can parasitic draw be caused by wrong bulb size?

[AussieinNC]

Unplug the regulator and let us know the draw ..ign off...

Thanks

[andrewpclayton]

.95

[drfloyd]

Originally Posted by franken

The answer to the original question is no.
A - current flow means you have the meter leads connected backwards of what the meter thinks is right. Actual current flow direction theory is up for debate, but makes no difference.
Swapping parts for no real reason wastes money. That's called shotgunning. Troubleshoot.

Electric systems are simple, but hard to figure out. A circuit is a circle from the source and back through a load. A load is something like a group of lights such as park lights or whatever. From the battery/alt the exact same current flows to and from said circuit. Its a circle. Nothing is lost or gained in the circle.
E=IR
or elecromotive force, (Volts) is equal to current times resistance. You can transform that w/ simple algebra.

Thanks Captain Obvious. Nice Google search.

[mjshealy]

Different reading with the alternator can be misleading. This is because on a lot of older cars/trucks, the alternator wire runs to the starter solenoid, and sometimes there are other factory/accessoriesattached there or at the alternator stud itself. The OP needs to be familiar with meters and settings. When you originally said .75 amp draw, I am unsure of if you know what the actual reading is.... .75 amps, 750 milliamps, .750 milliamps? the first thing I would do is buy a small cheap battery load tester and test the battery. You can also start the vehicle, let it run for at least 10 minutes, write down the battery voltage running, then take off the battery terminals as quickly as possible and hook your meter leads to the battery. Write down what you first see when you hook up the leads, then what it finally settled at.

[Bigdav160]

Another way to find a parasitic draw is to place your meter in milivolts range and place the meter leads across each fuse. A circuit carrying current will show a small amount of voltage drop across the fuse.

[mjshealy]

In my opinion, it won't be the bulb, if it's a regular bulb type. LED's can operate on minimal power, so the slightest residual power left through the switch could drain power, but if it was the middle of the night and dark outside, you would see the light on, dimly lit.if you want to "throw parts at it", replace the wrong bulbs with the correct ones. But as long as the power requirement on the incorrect bulbs you installed are at or above the correct bulb specs, it's not going to drain unless the actual light is left on. When the switch is off, there is no or very little residual power to the bulb.

[andrewpclayton]

Found it! The PO removed the horn for some reason but the horn relay switch was plugged in. The steering wheel is pretty hammered and there isn’t even a spring in it for a horn button.. I’m thinking they couldn’t get it to work with this “new” steering wheel.. I’ll find a new one soon enough but I think I’m good on the parasitic draw and I have a shiny new alternator lol

[andrewpclayton]

OK I didnt have it like I thought.

when I disconnected the horn relay, I also had the external regulator disconnected so the reading went to 0

if when I disconnect the external regulator the reading goes to 0, is that indicative of a faulty relay?

I purchased a replacement external regulator and connected it, the reading went up to 2.35, so I put the old one on and we are still at .80
I did not however turn the truck on so maybe it didnt get a chance to "activate"?