Warm ups during storage/times of no use?

RCW · Jan 5, 2020

This has come up a few times recently.

Do you/should you start the tractor and let it warm up when it's stored in the off-season or for extended times of non-use?

I use my little BX 12 months a year, but it's sat for about 3 weeks since no snow to blow. Long-range forecast looks like it might sit for a couple more weeks.

Trust me, not complaining at all.

I don't normally run it unless I'm going to use it. To just start it to warm it up doesn't get everything up to operating temperatures.

I know there's other schools of thought...

Do you warm it up occasionally while sitting?

thebicman · Jan 5, 2020

I don't go out and start it but I do put a battery tender on it. May not need it if it sits for a couple of weeks but makes me feel better knowing battery is fully charged when I need it.

RCW · Jan 5, 2020

thebicman said:
I do put a battery tender on it.

Great point - I omitted that part. I do have a tender on mine also.

I did start it sometimes before the tender...….let it run quite a while.

SidecarFlip · Jan 5, 2020

My open station M9 sits unused all winter in an unheated barn with no electricity. I have a master disconnect knife switch on the negative terminal (have on on the cab M 9 as well and I break the starting battery out of the circuit (on both) when not in use so no parasitic drain of any kind. Starting batteries if fully charged will only lose a s,all percentage of their charge each month so no battery maintainer needed.

A couple times during the winter, I'll start the OS9 and warm it up for about a half hour and then shut it off and open the knife switch again. Same way with the cab tractor if I''m not using it. I don't drive my diesel pickup in the winter either but it's in the garage with a Yuhasa tender on it. I start it about every month and warm it up also.

So long as ypu break the circuit, no reason for a tender at all so long as the starting batter is fully charged and you isolate it.

I have the switches installed for another reason as well. I leave my tractors sit in a remote location (by my hayfields) in the summer and isolating the start battery is another deterrent against unwanted mischief. They can sit unattended for days on end away from the farm.

Roadworthy · Jan 5, 2020

My tractor sits out of the weather (kind of) in a three sided roofed enclosure. If I need the tractor I start it. If I don't need it it sits until I do need it. I use no battery tender and have not yet needed one.

Carl in France · Jan 6, 2020

Three weeks or even five is hardly a lay over or storage. The most that may be worth doing is putting the battery on a tender charger.

L35 · Jan 6, 2020

I keep it on a tender but do not start it unless Im going to use it. Usually a few weeks between but theres been times I havent used it for months at a clip.

SidecarFlip · Jan 6, 2020

Carl in France said:
Three weeks or even five is hardly a lay over or storage. The most that may be worth doing is putting the battery on a tender charger.

All well and good so long as there is power available. I don't have that so the knife dosconnect is my alternative. Been doing that for about 8 years now. Never an issue.

mikester · Jan 11, 2020

Carl in France said:
Three weeks or even five is hardly a lay over or storage. The most that may be worth doing is putting the battery on a tender charger.

Agreed. I would also suggest that your machine needs to get hot, not warm, to burn off any accumulated moisture inside the engine and tranny. Just warming it up in cold damp weather might be introducing more moisture to the system then leaving it alone. If you are storing for 6 months or a year follow the long term storage procedure in you manual.

gssixgun · Jan 11, 2020

I have always read the the real wear and tear on a "Chore Tractor" is that they are basically only used for each chore
Where a "Field Tractor" is started and run all day

I could be wrong but I really concentrate on the warm up

I have the Engine Heater and two Mag Heaters on the Tractor out in the barn
The mag heaters are on the Hydraulic tank all are hooked to a remote Outlet

I am getting ready to clear our road NOW

I just stepped unto the front porch to turn it on
I will have a cup of coffee and get dressed before I go out to start it
Once it is started I will come back in and have another coffee

When I go back out the tractor will be warmed and the fluids will be "warmer"

To me it seems to be the best idea to get the tractor warmed up properly before use rather than multiple starts without using it

JMHO

This

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__UFau0yKyU

NHSleddog · Jan 11, 2020

On the new larger tractors with DPF's they don't want it to warm up easy anymore. "warming up" is usually done at low idle which makes the DP's worse.

I wonder how many hours the DPF system will add to the life of a tractor. Most of the regen also requires high RPM as well? I wonder how much more fuel will be burned in the tractor lifetime.

troverman · Jan 16, 2020

My Kubota B2920 would be done by mid November. I would park it in an unheated enclosure for 5 months. No tender, and no disconnecting of the battery. Always started up just fine in the spring. A few weeks is no big deal.

troverman · Jan 16, 2020

NHSleddog said:
On the new larger tractors with DPF's they don't want it to warm up easy anymore. "warming up" is usually done at low idle which makes the DP's worse.

I wonder how many hours the DPF system will add to the life of a tractor. Most of the regen also requires high RPM as well? I wonder how much more fuel will be burned in the tractor lifetime.

To be fair, a DPF tractor doesn't "warm up" any or better or worse than before. However, as you mention, low idle warmup does cause more particulate matter to be produced which is caught by the DPF, filling it up faster.

An active regeneration does require high RPM. So does passive regeneration, but for passive to even occur you would obviously be working the tractor very hard.

As for life/hours/fuel, I don't think its a big deal. My MX4800 would always perform an active regen while I was out mowing for hours at wide open throttle or near it. A little light on the dash for 15-20 minutes and done. Some extra fuel consumed, but not a lot in the grand scheme of things.

My new L4060 is yet to do its first regen, but the dash display shows the DPF is 80% full, so it won't be long now...

NHSleddog · Jan 16, 2020

troverman said:
....... My MX4800 would always perform an active regen while I was out mowing for hours at wide open throttle or near it. A little light on the dash for 15-20 minutes and done. Some extra fuel consumed, but not a lot in the grand scheme of things....

Good points, I could see farmers not noticing it due to their usage. Heavy work in the field for hours on end, most DP is burning off anyway so that would make sense. Also a 20-30 minute cycle wouldn't even be noticed.

It is the jobbers that would deal with the DP buildup most.

troverman · Jan 16, 2020

NHSleddog said:
Good points, I could see farmers not noticing it due to their usage. Heavy work in the field for hours on end, most DP is burning off anyway so that would make sense. Also a 20-30 minute cycle wouldn't even be noticed.

It is the jobbers that would deal with the DP buildup most.

Yes, more so. But aside from possible more frequent regenerations, the 15-20 minute process is the same. The dash warns you to increase RPMs if they are not high enough.

I idle my DPF tractors and don't worry about it. Two seasons ago, when I had just gotten the MX, I let it run for close to two hours at idle just to run headlights and some auxiliary lights I had wired up. Needed the light to finish a project out in the field.

My current L4060 has been seeing a lot of lower RPMs and idling as well - using it for plowing. Will be using it for plowing when I get home tonight - I see you are in southern NH. I'm in the Lebanon / upper valley area; we got about 5" of snow this morning. More on the way this weekend. About time!

NHSleddog · Jan 16, 2020

troverman said:
... I see you are in southern NH. I'm in the Lebanon / upper valley area; we got about 5" of snow this morning. More on the way this weekend. About time!

3" of slop down here.

Lil Foot · Jan 16, 2020

I seldom get to visit mine, and even more seldom get to use it, so when I do visit, I start it up & fast idle it for 20-30 minutes. (unless I can actually stay long enough to use it) It starts first time, every time. And it stays on a battery maintainer all the time, indoors, but not heated.

GeoHorn · Jan 17, 2020

Occasional “warm ups” for stored equipment is one of the worst things an owner can do in terms of wear and tear. They THINK they’re doing some good by circulating oil over the internal parts.
But what they are really doing is causing wear/tear of start-up, then the burnign of fuel puts water into the crankcase, then the shut-down without a period of hard-work puts that water/humidity in the crankcase into a period of corrosion, internal rust, and acid-development.
The best thing to do for storage is, at the end of the season, run the unit until hot, then do an oil/fiter-change while hot, start while still warm to circulate the new oil, and shut down. Close the throttle, and put a plastic bag zip-tied to the intake and another on the exhaust to keep humid daily air from entering/exiting the engine during daily temperature changes. Jack the machine to take the weight off the tires. Drop the FEL and 3-point onto blocks of wood. Remove the battery and take it indoors and onto a maintenance-charger (or alternatively place it on an ordinary charger once a month for 30 mins.). Don’t forget to change the coolant according to mfr’r schedules.
IMO

D2Cat · Jan 17, 2020

Geo, I read what your writing, but what is length of time in storage when doing your list? In my lifetime I've a lot of machines and various equipment and can't use them all at the same time. I currently have a Deutz 6206 setting in my barn I have not started in a year and a half. That's when thieves stole the battery. I don't/haven't gone through any storage procedure on it or anything else.

I imagine what you're describing is an optimal procedure. How much engine life does it actually save?

Lil Foot · Jan 17, 2020

GeoHorn said:
Occasional “warm ups” for stored equipment is one of the worst things an owner can do in terms of wear and tear. They THINK they’re doing some good by circulating oil over the internal parts.
But what they are really doing is causing wear/tear of start-up, then the burnign of fuel puts water into the crankcase, then the shut-down without a period of hard-work puts that water/humidity in the crankcase into a period of corrosion, internal rust, and acid-development.
The best thing to do for storage is, at the end of the season, run the unit until hot, then do an oil/fiter-change while hot, start while still warm to circulate the new oil, and shut down. Close the throttle, and put a plastic bag zip-tied to the intake and another on the exhaust to keep humid daily air from entering/exiting the engine during daily temperature changes. Jack the machine to take the weight off the tires. Drop the FEL and 3-point onto blocks of wood. Remove the battery and take it indoors and onto a maintenance-charger (or alternatively place it on an ordinary charger once a month for 30 mins.). Don’t forget to change the coolant according to mfr’r schedules.
IMO

Sounds like a lot of work for 2-3 weeks of non use, especially for a 41 year old machine like mine.

Warm ups during storage/times of no use?

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