TC temp. toasty or normal ?

[Lone Oak Landscaping]

Question for TC owners - Does your temp gauge run up around the top of the normal operating range ?
Bought my TC40DA at the end of the fall last year and noticed it ran on the warm side while plowing all winter , now that it's getting warmer naturally it is running a bit higher on the gauge, just wondering if that is common.

Radiator fins are clean , anti- freeze tested good ,belt is tight, thermostat is working according to the gauge anyhow. Have not tried a thermometer yet...

She is not overheating ,but according to the gauge it is getting mighty close and the summer heat will be here soon.
No I'm not getting parinoid in my old age .... JUST LUV MY NEW HOLLAND TRACTOR

 

[jinman]

My TC45D always runs in the lower part of the green range. It has also had the temperature gage replaced once because it failed (was reading low). If everything is clean and clear as you said, I'd check the temperature with a bulb gage or IR gage and find out what the actual temperature is. I'd bet you that the tractor's temperature gage is not accurate.

 

[december45]

ive got a TC30 and had an issue with the temp sending unit, it had to be replaced, it was reading fine, usually in the middle of the gauge, with the new sending unit, it now reads on the lower side of normal... and im not so sure that with the new sending unit it is all that accurate...

 

[MMBoomer1530]

I have a 1530 (pre-TC models) and I had noticed that mine started running at the Green/Red border last summer (~800 hours). I decided to replace some wearing hoses and replace/flush-out the coolant. However, it is still running at the same spot. I don't want to damage my engine and was going to ask my dealer what I could be doing wrong. I don't know much about coolant sysdtems - is there a pump or something that could be going bad? I use 50:50 cooland:water like they recommend.

 

[jinman]

You need to make sure the temperature gage is reading correctly. To do this, you can most easily use an IR thermometer. Those are very inexpensive now from Harbor Freight or other sources. Alternately, you can remove the radiator cap when the tractor is cool and then start it to let it warm up. Use a bulb type gage or immersion thermometer to verify the actual temperature. You could use a cooking thermometer also if you can sneak it out of your wife's kitchen.

 

[JC-jetro]

In addition to all the good suggestion, If it is easy enough, You can take out the sending unit and test it in boiling water adjusted for altitude (212 degrees F at sea level), the higher the elevation and the lower the boiling point. One can also use a short piece of wire to directly read the temp from the tractor analog display or read the resistance at given temp if you can find that information, of course with the exposed part of the sensor in the boiling water.

JC,

 

[MMBoomer1530]

Sorry to be a pest, but if we do what you suggest and get a temperature reading, what is a normal temperature and what is considered 'high?'
Thanks!

 

[JC-jetro]

Sorry to be a pest, but if we do what you suggest and get a temperature reading, what is a normal temperature and what is considered 'high?'
Thanks!

One has to verify if the sender/ analog gage combination actually is accurate against a known and indisputable marker (i.e Ice water solution at 32 degrees Fahrenheit or boiling water) .Thats establishes the accuracy of the sender unit. If the gage needle points at 12:00 under tractor's normal condition then I call it normal. If, the gage reads hot then I say sender is okay and try to find out what causing the tractor to run hot by checking, flow, restriction, radiator and things related.

JC,

 

[jinman]

Sorry to be a pest, but if we do what you suggest and get a temperature reading, what is a normal temperature and what is considered 'high?'
Thanks!

Great question! Most of our tractors have a thermostat that is 180 degrees F. The temperature will peak on the gage and then drop as the thermostat opens. If you are measuring radiator temperature before the thermostat opens, you will read a very low temperature compared to what the coolant temperature is inside the engine. When the thermostat opens, all the water in the system will come to a stable temperature, probably around 160 degreess F. Remember, on your radiator, the top of the radiator will be much hotter than the bottom because hot water from the engine drops in the top, is cooled as it passes downward, and exits at the bottom. If you shut off the engine after it comes to full operating temperature, you may see a momentary spike upwards in temperature because the coolant is not circulating and the engine continues to transfer heat to it. That's why you sometimes see boilover in cars when the engine is first shut off and that's the most dangerous time to open a radiator cap.

So, there's no perfect answer to your question, but I think I can safely say that our tractors normally operate in a range from 165 - 185 degrees F in ideal conditions.

 

[JC-jetro]

Sorry to be a pest, but if we do what you suggest and get a temperature reading, what is a normal temperature and what is considered 'high?'
Thanks!

Jim Had a perfect answer to your question but as he said " there is no perfect answer to your question". Knowing the normal operation of 165-180 does not mean that any where on the engine, manifold or radiator you'll experience temps whitin the normal range. Sending unit reads only water temperature and that's why it is important that it reads right so you can interpret operating condition with confidence.

JC,