Cold TC45D

dieselpwr · Jan 4, 2001

I live in Wisconsin & as of July became the proud owner of a TC45D. I am just wondering what the rest of the Boomer owners that live in cold climates experience for temp. readings.

When operating under light loads - like plowing snow - the guage doesn't move much. I have resorted to cardboard, covering no more than 50% of the radiator per the dealers recomendation because of the plastic fan. It helps somewhat, but when it was 20 below 0 a while ago, I was out for an hour and a half & the gauge only once moved slightly off the bottom peg. In the summer it only comes up to normal (green zone) when it is being worked. (running a mower or pulling hard) Just doing light loader work doesn't bring it up beyond half way to normal. The dealer I purchased it from replaced the thermostat & it helped a little, but not much. I also called another dealer, who called New Holland for me, & they said that unless you work the tractor a little harder it probably won't show any more temp. So according to them, all is normal. I have never had a machine that ran so cool before & I am just wondering if any other Boomer owners have noticed the same thing or not. I sure would hate to shorten the engine life of my new toy if it isn't really right.

Maybe the dealers are telling the truth & Boomers are just cold blooded machines that like to work hard.

Would love to here your responses.

Troy

Anonymous Poster · Jan 5, 2001

I highly recommend your getting a block heater. I have one on my TC29D and it works great! They have lots of different types. The one on mine goes in place of the center soft plug and heats the coolant in the block. I leave it on for anywhere from 1 to 2 hours before starting. By the time I start it, the block is warm to the touch. If the temperature is below 20 degrees F I also heat the tractor up with a turbo heater for about an hour to heat up the hydraulic fluids and all the rest of the oil and grease on the tractor.

This can be a lot of trouble but it's worth it since cold oil does not lubricate very well and hydraulics don't work well. Where I live (in southern IN) we don't usually get long periods of cold. So, I don't mind going to the trouble of heating it up before starting, since it's not real cold that often and I don't use it more than a couple of times a week in the winter. Where you live it probably stays cold for months, heating it up every time before you start it could get to be a pain, especially if you use the tractor every day!

PaulB · Jan 6, 2001

Can't comment on the TC, but my Kubota B1700 is exactly the same - the guage has never been more than 1/8 inch off the low peg, ever. I posted on this a couple of years ago, and everyone replied that their tractors were the same, so at least for me I think it is normal for my model, and apparently for Kubota in general.

RSeymour · Jan 6, 2001

I found on my TC29D that if I run above 2,000 RPM my temp gauge will show normal summer readings. However if I operate at much less than 2,000 the engine runs much cooler.

I am north of Ann Arbor & we were between 0 and 20 degrees for a long time. My tractor lives in an unheated pole barn with no block/oil/water heater & it was a bit tricky starting a few times, but after starting I could get it up to temp.

Harv · Jan 6, 2001

Pardon the intrusion by another orange guy, but you guys have gotten me a little concerned.

After a 10-minute warmup at 1000rpm, my L2500 temp guage is right at 12 o'clock (mid-scale). It stays there for normal use, and when I work it hard it goes up to 1 or 2 o'clock.

Fluid levels are fine, and I just replaced the hydraulic oil (idles noticeably faster now). Is it time to flush the cooling system?

We haven't experienced anything resembling cold weather yet (sorry fellas), so we're talking an ambient temperature in the 60's or so.

Blu21 · Jan 6, 2001

My situation is the same as RSeymour,2000rpm and after a while it is at normal temp,lower rpm's and its somewhere in between.This is at temps 25 degrees or less.Then again mine is alot smaller boomer.Tom

gerard · Jan 6, 2001

Thanx Harv, I should have thought about asking how yours runs first of all since we have the same tractor! Mine runs just as you described. Once warmed up, even in 5deg F weather I run at 12 oclock. In the summer I noticed my temp goes up if I idle, not down as many others here describe. If I run back up to 1500-2000, even under laod, the temp stays right around 12. I was thinking maybe my thermostat was stuck partially closed but maybe not since it seems to act just as yours does. (I emailed on the status of my (oops, I mean my wifes!) camera - getting antsy!! Must be the holiday back log)

Harv · Jan 6, 2001

Gerard -

It's starting to sound like all temperature guages are not created equal. The fact that our 2500's behave similarly is encouraging.

At the risk of totally defacing this TC45D thread, I wonder if Rodneyd or Jeff_In_NC are listening (they also have 2500's).

I'll post the question in a Kubota thread, just in case. /w3tcompact/icons/crazy.gif

Rowski · Jan 6, 2001

The NH 2120 temp gauge runs in the middle of the temp gauge, basically 6 o'clock, my needle hangs down. During the cold 10ish degrees F during idle the temp indicated is a needle width on the cooler side. When working hard in the cold the needle doesn't move at all. In the summer when working it hard it is just a couple of needle widths on the hotter side, unless the screen in front of the rad is plugged.

Derek

stubblefield · Jan 7, 2001

I have only owned my TC45D for a couple months but have used it quite a bit lately in the cold weather to move a lot of snow. The temperature gauge has so far never moved no matter how long I operate the tractor.

DVerbarg · Jan 9, 2001

I live in northern Illinois and have temps for a couple weeks around 0 degrees. My TC40D operates the same way in that the temp gauge does not move much. If the engine runs around 2200 rpm the gauge moves a little more but never reaches the "normal" range.

dieselpwr · Jan 12, 2001

Sounds like nearly all normally run a little on the cool side. It's just comforting to know that the dealer wasn't jerking my chain.

I have found that @ 37% airflow the TC45D will get to the green zone down to about 20 degrees F. Also, if you cut the hole in the center of a cardboard piece with outside dimensions the same as the radiator, it stops enough air flow through the hydro. cooler to get everything flowing & moving pretty nicely too. I have made a few little circle cut outs (discs) that I can now install or remove easily on the cardboard pc with the hole in the center. It should (seems to so far anyway) allow me to compensate for the outside temp. pretty easily. Of course it always heats up faster if you remember to plug in the block heater an hour or two before.

(only forgot one time & I didn't enjoy the wait before feeling any temp. in the bypass hose before I got started working)

Troy

Anonymous Poster · Feb 15, 2001

My 40D did the same thing until I added cardboard to the radiator. I had a Ford 1720, which is the same line of engines, and it did the exact same thing. It never came up in temp at all unless I worked it extremely hard in the winter, and even then the needle just come off of the bottom.

For both tractors I made a piece of cardboard slightly larger than the radiator. On the 1720 I only had one hole in the middle because the cardboard didn't fit tight to the radiator because there was a filter screen in front of the radiator and this allowed the are to distribute a little behind the hole. However, on the 40D I cut a small hole in the middle and 4 more in each corner. I put the 4 in the corners because along the sides, with the cardboard not tight to the radiator coils (it is tight to the housing) there is a little opportunity for the air to distribute. Otherwise, if you only put a hole in the middle, the cardboard is tight to the coils and the radiator seemed to have trouble doing any cooling when needed. Good luck. I think this should work for you.

I've also added fine screens to the front of both the radiator and hydro cooling coil to keep junk from getting stuck in the radiator and cooler throughout the year.

Mike_S · Feb 16, 2001

IMHO, with modern technology used in modern tractors such as the series III TC's, the engineering should be in place where cardboard is not necessary like it was in old tractors. Why hasn't NH created an upgrade fix for this problem for present owners and already re-engineered a solution for tractors coming off the assembly lines today??

Anonymous Poster · Feb 16, 2001

My guess is, it's just like the big diesels on the highway. Many of them block almost the entire grill in the winter. I think there just isn't "modern technology" available to account for the huge swing in cooling requirements that can occur from summertime high load, to wintertime light load.

JJones · Sep 24, 2001

What did you use for the screens around your radiators? Did you build a frame for the screens?

bgott · Sep 25, 2001

Diesel engines need more fuel put to 'em to raise the temperature. If you work it light it will run cool. Older trucks and maybe some newer ones ( I've been out of the OTR truck business for a few years) ran what they called "Shutterstats". These were shutters in front of the radiator that were thermostatically controlled and driven by brake air. If you're in need of a project you could get a set from a truck wrecking yard and cut them down and control them with a cable.

John_Mc · Sep 25, 2001

I read somewhere (either here or on CTB) that the NH class 3 series (TC 35/40/45) had a minor design flaw in the cooling system which supposedly made them run cold. Can't remember the exact cure, but it involved adding a valve in the coolant system line... I believed this valve would only be opened during a cooing system flush. If I remember correctly, not having this valve allowed coolant to bypass the thermostat and bring cold coolant into the engine even when the thermostat was closed. This MAY have been corrected on newer models (??) Perhaps someone here will know th ereal scoop on this.

Found the thread on CTB about cold running NH compacts: http://jplan.com/cgi-bin/tractor/fullThreadnh.pl?parentnum=25208

John
Edited by John_Mc on 09/25/01 09:29 AM (server time).

JJones · Sep 26, 2001

I bought my TC40D used. Just got it this past weekend. It had 70 hours on it and is a 2000 model year according to sn. It also ran cold. Tried out the recommendation in post I found this tractor exhibited the same issue. Now I'm looking to go to dealer to see what he is going to do to help. This tractor has probably ran cold for the last 70 hours. Thanks for all the help. BTW Luv the tractor and this site.

paccorti · Sep 26, 2001

JJones,

My TC35 suffered the exact same problem (warmed up slowly, ran cold in the winter, etc.) I had a shutoff valve installed in the coolant drainage hose (as you sit in the tractor seat, it's on the right in the front near the frame rail and grill). This has caused the tractor to warm up far far faster. I'm confident that it will run much warmer in the winter too.

If you have any problems, I had a very good mechanic work on my machine. I'm reasonably sure he'd answer any questions.

Peter