CK4020 Regen

[TBone]

This is my first tier 4 tractor so I’m learning as I go. After doing a lot of research I got pretty confident that the regen problems in the past were mostly in the past. I just bought this CK4020HST yesterday and so far I love it. But the salesman told me something that worries me. He said you should ALWAYS do a parked regen and NEVER work the. tractor while it is regening. Is this true?

 

[tacticalturnip]

That is counter to everything I've heard, but I have no personal experience. It seems you should run them at higher RPM's to keep the heat up, increasing the time between regens. When the tractor does regen you should be able to continue to work, though I think you'd want to use your head. If you're working in dry leaves or grass on a super hot day, maybe you park it somewhere less flammable and go hydrate. That said, I'd make sure the manual doesn't tell you to park it, just to CYA.

Congratulations on the new Kioti!

 

[MichiganIron]

That is counter to everything I've heard, but I have no personal experience. It seems you should run them at higher RPM's to keep the heat up, increasing the time between regens. When the tractor does regen you should be able to continue to work, though I think you'd want to use your head. If you're working in dry leaves or grass on a super hot day, maybe you park it somewhere less flammable and go hydrate. That said, I'd make sure the manual doesn't tell you to park it, just to CYA.

Congratulations on the new Kioti!

Here are the operating instructions we give our customers at delivery, and has worked very well for us and them:

The tractor is programmed to do 3 types of Regeneration:

1. Passive Regeneration - Happens constantly during operation as long as the engine RPMs are kept above 1800. The tractor should ALWAYS be operated between 1800rpm and PTOrpm. This will allow the tractor to continuously do a mild Regeneration to help keep the filter clear.

2. Automatic Regeneration - Happens when the DPF Pressure sensor indicates an 80% Soot Load in the DPF. the tractor will go into Auto Regen on it's own as long as the Engine RPMs are kept between 1800 and PTO Speed while the Auto Regeneration is active. The operator will know the tractor is in Auto Generation because the RED Indicator Light will illuminate on the DASH. KEEP GOING - KEEP your engine RPMs above the yellow line at 1800rpm until the light goes back off. This takes approximately 9 to 11 minutes to complete. Reducing engine rpm's below the yellow line on the dash during an Auto-Regen will cancel the Regeneration Process. Two Cancellations of the AUTO-REGEN will put the tractor in limp mode.

3. Manual Regen - Park the tractor with the Parking Brake locked. Start the tractor at idle. Push and hold the Regen switch for 2-3 seconds. Go find something else to do for 43 minutes. Manual Regeneration should ONLY be necessary if 2 Auto-Regen Cycles are cancelled by lowering the RPMs below 1800 (yellow line on dash) while an AUTO Regeneration is underway.

The best way to think about this is that the tractor is programmed to take care of itself. As long as you always operate between 1800rpm and PTOrpm, and keep the RPMs in this range during an AUTO Regen (Light On), you should never have to perform a Manual Regen (type 3). Just keep working the tractor while the light is on until it goes off (9-11 Minutes.) Never cancel an Auto-Regen Cycle.

Hope this helps

 

[sashooter]

Here are the operating instructions we give our customers at delivery, and has worked very well for us and them:

The tractor is programmed to do 3 types of Regeneration:

1. Passive Regeneration - Happens constantly during operation as long as the engine RPMs are kept above 1800. The tractor should ALWAYS be operated between 1800rpm and PTOrpm. This will allow the tractor to continuously do a mild Regeneration to help keep the filter clear.

2. Automatic Regeneration - Happens when the DPF Pressure sensor indicates an 80% Soot Load in the DPF. the tractor will go into Auto Regen on it's own as long as the Engine RPMs are kept between 1800 and PTO Speed while the Auto Regeneration is active. The operator will know the tractor is in Auto Generation because the RED Indicator Light will illuminate on the DASH. KEEP GOING - KEEP your engine RPMs above the yellow line at 1800rpm until the light goes back off. This takes approximately 9 to 11 minutes to complete. Reducing engine rpm's below the yellow line on the dash during an Auto-Regen will cancel the Regeneration Process. Two Cancellations of the AUTO-REGEN will put the tractor in limp mode.

3. Manual Regen - Park the tractor with the Parking Brake locked. Start the tractor at idle. Push and hold the Regen switch for 2-3 seconds. Go find something else to do for 43 minutes. Manual Regeneration should ONLY be necessary if 2 Auto-Regen Cycles are cancelled by lowering the RPMs below 1800 (yellow line on dash) while an AUTO Regeneration is underway.

The best way to think about this is that the tractor is programmed to take care of itself. As long as you always operate between 1800rpm and PTOrpm, and keep the RPMs in this range during an AUTO Regen (Light On), you should never have to perform a Manual Regen (type 3). Just keep working the tractor while the light is on until it goes off (9-11 Minutes.) Never cancel an Auto-Regen Cycle.

Hope this helps

I follow this pretty much to the tee. I do have a couple of questions though. What do you recommend on warmup rpms? Summer months and winter months.
I'm in northern Minnesota where the tractor is and temps can be in the 80s in summer to -20 below in the winter. It is used year round with not many hours put on it yearly.

I have a 2020 CK3510SE

 

[MichiganIron]

I follow this pretty much to the tee. I do have a couple of questions though. What do you recommend on warmup rpms? Summer months and winter months.
I'm in northern Minnesota where the tractor is and temps can be in the 80s in summer to -20 below in the winter. It is used year round with not many hours put on it yearly.

I have a 2020 CK3510SE

Warm up for the tractor is important not just for the engine oil, but also the hydraulic fluid. The only way the hydraulic fluid has the opportunity to warm up is by friction flowing though the hydraulic system. Warm up is not a Regen issue, since the other parameter for the ECU to start any of the 3 Regen processes is temperature. We advise the following Warm Up procedure for cold weather:

1. Start the tractor at idle. In the dead of winter, we recommend letting the tractor go through 2 glow cycles by turning the key back off, wait about 5 seconds, then glow again.
2. Once the tractor is started, watch the exhaust. The exhaust will be "smokey" for a bit due to unburnt diesel fuel. Wait for the exhaust to clear.
3. Once the exhaust clears at idle, ramp up to about 1500 rpm. Again watch the exhaust and wait for it to clear.
4. When the exhaust clears at 1500rpm, then ramp up to 1800 rpm (yellow line on tachometer). Let the tractor run at 1800 rpm until the temperature gage begins to move off of dead cold.

This procedure allows for enough run time to warm the hydraulic fluid through flow friction in the system, and lets the engine warm without over fueling. This does not directly effect the Regen Process since the parameter for temperature will not be meet during warm up.

Hope this helps

 

[RjCorazza]

Both of @MichiganIron 's answers are precisely how I operate my Tier4 Kubota for regens and cold weather warmup.

 

[kck8385]

What about cooling one down before it is shut off. I live in Florida and normally idol a tractor a couple minutes before i shut it down. Would you recommend different with the tier 4 ?

Thanks,
Kevin

 

[2manyrocks]

If you'd like some peace of mind, I recommend reading your tractor's owner's manual to see what your manufacturer recommends.

In the case of my Kubota MX5200, it says to let it warm up for 5 minutes before operation and to let it cool 3-5 minutes before shutting down. The owner's manual also says how to regen the tractor while operating. The regen light came one while I was mowing last week. I kept on operating and the regen was noneventful.

However, if this happened in the winter when the grass was dry, I'm not so sure if the temps would get so high that I would need to postpone the regen until I could move the tractor to the gravel driveway. The MX exhausts downward to towards the front of the tractor. Seems to me that an exhaust that was directed upward into the air would be less likely to set the grass on fire, but I guess Kubota had their reasons?

 

[bunchgrass]

Ok - I'll be the one. WTF is a regen? Running a 2011 M8540 so likely before my year but still never heard of it until now.

 

[RjCorazza]

What about cooling one down before it is shut off. I live in Florida and normally idol a tractor a couple minutes before i shut it down. Would you recommend different with the tier 4 ?

Thanks,
Kevin

Other than NOT shutting down during a Regen, Tier4 doesn't really have anything to do with shut down. Generally speaking, turbo equipped diesels should be idled for a few minutes, and I would venture to say that most owners idle for a few minutes prior to shut down on non turbos also.
I generally take a leisurely trip back to the barn and call it good.