Did I blow the rectifier on my 520H?

[Jake217 20]

Hey All,

 

I did something really stupid. 

 

I took an older battery out of my 520H and put in a newer one that I know had a full charge. I didn't plan on using the tractor for a while, so I put one of those battery tenders on the terminals to keep the charge up for when i did need the tractor.    Yesterday, I fired up the tractor and I didn't notice that I had the battery tender still connected and plugged in.  I happened to notice that I was not getting my full 3600 RPM's at full throttle, so I had the Onan running at full tilt while I adjusted the throttle cable and the high speed throttle stop with the battery tender throwing voltage as well. As soon as I noticed that the battery tender was still connected, I shut everything down and took off the tender.  Now the voltage meter on the dash is showing no charging no matter the RPM. I then had to head to the airport and have checked nothing yet.

 

I am now out of town and trying to lay out a plan to test the rectifier/regulator, stator, battery, all of the fuses, etc when I get back.  It then occurred to me that maybe someone on this forum could point me in the right direction as to what the most likely culprit might be and what I should test first based on a clear description of the stupid thing I did. I was going to start with a charging/no charging test and then move on from there.

 

Any thoughts on what I most likely fried?

 

Thanks for any help.

[oldredrider 2,553]

No need to panic....yet. Check all of your fuses first and then, if necessary, go from there.

Probably nothing serious.

[Save Old Iron 1,573]

A quick check would be to look at the voltage on the voltmeter while the ignition key is on but engine is off. Voltmeters are notorious for inaccurate indications but the engine off voltage should be somewhere in the 12 - 12.5 volt range. Start the engine, the voltmeter should rise to about 2 volts greater than the engine off reading. The jump in voltage to about 14 - 14.5 should indicate the charge system is functional.

 

Leaving a trickle charger connected to the battery while the engine is running full throttle WILL NOT cause any damage.

[Jake217 20]

Thanks Guys.  I feel better now.  I'll be home tomorrow and I'll go through a step by step diagnosis.  The voltage gauge had always read within .5 volts of my digital multi-meter.  I'll post what I find out.

 

Thanks Again.