97 powerstroke starting problems - HELP

[Tjaden2000]

new to the forum but ive already learned a lot by reading thru the posts. i went out yesterday to start up my truck....its about 32 degrees out i had it plugged in for about 10 hours....cranked over for about 10 seconds and the batteries went. so i charged up both of em full and go out today to start it and it sounds like crap..wont start...and now its just clicking. my first instinct is that its a problem with the starter. it seemed to be making a wierd noise almost like metal on metal scraping but even when it was turning the motor over it didnt sound right. i also was wondering if leaving the truck plugged in for too long can do any damage to anything?

[Clay Henry]

Sounds like your batteries are trashed. Take them out and go to the nearest Interstate battery dealer and have them tested. Chances are you need two fresh batteries. Thats where I would start.
No, even if you leave the block heater plugged in 24/7 it won't hurt anything but your electric bill.

[Clay Henry]

Oh and to Powerstroke.org!

[Tjaden2000]

thank you for your advice im starting to feel a little bit better about my situation here....cept now im thinkin that it might not be the batteries my lights work now since the recharge and its not even really trying to turn over now...im just gettin the click when i turn the key...

[Tjaden2000]

just went outside to try starting it with all lights on and they dont dim and the batter guage reads 1\4, just under the N about in normal...which i think is where it usually is before the truck actually starts up then it goes right in the middle...but still just a click

[Clay Henry]

If your batteries are only working 50% your lights will still shine brite...very few amps are drawn to run lights compared to the cranking amps required. I would have them tested first to eliminate that as a possibility. If they test good then we can move to looking at your your cables and connections and the starter.

[Tjaden2000]

think you may be right....i took a good look at one of the batteries and it has the eye in it to let you know if its good\bad green\red and its red....the other battery i have in there doesnt have an eye but thats enough for me i think thats the problem. gonna go get a couple new batteries and ill post back if that solves the problem....thanks again.

[Tjaden2000]

doesnt seem to be the problem....i replaced the one battery i know for sure was shot. the other battery had a full charge and still just a click when i turn the key. earlier in the day it was turning over but kept slowing down and made a strange noise until just the starter was making noise but the motor wouldnt turn over...now i turn the key and i beleive only the solenoid clicks then there is a pop like something is shutting it off like a circuit breaker or sumthin.

[straycat]

I have found that just replacing one battery usualy dosn't work out very well.If you have one good one and one boarderline battery, it will turn over, but does not have the juice to start a diesel, I am not saying that this is the case here, but it is a problem many run into in the colder months. Just a thought, hope it helps.

Gord.

[Tjaden2000]

its a dump body truck i just went out again after making sure i fully charged the secondary battery. wont turn over. but it has enough power to raise the dump. i really dont think its the batteries. it turned over pretty decent before i chaged the one battery which was definately bad. i cleaned off the connections to the starter as best i could (doesnt help its 25 degrees with a wind chill on top)