Glow plug stays on and drains battery; alternator won't charge. Alternator and battery are both new. Once the key is off and battery is charged, nothing is leaking or draining off the battery. When battery is disconnected, the alternator will charge the battery, but if it's hooked it back up it won't charge. Disconnecting glow plug helps a bit but battery still draws down when it's running. Is it a problem with the harness? Something else? Took to mechanic and he is stumped. Thank you for any thoughts. Mike
Electrical Issue Model L3710
- Thread starter Mike S.
- Start date
GreensvilleJay
Well-known member
Equipment
BX23-S,57 A-C D-14,58 A-C D-14, 57 A-C D-14,tiller,cults,Millcreek 25G spreader,
Without seeing the wiring diagram, I suspect the glow plug relay contacts are welded together, so battery is powering the GPs '24/7'. 3 GPs drawing 10 amps is 30 amps and alternator can't supply that load AND recharge the battery....
I also assume there's a fuse for the glowplugs. Manual should talk about it. Find and remove....then see what happens.
It's a quik ,easy troubleshoot WITH the wiring diagram.
I also assume there's a fuse for the glowplugs. Manual should talk about it. Find and remove....then see what happens.
It's a quik ,easy troubleshoot WITH the wiring diagram.
Not sure what you are trying to say here.... How can the battery be charging when it is not even connected to the alternator?
Most mechanics know little or nothing about electricity. If it doesn't fit their list of "what to do when...", they are lost. So, don't be scared when a mechanic is stumped by an electrical problem. It's normal. No big deal. It just means it's not in his bag of "fixes".
Jay is right - with the GPs constantly on, your alternator hasn't got a chance. So, you know you have a problem with your GPS staying on, right? That's a separate problem from the charging problem - the GPs should not stay on, whether it's charging or not.
So, here's a huge tip any time you are troubleshooting a complex problem:
Fix known problems first.
Just do that. Don't try to figure out how it all fits together. You know one problem? Fix that.
THEN see where you are.
That's how you eat that elephant.
You know the GPs should not stay on, so concentrate on that problem only. Use a trickle charger as needed to keep you going, but fix that GP problem.
Then you have cleared some smoke that should let you see the charging problem more clearly.
Might even fix the charging problem, but you won't know that until you fix the GP problem.
Actually, disconnecting all the GPs would allow one to test if the alternator can charge the battery. (there is a single connection to do this)
HOWEVER: I agree with you that one should always FIX KNOWN ISSUES before tacking other problems.