Loader Inactive Case 580 protocal

[580Dmountain]

I have a Case 580D that isn't active. I'm also new to tractors. I've been trying to get over to it and start it up once a month for the past two years for about an hour and work all the hydrolic seals, breaks, steering. I've also read to keep the fuel tank full and add some additive.
The climate here is dry and cold with freezing nights in the winters and dry and warm/hot in the summers.
I'm also aware of keeping the battery charged up.
Does all that sound like a good practice?
Should I be starting it more or less frequently?
Should the fuel be fine having a full tank when I barely use it?
Any recommendations on fuel additives?

 

[finn1]

I prefer to not give advice to anyone that lists their location as NOYB.

Doesn’t sound like a very friendly guy, so I will mind my own business.

 

[dodge man]

Kind of hard to tell how long diesel will last, under good conditions maybe over a year. I would say what you are doing is good but I would probably do it less often, maybe every 2 to 3 months. It is not an exact science.

 

[paulfun9]

I suggest making sure it’s winter grade fuel in the tank and keep doing what your doing.

By the way no one needs to know where your at so don’t pay attention to that!
Like you My actual location isn’t listed I just make it a little less noticeable.

 

[580Dmountain]

Thank you for your responses.
I'm going to spend some time with it today learning more about the fuel system.
It seems like the worst that could happen is getting an algal growth inside the tank. Or water condensate. Or critter knawing at some electrical or something.
In which case you would just treat it, drain the fuel and replace some filters?

I bought the tractor when I was preparing to build my off-grid place but some things came up and now that project got put on hold.
I love the tractor and hope to have more time to play with it. Two of my friends need some small work done at their ranches eventually.
However, I worry about it just sitting neglected until the day comes when I go to really use it.
I've already had to replace the battery and one of the boom hydraulic with another that started leaking.

 

[fried1765]

I prefer to not give advice to anyone that lists their location as NOYB.

Doesn’t sound like a very friendly guy, so I will mind my own business.

Ditto !!!

 

[580Dmountain]

I spent some time with it today like I indicated in this morning's message.
The fuel looked fine. I drained the filters and the fuel looked clean. No water.
One of the boom hydraulic is leaking pretty bad so that's another that will need replacing.
It also looks like the hydraulic fluid level is possibly over full. I wonder if that could be causing the seals to leak.

I also discovered one of the drive belts is barely hanging on there while the other one looks pretty bad.
The Owners Service Manual doesn't have anything on belt replacement but it looks like I will have to pull the hydraulic pump off and possibly radiator.
If I'm lucky it looks like I can just pull off the front gaurd panel, unbolt the hydraulic pump and pull it off enough to slip the belts over it's shaft.
I got some more research to do.

I guess I'll just ignore the comments from fried and finn cause they don't seem very friendly nice either.

 

[rScotty]

I spent some time with it today like I indicated in this morning's message.
The fuel looked fine. I drained the filters and the fuel looked clean. No water.
One of the boom hydrolics is leaking pretty bad so that's another that will need replacing.
It also looks like the hydrolic fluid level is possibly over full. I wonder if that could be causing the seals to leak.

I also discovered one of the drive belts is barely hanging on there while the other one looks pretty bad.
The Owners Service Manual doesn't have anything on belt replacement but it looks like I will have to pull the hydrolic pump off and possibly radiator.
If I'm lucky it looks like I can just pull off the front gaurd panel, unbolt the hydrolic pump and pull it off enough to slip the belts over it's shaft.
I got some more research to do.

I guess I'll just ignore the comments from fried and finn cause they don't seem very friendly nice either.

I have a similar machine - a JD310 that I treat about the same. No problems. Sometimes it will only get started for a half hour and sometimes I'll use it for a few hours every few months. I'm real careful with the fuel..... Only use automotive diesel from a known good source, and I put in additives for cold weather and to keep it from growing bacteria. So far no problems with the sitting time. I've been treating it that way for about 5 years. I should turn it around so that the sun wears the rubber parts equally. Oh, I do plan to put a cover on the tires and get some sort of cover for the exposed hydraulic hoses. But so far just keeping it shaded has worked well.

On the fanbelt, check with someone before you go do all that taking off of parts. I did a main fanbelt replacement on the JD310. It looked complicated like you describe but there turned out to be a built-in way to wind up the spring-loaded idler pulley using a 3/4" wrench and then that big old fanbelt could be weaseled in without having to remove anything at all. Took about 10 minutes max. Very Clever, those industrial engineers.
rScotty

 

[580Dmountain]

I have a similar machine - a JD310 that I treat about the same. No problems. Sometimes it will only get started for a half hour and sometimes I'll use it for a few hours every few months. I'm real careful with the fuel..... Only use automotive diesel from a known good source, and I put in additives for cold weather and to keep it from growing bacteria. So far no problems with the sitting time. I've been treating it that way for about 5 years. I should turn it around so that the sun wears the rubber parts equally. Oh, I do plan to put a cover on the tires and get some sort of cover for the exposed hydraulic hoses. But so far just keeping it shaded has worked well.

On the fanbelt, check with someone before you go do all that taking off of parts. I did a main fanbelt replacement on the JD310. It looked complicated like you describe but there turned out to be a built-in way to wind up the spring-loaded idler pulley using a 3/4" wrench and then that big old fanbelt could be weaseled in without having to remove anything at all. Took about 10 minutes max. Very Clever, those industrial engineers.
rScotty

Thanks for sharing your experience.
Good tips on parking in shade or covering hydraulic lines so they don't dry out in the sun over time.
I wonder if there are any very common rodent problems people face to be on the lookout for too.

Based on your comment about "automotive diesel" brings up another question. Is the automobile grade better for fuel longevity than the red dyed farm grade that may have higher sulfur content? From what I just read, the higher sulfur content in dyed kind helps in lowering microbial activity but I'm not sure if that's true or not. Maybe an additive will be just as good.

For the fan drive belt, that does sound like a nifty time saving design you have there. I have been researching mine and while some people do drain the system and remove the entire hydraulic pump it looks like it's possible to just take out 4 bolts on the hydraulic pump coupler that is attached to the pully. Then if you are lucky you can slide the pully forward on the pump splines to get enough space for the belt to come through. May also be able to just detach the pump without disconnecting any hydraulic lines to give a bit more room. The downside is not being able to inspect the condition of the pump splines and coupler and also repositioning it for faster wear.

I'm new to tractors but I enjoy doing this stuff. The problem is always living in a condo and not having anywhere to store/work on my equipement that is close. I had to drop the transmission and replace the clutch to my truck this summer in the dirt yard of a friends house. Something I had never done before but came out great. This is why I bought the tractor to build a place to move to my property so I can actually do stuff.

Thanks again.

 

[dodge man]

Diesel is diesel, the red dye just means it does not have road tax.