My BX2200 runs hotter when mowing than roto-tilling

[davesl708]

I have had my BX for three years now and just started mowing my one acre with the MMM. I notice when doing FEL work or roto-tilling the yard the temp only moves up about a quarter of the temp gauge. When I mow the temp goes up to about 1/3 of the gauge.

Does this seem normal? I work the BX pretty hard with the FEL and tiller. Seem the temp should not change. It has not gotten hot here yet. Not even 80 deg. I worry about what the temp will do when the temp gets up in the upper nineties or hundreds this summer.

 

[Sysop]

Generally tilling or loader work isn't a continuous load. With tilling you take a swipe and reposition to take another. With mowing you are generally under a steady load as most folk cut in a spiral pattern to make a continuous cut.

Another thought, have you greased your mower spindles? Feel the spindle housings just below the belt, if the housings are hot there may not be enough grease, a shaft could be bent, or a blade out of balance. The spindle housings should get warm but not hot.

 

[davesl708]

Thanks. Yes the spindles get plenty of grease. Blades are sharp and well balanced. I will wait and see what the temp does this summer.

 

[G31]

If you're talking about the temp. gauge on the dash, it's only measuring engine coolant.

I mow at 3000 RPM for over an hour. The temp gauge does climb, but the engine is running high speed for a while. Not much else I do requires as much speed and time, so it makes sense. I have never seen it climb to dangerous levels, but it gets above half.

 

[sandyc]

Thinking about that and could the mower set up an air current that does not allow cool air to get to the rad? Just a thought.

 

[dodge man]

Some of the newer BX's show pretty hot on the gauge when mowing. Nothing I do with my BX makes the temp climb as much as mowing does. I'd say its normal, just make sure the radiator is clean.

 

[rjkobbeman]

The mower deck probably requires more HP than you think. Plus, with mowing you are actually driving the HST continuously. With tilling, you move a little then wait, the move a little, then wait. Do you use low range when tilling?

My biggest problem when mowing is plugging the radiator and screens. After two or three hours of mowing, I have to blow air rearward to clean out the radiator. Sometimes I remove the battery and use a shop-vac. Regardless, when not plugged, my BX runs no hotter than its "warmed up" indicator.

 

[zoltanthegypsy]

My BX24 was getting very close to the red mowing (with a hog) the other day. It usually runs hot but this was extreme.

I popped the hood to make sure that the rad fan was spinning. It was. Later on when the machine was off, I happened to try to spin the fan by hand. It moved easily and there probably wasn't enough adjustment available to snug it up properly. I got a replacement.

Long way of saying that the belt had worn "skinny" and was slipping on the fan sheave and the fan wasn't pushing (pulling...) air like it should.

Z.

 

[bellweather]

As others have stated, mowing requires continuous high rpm, whereas most other tasks only require intermittent high rpm. Plus mowing often happens when it is hot outside. I have a mmm plus a rear pto driven bagger and I mow at full throttle. The temp gauge needle goes about half way, but never in the red. Be sure to check coolant and oil levels, both of which can influence temperature. FWIW, I also use my pto driven snowblower at full throttle but the engine runs cooler, I believe because it's really cold outside.

 

[tcreeley]

To reach 540 rpm pto speed my TC30 needs to run about 2400 rpm. I was tilling the garden at that speed and it just didn't sound right. I dropped the rpms to 2100-2200 rpms and the engine sounded better and had plenty of power for the tiller. I bush hog between 1800 and 2000.
I sometimes think that our vehicles are not really designed to run a 540 rpm pto speed - leading to over heating etc..
I don't have much experience with other tractors- but I think we need to find the comfort level for our tractors and forget the book sometimes.

 

[bellweather]

Not sure about other BX tractors, but the BX22 does not have a tachometer.

 

[Grandad4]

I have had my BX for three years now and just started mowing my one acre with the MMM. I notice when doing FEL work or roto-tilling the yard the temp only moves up about a quarter of the temp gauge. When I mow the temp goes up to about 1/3 of the gauge.

Does this seem normal? I work the BX pretty hard with the FEL and tiller. Seem the temp should not change. It has not gotten hot here yet. Not even 80 deg. I worry about what the temp will do when the temp gets up in the upper nineties or hundreds this summer.

Pretty normal for it to get warm like that when mowing. I let mine cool down at idle for a while before shutting down the engine. It also helps to clear the grass clippings that accumulate on the intake screen at your feet periodically as you mow.

 

[Barneyhunts]

The mower deck probably requires more HP than you think. Plus, with mowing you are actually driving the HST continuously. With tilling, you move a little then wait, the move a little, then wait. Do you use low range when tilling?

My biggest problem when mowing is plugging the radiator and screens. After two or three hours of mowing, I have to blow air rearward to clean out the radiator. Sometimes I remove the battery and use a shop-vac. Regardless, when not plugged, my BX runs no hotter than its "warmed up" indicator.

This is a good point. I often find a build up behind the battery even though I check and clean the radiator screen often. Sometimes just brushing off the front of the "battery grill" can make a difference. It is right in front of us and often we don't notice the build up.

 

[JWR]

This is a good point. I often find a build up behind the battery even though I check and clean the radiator screen often. Sometimes just brushing off the front of the "battery grill" can make a difference. It is right in front of us and often we don't notice the build up.

I am relieved to hear this discussion. Both my own BX2200 and my daughter's BX2200 run "hot" when mowing. By "hot" I mean well above mid range, not in the red. Never goes in the red but certainly gets to 90% of that on the temp gauge. I use the 60" deck only most of the year but run that plus the PTO driven bagger in the fall. These attachments put more load on the 3 cyl than anything else I use (way more than a 40" tiller, way more than routine FEL work.) From what I hear all of you say this "running hot" is the nature of these machines, especially in very hot weather at full tilt with the 60" mower deck. My guess is "all is well" but I think they need a higher flow water pump. The radiator seems plenty big for that size engine.

 

[Grandad4]

I am relieved to hear this discussion. Both my own BX2200 and my daughter's BX2200 run "hot" when mowing. By "hot" I mean well above mid range, not in the red. Never goes in the red but certainly gets to 90% of that on the temp gauge. I use the 60" deck only most of the year but run that plus the PTO driven bagger in the fall. These attachments put more load on the 3 cyl than anything else I use (way more than a 40" tiller, way more than routine FEL work.) From what I hear all of you say this "running hot" is the nature of these machines, especially in very hot weather at full tilt with the 60" mower deck. My guess is "all is well" but I think they need a higher flow water pump. The radiator seems plenty big for that size engine.

Just because the temp gauge indicates a higher temperature doesn't mean the engine is overheating. A key distinction between gas and diesel engines is these little diesels are made to operate continuously under a full load, where they run most efficiently at a nice toasty temperature. Giving the thing more cooling capacity so it could run cooler would be the wrong thing to do. True overheating, where the coolant is gone, can be catastrophic of course, but damage can also occur if it never gets hot enough.

 

[JWR]

Just because the temp gauge indicates a higher temperature doesn't mean the engine is overheating. A key distinction between gas and diesel engines is these little diesels are made to operate continuously under a full load, where they run most efficiently at a nice toasty temperature. Giving the thing more cooling capacity so it could run cooler would be the wrong thing to do. True overheating, where the coolant is gone, can be catastrophic of course, but damage can also occur if it never gets hot enough.

I agree higher indicated temp does not mean it is overheating. I said it was not in the red. It is not overheating per se. It is not losing coolant nor spewing steam. The main missing ingredient in this discussion is the thermostat. What temperature is the thermostat made to maintain? I say it ought to be a point in the mid part of the gauge provided. The thermostat should be such that it maintains the coolant temperature near the optimal temperature for the little diesel. If that is a nice toasty high temperature, so be it. I don't care. Putting in a higher volume water pump does NOT mean giving the thing more than needed cooling capacity so it could run cooler. Instead, it means giving the machine the ability to control & keep the coolant at or near the optimal temperature, what ever temp that may be. The fact that the temperature is not maintained at a gauge level consistent with normal industry-wide indicators on these machines is silly. I say a higher capacity water pump would simply bring the coolant temp back faster to where the thermostat says it ought to be. That has no bearing on how hot or cool the neat little diesels like to operate. By the way most if not all other tractors (most diesels) tend to be very conservative and the gauge stays down near mid range or below under a wide range of conditions. If they run up toward the top of the range you better go look into the trouble even if they are not in the red. That's what gauges are for. At least that is my viewpoint.

 

[Grandad4]

I'd agree the temp gauge isn't one of the more refined pieces of engineering on the BX. Was just making the point that the problem isn't the actual engine operation; it's the monitoring indicator and its dial indicator. Before fiddling with the engine's cooling system, I'd think getting a better gauge setup would be the place to start. A more normal gauge calibration, as you say, would make it easier to see when the engine is in its normal operating range and when it's truly overheating.

 

[dodge man]

The ideal would be a gauge the read numbers instead of a random scale. I agree with others, probably nothing wrong with the tractor, its just the gauge reads higher than people are used to seeing so it freaks them out.

 

[Raw Dodge]

It sounds like your radiators on your bx and your daughters machine are partiality blocked with grass clippings, my father in law has the bx1850 and it started running hot this year mowing but only in thick grass, ,i removed the screen under the dash , slid battery out and the radiator was half way blocked a minute with the handheld leaf blower and all is well again.

 

[JWR]

It sounds like your radiators on your bx and your daughters machine are partiality blocked with grass clippings, my father in law has the bx1850 and it started running hot this year mowing but only in thick grass, ,i removed the screen under the dash , slid battery out and the radiator was half way blocked a minute with the handheld leaf blower and all is well again.

Good input. I have pulled the slide screen out, cleaned it and used compressed air to blow out debris and clippings. Did this when the engine seemed to be running too high on the temp gauge but also several times each summer. While that (or anything restricting flow thru the radiator) certainly can cause it to run hotter that was not the problem in my case. The daughter's machine is in the shop now because it had coughed up some coolant during VERY hot (100 + degree) weather while mowing. Dealer down there is going to flush the system and clean it out. Maybe that will shed some light. I probably need to flush mine. I was relieved to hear that many other BX2200 owners find theirs running toward the hot side when mowing, not just me.