Scotts 2554 electrical issue

[tkresge]

Good evening! I had an issue with my 2554 this afternoon that has me stumped.

I was mowing and the tractor shut down like I had turned the switch off. Wouldn't restart. No indication of any power. LED hour meter blank with ignition switch in any position.

Checked the battery. Only 11 volts but should still have had the hour meter. Checked the fuse. Fuse looked good so checked with meter. All good. Checked fuse socket to frame and got 11v so power there at least. Looked for loose connections. Nothing obvious. Checked power getting to the frame. All good.

Pulled ignition switch. Has six terminals. Only 4 marked. M, G, B and a symbol that looks like a six which I assume is the solenoid terminal. Checked for continuity with switch off for the G and M terminals. Seems ok. Checked for continuity in the start position for the "6" and B terminals and had continuity there.

Past couple of mower runs the battery light has come on but gone off by the time I was done mowing. Started today with no problem. If anyone has any ideas on what to try next I be glad to hear them! Thanks, Tim

 

[3Lfarms]

11 volts is a dead battery. Either charge it till its reads 12.7 or better an hour after you remove the charger, or replace the battery.
Then ensure the charging system is working properly as soon as you get it running.

 

[rScotty]

11 volts is a dead battery. Either charge it till its reads 12.7 or better an hour after you remove the charger, or replace the battery.
Then ensure the charging system is working properly as soon as you get it running.

Right. Simple advice and correct - although I would have said 12.5 volts an hour after chargine. I might add that once you have a battery in the system that will read over 12.5 volts an hour after charging, you can then start the machine and check the voltage across the battery while it is running. It will probably read over 13 volts... maybe even as much as 14 volts. The exact voltage will vary, but it must read more across the terminals while being charged than it does after sitting for an hour.
rScotty

 

[tkresge]

Thanks, I thought about the charging system being the culprit but the dead LCD made me think it was more complicated. Would the LCD not power up at 11 volts?

 

[rScotty]

Thanks, I thought about the charging system being the culprit but the dead LCD made me think it was more complicated. Would the LCD not power up at 11 volts?

No idea. An old style incandescent bulb will just glow fainter and fainter until no juice is left in the battery. But with an LCD it depends on the particular bulb and circuit. My guess is it has a cut-off voltage.

At any rate, a 12 volt battery can be pretty close to 13 volts fully charged, and a little bit less than 12volts fully discharged. At 11 volts my guess is the battery is shot. I've recovered a few almost that low with a smartcharger...., but rarely.
rScotty

 

[tomplum]

Can you turn the engine by hand via the flywheel screen? Kohler Command engine?

 

[tkresge]

No idea. An old style incandescent bulb will just glow fainter and fainter until no juice is left in the battery. But with an LCD it depends on the particular bulb and circuit. My guess is it has a cut-off voltage.

At any rate, a 12 volt battery can be pretty close to 13 volts fully charged, and a little bit less than 12volts fully discharged. At 11 volts my guess is the battery is shot. I've recovered a few almost that low with a smartcharger...., but rarely.
rScotty

Back at it. Tried charging the batter and got it up to 12v. Checked voltage at the battery with the tractor running and still the same 12v. Thought I would see the effect of the regulator. Took the connector off the regulator and cleaned the terminals. Checked the center DC connection with engine off and had connection back to the battery. Restarted engine and checked regulator AC voltage and had 40v. DC voltage from the regulator was 13V and I had 13V at the battery. Maybe just an issue with corroded terminals? Mowed lawn, no issues, checked battery voltage again after it had set for hour or so and still had 12v. So I seem to be back in business... Thanks for the advice!, Tim

 

[RjCorazza]

Back at it. Tried charging the batter and got it up to 12v. Checked voltage at the battery with the tractor running and still the same 12v. Thought I would see the effect of the regulator. Took the connector off the regulator and cleaned the terminals. Checked the center DC connection with engine off and had connection back to the battery. Restarted engine and checked regulator AC voltage and had 40v. DC voltage from the regulator was 13V and I had 13V at the battery. Maybe just an issue with corroded terminals? Mowed lawn, no issues, checked battery voltage again after it had set for hour or so and still had 12v. So I seem to be back in business... Thanks for the advice!, Tim

Glad you found the charging problem. Bear in mind that a resting voltage of 12v is still a 50% discharged battery, so it is still possible that the battery is shot. I would fully charge it with an external charger and confirm its condition.