JM 284LE Engine RPM & Battery Charge

[corey]

When using the 284LE for light routine mowing what is the lowest engine RPM necessary to maintain the battery charge ?

Thanks in advance for comment and opinion.

corey

 

[bluechip]

IF the battery is low, you should see a slight lean to charge on the amp meter needle. IT is not a good idea to work an engine at low rpm, You should have a green dot indicating the rpm that yeilds 540 rpm on the PTO, this is the speed the tractor is designed to work at. You can adjust to get "favorable harmonics" (less vibration) but I would not work the engine under 1500rpm or so. this should be more than enough to allow the alternator to work fine too.

 

[greg_g]

When using the 284LE for light routine mowing what is the lowest engine RPM necessary to maintain the battery charge ?

Unless YangDong is now using a different alternator on the Y385 than when I owned mine, it should provide sufficient charging voltage all the way down into the idle range (600-900 rpm). The quickest way to a ballpark answer is to see if your headlights get brighter when increasing from idle.

To know for sure, use a multimeter between the battery posts. With the ignition switch off AND a good fully charged battery, you should see ~12.4 volts on the DC scale. It then needs at least 10% extra for charging voltage, which is provided by the alternator after the engine is started. Start the engine and let it idle. Put the multimeter leads back on the battery posts. It should read somewhere between 13.6 and 14.5 volts. 14.5 is great, but if it's less than 13.6 then increase the engine speed. Obviously you're looking for the rpm that produces the best charging voltage as indicated by your multimeter. If you can't get the voltages specified, further troubleshooting will be required.

//greg//