94 Geo Tracker 4x4 charging system problems

I have a 94 Geo Tracker 4x4 5 speed. I am having trouble with my charging system, I have replaced the alternator 7 times and the battery 3 times. I have taken it to Better Auto Electric and they couldn't help me. I have a short some where and cannot find it. I have to disconnect the battery every time I cut the car off because it will drain the battery.If there is any info you could give me I would be grateful. I am learning to repair this SUV myself, repairs are to costly otherwise. I have already put on a new timing belt,tensioner pulley and woodruff key as well as the 7 alternators and 3 batteries plus several fuses.

 

First off, Batteries and alternators are not ...and never were ...Meant to go from dead to charged. Dragging the battery down to nothing will kill it in a very short period, and an alternator is incredibly stressed by trying to bring a battery back from dead.

With a plain old Vanilla 12 v circuit tester, Remove the negative battery terminal, and place the clip of the tester on the battery post, and the probe on the terminal. If you have a Parasitic load...The tester will light. Now...One at a time, remove the fuses from the fuse panel. when you find the one that shuts the test lamp off , you have found the offending circuit.

 

You should be checking a parasitic draw by using an amp meter to measure how much current is being drawn. When working on very old cars with perhaps just a clock having a continuous current draw you could pull the fuse for the clock and then use a test light. Todays cars will have a continuous draw by some electronic components. All a test light will do is confirm this draw, it will not tell you if it is abnormal. Now perhaps a trained and experienced person could get an idea on the draw by how bright the test light is but as for me, a milli-amp meter is the way to go. Also, with what you have spent on generators and batteries it would seem that you could have paid a compentent Chevrolet dealer to fix your car?

 

I usually suggest using an ampmeter also but its a 94 and shouldnt have much electronics like automatic interior lights and probably not even enough to even light most testlights.
so the testlight might be worth trying and although milliamp ampmeters can sometimes be needed to find very small draws Im sure its pulling enough amps to kill a battery overnight that a 10 amp meter would probably be needed as the average person would hook up a milli amp meter and probably have a blown fuse in there meter as soon as they opened the door to start pulling interior fuses out one at a time.