Trickle charge a D

[tommyg 154]

Does anyone know if it's OK to put a trickle charge (or any charge for that matter) on a D battery without disconnecting the ground or anything? I have this sticker on mine that says not to weld on the tractor without disconnecting something or other, but I don't know if that applies to charging. Just wondering.

[bitten 134]

Yes you can charge the battery with it hooked up.

The only thing I can think of that would hamper charging it hooked up would be if there is something on the tractor that is pulling juice when the tractor key is in the off position. Not really that it would hamper it as much as there is something wrong that would need fixed. 

[tommyg 154]

Thanks. Any idea why welding without disconnecting the regulator would be an issue?

[wheeledhorseman 579]

Electrical welding can create damage to electronic components and there are some in the rectifier regulator on a 'D'. The warning first appeared on automobiles when alternators (with electronic control) replaced dynamos.

 

There's only the RR to consider on a 'D' and it's the sort of thing that you can probably get away with 9 times out of ten. Having said that, my 'D' had a lot of welding done here and there by a PO and had a non-functional Rectifier Regulator.

 

Andy

[tommyg 154]

So, would removing the battery connection before welding eliminate that risk?

[dbartlett1958 99]

So, would removing the battery connection before welding eliminate that risk?

Yes.

[JamesBe1 84]

To the point about trickle charging, I've had all my tractors on a trickle charger (mostly) all this past winter. I doubt that I did any harm, and it is far better than letting them sit in the cold and potentially freezing (if the charge drops too low).  We'll see in a few weeks, but I'm pretty confident that they will start up and run just fine.

[wheeledhorseman 579]

You're not likely to do any harm James, quite the reverse. Lead acid batteries tend to self discharge and the effect increases with age. So if you fully charge a battery before winter storage, then by spring it will have lost some of its charge even if not connected to anything. If the level of charge falls too much other deterioration of the plates inside will start to occur so overal it's bad news.

 

Trickle charging is a very good idea (I prefer the term 'maintenance charge') and modern chargers automatically switch to this when the main charge is complete usually indicated by a green LED. The current for a maintenance charge is very small and the voltage used lower than for a normal charge which prevents gassing and therefore loss of electrolyte. Older chargers with an ammeter may appear to drop back to virtually no charge when the battery is fully charged but the voltage remains high causing gassing so these old chargers are not suitable.

 

Getting back to the thread, the label referred to mentions welding and fast charging. By 'fast charging' it is referring to the big chargers (usually on wheels) used in workshops that can start an automobile with a flat battery or fast charge the battery at currents in the order of 40 amps. The average home charger tends to charge at perhaps 6 amps max, often less, so there is no need to isolate the RR on a 'D' for this.

 

Andy