Question Saratoga intermittent alternator warning light

I’m flying tomorrow, so I shall recycle the breaker several times before flight and after any failure. Sod’s law says it won’t happen at all tomorrow.

The alternator breaker. There were times that I would get the annunciation very early in the flight (soon after startup) but most of the time it was after flying for a little while and then it would happen repeatedly even after cycling the alternator switch on and off.

Hi Chuck,
Thanks for weighing in with this troubleshooting tip. Many of our airplanes are still flying with circuit breakers that are pretty long in the tooth, as they say.
Best,
Steve

Hi Charles

Thank you for taking the time to write. The problem is not resolved as yet. I too replaced the alternator when it first occurred around two years ago, however, the indication still exists. I can get it from startup and intermittently at any point during the flight. The output remains good throughout and the standby alt never kicks in. Which cct breaker was causing the issue?

Andy

Not sure if you've been able to resolve your problem yet, but I had a very similar issue happen about a year ago. After my maintenance guys replaced the alternator (which I was sure was OK but they insisted it wasn't) and 2 voltage regulators (one which was identical to the VR in the plane and the second being one recommended in an old AD), the problem ended up being a $20 circuit breaker. It was heating up and failing over and over again. My issue would happen about 1 1/2 hours into a flight and then intermittently from then on.

Chuck

Steve - I’ve spoken to B&C and they more or less told me what i already knew. However, I’ve only tested it below 2000rpm which, maybe the key to why there’s no indicated output. It’s the main warning light which is irritating.