My bike doesnt like being washed!

[Doninha Princesa]

Its the only explanation i can think of :o

Ok, well my indicators stay on all the time while the bikes running, always have, when i indicate one flashes brighter, the other stays on very pale, when im not indicating they both stay on quite pale.

When i first got the bike on the road for Hastings, the day after the mot, i washed it, then when leaving my mums, i realised my indicators weren't working, just stayed on constant when i indicated, didn't flash, couldnt work out why, thought maybe they r just wet, 3 days later went off to hastings, still no flashing indicators, on the way home they flashed a few times then stopped, and over the next few days came back, had no problem since.......... till today.

Was having a bit of a leak thru the air con at work so i trundled up to the roof to sweep the excess water away, and being the dunce i am, forgot bout my bike being parked outside the back door, to cut a long story short, tipped an ice cream tub's worth of warm water over the bike to wash the dirty water and moss off, and now the indicators are coming on constant and not flashin again.

Its been out in the rain over the past month and got soaked several times and had no problems at all, it just seems to be when i put warm water on, any idea's on what her problem is??

[Doninha Princesa]

Im going down to the bike in 5 minutes to try to tighten the bolt on the callipers i had put on coz its still 'knocking' a bit so any thoughts of things i can check easily would be great.

Thank you. xxx

[Lateshift]

if the indicators are staying on constantly then it sounds like not only do you have a permanently live circuit but also the relay is remaining open, the first place to check is the switch itself in case there is something keeping the circuit open, the second place to check is the relay, if its working it should be clicking with each pulse of electric that goes through to open and close the circuit. (both should be an easy enough fix/replacement).

the calipers knocking just sounds like you have either left some free play in them and its ticking back and forth (rattling) on the mounting, or it could even be that the disk is slightly warped?

[Doninha Princesa]

if the indicators are staying on constantly then it sounds like not only do you have a permanently live circuit but also the relay is remaining open, the first place to check is the switch itself in case there is something keeping the circuit open, the second place to check is the relay, if its working it should be clicking with each pulse of electric that goes through to open and close the circuit. (both should be an easy enough fix/replacement).

the calipers knocking just sounds like you have either left some free play in them and its ticking back and forth (rattling) on the mounting, or it could even be that the disk is slightly warped?

Ok, that sounds kinda techy but i guess if i knew what to look for it'd help, I'll ask Ross when he gets home if he knows where to look.
The calliper has just been changed coz the old one was startin to break up, but one of the bolts snapped when Dad was taking it out so it wasnt held on properly, ordered a new bolt from Johns of Romford, Ross put it in for me but its still sounds loose, so if it is 'free play' then how do i adjust it? I havent gone down to the bike yet and was meant to be at the pub half hour ago but will be leaving soon.

[Lateshift]

if its tightened to the correct torque, and it still sounds like there is free play there i would imagine the best thing to do is measure the length of the bolt against one of the other ones to make sure its going all the way in and tightening properly??

the relay isnt so technical but realistically you need a multimeter to start fault finding a circuit that has either a permanent live to it or a bad earth to see where the circuit is getting its power from or losing it as the case may be :)

[Doninha Princesa]

if its tightened to the correct torque, and it still sounds like there is free play there i would imagine the best thing to do is measure the length of the bolt against one of the other ones to make sure its going all the way in and tightening properly??

the relay isnt so technical but realistically you need a multimeter to start fault finding a circuit that has either a permanent live to it or a bad earth to see where the circuit is getting its power from or losing it as the case may be :)

Okay, bolt i can do, think the lights i will leave for the mechanic at matchless to have a look at, will go down there tomorrow if he's in, otherwise i'll end up breaking something.

[J-Gates_ZX6RNinja]

sounds like a bad earth or short curcuit to me... possably even a blown fuse

[Lateshift]

if it was a blown fuse then it wouldnt work at all as the circuit is then broken ;)

the bad earth is a good possibility but the fact that the indicator is remaining on shows that the relay is open and allowing power through, if its staying open and not closing causing the circuit to open and close (which is why relays click) then you would be getting 12volts through the circuit constantly and one of more of the lights would stay on permanently, the problem given that one is dull and one bright could even be in the indicator switch as its trying to short across the switch at the same time, however its a fault finding process that really does need a spare relay etc and a multimeter to check properly ;)

[J-Gates_ZX6RNinja]

alright smarty nuts lol :clap

hit it with a big hammer..... Should work then! :reading

[Lateshift]

chisel would be better, more surgical :D

[Doninha Princesa]

Im not sure i like the plans of hitting my poor bike with anything at all! And i was thinkin of poppin down to the pub this week, will have to find a safe place to hide her away frrom you scary lot! lol, still no luck with the indicators. need her for work so cant spare her to leave at dads till sat, so will hopefully go down there then. depends on the weather and if theres any rideouts! lol

[troutslayer]

when they ARE flashing, if some are flashing brighter than others, or at different intervals, then theres a good chance you have mismatched bulb ratings - just buy 4 the same and replace them all.

[Doninha Princesa]

ok, update, they were coming on and staying on as said, but went out with DaRealRossi and his bro the other day, and after a while i noticed that they were working fine, then about 20 mins later they were just stayin on again, then they starter flashing randomly, then they went off and werent working at all, so as i always had a bike behind me, i didnt worry too much and worked on my cornering, then today flew up to hein gerricks to pick up the other halfs oil filter and they werent working, went to my dads to get him to have a look and they were staying on again, dad has no idea, is gonna look in his girlfs nc30 book tonight to see where the relay switch is so he can have a look at that but if its not that then its prob the switch on the handlebars coz that was a bit buggered too! But my break light is working again, i have no idea wen it stopped workin, but it was only working when i used the front leaver, not the rear pedal! but thats working now so no problem, just gotta sort out these damn indicators! fuses etc r fine, Ross checked the simple things this morning. Other than that, can only hope it is the relay and its simple to fix.

[troutslayer]

strip the switches, clean the contacts, use wd40 in there, check the ires, refit. follow the wires to its block connector, split the block, check the wires, apply wd40, refit block connector. check the indicators where the wires connect to the loom, also check the wires where they connect to the bulb holders.

[Doninha Princesa]

strip the switches, clean the contacts, use wd40 in there, check the ires, refit. follow the wires to its block connector, split the block, check the wires, apply wd40, refit block connector. check the indicators where the wires connect to the loom, also check the wires where they connect to the bulb holders.

:reading Errrr Yeah Ok!! LOL That simple huh! Dad took the switch on the bars apart and wd40'd inside it, as for the rest of it........ I dunno, Im losing patience in it!

[WebTone]

Having reviewed the tilte of this post the answer is obvious.

DON'T WASH THE BIKE!

[Doninha Princesa]

Having reviewed the tilte of this post the answer is obvious.

DON'T WASH THE BIKE!

I actually havent since to see if they'll come back, but it got really dirty from the back yard at work being jet washed and no-one thinking of asking me to move my bike, so i had to wipe the fairing with a damp cloth, havent put any water on the bike at all! lol

Oh and they arent working at all anymore! :(

Trout, u cud always pop over for a coffee and show me what u mean by all that ;)

[troutslayer]

i would, but ur coffee's bloody awful








apparently

[Doninha Princesa]

i would, but ur coffee's bloody awful


apparently

Cheeky sod! I make a damn good coffee, I think, I dont actually drink it, but Mum never complains! You can make your own then! lol

[troutslayer]

ok ok ok... u do the ball joints and master cylinder on my transit van, and i'll do ur indicators. deal??

[Doninha Princesa]

ok ok ok... u do the ball joints and master cylinder on my transit van, and i'll do ur indicators. deal??


Hahaha ok, do u want the van back in one peice?

[DJMCJERICO]

Are they after market indicators?

If so do they earth into the bike?

Check if the lamp holder is fixed by a bracket to the main housing, these can rust and split causing them to fail if the bracket comes apart and it don't sit properly (is not touching the housing and thus if not earthed).

As you ride the bike these move and can suddenly start to work, stop working as they go.

As water comes from all angles and in a larger amount when washed than when it rains, the water may be getting into the housing and shorting it out untill it drys.