How to test 12vdc solenoid.

Showing how to test a 4 post dc solenoid/contactor. Using a fluke multimeter and power probe. Showing difference between a failed solenoid and good one.

[@frozenmarmot377]

Excellent video! Clear instructions and great job testing both a failed and a good solenoid. Because of you I was able to fix my RV charging problem. I had a bad solenoid. Thanks dude!

[@joesmith-fi1sx]

Same here ! Bought a rv has a solenoid like this connecting the rear batteries to the main battery Iv finally figured out the solenoid is bad And that it wasn’t even hooked up correctly either so something was up I’m guessing they didn’t care to have it hooked up right anymore Where when the engine is running it charges the rear batteries Still trying to figure out how to wire the new one correctly I know now I need a wire that gets hot when the engine is running ya be connected to the front right So it engages the solenoid and the front battery and rear when the engine is running Charging the rears Also I heard I should fuse it I’m thinking I fuse the line from front battery pos to solenoid Let me know your thoughts and if you dealt with the same thing ! Mine is a old 77 dodge

[@PJ-ee5mc]

This is the perfect explanation for how these solenoids function and how to test them. There are several other videos on KZbin that have all left out at least one critical point. This video is great! Thanks for sharing.

[@ridgecamden6273]

instablaster

[@slowride2222]

Fantastic, you're a great teacher. Thanks!

[@darrylt1031]

excellent instructional video.....informative and to the point....well done....thumbs up

[@sfdavidson464Channel]

Well done! Thanks for the great quality video too.

[@joesmith-fi1sx]

Great video Helped me finally get my solenoid tested It is bad Also figured out it was wired wrong And its in a rv connecting rear batteries to front battery Now I need to figure out which wire to wire to the front right to engage the solenoid while main battery is hooked to back right and rear batteries are hooked to left rear Also I heard I should get a fuse in there I guess from main battery to solenoid should be fused But I finally got a solenoid to switch and get continuity Very cool And that’s the new one I did with this test Thanks!!!

[@jajaid6]

Nice clear explanation! Very good video!

[@rominhawk3949]

Good video and explanations. Thanks.

[@howtodoitdude1662]

Thanks for sharing, clear and accurate explanation.

[@1cleandude]

I had a loose brush screw that was corroded in motor and bad solenoid! Up and running thanks to Pete at Universal Starters Broussard LA!!

[@1cleandude]

Great video young man; thanks!!

[@Toolin.Around]

Appreciate that, I rambled on a bit but hopefully the point came across.

[@ShawnLivesInItaly]

Thanks great video

[@GotScout]

Can you do a vid on a similar LATCHING solenoid please? And the trigger on the NEG ground momentary switch control. Thanks.

[@frankdavidson9675]

im of the old school i do things the simple way all you need to do if you turn the key you may hear a click or not but starter dont spin ok take a jumper wire say #6 connect between the 2 big lugs of the solenoid starter should spin if so replace the solenoid if it dont spin you may have battery prob. a lot of folks dont have a meter

[@danesmith4552]

Good stuff, any idea why my solenoid is sticking closed only when it’s wired up to the starter? When testing like you do mine works perfectly, it’s new out of the box. When I put it back on the engine it will crank continuously even if I remove the key from the ignition.

[@manzini9396]

Can you talk about the three post solenoid testing

[@dutchleussink156]

Thank You Sir 🙏

[@vegasdogg111]

So if my refrigeration truck has 2 of those, does that mean it sends 24v to the ac contactor to pull it in?

[@katekate7579]

Would be so nice to see where the wires you are clipping and unclipping go, is an alligator clip on the snap on tool? The multimenter? Some connecting wire? No way to know, thanks for your effort tho

[@ciggybreath7894]

great

[@billwilliams6338]

TOOLIN AROUND, 1.) solenoid coils uses a different type of wire that has "insulation" resistance on the coil wire or something so it doesn't get burned up when left turned on held on for a period of time? 2.) How do you measure the solenoid "Torque" to know how much the power of the solenoids release pushing out strokes to know how strong it releases the solenoids plunger?

[@frankdavidson9675]

solenoids dont have torque it has a spring loaded plunger about dia of a pencil when you turn on the key the magnetic effect pulls the plunger which conn the two big lug s togeather send ing voltage to the starter

[@jevontecole7836]

If I light test from a ground, from battery, should every one of the 4 screw on parts of solenoid, light up? Thanks

[@johnward2131]

How do u Test one that has 2 on either side and 1 small one on the housing? Or I guess it would be a 3 post, at work I have 2 side by side a 4 like the one u show and a 3 next to it connected together, can u help me?

[@BUGSBOOful]

It would help to know what you are hooking up to it. I bought a vm tester but I am not clear on what else to hook up so I can test it!

[@rominhawk3949]

I just got a four post solenoid for a project. The one I got has two smaller terminals that are labeled "I" and "S"; I found out that the battery positive goes to the "S" and the negative goes to the mounting bracket of the solenoid. When power is applied to both the bracket and "S" the solenoid closes and the terminal labeled "I" and the two big terminals get connected together. So, by applying power as above, you can pas the current from the positive terminal of the battery to whatever you are trying to power. The I is also powered for whatever is needed. The larger terminal can pass a larger amount of current; i.e. if you are trying to start the engine, you need a lot of amps, that has to go through the large terminal; but, if you also want to run some power to some meters to show you that the power is indeed going through, you get that power from the smaller terminal labeled "I".

[@larrywebb8309]

does it matter how you apply polarity when applying power ? I'm trying to wire up a 4 terminal briggs and Stratton solonoid

[@GotScout]

not entirely correct...

[@mrzif0013]

cummins wants 75 buck for a solenoid would any other work fine?

[@TheShazteck]

Question can I used this relay on ford glow plug setup .. it currently has a black relay with 4 terminals?

[@Toolin.Around]

Absolutely you could as it could handle much more "load" or amp draw. You would just have to isolate the "constant", "trigger", "load", and "ground" from the relay and wire it to solenoid.

[@Armenfiks1988]

brother, i have same solenoid on my 36v golf cart, and it says 30vdc on it. Does it means that to activate it, i need 30volt on small pongs instead of 12 in your case? thanks

[@Toolin.Around]

I wouldn't think 36v would trigger the solenoid as most golf carts have a step down voltage converter for accessories like lights. Yours would have a 36v to 12v converter. It is just a guess though since I don't have a ton of experience with golf carts.

[@uipray4]

Can you explain what would make a solenoid go bad I put three in my boat and they don't last very long

[@gustavbork4664]

Or it could be because, the coil inside the solonoid, is made for many amps running in short period. If you use your Solonoid in long period, the coil inside the solonoid heats up

[@GotScout]

There are 3 basic types... starting, constant duty, and latching. Latching is rare and expensive... so you probably do not have that. Starting are for... starting... large temporary loads... then released. Constant duty are designed to stay on for long duty cycles. Problem is... they all look alike and rarely have markings. You are likely using a starter for linking multiple batts together... and they will die. Also West Coast Marine sells a "200 amp CD" solenoid, that is really an 80 amp. They suck... so that will die too. Spend the bucks on a "silver contacts" constant duty... and you should be good. They will be $60 and UP...

[@1truefreedomfighter]

Great. What do you use for a safe 12v power source?

[@Toolin.Around]

Well for testing my snap on power probe has selectable fuse ratings. But if I was installing it permanently depending on application I would rate the fuse on the source side of the main power on the solenoid according to the load. On the trigger side, the coil in the solenoid draws very little so a 10amp fuse would be more than enough.

[@BigBulletsFly]

Hello, I’m learning electricity in auto. I am puzzled with this problem. I have a 4 post solenoid. It is the same as this video. When I turn the key on switch, I get power to both inside post and does not connect the main power. It takes my ground-to positive and blow my breaker when key on.

[@Toolin.Around]

Sounds like possibly the coil inside may be shorted. You would want to set your multi meter to ohms(resistance) and put test leads on both small terminals. Be sure there is no wires attached during test. Depending on solenoid you may see around 15ohms. You definitely should not see 0 resistance. This would indicate coil has failed. You can also test resistance to ground(body of solenoid).

[@BigBulletsFly]

Thanks

[@GetRealBaby]

Interesting video, however I notice that you connected your leads differently to your bad solenoid than you did to the good one. That is to say, in your first example, you connected the + leads from your multi-meter to the negative terminals of the solenoid, but then in your second example (with the good solenoid), you connected the + leads from your multi-meter to the "BAT" terminal of that solenoid. Does it make a difference which terminal is "+" and which is "-" when connected to a vehicle? I ask this because I'm changing out the solenoid in a 1956 EZ Go Golf Cart. It runs fine with lots of power, but I noticed when taking off the old solenoid that the large "BAT" terminal of the solenoid was not connected to the "+" terminal of a battery. I'm hesitant to change any of the wires and cables to this new solenoid, because I don't know exactly what goes where from the solenoid to the rest of the cart. It seems logical that if I put the battery "+" connection to the large "BAT" terminal of the solenoid, I would also have to change around all the other wires. Is that correct? BTW, I'm only changing the solenoid out because I'm re-wiring all the cables and wires with new, so I thought I just might as well change out the solenoid, too...it's inexpensive and comes from the same manufacturer as the one I'm replacing: White-Rodgers, model #70 200224 36 Volt. Thanks for any help. Sincerely, jt

[@gulopac1]

Where he connected the meter leads, is not positive and negative , is power in and out, is where the solenoid has the big bolts

[@LibertyZone777]

I have a question, it's not supposed the solenoid mounting bracket is the ground? And then why you connected the ground wire to the smaller post.

[@Toolin.Around]

On a 3 post solenoid it will use the small terminal as trigger signal and body as ground.

[@fritzj6803]

The clicking sound doesn't necessarily mean the relay is good. You should also check for resistance

[@Toolin.Around]

Resistance on the contactor is what I show in this video, resistance on the coil only shows "health" of coil. Click sound is a byproduct of said coil activating contactor which is why click still occurs even with contactor having failed.

[@thesoundsforhealing]

It’s a big ass relay!

[@frankdavidson9675]

its realy a small winding inside solenoid the key switch puts power on that winding which magnectly conn two big lug togeather taking 12 volts straightto starter

[@stevenscully6203]

Mine clicks but doesn’t seem to work on my ford think

[@Toolin.Around]

I actually have some experience with a ford think. Are you referring to the contactor activated by a switch under the seat. Its supposed engage the full 72v or the one activated by the key? A way to test in simply is to "Jump" across the to large terminals using the same gauge wire that the main cables are like 2ga. Be very cautious when attempting this if you do choose to do it, this can start a fire. I recommend a professional if you don't have experience

[@nildacruz6629]

You can wake up your multimeter by pressing the little black button on the left so you dont have to turn it off and back on again...

[@nildacruz6629]

Great video by the way

[@Berkner80]

I guess I can just use a battery charger to supply the 12V to solenoid, correct?

[@Toolin.Around]

Or a jumper pack

[@Berkner80]

@@Toolin.Around Thanks but since I don't know what a jumper pack is I may see if I can just use my battery charger but I won't get a chance till next weekend.I am kind of thinking that should work.

[@Berkner80]

I just used my battery charger to test solenoid but I did get a spark when I connected the positive end of the battery charger but the solenoid did seem to check out. I guess that is ok, not real sure. I heard the click and when I applied the 12V and the continuity test also checked out.

[@Megahexen2]

cut the crap mate. more than half of the video unnecessary blabbering

[@Toolin.Around]

I do not disagree 👍