Suicide

[AM28]

My little tractor tried to commit suicide last night. Fortunately my wife was outside watering and noticed in time for us to have an intervention.

I had just driven it up from one of the out buildings and parked it next to my garage.

It had been sitting, not running , for probably 10 minutes.

???????????

 

[DustyRusty]

What do you believe contributed to the combustion? You are quite lucky to have been able to saved it. Hopefully it will not be that expensive to repair the damage and make it like new again. I always cringe when I see tractors or automobiles that the engines are grease laden to the point where any combustion is going to lead to an outright inferno.

 

[AM28]

What do you believe contributed to the combustion? You are quite lucky to have been able to saved it. Hopefully it will not be that expensive to repair the damage and make it like new again. I always cringe when I see tractors or automobiles that the engines are grease laden to the point where any combustion is going to lead to an outright inferno.

At this point I have no clue. I keep my tractor spotlessly clean inside and out. There is certainly no buildup or leak of any kind.

I will dig into it later today, after I finish feeling sorry for myself. From first look it appears to be an electrical short from inside the wiring harness. All the fire is from the wires and sheath covering the wires. By the time I got to it the fire was starting to burn the lower cowling also.

 

[D2Cat]

Sad situation for sure. Having wiring harness melting is tough to resurrect.

To give a better view of the problem it would be nice to see the machine from a bit of a distance, then show the details. At least for me, it makes it easier to comprehend what went on.

 

[AM28]

Sad situation for sure. Having wiring harness melting is tough to resurrect.

To give a better view of the problem it would be nice to see the machine from a bit of a distance, then show the details. At least for me, it makes it easier to comprehend what went on.

A little dusty from popping off the fire extinguisher.

 

[GreensvilleJay]

sad but at least it can be fixed. probably a few new wiring harnesses need to be ordered and installed.
take a LOT of pictures, different angles and distances now and during the reinstall process.
when doing that , look for ANY possible areas where cables can have their insulation sliced or cut, due to vibration
fire started down low
love the 'curious observer' in the 2nd picture !

 

[Bmyers]

I'm wondering if a mouse or squirrel decided to have a little snack on your wires causing bare spots that after use of the tractor vibrated/moved the wires to make contact and short out and start the fire?

 

[Moose7060]

Sorry to hear about this. Hope you can get it repaired quickly and not too hard on the pocket book. Any evidence that rodents may have been chewing on the wires? Best of luck.

 

[AM28]

I'm wondering if a mouse or squirrel decided to have a little snack on your wires causing bare spots that after use of the tractor vibrated/moved the wires to make contact and short out and start the fire?

That is certainly within the realm of possibility. Maybe I will have to have a talk with my collection of critters and explain to them the importance of them doing their job.

 

[Yotekiller]

Looks to me that possibly that zip tie rubbed into the wiring creating a short.

 

[Flintknapper]

I'm wondering if a mouse or squirrel decided to have a little snack on your wires causing bare spots that after use of the tractor vibrated/moved the wires to make contact and short out and start the fire?

Almost a certainty.

 

[AM28]

I think I found the spot where the fire started. Most of the fire was on the sheath surrounding the wire harnesses and spread to the cowling. I purchased this tractor brand new from the factory and nobody has altered it in any way since it came from the factory. If you look closely at the second picture I posted there appears to be a amateurish hand taped splice into the wire harness. That is where I think the fire started.

 

[NCL4701]

If you have any kind of insurance on it at all, (KTAC, homeowner, specific equipment insurance, etc.) that’s almost certainly a covered loss. Property insurance that doesn’t cover fire exists, but not at all common.

 

[Fordtech86]

Just curious where the wire circled in blue was actually routed in relation to the bracket in red.

 

[AM28]

View attachment 133553
Just curious where the wire circled in blue was actually routed in relation to the bracket in red.

That bracket is the lower mount for the radiator. The fan shroud, which is burned on that corner, I removed and it would have prevented that wire and harness from contacting the bracket. The burn marks on that wire are from other wires that crossed it which I have separated out. All of the wires you can see were contained within the burned sheath. I have been carefully removing the burned sheath to expose the wires. I don’t believe it was caused by rubbing or chafing.

 

[AM28]

If you have any kind of insurance on it at all, (KTAC, homeowner, specific equipment insurance, etc.) that’s almost certainly a covered loss. Property insurance that doesn’t cover fire exists, but not at all common.

I carry a high deductible. Probably cheaper to repair it myself

 

[lynnmor]

I wonder if you had any dealer installed options that might account for the "amateurish hand taped splice into the wire harness". These tractors need a lot of dealer prep and I was not impressed with any of their work.

 

[mdhughes]

Is this another taped wire in the bundle?

 

[GreensvilleJay]

BEFORER you get into the cut/splice/repair mode... look for the WSM (WorkShop Manual ) to get the wiring diagram !!
Real curious as to WHAT the spliced wires go to !!!

While you 'could' tape over lightly charred wires, far better to cut/solder/splice using SAME coloured/ gauge wire, or 'ugh'..... a new harness($ 600 ?).Kub Cda show harness,comes with fuse panel and fuses.

Have a very,very careful inspection of each wire,'feel' the plastic, BEND the wires ! If plastic is 'compromised', it'll crack or snap chunks off. Heat kills copper,so if insulation is 'hard stiff', replace.
Me, I'd replace the harness before buying a new hood. Having 'electrical' issues, months from now,in the dead of Winter would NOT be fun.Painful too, form kicking yourself while saying 'I should have....' , 1000 times.

 

[torch]

A tip for your investigation:

If melted insulation is loose on the wire nearby, it suggests the heat was internal -- the wire itself was overheating first (ie: carrying excessive current). This often happens during a short-circuit. If it's still tight on the wire then the heat was external to the wire. EG: another wire against it was overheating, grease was burning, etc.