Stupid, Stupid, Stupid Battery Troubles

[Iplayfarmer]

Warning: This is a rant. There is no useful information in this post.

I must be doing something wrong because I go through batteries faster than anyone I know. I'm sure I must just bump some switch or lever on occasion that puts a gradual draw on the battery until it's dead and stays that way for a week destroying the battery. On my last tractor I replaced the battery just about every winter. Luckily, I had a good relationship with the guy at the parts place, and I could get it warrantied every other year.

I had hoped that with my new tractor I wouldn't have the same problem. Not so. A few weeks ago, I went to start it and the battery was dead. This battery was new with the tractor in March of 2008. Not only was the battery dead (No voltage), but when I hooked up the charger, It tells me the battery is all charged. It must have a dead cell or something. I know I must have left the ignition on somehow even though I know I have a problem with that and check it every time. My hour meter went from about 540 hours to 920 during the time the tractor was sitting before I found the dead battery.

I put the battery from the old tractor in the new one (it was only a year old since I'd just replaced it the winter before) and the tractor worked fine for a month or so. This past Saturday I started the tractor and ran it for a while to plow mine and my neighboors' driveways. This morning (three days later) I got up early to plow again and the battery was once again dead as dead. Once again, I pulled it out and the charger again says that it's fully charged.

I know the charger is good because I do use it occasionally to charge other batteries and it works.

I'm taking the newest battery (the one that came with the new tractor) to the John Deere dealership today since it's a John Deere battery. I hope they'll warranty it since it's only 8 months old. Then I'm going to get a battery shut off switch and maybe even an onboard battery maintainer.

 

[Soundguy]

IMHO... do make sure everything is hut off when you leave it.

also.. make sure your cable ends are good and clean, and the tractor's charging system is working correctly.. including not causing the drain to a bad diode in the alternator.

Also.. i like to spray the top of my batteries with silicone lube, as it sheds water.. batteries that get water all across the top can discharge across that water.

batteries that set for long periods of unuse die faster.

I try to start my tractors at least monthly.. even if i only let them set and run for 15 minutes during the off season.. here and there.. etc.

soundguy

 

[dirtworksequip]

With all that trouble with batteries and the hour meter going crazy...................sounds like you are having some strange things going on there. Have you seen any UFO's lately? If you have,I think that would explain everything.

Sincerely, Dirt

 

[Diamondpilot]

I have the same problem with tires. I had 3 flats last year on a 1 year old boat trailer. 2 nails and 1 blow out. I had 2 flats on my new truck, under 18,000 miles, in the last 9 months. 1 fork, yes a dinner fork, and a bad valve stem. I have had this problem all my life. I probably have 4 flats a year on one of my 2 trailers, or 3 vehicles. I have been lucky with the tractors so far but my day will come with them also.


I was in the Bahamas last year and rented a Ford Taurus at the airport. I got about 2 miles down the road and had a flat. Took the tire off and put on the spare which was also flat, actually just low on air. Limped back to the airport where they took a look at the tire and it had a hole in it 3" in diameter. They had no cars left so they sent a tire shop rep to my hotel the next morning to pick up the car and put on a new tire. He came back with the keys a hour later and told me there was a trailer hitch ball in the tire. How do you run over a hitch ball and how the **** does it cut the tire wide open? Just my luck.

Chris

 

[Lunk]

I have the same problem with tires. I had 3 flats last year on a 1 year old boat trailer. 2 nails and 1 blow out. I had 2 flats on my new truck, under 18,000 miles, in the last 9 months. 1 fork, yes a dinner fork, and a bad valve stem. I have had this problem all my life. I probably have 4 flats a year on one of my 2 trailers, or 3 vehicles. I have been lucky with the tractors so far but my day will come with them also.


I was in the Bahamas last year and rented a Ford Tarus at the airport. I got about 2 miles down the road and had a flat. Took the tire off and put on the spare which was also flat, actually just low on air. Limped back to the airport where they took a look at the tire and it had a hole in it 3" in diameter. They had no cars left so they sent a tire shop rep to my hotel the next morning to pick up the car and put on a new tire. He came back with the keys a hour later and told me there was a trailer hitch ball in the tire. How do you run over a hitch ball and how the **** does it cut the tire wide open? Just my luck.

Chris

Sounds like your rental Taurus had the not-so-well-known towing package, complete with 2" hitch ball...


I've seen some strange stuff in tires, but a hitch ball takes the cake.

 

[Diamondpilot]

Sounds like your rental Taurus had the not-so-well-known towing package, complete with 2" hitch ball...


I've seen some strange stuff in tires, but a hitch ball takes the cake.

That one take the cake for me. I once had a Fork in my 2007 F-150. It put 4 tiny holes side by side by side by side. I also had a Dogs tooth or some critters tooth in the tire of a S-10 Blazer I had.

That truck was new and I could not get the lugs off. I walked to a farmers house and ask to use the phone so I could call my dad, did not have a cell phone back in 91. He said he would bring over a bigger breaker bar. Well the farmer got a 6' section of pipe and drove me out to my truck and about that time my dad showed up with a breaker bar and some sockets, 3/4" drive. We could not even get 1 lug off even with us all jumping on the bar and pipe so we tried putting the jack under the bar and all it did was lift the truck off the ground.

It was a Sunday and my dad was mad so I drove the truck to the Chevy lot with my dad behind me and his flashers going. It was about 7 miles and it tore up the tire and aluminum wheel. The next day I gave them a call and they told me they destroyed all 4 wheels getting them off and had to order new ones and a tire. If I remember right they had to use a torch to burn some of the lugs off.

Chris

 

[Iplayfarmer]

Some good news...

I went to the local Deere dealership. Apparently green paint is actually worth something. I gave them the 9 month old dead battery. They didn't have the right one in stock, so they gave me a bigger battery brand new and traded me straight accross rather than pro-rating the old one.

I may just be tempted to do business with John Deere again after that.

Now I just need to get the battery isolator mechanism.

 

[Iplayfarmer]

...I had 3 flats last year on a 1 year old boat trailer. 2 nails and 1 blow out. I had 2 flats on my new truck, under 18,000 miles, in the last 9 months. 1 fork, yes a dinner fork, and a bad valve stem...

Chris

Okay, I'm not quite that bad with tires, but I do have similar issues. I finally stopped buying new tires.

 

[Diamondpilot]

I am glad you don't have my tire problems but I would rather have the tire issues than the battery issues. You have something staying hot to keep killing batteries like that. If you take the negative lead off the battery and put a multi-meter inline with it you can see what the static drain is on that battery. I had this with a boat once, battery was dead after 72 hours. Ended up being a 1/2 amp draw from a Carbon Monoxide Detector. I found it by doing what I said above and pulling one fuse at a time until the drain went away.

Chris

 

[pitt_md]

With all that trouble with batteries and the hour meter going crazy...................sounds like you are having some strange things going on there. Have you seen any UFO's lately? If you have,I think that would explain everything.

Sincerely, Dirt

I don't think it's UFO's DirtWorks. I have seen this phenomenon before. It seems to be solar flares triggered by my wifes blond hair.

 

[john_bud]

That is weird. My Kubota has the factory battery in it from 1999 - tractor bought in 2000. The old ford has a battery in it with the punch hole from the 80's if I recall correctly. They both spin over fine even at -10 to -20F.

I did have to replace the batt in the lawn mower after 8 years and did the diesel truck after 5 years. The truck was more insurance than battery failure and I am using the pair for other things now with no issues.

I would get an amp meter and hook it up to the battery. Then see what the draw is and pull fuses to see which circuit. Then trouble shoot down from there with a schematic. Might be a worn wire or mouse chew.

jb

 

[Taylortractornut]

JB try draining the battery and putting in distilled ater and charging it a few hours, then rinse it out and add new electrolite. I used to work for a man that did this on his tractors. They just sulfide up and the plates short out. He has one from 89 on his 4000 Ford They also make a desulfiding trickle charger to.

 

[wwalkersd]

I know I must have left the ignition on somehow even though I know I have a problem with that and check it every time. My hour meter went from about 540 hours to 920 during the time the tractor was sitting before I found the dead battery.

380 hours? So it was sitting with the ignition on for 15 days? Wow!

I would try to get yourself into the habit of removing the key when you shut off the tractor. I'm presuming your key can only be removed in the "off" position, of course. If you want to keep it with the tractor, attach it with a coiled keychain or a piece of wire or something, but pull it out of the switch!

As for the rest of the time, as diamondpilot said, put a meter on it and see if you've got a draw when it IS shut off.

If you regularly (irregularly?) use it that rarely, you might want to think about leaving it hooked up to a smart trickle charger, like a Battery Tender. But of course, you'll have to remember to hook it up and plug it in when you get off the tractor.

Hmm. Is your blond wife jealous of the time you spend with the tractor? Could she be turning the key one when you're not looking?

 

[Iplayfarmer]

380 hours? So it was sitting with the ignition on for 15 days? Wow!

That sounds about right. It was at least two weeks. It may have been longer than that, but the battery could have run so far down that it wouldn't even run the hour meter. It was during that "in-between" time in the fall when I didn't have anything to mow or till, but I didn't have any snow to plow either. I know it wasn't more than a month because I try to start everything and run it at least once a month.

I would try to get yourself into the habit of removing the key when you shut off the tractor. I'm presuming your key can only be removed in the "off" position, of course. If you want to keep it with the tractor, attach it with a coiled keychain or a piece of wire or something, but pull it out of the switch!

That would solve the hour meter issue, but it wouldn't have helped me this last time. The lights, blinkers, and flashers all can be turned on with the key in the "off" position. I think that this time I turned the blinker on somehow when I was putting the tarp over it.

Hmm. Is your blond wife jealous of the time you spend with the tractor? Could she be turning the key one when you're not looking?

She IS a beautiful blonde, but she's very grateful for the clean driveway that happens when my tractor is running. I don't suspect her for sabotaging me. My 5-year-old son, on the other hand; he may be getting a little sit down talk/interrogation this evening after work.

 

[Thumper & Buttercup]

Hey Iplayfarmer,

On Batteries, the very first thing I do to all
my vehicles is hard wire a connection for a
quick disconect for a charger. I use 1.5 amp auto
chargers. When a vehicle is parked I hookup the
charger, I leave them on year round.

Then when you start a vehicle the battery is fully
charged so the system does not have to over charge
that battery to get her back up to full charge. You
will find that you don't have to add water to your
batteries everyear. I take all my connectors off and
clean them fully and check the water every year
before winter. Add only distilled water to the battery.
Clean the top of your battery with WD-40, it will clean
off the old acid and dirt and will not short out.

You will find that you have a longer battery life also.
Hope this helps.

 

[JoeL4330]

haven't had battery problems, myself, but if I had yours I would consider a disconnect switch (unless you have some fancy electronics) for example, HELLA BATTERY DISCONNECT SWITCH - Battery Switches by Discount Marine Supplies

and, if you park near a convenient outlet, I would permanently install a "battery tender" or equivalent Batterytender.com - Home of All Your Charging Needs (I have them on all my vehicles) ...or a solar charger, for example, Northern Industrial Solar-Powered Battery Maintainer — 1.8 Watt | Amorphus Solar Panels | Northern Tool + Equipment

 

[2manyrocks]

My battery wasn't this bad, but it did discharge because the insulation on the hot cable from the battery had rubbed off against the frame. Put on a new cable and took care of it.

 

[Iplayfarmer]

I fully intend to install some kind of a battery shut off switch. I've proven to myself that any kind of "be sure and check everything when you're done with the tractor" kind of I'm hoping to get some guidance from first hand experiences, though.

Harbor freight has one for $4 that looks for all the world to be just like everyone else's switch... Harbor Freight Tools - Quality Tools at the Lowest Prices

Anyone actually installed these? What kind of tricks make it easier to install or use?

Where my negative battery cable is right now is a little hard to access. I'd have to pull the side panel of the tractor to get to it every time I wanted to run the tractor. Would it be a good idea to re-locate the negative terminal to make this switch easier to get to?

 

[Taylortractornut]

Most construction equipment have these Master switches that you turn off every night. that saves from arcing at night if the cables short. And help when you work on one some one doesnt hop on and take off. They also save on battery drain. They usually go on the hot cable. On one without a key just a handle you unscrew the keep screw and drill a hole in a bracket insert and put on the retaining ring and the switch with the retaining screw and attach you cables When katrina hit there was a bulletin issued that we might want to disable out spare rolloff trucks to stop theft every night Id go around and switch them off for safe keeping.

 

[OKnewguy]

I have one of those HF cut off switches. It is on a boat, which sits for loooong periods of time with out use. It does help. On this boat, you can leave all sorts of things on just like a tractor, so it is good to make sure that Everything is off. I also recommend some kind of battery maintainer or trickle charger.
I really had a bad time with lawn mower and atv batteries, it bought a bunch of the cheap trickle chargers from HF, I then put in some 2 prong connectors similar to a four prong trailer plug, when your done you just plug it in. No need to get to the battery or anything.
Good luck, Dave