Cummins Marine Diesel Repower Specialists › Forums › Instrumentation & Electronics › ECM Voltage
- This topic has 11 replies, 4 voices, and was last updated 5 years ago by Tony Athens.
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May 18, 2017 at 10:43 am #18791
Anthoni Lightbourne Waypoint BdaParticipantVessel Name: Carolyn
Engines: QSB Cummins 5.9
Location: Islands
Country: Caribbean
Hello Everyone. Lately I have been getting an alarm on my QSB 5.9 which reads “ECM High Battery Volts”.
This alarm is intermittent and sounds everyday but does not last all day. Comes and goes when it feels like.
Has anyone had any experience with this alarm? I’m thinking it’s a control module of some sort which has its own battery supply??
Any help would be greatly appreciated.Attached a pic of my display.
Regards.
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October 11, 2018 at 6:31 am #38328
Tony AthensModeratorVessel Name: Local Banks
Engines: QSB 6.7 550 HP
Location: Oxnard, CA
Country: USA
Yes, the voltage regulator is an internal part of every Cummins supplied alternator…
The part is cheap ($15-ish) but is usually only sourced and installed by someone in the business ( meaning a local alternator repair facility)..
Tony
October 5, 2018 at 7:06 am #38095
Gabriel CostaParticipantVessel Name: Costa Nostra
Engines: QSB 5.9
Location: Miami, FL
Country: United States
Thanks Tony,
I guess the question is… does the regulator lives in the alternator? or is it a separate part?
like you said replacing the alternator seems to be the logical fix.
As far as long term…. Smartcraft(Crap?) seems to be doing the job… that’s how I became aware of the problem in the first place.
October 4, 2018 at 6:03 pm #38090
Tony AthensModeratorVessel Name: Local Banks
Engines: QSB 6.7 550 HP
Location: Oxnard, CA
Country: USA
Most likely the regulator in the alternator has failed..That is really the only thing that could cause that————– It happens..
Get it repaired or replaced–Cheap in the big scheme of things, & IMO, would not keep using the boat until you do.. Frying things from high voltage gets real expensive real fast.As for the long term, I consider upgrading you DC power distribution system so you can “see” what is really going on, and see it “instantly”..
Tony
October 4, 2018 at 7:40 am #38070
Gabriel CostaParticipantVessel Name: Costa Nostra
Engines: QSB 5.9
Location: Miami, FL
Country: United States
Thank again sir! Like I said I already took the battery charger off the equation. I will compare system volts from smartcarft vs analog gage on dash next time I take boat out and get alarm. I am thinking bad alternator or voltage regulator….
October 4, 2018 at 7:24 am #38069
Corey SchmidtForum ModeratorVessel Name: Rebel Belle
Engines: Cummins
Location: Oxnard, CA
Country: USA
You will need to determine what charge voltage your alternator is putting out without anything else in the circuit such as a charger, etc. A simple volt meter will help you determine this…
If the alternator is over-charging, then you will need to have unit repaired or replaced.
The SmartCraft unit will only read what the engine computer is telling it… it is not physically sensing voltage itself…
Have you made a DC distribution schematic diagram of your boat yet? This is always very helpful in understanding the system, especially when it comes to troubleshooting.
October 4, 2018 at 7:12 am #38068
Gabriel CostaParticipantVessel Name: Costa Nostra
Engines: QSB 5.9
Location: Miami, FL
Country: United States
Hi Corey Thanks for the quick reply!
The question is that it is definitely an alternator issue? voltage regulator? A smartcraft indicaton problem? The first time I got the alarm a few weeks ago the bilge blowers came on by themselves and I could not turn them off!!
I took the battery charger off the equation so I am thinking an alternator problem, what do you think?October 3, 2018 at 4:24 pm #38053
Corey SchmidtForum ModeratorVessel Name: Rebel Belle
Engines: Cummins
Location: Oxnard, CA
Country: USA
Well 17.1 Volts will surely throw an alarm! You’ll need to corroborate your REAL voltage with a DVM or similar to really know whats going on…
October 3, 2018 at 10:50 am #38022
Gabriel CostaParticipantVessel Name: Costa Nostra
Engines: QSB 5.9
Location: Miami, FL
Country: United States
Hello Corey,
Sorry to reply to an old thread, but I am having the exact same problem as the OP above.
some facts:
2005 Sea ray 390 Sundancer
Twin QSB 5.9 (380)
12v DC system
Diesel view V1 system. barely readable but seems to work fine…..that’s another issue!I get the alarm at cruise speed but not all the time. as soon as I throttle down it goes away. there have been times were I dont get the alarm at all!
Last time I got the alarm engines were at normal cruise(2600RPM) and Smartcraft showing 17.1 Volts on port engine. Sorry I did not cross check with analog gage on dash. I will do that next time. shut down battery charger inside to troubleshoot and got the alarm again.
Thanks in advance for your help!!
May 18, 2017 at 12:12 pm #18806
Corey SchmidtForum ModeratorVessel Name: Rebel Belle
Engines: Cummins
Location: Oxnard, CA
Country: USA
Well let’s see what your batteries like to float at and more importantly, when the fault presents itself on the screen, go into the alarms screen and see if you can obtain a specific FAULT CODE… odds are it is code 442 FMI 16.
How are you monitoring REAL battery voltage at the dash?
May 18, 2017 at 11:35 am #18800
Anthoni Lightbourne Waypoint BdaParticipantVessel Name: Carolyn
Engines: QSB Cummins 5.9
Location: Islands
Country: Caribbean
Hello Corey.
12v system
Have to look into the battery float voltage.
No fault code at all. Just text code as you see on the pic.Thanks Corey and I will get back to you on that.
May 18, 2017 at 11:30 am #18798
Corey SchmidtForum ModeratorVessel Name: Rebel Belle
Engines: Cummins
Location: Oxnard, CA
Country: USA
Engine info…
Can you supply us with some more info about your engine?
- DC System Voltage (12V or 24V)
- Engine Battery Float Voltage
- Do you have a specific FAULT CODE that the display is producing?
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