Will a bad earth make a reg/rec run hotter?

Post by **jetblack** » Wed Mar 21, 2012 7:52 pm

I recently fited a Rick O earthing kit to the NC30 and i've noticed since that my Reg/rec doesn't get as hot as it used to. I've checked the charging voltage and its all fine.

Just wondering if the having a good earth would cause the reg/rec to run cooler?

I should add that the bike got a new set of windings/wiring/Yamaha reg/rec last summer so the charging system is all in good nick.

vfrman · Post by **vfrman** » Wed Mar 21, 2012 8:11 pm

It does. In fact a bad ground is usually the reason these reg/rec go up in smoke.

Post by **jetblack** » Wed Mar 21, 2012 8:52 pm

Cool. That's a bonus then.

A good way to spend a £10er.

amorti · Post by **amorti** » Thu Mar 22, 2012 1:38 am

Yes, what VFRman said.

One of the first things I did to my latest CB-1 was run a nice thick wire from the regulator on to the battery negative. That and use CPU processor paste on the back of the regulator, well copperslip does better than nothing and was what I had to hand

Obviously take apart and clean then silicon grease the alternator and regulator plugs too.

Post by **thunderace** » Thu Mar 22, 2012 8:50 am

vfrman wrote:It does. In fact a bad ground is usually the reason these reg/rec go up in smoke.

+1

It's because the current path has more resistance so the electricity doesn't flow as freely. This causes heat build up and causes it to go pop.

Post by **Neosophist** » Thu Mar 22, 2012 3:23 pm

In short yes it can.

It's late so my explanation might not be 100% accurate but a poor connection has a higher resitance, and requires a greater amount of electrical force to overcome it.

This generates heat.

Depending on where the bad connection is the reg/rec might be trying to dump the excess current drawn by the bad connection as heat (and thus getting hotter) as the battery is only small and might not be able to absorb.

It's common to see on older reg/rec - genny plugs (the one with the three yellow wires).. when they get old and corrode they start to melt, the bad connection causes this as it takes more energy to flow across and generates excessive heat, which is also why aftermarket genny suppliers always state that genny connections must be soldered and not crimped as it's not a good enough connection.