Glow plug indicator

[techwrtr2]

Need to get me a battery this week. Amazing how well the old beast starts when it has juice. Blows me away at times. Have a week of firewood processing and Beaver is integral to that work - I have a wood splitter that connects in line with the loader so no extra engine to maintain.

 

[techwrtr2]

Need to get me a battery this week. Amazing how well the old beast starts when it has juice. Blows me away at times. Have a week of firewood processing and Beaver is integral to that work - I have a wood splitter that connects in line with the loader so no extra engine to maintain.

Now I know what went wrong with my Beaver. I made the above post last week. This explains why it won't start today.

Here's a glow plug thing for an S370D

Glow Plug Indicator

 

[74chevy]

Does anyone know what the proper resistance for the indicator is or what the resistance on the glowplugs themselves are? My S370D is a pain to start when it's cold out.

 

[Ilikeurtractor]

Glow plugs should be right about 1 ohm. I never measured the resistance for the indicator, but it should drop about 2 volts out of the circuit. If my math is correct (highly questionable) the indicator should be around 0.1 ohm. Keep in mind also, glow plugs will take up to a minute to heat up enough to really help the engine, especially in cold weather despite how much the indicator is glowing. That doesn't seem like much time, but it is when you want to get moving. Fuel stations *should* be blending diesel also to aid in starting during cold weather months. You may need to put an additive in if you're using "summer" diesel or your station doesn't offer a winter blend.

 

[74chevy]

Glow plugs should be right about 1 ohm. I never measured the resistance for the indicator, but it should drop about 2 volts out of the circuit. If my math is correct (highly questionable) the indicator should be around 0.1 ohm. Keep in mind also, glow plugs will take up to a minute to heat up enough to really help the engine, especially in cold weather despite how much the indicator is glowing. That doesn't seem like much time, but it is when you want to get moving. Fuel stations *should* be blending diesel also to aid in starting during cold weather months. You may need to put an additive in if you're using "summer" diesel or your station doesn't offer a winter blend.

I just filled up 2-3 weeks ago with fresh fuel & diesel fuel additive that's supposed to help in the winter it was around 1/4 tank full at best. I was hoping to check the glow plugs this weekend but my son was sick so we didn't get over to "the farm". I guess another question is how do I know the glow plug indicator is working?

 

[Ilikeurtractor]

I guess another question is how do I know the glow plug indicator is working?

It should start to "glow" red in 20-30 seconds, if not sooner. I'm asssuming you have the nichrome wire type of indicator. Before it starts to glow you can also put your hand over the indicator and usually feel the heat from it too as it gives off a little heat like a toaster.

 

[74chevy]

It looks like it's the original style, like the link for the replacement earlier on this page. My father bought the tractor around 4/5 years ago and he never really used it during the colder months so it was never really an issue for him. Now that i've inheirited it I'm trying to get somethings done and it's easier to run the tractor around someplaces than to use a full size truck. I have a feeling the indicator isn't working because I never knew it glowed I thought it was a buzzer that was defective for the longest time...and i've preheated the glow plugs in the dim garage before and never notced a glow.

 

[Ilikeurtractor]

Forward to around 3:10 in this video to see an indicator working:

Ford 1900 Tractor [Smokey Cold Start / Clearing Snow] - YouTube

 

[74chevy]

Mine definately didn't glow this evening, but it was warm enough (~55*) I was able to get it to start w/o much hassle. Could it also not help that the previous owner at some point repainted the tractor and painted the glow plugs when they painted the engine?

 

[Ilikeurtractor]

Paint won't make any difference in the functionality of the glow plugs - unless he painted the part that goes into the pre-combustion chamber :shocked: Not that it would prevent them from working but you get the idea. You might want to take apart and clean the connections though just for good measure. If you have a volt meter, you can troubleshoot the system fairly quickly. Ideally you'd use a high capacity ammeter and measure the amps the circuit is drawing. Glow plugs should draw around 10-15 amps each.