Ok guys I'm in another pickle. I am having a voltage drop somewhere. I've been running a test over the last couple weeks. I started 2 Sundays ago, I got a reading at the battery of 12.7, Mond 12.5. Tues 12.44, Wed, 12.47. Thurs 12.44. After that I thought well it seems to be holding. I went to test it today and I am sitting at 10.1 at the battery. I've not had any lights or anything going to drain the battery since I started the test. I thought at first it was a bad diode in my alternator, I've since rebuilt it. And so far the only constant I get is of course the back of alternator, the starter solenoid where the battery cable hooks up. The memory for the radio and the constant in the ignition switch. Any ideas where to check? Also, the car has the front clip off it right now, because I am starting the bodywork on it. The car is in the sun. I don't know if the heat could be causing the drop. It's been in the high 90's to low 100's here over the last few days. I can't figure out why it's consistent for a week straight then drop over 2 volts the next. I'm at a loss.

Bro,

Charge the battery up and then disconnect it completely. Then do the same test you are doing now. It is possible for a battery to go bad and end up going dead by itself. If you disconnect it and it still drops, then you know its the battery. If it stays ok, then hook it back up and see what happens. If it drops again, then somewhere, something is causing a current draw.

Thanks for the advice. The battery in my car is new. I have done what you have stated prior to this. The battery is holding a charge on its own. I've eliminated a dead cell. I am getting a drain somewhere, but not sure where. I've had this problem for over 3 months now and thus far no idea on what it could be

Try this thread (http://www.chevelles.com/forums/showthread.php?=92977&highlight=battery+drain]this thread)

The link appears to be no longer valid.

Disconnect battery then alternator then hook battery back up . Let it sit and see if it discharges. Or make/buy a test light. Disconnect battery lead then disconnect alt. Hook test light between battery lead and battery post. If the light goes on it's probably not the alt. If light does not go on hook up alt then test with light again to see if light comes on. If alt appears good maybe voltage reg, don't know if you have external regulator or not. If that checks good start pulling fuses. When the light goes out that's your current drain. Not hard just take your time and think about it. The light will only go on when something is hooked up that's drawing current. I would disconnect your radio/receiver to start, most draw a small amount of current all the time to maintain the clock. It's not much and shouldn't drain a battery unless it's not recharged for weeks but it may light the test light and fool you.

Thanks for the input. I will try that. Needless to say it's been a real pain in the you know what. Being my first wiring job, it's not been as easy as I hoped for. It's been a real learning experience for me. Thus far I have learned paitence is a virute. And if it says an hour, chances are it's closer to 3. haha Anyways, thanks for the help will try this evening when it cools off some.

Battery case have a slimy/greasy film on it? The battery can discharge using the slime as a conductor between the two posts.

Beyond that, connect an ammeter in series with the + cable, see how much drain you have. If there is a drain, you can pull fuses one at a time to see which circuit the drain is on. (The drain does not "have" to be on a fused circuit, but that's as good a place as any to start--and it's easy)

Used to be real common for the dashboard clock to cause that problem. They would pull current all the time, instead of intermittently. When you'd pull that fuse, the drain was gone.