Charging Battery while Running Tractor

[D2Cat]

Here's a picture of one. It looks kind of fancy. I've actually not hooked this one to a battery yet. I have 2 or 3 others that look MUCH cheaper, but work. The others are in a yellow plastic box with a couple of wire to connect and an LED to indicate it's working.

I paid about $20 each. You can get an assembled one on Ebay for like $8 straight out of China!!

After I was surprised to get the original battery working again, I put a desulfator on a battery for a couple of weeks then put it on another, and rotate back and forth. Eventually I just buy one for each battery.

 

[twomany]

It would be fun to put one of those on an O-scope to see what the wave form is.

It's for sure NOT well regulated DC. ;-)

 

[rjcorazza]

I built a few of these from internet plans years ago... I believe they were called A.C. desulfators for “Alistar Cooper” or something close. As I recall they put out a 50v spike every 50 milliseconds to dissolve sulfates on the plates.
Anyway, they were a lot of fun to build. I made my own custom circuit boards for the device also that looked factory.


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[Newlyme]

D2CAT,
Thanks for the pics and the story. I searched around the internet and ended up at Northern Tool. I picked up three BatteryMinders at $30 each. I picked them up for Desulfation. The reviews were interesting. A number of them had the same story as yours. Were all of you guys on the same turnip truck?
Just kidding.
I'm going to see if I can bring back my six 6V batteries.
I'll let you guys know how it works out.

Thanks again.

 

[precisionbike]

Check out PulseTech. I’ve been using their charger since 2005. My lawn tractor’s battery is the original from 2003, 15 years is unheard of. When I was snow-blowing, it started fast no matter how cold it was in northwest Pennsylvania along the lake.

Here’s a link https://www.pulsetech.net






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[Newlyme]

Check out PulseTech. I’ve been using their charger since 2005. My lawn tractor’s battery is the original from 2003, 15 years is unheard of. When I was snow-blowing, it started fast no matter how cold it was in northwest Pennsylvania along the lake.

Here’s a link https://www.pulsetech.net

Thanks for the link. Their free battery tester is on the way.


The Battery Minders just arrived. Review on the battery come back coming soon.
I hope.

 

[Bill15kv]

That's the plan. I'll buy an OEM Kubota battery from my local dealer. I'm just curious as to how long I need to run the tractor each time I use it to keep a full charge on the battery.

Thats tough to answer since there are variables as to how discharged it was upon starting. Is it 10 deg and the glow plugs were lit for 40 seconds before cranking for 6-8 seconds or was it 70 deg and fired right up?
In the first scenario I’d say getting it back to full charge is probably close to 15 minutes at mid rpm’s, in the latter scenario I’d say around 5 minutes has it darn close to full charge.
Another suggestion, keep doing the same thing! 10 years on a battery is excellent, generally 6 is pretty darn good.


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[D2Cat]

I just checked that Interstate today. It was 480 CCA.

 

[troverman]

I wouldn't try to guess how long it takes to run a tractor to get the battery back to full charge. There are many variables that could impact this. As mentioned, glow plug use...but also consider that the alternator produces more output at cold temps and less at hot temps. Likewise, more output at higher RPM and less output at lower RPM. Are you running accessories, like headlamps? Any other electrical add-ons like auxiliary lighting or a charge port for a phone, etc?

Yesterday I fired up my brand new MX4800. It hadn't been started in a few weeks. It was night and I switched on the high beams, plus my Rigid Industries canopy LED lights. This tractor runs the glow plugs automatically, and it also runs an electric fuel pump up to the main pump...plus the injectors are electric and all the electrics running the ECU and DPF sensors. I ran it for about three minutes at idle and shut it back off. I'm not at all worried about leaving it without starting it for the next few weeks.

I'm the guy who got 16 years out of the original battery in my 2002 L4310 which was never on a tender or charger, so I'm not worried. I think the battery thing can get way over-thought.

 

[Newlyme]

I have a battery story, but I'm not going to tell it here because you guys would think I fell off the turnip truck!

Well I used my new BatteryMinders on the golf cart batteries that wouldn’t hold a charge. It worked to bring them back.
I checked them after sitting for two weeks and they are holding a charge....and then I fell off the Turnip Truck!

Thanks for the info.

 

[SidecarFlip]

In my experience , 10 years on a battery is a miracle so dont change your tecnique IMHO

I got 6 years out of my original Kubota battery Group 31 before it got too weak to spin the motor in the winter (I never plug it in, no power out in the equipment barn anyway). I figured that was pretty good in as much as the battery on the M's are in front of the engine and bouncing around up there all the time.

Replaced both the M9 and the 105X with Interstate Group 31's, 1200 CCA. Was 3 years ago and all is good. I don't run the tractors much in the winter except to stage round bales for the cattle. Never gave a thought to a trickle charger. A flooded cell battery will maintain it's charge all winter if it's in good shape.

If your voltage regulator and alternator are in good shape, you should be initial charging at ariund 14.5 volts tapering off as the battery gets topped up.

 

[D2Cat]

I ran across this thread on a search and thought I'd provide an update.

To refresh the topic you'd have to go back to post #18. At that time the Interstate battery had been considered dead and set outside through the winter. I used the desulfator/maintainer on it and then used it several time in my 40Hp trencher and my skid steer with a v2203 engine in it over a period of a year, at least.

Just this last week I needed my trencher to dig 250' of electric line in. Took that same Interstate battery off the desulfator/maintainer and used it for 3 days! It was considered dead like 3 years ago!!

This is the one I have been using since last November. I ordered 3 of them to give as gifts at Christmas. When I received them there was nothing in the literature on on the case that indicated anything about desulfating, so I wanted to return them. I specifically ordered them from a USA location so I would not have to wait. Because of a language I could not replicate in a mail address, PayPal told me to keep them and they refunded cost.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/6V-12V-3A-...891706?hash=item3636d0dcfa:g:oP4AAOSwKb1bSGMQ

I'm not promoting any product, just telling the results I got and what I used.