Amp Killing my Battery, help!

[Leenix 10+ year member]

Hi,

I recently had 2 big 8 x 12 cadence speakers installed on my car + a Ground Zero GZIA 4110HPX amp installed.

It seems that the amplifier may of have burned out my battery since it was not charging anymore and it was full of bubbles inside.

I just installed a new battery, and disconnected the power source of the Amp from my car so the same thing doesn't happen again.

But i was wondering, is there some way i can avoid this from happening again?

- I was thinking of installing a separate battery but i hear it needs to be connected to my alternator, and it scares me to think i may burn that out.

Is there anything i need to know about Amplifiers and how they can damage your car? And how can i fix my current issues?

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[gladiator_jai 10+ year member]

How old was the battery? How long after installing did the said bubbling and the demise of the battery occur?

 

[Databyter 10+ year member]

Your battery should be fine with that Amp.

Your other battery must have been ready to go, or perhaps your alternator wasn't charging it.

Connect your stuff up and use your car right.

It's made to run and as far as I can tell your Amp is a good power level for a general purpose Amp. But it's not a juice robbing monster by any means.

Of course you have to hook your main and any spare batteries up to an alternator (although you don't really need another batt. unless you like to run a lot with the car off).

If you do hook up a aux battery for your Amp use a battery isolator so that the alternator only charges the battery that needs it, and only as much as is needed, otherwise both batts get the same charge current whether they need it or not, which is bad for the batt.s and wasteful on the alt.

 

[Leenix 10+ year member]

The battery could of been ready to go ( It was possibly 3 years old not sure )

My car is a Honda Fit 1.3 with one of those small 30-35 batteries i think and i installed a new one in it today.

I've fully disconnected the Amp's power for now, i'm gonna take it to the guy who installed it on my car and see how he can make sure the same thing doesn't happen again. He did in fact install an isolator near the battery.

I'm not sure whether the Amp Fried the battery previously or whether the batt was actually old, i can't really tell.

Anyway i am having some issues with the Car's RPM fluctuating from 600-900 Rpm because of the power the amp needs, it feels like the car might turn off when it goes around 600 rpm. Is that a good reason enough to put a second battery just for the amp alone? Would i need a Capacitor or anything like that?

 

[overkill phil 10+ year member]

forget all that mumbojumbo bro, just get a High Output alternator like 200 amps. this will take care of u now and for ur future installs. P.S ur battery isnt going to fry ur alternator.

 

[gladiator_jai 10+ year member]

Hook up your amp, you should see the warning signals before anything drastic happens. If the RPM still fluctuates, that means the electrical system is being strained to provide power for the amp. Though that is highly unlikely as it's a 500 watt amp (right?). I think your old battery was due and the system installation just pushed it over the edge. you should not need a new alternator for that amp.

 

[Databyter 10+ year member]

Hook up your amp, you should see the warning signals before anything drastic happens. If the RPM still fluctuates, that means the electrical system is being strained to provide power for the amp. Though that is highly unlikely as it's a 500 watt amp (right?). I think your old battery was due and the system installation just pushed it over the edge. you should not need a new alternator for that amp.

What he said, and get the biggest batt you can get if you have an unusually small battery, also you might see if you can get an optima type battery to fit in there, they are more expensive, but worth it for efficiency and speed of both draw and charging capabilities. If an isolator is already hooked up and you have the room and the money you can't lose by putting in a second batt. for auxiliary purposes, but it shouldn't really be necesary for your current amperage needs. Honda Fit sounds like it might be on the tiny end of maintenance power though so just get the best single batt you can fit in there at a minimum.

 

[silvercookie 5,000+ posts]

do the big 3 first and report back.

 

[audiolife 5,000+ posts]

That car more than likely has a electric detection circuit in it not allowing the electrical system to work as solidly as it can.

 

[Wingsfreak9 10+ year member]

its a honda fit and the battery was embarrassed so it committed suicide

 

[gladiator_jai 10+ year member]

its a honda fit and the battery was embarrassed so it committed suicide

hahaha //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/laugh.gif.48439b2acf2cfca21620f01e7f77d1e4.gif

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

a 200A alt will destroy fuel economy and whatever get-up-and-go the Fit has. a 1.3L engine is too small to add a large H.O. alt, IMO

a second battery isn't a bad idea, but i'd want them to be equal, essentially doubling capacity.

and there is a way around the Honda ELD...

 

[Databyter 10+ year member]

a 200A alt will destroy fuel economy and whatever get-up-and-go the Fit has. a 1.3L engine is too small to add a large H.O. alt, IMO
a second battery isn't a bad idea, but i'd want them to be equal, essentially doubling capacity.

and there is a way around the Honda ELD...

Agreed and I wouldn't worry about the big 3 either for a few hundred watts but that's just me. You should still be within aux power capabilities. It would help though. It's just not critical with your current needs.

 

[Leenix 10+ year member]

I installed a 1200Amp Aftermarket Car Battery for 160 Bucks and it seems it's doing a good job staying alive.

It was pretty expensive but worth it.

 

[audiolife 5,000+ posts]

Just make sure it is keeping a charge and that your alt is big enough to keep it charged.