Air conditioing not cooling very well 3046 John Deere

[dogtracker]

Got a 2015 John Deere 3046R with cab. 15 hrs on it. Just had it in to fix something and asked if they'd check the air conditioning. Seems it doesn't get cold like you expect A/C to do. They came back with the answer that this was how it was supposed to be and you had to have the engine "reved" up for the unit to work. What?! Now I haven't tried this reving up idea yet (just got it back this afternoon) because it makes no sense to me. You don't use your tractor all the time in high and a car's A/C sure doesn't die because you've stopped at a red light for a bit. This means you need to get out so you idle your tractor, get back in and are met with a hot cab?

Anyone out there have any knowledge or information on this to help me out? The machine is still under warranty and I don't want this problem to sit on the back burner and come next summer I'm in there sweating. If they advertise and claim A/C on their expensive machines, then one should GET air conditioning and not a semi cool breeze.
Thanks.

 

[sunnyside360]

Did the A/C ever work correctly? If yes, then check the cooling fins in front of the radiator for debris. I use compressed air with a long probe to clean. My 3720 cab tractor needs frequent cleaning when mowing the lawn in dusty/dirty conditions in order for the A/C to work well. The other thing a number of folks here on TBN have encountered is a leaky air seal around the roof. My roof seal was replaced shortly after taking delivery because the A/C was anemic. Sometimes the seal is damaged when the radio is installed at the dealer because the roof must be removed to install the radio.

BTW, the A/C does seem to work better with higher engine rpm's. I usually run about 1700 to 2000 rpm's.

 

[C4Ranch]

Agree with all the above, even higher rpm.... Cabs aren't that efficient given all the glass.

Check your belt tension, blow out your screens and fins, I even rinse with a hose to get some of the chaff out. While mine will cool you at idle in 100 degrees, it will get cold at 2+k rpm...

 

[Tx Jim]

Ditto on radiator/condenser must be clean. I have to clean my pickup radiator/condenser quite regularly to keep AC cooling that I use in the hay field. I've seen heater coolant control valves that didn't control flow 100% which in hot weather adversely affect AC cold air output. Try temporarily stopping heater hose coolant flow by using a pair of vice-grip pliers to collapse the heater hose. One can't accurately compare a tractor AC to an automobile AC because of the adverse conditions(dust/chaff) that tractor AC must operate not to mention the large % of glass that most newer cabs possess.

 

[Scooby074]

You have to define "get cold". Some people keep their cars/houses at "deep freeze" levels of cold. A tractor with all its glass and other factors might never reach that level of cool even if everything is working fine. As mentioned make sure all condensors/rads are clean.

Also AC sucks back engine power, so running at near rated RPMs might be necessary to have enough power on these smaller engines.

 

[tomd999]

Hiya,

Make sure you have both knobs turned to the left on the hvac control as shown in the manual, it's common for people to turn the ac knob to the right which is higher temp for ac.

Tom

OMLVU29135

 

[suncoast]

I have a 4720 cab that I had to remove the cover to do a radio install. The A/C efficiency design was definitely not a primary concern for the JD "Engineers".
The gasket material on mine (a 2008 model) was an expanded foam stripping (Yes like the kind in a bag at your favorite home improvement store). It had been torn in a couple of places (not by me) and twisted and deformed in a couple of other places when I opened it up (like the cap had been installed and then removed for some reason during production). There were also 2 areas at the end of a run (Where it came to a corner or a factory molded in obstruction in the line of foam install). Like the factory workers cut a piece too short and didn't correct their error (No way!, not at JD!).
I thought we paid the premium price of JD to have the best money could buy! I was very disappointed with this entire setup. Design and assembly.
There should be some channels molded into the base of the roof as to direct the airflow from the blower to the exit louvers. Yes, even on this scale.
Imagine your home HVAC unit if you have an attic install as we do on many here in the south with no basements and the supply air is just exited the unit into the attic area with no direction to the room vents. The air will lose temperature quickly and the vents will not be in volume balance.
The tractor cab is the same just on a smaller scale. Touch the top of the cab after being in the sun for a while. Do you think the fiberglass will be much cooler on the inside? Yes it's a small volume area inside the cavity and the air exits quickly.
But the surrounding enclosure material is very hot and drops the supply air temperature immediately and exponentially.
I would imagine that some people reading this will think "this guy is crazy or isn't this a bit overboard for the cab of a tractor"?
For those of you that are perfectly happy with your unit maybe I am. For the many others of us with issues might say "that lunatic has some valid points."
"We pay a premium price for these tractors. There must be something wrong (with JD) for this many people to be sounding off here in agreeance".
I just know that my unit is nice and cool running under the cover of my stable but struggles mightily in the sun. In the sun if I run it on medium the temp at the vents is acceptable (but of course not near enough volume to cool the cab comfortably). If I run it on high the vent temp. is not near what it needs to be to cool the cab.
With the air temperature taken at the unit on medium to be in line but not on high (refrigerant level fine) tells me that the unit is undersized. Add this to the design and assembly flaws and we are set up for certain failure.
Wow, do I sound like a politician running for re-election or just another baby boomer sounding off? I just know it's hot as **** here in the Florida summers and it would be nice to have my golden priced tractor, (4720 $$ way too much), to not be what it is supposed to be! Gene O.