ctgoldwing
Platinum Member
I think this is not correct.
If it draws 17 amps for one hour, that a 17 amp hour draw.
The watts it uses is 12V * 17A = 204 watts
Battery replacement
- Thread starter 1930
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If it draws 17 amps for one hour, that a 17 amp hour draw.
The watts it uses is 12V * 17A = 204 watts
Monster5601
Platinum Member
If the "all day" the OP is asking for equates to say 10 hours, then a 200 amp hour battery would fill his needs.
He could pick up two, one is charging while one is running the pump. He could also cobble up a solar panel system to power the pump if his pumping is stationary.
oosik
Super Star Member
My neighbor to the south is a big cattle rancher. Same as my neighbor to the north. Anyhow - he has two cattle watering stations - way, way out in the pucker weeds. He has a solar setup to pull water out of shallow wells and provide for his cattle. He seems very pleased with this setup. He sets them up in the spring - brings them in in the fall.
Grumpycat
Elite Member
Well, a 17A new load is not trivial.
Not sure why the OP didn't start with powering the pump off the tractor. Or perhaps a pump driven by the PTO?
The common mistake being repeated here is in believing electrical power is sourced from the battery. The battery is nothing but a buffer of electrical power, storage primarily for starting the engine but once running the battery helps average the voltage available to electrical consumers such as the ignition, lights, fuel pump, radio.
An ammeter would be most desirable but likely one is not fitted and if you didn't know you needed one it is not something we should undertake here. A very low resistor is needed in the ground lead from the battery. And a very sensitive voltmeter across that resistor.
Lacking an ammeter, a volt meter can provide a secondary indication of what is happening. Under power the "battery" voltage should be between 13.8 and 14.9v. Add the water pump and see what happens. If it doesn't drop below 12.6 then you have no trouble, the alternator is good enough. Fully charged lead-acid battery under reasonable load will drop to 12.6v. Could let it go lower for short periods so long as the tractor is running to charge it.
As mentioned earlier your tractor is most likely fitted with an automotive battery. These are not designed for regular discharge below 50%. Don't even like 50%. They are designed for short bursts of high current to drive the starter motor.
Deep cycle lead acid batteries are designed for more frequent discharges below 50% but commodity box store batteries can't do much more than 100 cycles without showing significant degradation.
For serious regular power cycles lithium is the lowest cost per kWh over the life of the battery. But I'm guessing $500 to $1000 for your application. 200Ah is not enough for 204W for 8 hours.
If your alternator doesn't have sufficient power then the cheapest alternative would be to shop for alternator upgrades. Lots of good inexpensive high power automotive alternators exist but I have no idea what mechanically fits your tractor. Electrically it is simple as a nail, modern excited field alternators have an voltage regulator. Basically hook up battery and ground and away you go. There is no concern about the alternator being oversized because the mechanical power drawn from the engine via belt is proportional to the amount of electrical power asked of the alternator.
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ROUSTABOUT
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We have a tank with a pto pump. It works every time we turn the pto on. A small pto pump will be easier to deal with than a 12v pump. On side by sides and 4 wheelers we use 12v pumps.
I was using a 44 cubic yard dump trailer cleaning up after a hurricane in south Florida. I ended up with a generator on the truck bed running a battery charger to operate the dump. Since nothing was open because of the storm, I had to do that for a couple days. Finally bought some welding lead. Ran welding lead from truck batteries to trailer batteries and no problem at all after that. I bought a disconnect and put it near the trailer connection so I could leave the trailer on homestead AFB. FEMA had a camp there, but I didn't stay there overnight. Most times I left the whole rig there. But sometimes I couldn't get a ride, so had to un hook trailer to go in for the evening.
I was using a 44 cubic yard dump trailer cleaning up after a hurricane in south Florida. I ended up with a generator on the truck bed running a battery charger to operate the dump. Since nothing was open because of the storm, I had to do that for a couple days. Finally bought some welding lead. Ran welding lead from truck batteries to trailer batteries and no problem at all after that. I bought a disconnect and put it near the trailer connection so I could leave the trailer on homestead AFB. FEMA had a camp there, but I didn't stay there overnight. Most times I left the whole rig there. But sometimes I couldn't get a ride, so had to un hook trailer to go in for the evening.
ctgoldwing
Platinum Member
Grumpycat I agree with much of your post but. . .
The amp draw for a 204 watt pump =~17amps. 17amps * 8 hours = 136AH
Williy
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IMHO you should get the battery with the highest amp
rating that will fit! When its below ZERO you will have
plenty of amps to start you vehicle
willy
rating that will fit! When its below ZERO you will have
plenty of amps to start you vehicle
willy
arto98607
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One of these would pump water all day/every day, as long as there's gasoline in the tank!
Not a bad price starting at $230
1 in. 79cc Gasoline Engine Clear Water Pump - 35 GPM
2 in. 212cc Gasoline Engine Semi-Trash Water Pump - 158 GPM