Rectifier Regulator for 150cc gy6 engine

[Immokalee]

Can anyone tell me how to test the voltage regulator on my HH 150cc? My battery was not holding a charge so I swapped it with another battery and that battery went dead too, so I know it's not the battery.

[zman007007]

hi I"m still new to these type of engines too, plenty of experience in lawn mower and go cart type motors, but I would say with the engine running you should be able to test the voltage at the battery with a volt meter and see what kind of voltage you are getting there. it should read anywhere between 13.5 to 14.5 volts. Besides as cheap as the voltage regulators are why not buy one and put it on? they just plug in. easy to replace. zman If I am wrong someone please say so.

[kittletstv]

Hi, I'm new to this site and fairly new to these buggues as well but lots of years experiance with vintage type go karts, mini-bikes, etc & cars / trucks. I too am going through this exact issue right now with my SunL buggie. I was told that you / someone can check them but when I took my old one to the local shop they didn't really answer me when I asked about testing it. However on mine, on the back side where the epoxy seal is there was an internal burn / flash mark and it also looked fractured / crystalized inside some areas of the epoxy seal. It looked like the seal had partially pulled away from the outer edges on 2 sides of the body of the regulator. Generally this effect usually is an outward sign of electrical failure/s so I purchased the new one without worrying about testing it. I had 2 choices (1) exact replacement that only had the cooling fins on 1 side, or (2) a larger one that had cooling fins on 3 sides. Either one was & $25.00 + tax so I elected to go with the one with the extra cooling fins since I live in the AZ desert and they clained it was also better electrically (?). Im going to put it in this afternoon so I'll let you know if it corrected my problem so it might help you too. The part is a lot cheaper online but I'm getting ours ready for this weekend so I didn't want to wait to have it shipped to me.

[Masteryota]

A burnt spot in a regulator is dead giveaway of a shorted leg in the regulator, and should remedy your charging issue, but be careful when you start it up, normally legs don't just short out, there may be another issue causing it. Be sure to clean all connections, including all of the ground wires.

In short, regulator/rectifiers take in alternating current from 2, 3, or 4 wire stators, and 'straighten' out the voltage, converting it from AC to direct current(DC). There are normally 3 diode 'legs'(also known as a diode trio) in the circuit, and each wire feeds into the circuit at a different point, and one leads out to the battery or power block, and another to ground, resulting in safe, 12v DC. Any excess voltage produced will be grounded, and converted to heat, which radiates from its heat sink(fins). Normally, the bigger, or more fins, it is designed for more voltage than normal use. An example would be a higher revving engine, which would produce higher AC voltages from the stator. This is also why you see voltage increase when the engine RPM increases, as the stator is producing more.

I say that, to say this. If you have the wire diagram for the engine, you can normally test each leg of the regulator circuit with a DVOM(digital volt-ohm meter/multimeter), when it has been disconnected from the harness. Keep in mind, diodes will only allow current to flow one way, so you have to check each leg twice, reversing the leads each time.

[kittletstv]

Thank you for your info. What should the correct reading be on the multi-meter? Also on anothet note, the guy that owned this buggie before me rolled it and broke off all of the lights & the horn. He then gutted all of the wiring for some reason. I want to reinstall all of the lights for night driving. A local shop suggested running them directly off the battery. What is your opinion on doing this since originally they ran off the electrical box wiring not directly from the battery? Do you know what the max lighting wattage draw should be to still allow enough power going to the battery to keep it up properly?

Thanks again for your help. I love the detailed explanation/s.

[Masteryota]

Testing each leg should result in resistance one way, and open the opposite way. As long as the resistances are close, then I would give it a passing grade. Differences in resistance can signal a breakdown in a diode, or it will read both ways. I don't know what the resistance values are for all regulators, but the above should get you pretty close during diagnosis.

As for the power supply, either one would be ok, but running off the power block would be neater, IMO. I would convert to LED lights, low draw, low heat, and vibration resistant, guaranteed not to over draw your charging system.

[kittletstv]

Thank you Masteryota for the update. I appreciate your imput. I will run the tests today and go with the LED's.

[2SlickNick]

Did the new regulator solve your charging issues?

[Dirtroad]

I had to replace the regulators in both my carbides.

If your battery is not charging its most likely your regulator. They are cheap and easy to replace.