Battery drain

wayne gulliver · Sep 18, 2017

My New Holland T1510 with 100 hours on it has a parasitic drain on the battery of almost an Amp which kills my battery. When I unplug the Safety Controller wiring harness it goes away. If I remove the fuse that feeds 12v to the safety controller it goes away. With a meter in series with the battery showing the drain I have unplugged all the safety sensors on the tractor and I cannot find the short? The safety controller may be the problem and the Ford dealer says it will cost $622. Anyone any suggestions? Thanks

Bern · Sep 18, 2017

Sounds to me like the controller is at fault, based on the testing you describe. That said, I would say that you have 2 choices: 1) Buck up and buy a new controller, or 2) put a battery disconnect switch on your battery and shut it off every time you park it.

JMOR · Sep 18, 2017

3rd choice...swap for an older tractor without all that bureaucratic BS!

WayneB · Sep 19, 2017

Why not disconnect the safety controller, and power it by an ignition fed relay?
Not sure how much amperage the safety controller draws, whether simply powering it from an ignition tab is a low amperage option?
My TWO CENTS.

Wayne in VA

Bern · Sep 19, 2017

Excellent idea!

souNdguy · Sep 19, 2017

As the others have said.. you have a few options based on your observations.

1, buy a new controller.

2, master battery switch.

3, ignition controlled relay to give it that 'automagic' feel.

I'd go option 3 myself.

David G · Sep 19, 2017

What is a safety controller?

Sean in PA · Sep 20, 2017

What is a safety controller?

Newer tractors have a lot of safety systems to ensure that you don't hurt yourself by trying to do stupid things, either because of government regulations or because the tractor manufacturers have been sued too many times over particular issues.

I'm not familiar with that particular tractor model, but a safety controller is generally an electronic circuit that applies logic to the inputs from various safety sensors, like the seat safety switch that tells it whether someone is sitting in the seat, the neutral or park safety switch that tells it whether the transmission is in neutral or park, the brake pedal safety switch that tells is whether the brake pedal is pressed, the PTO safety switch that tells it whether the PTO control is in the engaged or disengaged position, etc. And based on the input from all of those safety sensors it enables or disables various functions on the tractor, like the ability to start the engine, or engage the PTO or if you get off of the seat it may shut off the PTO or the engine depending on the way the particular tractor is designed.

Battery drain

wayne gulliver

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Bern

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JMOR

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WayneB

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Bern

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souNdguy

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David G

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Sean in PA

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