BATTERY 101

[Jabonee]

Battery/No crank problems can be frustrating. Most times the solution is simple. Finding it is the hard part. Here are some simple tips to try before you spred your tractors electrical system over the floor. First of all make sure your battery connections are clean and tight. Make sure the battery is charged and is in good shape. Remember , when checking a battery, a volt meter will only give you voltage with no load. Your battery may have no voltage when loaded. Next check your ground cables. Make sure its connection at the frame/engine is clean and tight. Here is a quick check for these problems. Find something electrical that uses unswitched power. I like the head lights because its visual. Turn them on. Do they light up? Now turn the key on and try to crank the engine. Do the lights stay on? If they don't a clear sign that the battery is bad or the circuit is opening under a load.----- FUSES---- Don't rely on visual inspection of a fuse. I've seen mega fuses fail with no visible sign or open under load. There is no substitute for a continuity test. Here is a simple test if you only have a test light. Spade fuses have test tabs on each side. Turn key to on position. Put a small nail or paper clip in the ground clamp of the test light. It will be used as a probe. Use the probe on one side of the fuse and the test light point on the other. It should light up. If it doesn't the fuse may be bad or the circuit is open. This same test can be used for a parasitic draw issue. This test is done with the key OFF. If you find a fuse that has power and its source is switched power that is the circuit that is drawing power and causing your battery to run down over night. :thumbsup:

 

[Industrial Toys]

12 volt systems are terrible in design because there is little voltage (EMF) to burn through any little oxidation.

In troubleshooting this type of stuff, I hate undoing OEM connections. Also battery connections. Chances are, you will not have as good a connection as the OEM, or create a problem for yourself down the road.

I would really like to test a connection as definitely bad, electrically before I took it apart.

Also, some "fancy" electronic chargers although they won't boil your battery, they don't charge it fully either. I have had more then one like that. A maintainer that I bought recently and thought I really liked for the compact packaging turned out that way. I have a generator that seems very particular about battery voltage. It won't even try and turn over below a certain voltage. Anyway, it won't start when I use that maintainer.

 

[Fuddy1952]

Battery/No crank problems can be frustrating. Most times the solution is simple. Finding it is the hard part. Here are some simple tips to try before you spred your tractors electrical system over the floor. First of all make sure your battery connections are clean and tight. Make sure the battery is charged and is in good shape. Remember , when checking a battery, a volt meter will only give you voltage with no load. Your battery may have no voltage when loaded. Next check your ground cables. Make sure its connection at the frame/engine is clean and tight. Here is a quick check for these problems. Find something electrical that uses unswitched power. I like the head lights because its visual. Turn them on. Do they light up? Now turn the key on and try to crank the engine. Do the lights stay on? If they don't a clear sign that the battery is bad or the circuit is opening under a load.----- FUSES---- Don't rely on visual inspection of a fuse. I've seen mega fuses fail with no visible sign or open under load. There is no substitute for a continuity test. Here is a simple test if you only have a test light. Spade fuses have test tabs on each side. Turn key to on position. Put a small nail or paper clip in the ground clamp of the test light. It will be used as a probe. Use the probe on one side of the fuse and the test light point on the other. It should light up. If it doesn't the fuse may be bad or the circuit is open. This same test can be used for a parasitic draw issue. This test is done with the key OFF. If you find a fuse that has power and its source is switched power that is the circuit that is drawing power and causing your battery to run down over night.

As a retired 43 year electronic technician this is good information. The only thing I may add is I like inexpensive simple things when troubleshooting. Harbor Freight sells a clip lead set that's handy, you can disconnect a battery lead (I would use the + side if it's negative ground) and clip in, say, a 12v headlight. Now you have a current limited system. If you have a short the light comes on bright. You can make tests, you won't damage wiring, etc., because the light limits current even if you short something to ground. You can even put a headlight in series with a simple two prong flasher. Now you see and hear the flashing until the short is found.