I have a 1999 Ram 1500 4wd, 5.2L, 175K miles with battery drain. Since I have retired, I don't drive it more than once or twice a week, i.e., local drives for errands around 3-5 miles. In the last couple months it has begun to not crank after about three days. Had it checked at electrical shop thinking maybe the alternator has stopped charging adequately. That and battery test were good. Charged at home overnight for full charge and it cranked right up. Came home the scenic route for several trips. Didn't drive it over the weekend and Friday to Tuesday it wouldn't crank.

I plan to use a clamp on ammeter to check at battery cable and then wire bundles to each fuse box and narrow it down from there. Don't look forward to pulling a hundred fuses.

Does this sound like a viable plan? What draw/s should I expect to see?

 

Very little draw when the truck is shut off. Things like the underhood lamp, and glovebox lamp are typical culprits.

 

What I do is use an ohm meter and see how many volts is currently going out with the truck off. Should be no more than 1. Then pull one fuse at a time. Once the voltage drops, that's your problem

 

Faster to look at the volt drop across the fuse, w/o removing it... Here is a lengthy explanation from youtube

 

Good to know! As much wiring as I do I really should learn how to use a multimeter lol

 

I have a amp clamp meter (ut210e) I bought from eBay years ago, but low DC currents are hard to detect. Last I used the clamp feature, was last year to check the amperage output on my DC Tig machine. That clamp worked well at high amps. That meter also has leads so it ends up being the one I grab to test batteries and charging systems. It has a decent range on it, and its pretty small so its easy to take with you. Most of the time I'll use my Fluke 87 because it has leads that have slide on alligator clips.

I think it is worthwhile learning some electricity basics, and investing in a digital multi-meter with some decent ranges.

 

I would say I know a good deal about DC just never needed a multimeter always used a test light

 

Thanks! Great info, I would never have thought to lock the doors like that and did not know about the mA chart. His way avoids my worst dread originally mentioned of taking out so many fuses one at a time.

 

Latch trick works for trucks with electronic feedback, the 2nd gens use plunger switches. 3rd gens have the feedback latches.

 

I wondered about that. So the 2nd gen (1999) is not a concern here other than the dome light on?
Next question: All the regular fuses/circuits seem to be good. How do I check the J fuses? The chart from the YouTube reference shows values, so I presume there is a way.
Thanks for all the help here.