to the battery and it helped a ton... no more dimming lights etc.

[3rdCoast]

a yellow top will solve this!!!!! yellow tops are deep cycle batteries they charge back a lot quicker than normal batteries that is what kills ur batter and causes dim lights the alt cant charge the battery and provide enough power for the soundsystem and headlights which causes the dimming i agree the alt could use an upgrade but and optima yellow top will reduce the strain on the alt and charging system dramatically trust me on this

[HostileJava]

a yellow top will solve this!!!!! yellow tops are deep cycle batteries they charge back a lot quicker than normal batteries that is what kills ur batter and causes dim lights the alt cant charge the battery and provide enough power for the soundsystem and headlights which causes the dimming i agree the alt could use an upgrade but and optima yellow top will reduce the strain on the alt and charging system dramatically trust me on this

If you are going to dig up old posts so that people have correct information when they search at least post the correct information. The reason the lights dim when the speakers hit hard is because the alternator can't provide enough power and the battery not being designed for this type of situation cannot respond with enough power quick enough. It's not that the battery doesn't have that much power stored in it, it's that the chemicals used to store the energy in the battery were not designed to react that quickly. And yes the yellow top will charge a tad faster then a normal battery but if you continue to draw that much power form any battery over a prolonged period of time it will go dead. Upgrading wiring that drops resistance is a good idea, along with a cap that can store and release energy ALOT quicker then you battery. A higher output alernator is ideal, but you probably won't find one for the 3g that will be able to keep up with your amp. I don't see how the battery you suggest will reduce strain on the electrical system enough to make a difference. The amps will still be drawing just as much and the alternator will still be putting out just as much power. The battery still will not be able to react quickly enough to supply enough power to the amps.

[3rdCoast]

1st off ppl dont use these batteries for a "tad" bit better performance caps r useless i have one 1.5 farad. I had bad system drain. My head lights were supposed to beat with the music. I got an optima yellow top and no dimming at all. An alt upgrade is a good idea and thats on my to do list but they r hard to find for the 3g. This is one of the next best things to do. The r deep cycle batteries not just any old kind or the rack battery. They are meant to take the abuse. check that out (http://www.optimabatteries.com/publish/optima/americas0/en/config/product_info/automotive/deep_cycle.html)

[Vanilla Sky]

sounds like you had a bum battery to begin with, 3rdcoast. just putting in the optima won't cure that unless you had a bum battery to begin with.

and like java said. if you're going to come back to post information in old threads so people know the answer when they search, AT LEAST GIVE FULLY CORRECT INFO.

[HostileJava]

and like java said. if you're going to come back to post information in old threads so people know the answer when they search, AT LEAST GIVE FULLY CORRECT INFO.

:cheers:

[87DXHatch]

upgrade your wiring, get a bigger battery, and get a bigger alternator... those 3 play a large roll in your dimming problem...

what guage of wiring are you using, how old is you battery and what are the ratings on it, and can you recall if your alternator has ever been replaced?
I see I have left the place in good hands... ;)