Mowing 110 TLB with full belly pan running very warm

[circled]

My 110 TLB has a full belly pan/skid plate. Tractor is running fine but heats up while brush hogging to about little over half on hydraulic temp gauge and essentially one half on water temp gauge. I think the pan is restricting airflow and "holding" heat. Temp gun shows about 155 F on rear trans bottom and 180 F on engine block after about 2 hours. Typically stop, clean screens if needed wait a few minutes and resume. Gauge rises again within the hour. Temps are ~acceptable, but the hydraulic temp is too close to yellow warning for my taste. I worry about ruining the hydraulic system quickly that close to the warning on the gauge if the temp spikes. My thought was to install a 4 inch bilge fan/blower on rear end of belly pan below transmission. I would attach straight to battery with an on/off switch in between. I thought that a little air circulation may take the temps down. I brush hog about 40 acres at a pretty slow pace in low with a 6ft pull type King Kutter. Do not have high gauge readings with other work, but other work does not usually last for hours and hours!

Just wondering if anyone has any suggestions/thoughts or if I am way off base. Fan install would run be about $50 total. (4.5A fan, 250 CFM)

Thanks for your time!

 

[beenthere]

I think the pan is restricting airflow and "holding" heat.

I'd first pull the belly pan off and see if that makes a difference.. if a cleaning out is in order, it will be apparent.

If the fan then seems a possible fix, then give it a try.

 

[rScotty]

Just wondering if anyone has any suggestions/thoughts or if I am way off base. Fan install would run be about $50 total. (4.5A fan, 250 CFM)

Thanks for your time!

Lots of cooling can be had for little money.

I'd start with the inexpensive & easy things that make the cooling system that you have work as good as it can.

The most common cause of overheating that I have seen is when the radiator doesn't have enough side/top/and bottom shielding. Some people call these "radiator side shields", or "fan ducting". It can be as simple as pieces of sheet metal or even stiff cardboard that force the radiator fan to pull air through the finned body of the radiator instead of pulling air in from the side of the fan. Make sure yours are there - lots of time they go missing - and check that they are fairly good fitting. I use sticky-back foam weather stripping to seal the shields to the sides of the radiator.

Cleaning the outside of the radiator helps a surprising amount. Use garden hose pressure, some dish soap and a soft brush like an old paint brush. squirt the water from the back of the radiator to force dirt out the front...i.e. opposite the flow of air. Amazing how much crud comes pouring out.

About once a decade I'll drain out the coolant and run some water with radiator cleaner like Prestone in it for maybe 15 minutes. Then drain out the cleaner and flush it several times. You can look inside with an inspection camera after this treatment and it's amazing how clean things are ...

Then don't forget the antifreeze. I run 50% ethylene glycol antifreeze/50% distilled water as a coolant. That 50/50 percentage give you the best low temperature protection as well as the best heat conductivity. Pure antifreeze doesn't conduct heat to the radiator fins as well as water. The 50/50 mixture conducts heat much better. That's why I mix my own. Propylene glycol has a performance different curve, but the same 50/50 mix works for it, too. If you are curious why, therer are lots of charts & discussions on the proper antifreeze/water mix. But 50/50 is real good and easy to remember.
rScotty

 

[Little General]

Years ago when my 110 was a company tractor, we put an inexperienced operator on the 110 bush hogging a bunch of over grown common area for an HOA. I was told because the air flow is backwards from a normal farm tractor, the screens will clog up fast and over heat the engine. It did and blew a head gasket. That's how I got it. I bought it for scrap price and had the engine repaired. Still, even when I used a sickle mower on my hay field in the heat, I had to make some shields to keep the heat off my feet. For some reason the 110 doesn't like operating at 540 rpm range for a long time.

 

[stucknutz]

There is several heat issues i believe with the 110.

1. Hot engine air blows on your feet and in the summer you cant hardly stand it.

2. Heavy loader work will get the transmission temp into the red if you do not pay attention and give it a break.

I can not speak for the rear end and bellypan but i would not at all be surprised about what your saying, according to the symptoms i have had with above issues i stated.

 

[circled]

Update: pulled pan and cut about 8 acres, about 90 degrees and same result (same temps) So it would appear a full skid plate (front of engine to just under drawbar) has no effect. I am surprised. Messing around with the infared thermo gun I checked the hood itself. In front of the radiator on the hood (before shroud)95 degrees. Moving up hood toward seat temp was approximately 125 degrees. Got me thinking about cutting a hole in the hood up there and installing a 10 or 12 inch electric supplementary radiator fan to discharge heat. Still thinking, not acting yet. Thinking of thermostat, flushing cooling system, checking/calibrating hydro and coolant temp sensors. Again, just thinking....

Thanks for the ideas/suggestions.

 

[Nutrunner]

I am having similar issue with 110tlb and wondering if you have resolved your overheating problem. I have replaced headgasket, boiled out head and radiator, new thermostat and water pump. Im wondering if a airlock can be causing temp spike and how to resolve? I would greatly appreciate any help! Thank You, Bill

 

[circled]

I am having similar issue with 110tlb and wondering if you have resolved your overheating problem. I have replaced headgasket, boiled out head and radiator, new thermostat and water pump. Im wondering if a airlock can be causing temp spike and how to resolve? I would greatly appreciate any help! Thank You, Bill

Good Morning Bill,

The answer is yes and no. The only thing I did do was tighten the fan belt a bit. In my crude way of measuring the tension I determined the tension was a bit slack.
The rest of this summer it ran fine and didn't get "quite" as hot, but hot none the less. Did some loader work Monday, only about an hours worth, the trans temp barely budged and temp moved a quarter, of course it was 45 degrees out. I have come to the conclusion that my 6ft pull type brush cutter is the problem. As another post suggested the tractors do not like running 540 pto for lengthy periods of time. My thought is with the hydro, steering and pto, along with high ambient temp, my 6 footer is near the max of what I should be running. It is hilly ground. Also, to note, neither temp gauge has ever gone yellow, they just make me nervous approaching yellow. I keep my infrared temp gun handy.
Sorry I am unable to offer a solution. I can't speak to the airlock. If the trans temp rises too high quickly, regardless of job, maybe there is a flow restriction somewhere in the hydraulic system.
Good luck.

 

[radios1]

cars have changed over to electric fans decades ago, they draw less HP, and give better cooling. the power hungry engine driven fan is old technology. I'd remove that!.

 

[beenthere]

cars have changed over to electric fans decades ago, they draw less HP, and give better cooling. the power hungry engine driven fan is old technology. I'd remove that!.

LOL