What Is an Alternator and How Does It Charge My Battery?

When something goes wrong with our vehicle, we take it in to the experts and professionals in hopes of finding out what the issue is. From that point forward, most of what the professionals tell us goes directly over our heads. While we may understand some of the basics about vehicles, hearing that a belt needs to be replaced or that we have an issue with the alternator tells us nothing about what is wrong with our vehicle. We need to work to understand more about our vehicles to know how they operate and what can go wrong with them. We need to understand things like "What is an alternator, and how does it charge my battery?" to have a better grasp of how our vehicle works.

The Alternator

The alternator is one important piece of the complete charging system for your vehicle. It works with your battery to keep your vehicle running by generating power for the vehicle. The power that it generates helps to keep the electrical components of your vehicle running. This covers anything from the lights on your vehicle to the entire instrument panel of your vehicle.

This piece is located around the front of the engine on most vehicles, and is connected to the crankshaft of the vehicle. The crankshaft utilizes the movement of the pistons in your vehicle, converting that up and down energy into a circular movement.

AC Power

The alternator gets its name from the type of power that it provides. The alternator works with alternating current to provide the power needed for the electric parts of the vehicle. The power that it takes in is AC power, power that is created between the rotor and stator. The rotor creates AC power through movement, and it directs that power through the prongs of the stator. The stator directs that AC current, which the alternator then converts into DC power. The alternator needs to covert the power to DC power because the engine can only utilize DC power.

It is possible for your alternator to wear down and go out, which can cause massive problems for your engine and your vehicle as a whole. If the alternator is not switching the current, the engine cannot use the power and simply cannot run.

Fortunately, alternators are not expensive to fix or replace. Their location, relative to the engine, makes them easy to reach. Unless you have an incredibly expensive vehicle, the part will not be expensive.

If you are looking to understand more about why your alternator stopped working or want to know more about how the alternator works, talk to the mechanic working on your vehicle. They will be able to explain any issues that you have with the part and what you may be able to do in the future to avoid having the problem again. They may also have recommendations for the alternator parts that you will want to use to repair, or replace, the alternator itself.

If you are looking for honest advice, prioritized repairs, options on repairs, maximized fuel economy, and a good feeling with who you are doing business with go to http://www.westsideautopros.com.

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