electrical help

I have a 1978 sierra grade 1500 2wd with a Chevy 350 in it. It was not starting yesterday. Here is the situation:
-I just bought a new battery 2 hours ago
-When the truck is running the battery reads 14v as if the alternator is charging it
-When I connect my voltmeter from the positive terminal of the battery (connected) to ground (negative terminal un-connected) I get no reading
-When I connect my volt meter from the negative battery terminal (unconnected) to ground I get a reading of 12 volts
-Nothing is switched on in the truck, EXCEPT the fan, the fan runs all the time when the truck is started, and thus is switched on. However it is normal for the fan to be on all the time it says so in the owners manual


Please help me, I have a suspicion that something is a rye here even though I haven’t had ample time to see if my NEW battery does in fact drain.

-Jordan

-When I connect my voltmeter from the positive terminal of the battery (connected) to ground (negative terminal un-connected) I get no reading
-Jordan

If I read this correctly you are saying that the negative cable is not connected to the battery. In this case, you will get no reading with a meter hooked up to the positive terminal of the battery and to ground. Since the battery is basically disconnected, the reading will be zero volts.


-When I connect my volt meter from the negative battery terminal (unconnected) to ground I get a reading of 12 volts
-Jordan

In this case, you are now completing the circuit thru the meter and it should read 12 volts.

//2000CAYukon