squonk 38,965 #1 Posted May 21, 2016 We've all seen the posts. "My tractor only clicks" Ammeter read discharge ect. Many times it's just a little dirt behind the ears and between the toes. Here's what happened to me today during my latest mowing session with EZRA. As I was finishing up I happened to look down at the ammeter. It was slightly discharging. didn't have time to work on it right away but later I started it up and the ammeter stayed on the discharge side. So I shut it off and got my trusty Chrysler 1986 Gold Tool Award multimeter out and checked the voltage of the battery. It read 12.5 V . Started it back up and had 14.7V. Looked at the ammeter again and now it's charging. All I did was probe the battery cables and the problem is gone. Let's look at the battery. Typical Garden Tractor variety dirt on the battery. Battery will come out for cleaning. Terminals show a slight bit of corrosion. Cleaned up the cables and cleaned the battery. You can see the battery cleaner working by the purple color. Testing the battery. This is 2 1/2 years old. 375 cranking amp battery still shows 375 Amps. all back together and still shows recharge after starting on the ammeter. 6 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Digger 66 3,476 #2 Posted May 21, 2016 Good post ! I see you have the pigtail hardwired for the Tender Jr too ( just like all my toyz ) Pressure washers can also wreak havoc on electrical connections too . Not so much on the exposed terminals & such but where the water can sit & slowly chew away at the copper . A Google search will reveal the effects of chlorine on copper . 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DougC 2,641 #3 Posted May 21, 2016 Doesn't take much corrosion to make a amp or volt gauge to screw up. I have a 1995 Chevy 4x4 that approx. every 18 months shows a dash volt gauge reading way down below 14v where it normally runs. When checked at the back of the alt. with fluke multimeter shows 14.3...... Battery cables tight and no evidence of corrosion. Remove positive cables ( I have double cables mated/sandwiched together on pos. terminal.) clean with wire brush and whatever gets the job done, reinstall and whadda-ya-know.... Gauge reads above 14v as it should...... Sure gets a guys blood pressure soaring to see a dash gauge reading wrong and at just the wrong time...... 4 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AMC RULES 36,945 #4 Posted May 21, 2016 Good tip... now, I gotta clean some batterys. 4 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
953 nut 51,775 #5 Posted May 21, 2016 Seems like we tell a new member that a couple times a week. What were you using to clean the battery? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
squonk 38,965 #6 Posted May 21, 2016 37 minutes ago, AMC RULES said: Good tip... now, I gotta clean some batterys. You might need a week off from work to get it done! 19 minutes ago, 953 nut said: Seems like we tell a new member that a couple times a week. What were you using to clean the battery? Permatex spray on battery cleaner from Napa 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KC9KAS 4,741 #7 Posted May 22, 2016 @squonk Very good lesson on battery and connections cleaning! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TIGman 2,006 #8 Posted June 5, 2016 Just the information I was looking for.. Electrical connections on my 875 are in tough shape and need lots of attention . After setting 10 yrs I can only imagine..... 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
