Batterys keep draining

Tiny
KELLI NETHAN
  • MEMBER
  • 2006 HONDA CIVIC
  • 1.6L
  • 2WD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 111,000 MILES
I have gone through multiple brand-new batteries, each one lasting only 3 weeks. Do you know what may be causing this to happen?
Thursday, February 3rd, 2022 AT 1:22 PM

2 Replies

Tiny
SQM
  • MECHANIC
  • 6,383 POSTS
Hello,

This could be due to having excessive parasitic draw (current drain) on the battery, when the vehicle is off.
All electrical circuits with a battery will have some amount of acceptable parasitic draw, but it can become excessive due to any fault within the electrical system. Like a glove box light staying on or a shorted switch.

To find out what is causing the drain you will have to use a multimeter and check the battery for the draw as you remove different fuses for circuits.

Take a look at this video, it goes over what to do:

https://youtu.be/z5F7WpgjaRs

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/car-battery-dead-overnight

Please let me know if you have any questions.
Thank you.
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Thursday, February 3rd, 2022 AT 1:56 PM
Tiny
CARADIODOC
  • MECHANIC
  • 33,752 POSTS
Couple of comments of value to add. First, there's a difference between a defective new battery and one that is simply run down. Run-down, or discharged, batteries don't need to be replaced; they need to be recharged. That's a standard procedure when there's a parasitic drain.

Second, Hondas use a rather complicated charging system with an "electronic load detector". Those look at all the electrical items on the car, add them up, then run the charging system just hard enough to meet those loads. A real common cause of discharged batteries after a week or two is adding something the load detector doesn't know about. Most commonly that's an aftermarket radio. Second is a loud amplifier that has its power cable connected straight to the battery. There's no way for those things to be detected, so the charging system doesn't put out enough current to run all those things and keep the battery charged.

The solution for anything added to the car is to just use a small portable battery charger to recharge the battery overnight at a slow rate, about once a week.
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Thursday, February 3rd, 2022 AT 2:23 PM

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