Time for new batteries?

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newclubcarguy

New Member
Greetings all. I have a 48V 2000 Club Car that I purchased last year. The batteries on it are from 2004. Over the past month or so the cart has had some trouble when it comes to pulling a hill after charging, with it getting progressively worse.

Last night I took my daughter out for a ride and it had a ton of trouble pulling the first hill. The battery gauge on it completely dropped off the entire time even though it had just come off the charger. Even on a flat surface the battery gauge only showed around 1/2 with the accelorator pressed on a flat surface.

I checked the batteries today for water and corrosion build up. The water levels were great and there was no corrosion build up. I then checked the batteries with a meter and they all gave strong 7-8V individual readings but only ready 35-36 volts when checked as a group.

Considering the family budget and the price of new batteries, I thought I would come here and ask for feedback. I have no problem getting new batteries if I'm sure that is the definite problem, but don't want to drop $600+ if it is something else.

What steps should I go through to make sure that it is in fact a battery issue and nothing else? Is it out of the ordinary for a set of Deka batteries from 2004 to need replaced at this point of 2008?

You all were great when it came to helping me rebuild my cart last year. Thanks in advance for any additional help.
 
HotRodCarts

HotRodCarts

Cartaholic
Your voltage numbers aren't adding up. After the next complete charge take individual voltage readings on all the batteries with a digital meter and again after the cart starts to slow down. Post your numbers on both tests.
Where are you getting the 35 volt reading? At the batteries or the charger receptacle? Something isn't right there and we need to find out why...
 
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newclubcarguy

New Member
Didn't have access to a digital read and it just so happened that someone came by with a meter with the needle read. We put the tester on each individual battery and they all ready between 7-8 volts. At the end of checking them individually the guy put the + on one end of the series and the - on the other and it read around 35-36 volts total. I don't know if that is an accurate thing to do but that's something else that was done.

After testing them we got in the cart and it essentially stopped on a hill and had to be pushed. I decided to check the fluid levels one final time and made sure the levels were as close to perfect as I could get them and it ran better. Not perfect, but it did make it up a small hill. I ran it for awhile and then put it back in the shed on the charger. After an hour I went back out and it ran with little to no problem. Granted, the charge wasn't fully complete but it pulled every hill for 30 minutes or so with the lights at the end of the run. Certainly not as long as it has run in the past but at least it went. I'll try to go back out tomorrow after it has the chance to fully charge.

Maybe sad to admit, but at least a gallon of distilled water went in them collectively over the past 24 hours. Is it possible that the new water had something to do with it?

Feel free to ask any other questions if I'm not explaining something right.

Thanks again,
 
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newclubcarguy

New Member
The other thing that I thought was strange was how the charger itself started rading 19 amps at the start of charging. It dropped down to the normal 15-16 after a minute or two but I had never seen it read that high on a charge.
 
HotRodCarts

HotRodCarts

Cartaholic
If you added a gallon of water you were below the plates which will cause the problem you have and also shorten the battery life.
If you plan on doing your own work on a electric cart you need a digital volt meter. You can get a cheap one for under 20 dollars. Without a reading from a digital meter I can't really tell you much on the condition of your batteries.

The charger going up to 19 amps is normal on low batteries...
 
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newclubcarguy

New Member
I'll try my best to get a digital read and get back.

As far as working on the cart itself I'll be the first to admit that I'm limited in what I can do on one of them and will more times than not get the help of others. As far as the plates go you are correct that there was water below the plates before I added more. I presume you're supposed to add water as needed?
 
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newclubcarguy

New Member
I was afraid of that. This is one of those live and learn deals. Over the summer it was used quite a bit and probably had stretches where it was run without the proper water levels. I'll have to post some form of reminder for those that use it to be sure to check the water levels.

The batteries on them are Deka. Is there a thread around here that will help me decipher the year they were made? I thought I was told that they were '06 batteries but I want to make sure.

Thanks again,
 
HotRodCarts

HotRodCarts

Cartaholic
Take a look on the top of the posts for any letters and or numbers. I'm not sure how Deka marks their batteries. They may also be branded with date codes somewhere on the sides of the battery.
 
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