JD 6100 batteries always going flat

[GT7810]

We have 2x JD 6100's on the farm, really handy tractors, but the batteries never seem to hold charge over a long period. We have put countless new batteries on and if they are not used regularly then within a matter of weeks they won't start (which makes me rule out faulty alternators as when they are used they hold charge fine). Had both tractors since new and they both do it, which makes me wonder if it is a common fault ie. bad connection somewhere or something that is draining the battery even when it is switched off. Looked all over and cant see anything obvious. Anyone else experienced this problem?

 

[john432]

Have you got a multimeter? With the tractor switched off, remove a battery terminal and measure how much current if any is flowing, memory for the radio takes a tiny bit. If it's a big flow, then possibly the alternator diodes?

 

[Goweresque]

Simplest solution is to fit an isolator switch and isolate the battery when you park up. You could spend a lot of time and money finding where the leak is, a switch is a tenner:

24v Heavy Duty 1000 Amp Battery Isolator Cut Off Kill Switch Truck / Lorry | eBay

24v / 12V Heavy Duty Battery Isolator Master Cut off Switch. Simply Remove Key To Disconnect Battery. SUITABLE ALL 24V & 12v APPLICATIONS. 200A continuous.

www.ebay.co.uk

 

[GT7810]

Have you got a multimeter? With the tractor switched off, remove a battery terminal and measure how much current if any is flowing, memory for the radio takes a tiny bit. If it's a big flow, then possibly the alternator diodes?

I'll have a go tomorrow, thanks

 

[GT7810]

Simplest solution is to fit an isolator switch and isolate the battery when you park up. You could spend a lot of time and money finding where the leak is, a switch is a tenner:

24v Heavy Duty 1000 Amp Battery Isolator Cut Off Kill Switch Truck / Lorry | eBay

24v / 12V Heavy Duty Battery Isolator Master Cut off Switch. Simply Remove Key To Disconnect Battery. SUITABLE ALL 24V & 12v APPLICATIONS. 200A continuous.

www.ebay.co.uk

Thats a good idea, if i get nowhere with finding the fault i'll go down that route, thanks

 

[Flat 10]

Thats a good idea, if i get nowhere with finding the fault i'll go down that route, thanks

And wish you had asked @Goweresque before, he could have saved you all this bother over the last 25 years

 

[Goweresque]

And wish you had asked @Goweresque before, he could have saved you all this bother over the last 25 years

I only came up with the idea myself a few years ago Got fed up with forgetting to take the earth lead off tractors that were going to be parked up a while, and having to jump start them or even swap batteries next time they were needed. Now have the worst culprits sorted, its second nature, just flip the switch when you get off. OK you have to retune the radio each time, but thats a low price to pay for not hearing that heart sinking noise when you turn the key - click click click

 

[john432]

We have 2x JD 6100's on the farm, really handy tractors, but the batteries never seem to hold charge over a long period. We have put countless new batteries on and if they are not used regularly then within a matter of weeks they won't start (which makes me rule out faulty alternators as when they are used they hold charge fine). Had both tractors since new and they both do it, which makes me wonder if it is a common fault ie. bad connection somewhere or something that is draining the battery even when it is switched off. Looked all over and cant see anything obvious. Anyone else experienced this problem?

I only came up with the idea myself a few years ago Got fed up with forgetting to take the earth lead off tractors that were going to be parked up a while, and having to jump start them or even swap batteries next time they were needed. Now have the worst culprits sorted, its second nature, just flip the switch when you get off. OK you have to retune the radio each time, but thats a low price to pay for not hearing that heart sinking noise when you turn the key - click click click

Plus the big reduced risk of them catching fire

 

[dirty harry]

Same trouble here with a 7700, unfortunately our isolator we fitted hasn’t really solved it, - it’s helped but not solved? Now also pull an earth cable off a battery & isolate - again better than just isolating but still not cured? I’ll watch with interest.....
Cheers dh

 

[john432]

Same trouble here with a 7700, unfortunately our isolator we fitted hasn’t really solved it, - it’s helped but not solved? Now also pull an earth cable off a battery & isolate - again better than just isolating but still not cured? I’ll watch with interest.....
Cheers dh

Can't get my brain around the above, the isolator is a switch . So if it's on either the positive or negative , once switched off the battery power can't go anywhere. But all battery's do loose charge over time, hence why a trickle charger is recommended when engines are not run for lengths of time.

 

[GHuggins]

Same trouble here with a 7700, unfortunately our isolator we fitted hasn’t really solved it, - it’s helped but not solved? Now also pull an earth cable off a battery & isolate - again better than just isolating but still not cured? I’ll watch with interest.....
Cheers dh

This is a separate issue caused by bad batteries being tied together or just a bad battery "self draining" due to it's internally shorted plates. That's the only way a battery will dye when unhooked from cables unless you just have so much crud across the top of them that they're flowing current that way... Replace both batteries with identical CCA batteries preferably made by the same company and should solve your issue... Don't replace just the one bad one as you'll still have "fighting" amps causing a drain - the battery with lower rated amps will continually drain the higher amp rated battery.

The absolute quickest and best way to find amp draws is to use a temperature camera. Electronics, fuse blocks, circuit boards, relays or any of the sort will put out heat with current usage

 

[Flat 10]

This is a separate issue caused by bad batteries being tied together or just a bad battery "self draining" due to it's internally shorted plates. That's the only way a battery will dye when unhooked from cables unless you just have so much crud across the top of them that they're flowing current that way... Replace both batteries with identical CCA batteries preferably made by the same company and should solve your issue... Don't replace just the one bad one as you'll still have "fighting" amps causing a drain - the battery with lower rated amps will continually drain the higher amp rated battery.

The absolute quickest and best way to find amp draws is to use a temperature camera. Electronics, fuse blocks, circuit boards, relays or any of the sort will put out heat with current usage

Clever idea with heat camera

 

[startinghandle]

We used to have JD 2040 which had same problem which was fixed by fitting new solenoid on starter

 

[C.J]

Have you got a multimeter? With the tractor switched off, remove a battery terminal and measure how much current if any is flowing, memory for the radio takes a tiny bit. If it's a big flow, then possibly the alternator diodes?

My 6400 wouldn't start this morning - not been used for 4 weeks and the battery was down to 12.5 volts.

Same thing last year after the "mid winter feasting" current draw was between 100 and 200 mA which dropped to zero when I pulled the F215 fuse......F215 has the symbol of a smoking cigarette , so does cig lighter and internal roof light , aswell as the radio and maybe clock .

 

[john432]

My 6400 wouldn't start this morning - not been used for 4 weeks and the battery was down to 12.5 volts.

Same thing last year after the "mid winter feasting" current draw was between 100 and 200 mA which dropped to zero when I pulled the F215 fuse......F215 has the symbol of a smoking cigarette , so does cig lighter and internal roof light , aswell as the radio and maybe clock .

My 6400 wouldn't start this morning - not been used for 4 weeks and the battery was down to 12.5 volts.

Same thing last year after the "mid winter feasting" current draw was between 100 and 200 mA which dropped to zero when I pulled the F215 fuse......F215 has the symbol of a smoking cigarette , so does cig lighter and internal roof light , aswell as the radio and maybe clock .

My 6400 wouldn't start this morning - not been used for 4 weeks and the battery was down to 12.5 volts.

Same thing last year after the "mid winter feasting" current draw was between 100 and 200 mA which dropped to zero when I pulled the F215 fuse......F215 has the symbol of a smoking cigarette , so does cig lighter and internal roof light , aswell as the radio and maybe clock .

100mA draw for 28 days ....0.1 amps X 24 hours. X 28 days = 67.2 Amp/ hours. More than half the battery's storage capacity when new. If my maths is correct.

 

[C.J]

100mA draw for 28 days ....0.1 amps X 24 hours. X 28 days = 67.2 Amp/ hours. More than half the battery's storage capacity when new. If my maths is correct.

Sounds plausible - I expected it to go at 12.5 volts,but it was below freezing last night.

The Varta silver top on my Merlo was 13.07 volts this morning , but that gets used every day.

 

[john432]

A fully charged battery that's settled , is around 12.9 volts, so 12.5 volts could be half capacity?

 

[C.J]

This table certainly agrees with you.

 

[john432]

It's a very small voltage change between fully charged and empty.

 

[GHuggins]

Clever idea with heat camera

I actually learned this from someone else. Granted I was a "go to" drive-ability tech at a gm dealership for some years here in the US and even had GM calling and wanting me to email "my" corrections for some of their screw ups, but another tech taught me how quick and easy it was to find amp draws this way.

He had just pulled in a Chrysler PT Cruiser which was killing the battery every other day and used a heat camera that showed the fuse block getting hot - didn't feel hot to touch, but sure enough that was the draw. Took him all of 5 minutes to find the problem. It would have taken me 5 or 6 to pull out my multimeter and special setup amp draw disconnects for testing much less all of the time to pull the fuses, trip switches and "hone" in on the problem... The heat camera even shows heat buildup in bad connectors where volt drops were present. They're super expensive in my opinion, but worth every cent if you deal with engine or electrical problems regularly

My 6400 wouldn't start this morning - not been used for 4 weeks and the battery was down to 12.5 volts.

Same thing last year after the "mid winter feasting" current draw was between 100 and 200 mA which dropped to zero when I pulled the F215 fuse......F215 has the symbol of a smoking cigarette , so does cig lighter and internal roof light , aswell as the radio and maybe clock .

I would question the interior roof light - are you closing your doors solid enough? Made this mistake on my 6180 - even though the light is setup to be off all of the time, I had left the door partially closed and killed them in a weeks time :/