Water ballasting experience. Increased fuel consumption?.

[Tractorrr]

Had been considering adding liquid ballast to rear tires for a while and finally added water to the rear tires. Thought I'd share a little about this and then ask a question. This process actually wasn't too hard but definitely took some work. Thank you for the posts about how to do this as they were helpful in completing this. I Was able to connect the hose from the outside faucet to the tractor tire with the help of the valve core remover tool and the liquid/air adaptor with burp valve and had the tracor jacked while adding water. Had the tractor jacked up in the center at the square tube which leads to the drawbar and as the water was added to the first tire the tractor tilted to that side due to the added weight.

I could clearly hear the water shooting into the tire as it was going in and this sound changed when the level got up high enough due to the water shooting into more water and then it was time to remove the adaptor and let some water out and add air to proper PSI.

I may eventually add some WW fluid of propylen glycol but not sure this is necessary as I keep the tractor indoors during the winter and I would want a decent pump to do this.

Anyways this is a doable DIY project if you are considering it.

I am wandering though if or how much the increase in weight will also translate into increased fuel consumption?

 

[k0ua]

I have never noticed any difference, but such a thing probably would not be noticeable. Keep in mind that while it takes more energy to get the extra mass moving, the mass does not bear on the axle bearings themselves as the weight rests directly on the ground and puts no extra load on the axle bearings to cause more friction. There would be friction of the water and the inside of the tire casing, but I cannot imagine this taking a lot of fuel.

 

[Baby Grand]

As long a you're not doing a lot of high speed road travel I think you will actually see better fuel consumption. This is because you'll have better traction and work more efficiently, using less fuel. Whenever you lose traction you're burning fuel without getting work done. Getting stuck is a huge waste of fuel ... among other things ... like your time and pride. Don't ask how I know.

 

[SSdoxie]

I haven't noticed any difference in fuel consumption either way. What I did find after loading the rears was reduced front tire wear. Before loading the rears I had so many times that I needed 4WD to aide with traction that I just left 4WD engaged all the time, so running around on dry ground when I didn't need it the front tires were scuffing much more than necessary. Now I seldom need the front wheel assist so leave it shut off so front tires wear less.

 

[Gary Fowler]

The extra mass of water in tires is not significant in adding to fuel use and water inside of a tire has very little friction factor compared to the amount needed to just roll the tire in grass. In most tractors the extra energy used to get an additional 300-500#of mass moving wont even be noticeable to the operator. When you look at the energy it takes to get a 3000-10,000#tractor moving that extra water weight is also insignificant. Unless you have a very sensitive fuel flow meter, I don't think you will see any difference and like Baby Grand say, with added traction, you would likely see less fuel used for a given task.

 

[Tractorrr]

Ok that's good that it won't be using more fuel or possibly less.

I got out and bush hogged some today and did some finish mowing with MMM also. The tractor does feel more stable and had less spinning of tires which is nice. Will be nice to be able to make turns and not worry about the tires spinning and tearing up the yard as much. The turf tires would easily spin especially if ther was some dew still on the ground and now it seems like this won't be as much of an issue.

 

[Cherokee140]

The extra mass of water in tires is not significant in adding to fuel use and water inside of a tire has very little friction factor compared to the amount needed to just roll the tire in grass. In most tractors the extra energy used to get an additional 300-500#of mass moving wont even be noticeable to the operator. When you look at the energy it takes to get a 3000-10,000#tractor moving that extra water weight is also insignificant. Unless you have a very sensitive fuel flow meter, I don't think you will see any difference and like Baby Grand say, with added traction, you would likely see less fuel used for a given task.

This is really the only area where this is going to be true....and it is VERY true. If your wheels are spinning you are burning fuel for no reason.

However;

(oh doG here he goes again)

There is no way around it is going to be more work for the machine to get moving...you have added mass. You doubt me just load your pickup truck bed to max and drive around for a month....see if you use less gas.

Personally while I agree 100% it will make the machine much more "useable" for lack of a better word, I highly doubt you will see a lower fuel consumption....I also think that in the grand scheme of things it really is not going to matter one bit. The point of a tractor is to get A B C done.....doing that in the most efficient manner is what it is all about and I think that the extra weight will help in about 99% of the tasks asked upon a tractor to do.

 

[art]

This is really the only area where this is going to be true....and it is VERY true. If your wheels are spinning you are burning fuel for no reason.

However;

(oh doG here he goes again)

There is no way around it is going to be more work for the machine to get moving...you have added mass. You doubt me just load your pickup truck bed to max and drive around for a month....see if you use less gas.

Personally while I agree 100% it will make the machine much more "useable" for lack of a better word, I highly doubt you will see a lower fuel consumption....I also think that in the grand scheme of things it really is not going to matter one bit. The point of a tractor is to get A B C done.....doing that in the most efficient manner is what it is all about and I think that the extra weight will help in about 99% of the tasks asked upon a tractor to do.

Good call!!! I doubt it would total 99% unless the purchase was made for just loader work! There is no plus for brush hogging or mower work. Yes it takes fuel to move mass! We find it to make big difference on farm tractors and that is why we try the lightest way first.

 

[murphy1244]

"There is no way around it is going to be more work for the machine to get moving...you have added mass. You doubt me just load your pickup truck bed to max and drive around for a month....see if you use less gas"....

But that weight is on the axle. This goes back to the question of Loader ballast on the three point.

 

[kuboman]

If you have wheel spin you are losing efficiency. Adding weight will likely not change your fuel consumption. Unless you add more than is necessary to stop wheel slip.
Either way the amount of fuel would not buy you a cup of coffee at the end of a year.