Battery replacement for TC40DA

[Danica]

Hello everyone, I'm sorry for asking such a dumb question and i sure hope you can help. I did search the forum first.

In a nutshell:

1. My tractor in storage for nearly two years. Battery 99.999% sure is dead.
2. Need new battery cuz i have to start it this Thursday
3. Am at my mom's house and far away from a NH dealership of tractor supply store.
4. Need to buy a replacement battery like at NAPA (?) or big box store
5. I don't know what all the numbers mean: CCA, Group # etc.

I just need to know what on earth i can buy that will make it start!

Thank you so very much in advance!!!!

Danica

 

[MarkV]

It would help to know what model tractor you are working on. My experience has been if you bring the numbers from the battery to a retailer they can get you the proper size. If nothing else, take the battery itself and they will match it.

MarkV

 

[Danica]

Hi Thank you for your reply. The trouble is the tractor is 90 miles away and I have to buy the battery here and take it there to it.

Danica

 

[SandburRanch]

Hello everyone, I'm sorry for asking such a dumb question and i sure hope you can help. I did search the forum first.

In a nutshell:

1. My tractor in storage for nearly two years. Battery 99.999% sure is dead.
2. Need new battery cuz i have to start it this Thursday
3. Am at my mom's house and far away from a NH dealership of tractor supply store.
4. Need to buy a replacement battery like at NAPA (?) or big box store
5. I don't know what all the numbers mean: CCA, Group # etc.

I just need to know what on earth i can buy that will make it start!

Thank you so very much in advance!!!!


Danica

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Give the NAPA store a visit and any salesman worth is salt can probably, with your tractor Model No., look in his books and determine which battery your tractor needs.

 

[Danica]

You were absolutely right!!! I called NAPA just a few miles away and whammo, he told me he had one for me at just $98 bucks!! Yay. One last question: is there a difference between a 'wet' and 'dry' battery in terms of power (that's CCA:cold cranking amps, right?) And if the tractor came with a 'wet' battery is a dry one ok?

Danica

 

[yooper1]

You need a wet one.

I believe auto parts stores get some batteries in that do not have acid / water in them and these they sell to mechanics who fill them themselves. These are probably what they are calling "dry".

It is not worth any price difference to get a dry one and then try and find and buy acid and then fill the battery and the need to charge it once it is filled.

 

[Hematite]

As long as you have the battery number from NAPA, if NAPA can't put the acid in or provide an already "wet" battery, you can check other sources in your area.

I would have to think that the NAPA dealer could fill a "dry" battery but it would then cost more for the acid.

 

[jinman]

You were absolutely right!!! I called NAPA just a few miles away and whammo, he told me he had one for me at just $98 bucks!! Yay. One last question: is there a difference between a 'wet' and 'dry' battery in terms of power (that's CCA:cold cranking amps, right?) And if the tractor came with a 'wet' battery is a dry one ok?

Danica

Danica, your battery is a Group 51 battery. Anyone can sell you a Group 51 that will fit. There are several quality levels of batteries within one brand. Currently most manufacturers offer a "gold" version that is full replacement within 3 years and then a sliding scale out to 8 years on replacement costs. There are also Sealed Lead Acid and Dry composition batteries that will cost much more than the typical lead acid. Those can be had for around $150 up and are very reliable with no danger of acid leakage. Optima is a brand name of a Sealed Lead Acid (SLA) battery that is carried by Autozone stores and many others including Sam's Clubs.

If you just want a replacement battery, buy the cheaper group 51 and then if you leave your tractor for a period of time, disconnect the ground terminal to help keep it from discharging. I will warn you that some of the cheaper batteries may be more prone to outgassing acid vapor into your radiator. There's plenty of info on that here if you want to do a search.

Good luck and be safe. Always disconnect your ground (black) wire first and replace it last. That will ensure that you will not get a huge spark/discharge if you touch metal with your wrench while working on the positive (red) terminal.

 

[Danica]

Thank you for all that valuable advice!! I will take all of it into account and wrote down the information about black first. I would not want to get shocked. By the way i just did go to NAPA and bought the battery and he said if i did touch both metal terminals at the same time i would NOT get shocked which seems kindof wierd but he did it and didn't get shocked so i'm amazed i guess!

Thank you so much for all your help!!

Danica

Danica, your battery is a Group 51 battery. Anyone can sell you a Group 51 that will fit. There are several quality levels of batteries within one brand. Currently most manufacturers offer a "gold" version that is full replacement within 3 years and then a sliding scale out to 8 years on replacement costs. There are also Sealed Lead Acid and Dry composition batteries that will cost much more than the typical lead acid. Those can be had for around $150 up and are very reliable with no danger of acid leakage. Optima is a brand name of a Sealed Lead Acid (SLA) battery that is carried by Autozone stores and many others including Sam's Clubs.

If you just want a replacement battery, buy the cheaper group 51 and then if you leave your tractor for a period of time, disconnect the ground terminal to help keep it from discharging. I will warn you that some of the cheaper batteries may be more prone to outgassing acid vapor into your radiator. There's plenty of info on that here if you want to do a search.

Good luck and be safe. Always disconnect your ground (black) wire first and replace it last. That will ensure that you will not get a huge spark/discharge if you touch metal with your wrench while working on the positive (red) terminal.

 

[SandburRanch]

QUOTE: Good luck and be safe. Always disconnect your ground (black) wire first and replace it last. That will ensure that you will not get a huge spark/discharge if you touch metal with your wrench while working on the positive (red) terminal.
__________________
Jim
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Danica - Please re-read Jim's reply. I'm afraid you aren't understanding what he is saying which could result in injury.

Touching the positive and negative posts to metal simultaneously will cause a high amp. current draw. The resulting sparks sometimes results in battery explosion by gases given off. Touching the terminals with our hands simultaneously doesn't usually cause ill effects, especially if our hands are dry.

If you are still in the gray area on this no harm done. Just be certain you understand before connecting the battery.

I saw first hand what can happen the day I had to lead a welder to a water hydrant with his eyes full of sulfuric acid.

 

[RobertN]

As mentioned above, always disconnect the ground(in this case black) cable first. And, connect it last.

It is possible to touch a battery yourself and get no shock, or maybe just a little tingle. It is not worth it though, because if the conditions are correct, you can get a bad shock.

Mostly though, when changing a battery, you do not want the metal wrench to short across the battery terminals. That will create a short, some sparks, and could lead to an exploding battery due to the high surge in current; the battery overheats, spews acid all over, very bad...

If you disconnect the ground cable, then the battery will not arc if the wrench used to remove the positive cable hits some other part of the tractor.

Take you time, make sure the wrench you use does not bump anything, and you'll be ok.

While you do have the cables removed, do make sure the cable ends are clean. It does not help to use a new battery with dirty cable connections...

And use the correct size wrench when removing the cables. I have seen too many cables messed up using pliers or crescent type wrenches... You don't want to have to replace the cables too...

I will take all of it into account and wrote down the information about black first. I would not want to get shocked. By the way i just did go to NAPA and bought the battery and he said if i did touch both metal terminals at the same time i would NOT get shocked which seems kindof wierd but he did it and didn't get shocked so i'm amazed i guess!

 

[Danica]

As mentioned above, always disconnect the ground(in this case black) cable first. And, connect it last.

It is possible to touch a battery yourself and get no shock, or maybe just a little tingle. It is not worth it though, because if the conditions are correct, you can get a bad shock.

Mostly though, when changing a battery, you do not want the metal wrench to short across the battery terminals. That will create a short, some sparks, and could lead to an exploding battery due to the high surge in current; the battery overheats, spews acid all over, very bad...

If you disconnect the ground cable, then the battery will not arc if the wrench used to remove the positive cable hits some other part of the tractor.

Take you time, make sure the wrench you use does not bump anything, and you'll be ok.

While you do have the cables removed, do make sure the cable ends are clean. It does not help to use a new battery with dirty cable connections...

And use the correct size wrench when removing the cables. I have seen too many cables messed up using pliers or crescent type wrenches... You don't want to have to replace the cables too...

Ok i am definitely getting the picture here about how to be careful and why! Thank you ever so much. A few bits just dont make sense (like why i dont get shocked) but i will just be careful. Watch for a pic of me on bluebelle when i get her to my new home in the catskills in the next few weeks!!

Danica

 

[LarryD]

Touching the positive and negative posts to metal simultaneously will cause a high amp. current draw. The resulting sparks sometimes results in battery explosion by gases given off. Touching the terminals with our hands simultaneously doesn't usually cause ill effects, especially if our hands are dry.

I was standing next to a technician isolating a cell from a bank of 182 cells (= one 480 volt battery) when the wrench fell across the +/- terminals. The resulting arc blinded everyone and we are very lucky the battery didn't explode. There is no on/off switch on a battery, they are always ON! It is not difficult to manage them, just go slow and cautious.

 

[RobertN]

You wont get shocked because your body has very high electrical resistance. A wrench or a screwdriver has no resistance, and makes an electrical short.

Just take your time, and dont touch a wrench or screwdriver across the terminals, or from the positive post of the battery to the tractor.

You might take some baking soda; you can mix it with a little water and put it on the end of the battery terminals. It will foam, and help clean up any corrosion. It is a common way to clean battery goo. Otherwise, NAPA can sell you cleaner.

Get a terminal cleaner too(from NAPA). Make sure the inside surfaces of the battery cable connector is clean. The counter folks at NAPA can demonstrate.

Everything that has to do with electrical works better with nice clean, tight connections.

Ok i am definitely getting the picture here about how to be careful and why! Thank you ever so much. A few bits just dont make sense (like why i dont get shocked) but i will just be careful. Watch for a pic of me on bluebelle when i get her to my new home in the catskills in the next few weeks!!

Danica

 

[jinman]

Well everyone, I MADE A HUGE MISTAKE! I owe Danica an apology and I owe DocHeb (Chris) a big thank you for pointing out that I told Danica the WRONG BATTERY GROUP. The BCI Group 51 battery is the one for the smaller Boomers. I just pulled that number out of the top of my head and I got the wrong number. The Group 51 Battery is smaller in size than needed. All the Class III Boomers take a BCI Group 24F battery. Sheesh! I certainly apologize for the screw-up and hope it didn't cause anyone to end up with the the wrong battery.:ashamed::ashamed:

 

[Danica]

I actually think they may have given me a 51 at NAPA. I asked it it was a strong battery and he said it was used in big cars and it would be fine. I never did mention "51" to him and he looked up my tractor and came up with that one.

I will know in a few hours!!!

Pls keep your fingers crossed for me!

Danica

Well everyone, I MADE A HUGE MISTAKE! I owe Danica an apology and I owe DocHeb (Chris) a big thank you for pointing out that I told Danica the WRONG BATTERY GROUP. The BCI Group 51 battery is the one for the smaller Boomers. I just pulled that number out of the top of my head and I got the wrong number. The Group 51 Battery is smaller in size than needed. All the Class III Boomers take a BCI Group 24F battery. Sheesh! I certainly apologize for the screw-up and hope it didn't cause anyone to end up with the the wrong battery.:ashamed::ashamed:

 

[dieselscout80]

Well everyone, I MADE A HUGE MISTAKE! I owe Danica an apology and I owe DocHeb (Chris) a big thank you for pointing out that I told Danica the WRONG BATTERY GROUP. The BCI Group 51 battery is the one for the smaller Boomers. I just pulled that number out of the top of my head and I got the wrong number. The Group 51 Battery is smaller in size than needed. All the Class III Boomers take a BCI Group 24F battery. Sheesh! I certainly apologize for the screw-up and hope it didn't cause anyone to end up with the the wrong battery.:ashamed::ashamed:

I wanted a AGM battery an Walmart has a good price on them.

I looked this up in my printed manual (Europe version) and it lists group 47 however, the PDF I have lists the 24F (both manuals are for the DA with the vertical headlights).

I thought maybe it was just a quirk of the European manual, so I purchased the 24F but it is big enough to not fit the battery hole down system.

It also causes the headlight brackets bolts to bump up rib on the battery case. I was able to grind the bolts shorter and clear the battery although it is close.

I used a piece of metal strap for a battery holder running across the center of the battery (front to back). I may add a little angle iron on each side.

Group 47 battery Dimensions 9.50x 6.94 x 7.50 Inches

Group 24F battery Dimensions 10.94 x 6.88 x 8.69 Inches