Rat Disaster. Need Electrical Help.

[Texasmark]

Since the area is not exposed to weather, I would get a box of name brand butt splices. Stacon or similar. A wire stripper and a crimper.... add a few inches to the harness to ease your working area.... go to town on it.
Remember. you can use a bigger wire size but not a smaller gauge wire in your splicing.

+1. Nice thing about splicing wiring harnesses is the color code tells you what goes where. Having spent 45 years in the electromechanical aspect of the electronics industry I think crimp connections will do just fine. Radio shack or possibly your auto parts store will have a kit with the crimping/insulation stripping/cutting tool and an array of butt splices. I know WW has them here. You'll spend $15 and will take you a lot less time than redoing the whole harness not to mention the $300.

And if worried about weathering, I have butt splices on all my trailers, underneath where road spray gets on/into them and never lost one. Only thing I ever had happen was driving across fields with weeds and brush pulling them apart which you won't have in your dash application.

I built a rat box and put it under my tractor. Filled it with Tom Kat cubes I strung on a wire inside. Screwed on the lid so that I can check it periodically and keep it full.

HTH,
Mark

 

[kencunningham]

As long as you use flux and the tip of your soldering iron is clean you wont have a problem. The only time i every had a problem soldering was when the tip gets dirty with oxidation which doesnt allow the transfer of heat from the iron to the work piece. So clean that tip and solder away.

 

[pmsmechanic]

And if worried about weathering, I have butt splices on all my trailers, underneath where road spray gets on/into them and never lost one. Only thing I ever had happen was driving across fields with weeds and brush pulling them apart which you won't have in your dash application.

I can see getting away with butt splices in an area of the country that rarely gets snow and the roads probably never see salt. I cringe everytime I use one because they have given me so many problems. The worst being a factory butt splice in the middle of the enclosed frame on a horse trailer.

Where salt is used on roads I refuse to use butt splices. Usually the insulation has to be pealed back 6-12 inches before you can find copper that hasn't been corroded black with road salt where a butt splice has been used.


That being said butt splices would probably work OK in the OP's situation but it is so little extra work for the peace of mind to know that the soldered splices will never give problems. Personally I would use marrettes sealed with a dab of silicone long before settling for butt splices. Solder and heat shrink is still better than marrettes in my not so humble opinion.

 

[N80]

You guys are going to shame me into soldering! As I mentioned before, the butt splices I intend to buy have heat shrink on them. So if the crimp holds I don't think water and such will be an issue.

But, I got out my soldering iron, a 25w Weller, pencil type, and I still can't do anything with it. And while I'm not exactly graceful or even very coordinated, I can stitch the end of your finger back on or remove a mole like it was never there.........but I could not solder. In truth, I think it is my soldering iron. It seems to get cold real fast. Touch the solder and it melts. Touch it again a second later and nothing. No melting. No smoke. A few seconds later and it melts the solder. I had a hard time getting the tip tinned. So maybe it is the tool and not me. When I was running RC race trucks all the serious guys had soldering guns and scoffed at the pencil type. I throwing this one out.

 

[N80]

Oh, I ordered the little 6" breather tube today. 25 freakin' bucks! For that much it should be rat proof.

 

[crazyal]

For doing wires you want something like a Weller soldering gun. I like the 200w/ 260w model. Things like wires will suck up lots of heat (vs small electronic components). 25w will be a struggle to get a good joint.

 

[skyhook]

Here's a little tip on soldiering,,
dab a little soldier paste on the wires to be soldiered, soldier loves that stuff.

 

[k0ua]

Tighten the tip of your iron. If you don't know how, post a pix and I will help you.

 

[JRobyn]

SOLDER, guys. Not soldier. Not solider. Not soilder.

- Jay

 

[skyhook]

Yes I am sober....lol

 

[N80]

Update: Got it all wired up. Used butt splices. I got the kind with heat shrink. I found that if the crimp was not made all the way out to the edge of the butt splice they tended to be weak. However, when done properly they hold just fine. I did find that the crimp tool sometimes scored the heat shrink and when heat was applied it would pull away from the connector and expose a little of the metal connector. I wrapped any of these with additional electricians tape. It turns out that the glow plug wire was fine. The wire that was missing was the temp sensor so I wired that back too.

Once it was all wired up I cranked her up and nothing. No dash board lights. No gauges. I started to panic and remembered the fuse. It was blown. Replace it and everything worked fine except the fuel gauge. I followed the wiring from the float unit in the tank all the way to the dash. Checked all my connections. Everything was fine. The fuel gauge has been working on and off for a few years but the needle would still move some. Now, nothing.

I could not figure it out. As mentioned before there are two black wires. Both grounds and both go to the same lead in the wiring diagram so I don't think that is it. I cleaned the connections at the float/sender. Tried to remove the float but one of the hood hinge pins makes it so you can't get it out without removing, or at least loosening the whole fuel tank.

The shop manual says to test voltage at the float/sender. What do I test this with? I've got a voltage tester but it is for home electrical. Will it work on a 12 volt tractor system?

I'll probably just give up on the fuel gauge.

Anyway, did an oil and filter change, fuel filter change, air filters changed and everything lubed while I had everything apart.

 

[N80]

Update: Got it all wired up. Used butt splices. I got the kind with heat shrink. I found that if the crimp was not made all the way out to the edge of the butt splice they tended to be weak. However, when done properly they hold just fine. I did find that the crimp tool sometimes scored the heat shrink and when heat was applied it would pull away from the connector and expose a little of the metal connector. I wrapped any of these with additional electricians tape. It turns out that the glow plug wire was fine. The wire that was missing was the temp sensor so I wired that back too.

Once it was all wired up I cranked her up and nothing. No dash board lights. No gauges. I started to panic and remembered the fuse. It was blown. Replace it and everything worked fine except the fuel gauge. I followed the wiring from the float unit in the tank all the way to the dash. Checked all my connections. Everything was fine. The fuel gauge has been working on and off for a few years but the needle would still move some. Now, nothing.

I could not figure it out. As mentioned before there are two black wires. Both grounds and both go to the same lead in the wiring diagram so I don't think that is it. I cleaned the connections at the float/sender. Tried to remove the float but one of the hood hinge pins makes it so you can't get it out without removing, or at least loosening the whole fuel tank.

The shop manual says to test voltage at the float/sender. What do I test this with? I've got a voltage tester but it is for home electrical. Will it work on a 12 volt tractor system?

I'll probably just give up on the fuel gauge.

Anyway, did an oil and filter change, fuel filter change, air filters changed and everything lubed while I had everything apart.

 

[Scott65]

Usually a meter that will test home circuits will do automotive as well, but not always. It needs to be a multimeter with AC and DC. AC will have a symbol that looks like a single squiggly line. The one you need, DC, will be 2 lines. The top solid, the bottom dashed. Or may appear as dots. If it has auto range, select that. If not, select 10. That will put the decimal in the right spot for your 12.?? volt system.

It's pretty common for a fuel float to be a simple variable resisted ground circuit through the float. If this is the case, an easier way to check is to find the wire behind the dash where you know is coming from the gauge and ground it. See if the gauge pegs one way or another. Then go to the tank end and ground it. If you don't get the same result, there's a break in the wire. If you do get the same result, the problem is in the tank. Typically a corroded wire in the winding or a sunk float. But it would seem like something external since it changed with the rodent damage

Glad to hear you got the rest ironed out! Thanks for keeping us updated!

 

[MinnesotaEric]

Update: Got it all wired up. Used butt splices. I got the kind with heat shrink. I found that if the crimp was not made all the way out to the edge of the butt splice they tended to be weak. However, when done properly they hold just fine. I did find that the crimp tool sometimes scored the heat shrink and when heat was applied it would pull away from the connector and expose a little of the metal connector. I wrapped any of these with additional electricians tape. It turns out that the glow plug wire was fine. The wire that was missing was the temp sensor so I wired that back too.

Once it was all wired up I cranked her up and nothing. No dash board lights. No gauges. I started to panic and remembered the fuse. It was blown. Replace it and everything worked fine except the fuel gauge. I followed the wiring from the float unit in the tank all the way to the dash. Checked all my connections. Everything was fine. The fuel gauge has been working on and off for a few years but the needle would still move some. Now, nothing.

I could not figure it out. As mentioned before there are two black wires. Both grounds and both go to the same lead in the wiring diagram so I don't think that is it. I cleaned the connections at the float/sender. Tried to remove the float but one of the hood hinge pins makes it so you can't get it out without removing, or at least loosening the whole fuel tank.

The shop manual says to test voltage at the float/sender. What do I test this with? I've got a voltage tester but it is for home electrical. Will it work on a 12 volt tractor system?

I'll probably just give up on the fuel gauge.

Anyway, did an oil and filter change, fuel filter change, air filters changed and everything lubed while I had everything apart.

Allow me to introduce you to the best cheap multi-meter that I know of. Only real drawback is that it doesn't beep on continuity. Amazon.com: Mastech MS8268 Digital AC/DC Auto/Manual Range Digital Multimeter Meter: Industrial & Scientific

 

[Coyote machine]

Any quality multimeter will do what you need to test your fuel sender/gauge.
Liquid electrical tape will seal the holes in shrink wrap, butt splices, etc. Marine suppliers sell kits of connectors, shrink wrap, and small palm sized Butane torches that allow waving the flame under shrinkwrap to make it shrink.

Ancor brand is one quality manufacturer. I use them all the time on my boat and tractor. Products | Ancor

 

[timster2]

Next trip near a Harbor Freight pick up one of these free meters, no purchase required and good till Jan 15, it can do the job. Just print this coupon out or load it on a smart phone. I have several and they work just fine for simple tasks.

 

[N80]

Scott, thanks for the advice. Will test things next time I get down to my cabin. And thanks for the tips on the meters and such guys.

 

[k0ua]

If you asked me (and no one did) In 8th grade science class, there should be a day devoted to the use of a multi-meter. With actual lab time, measuring batteries, wires, resistors, variable resistors etc. Then some class time with a brief overview of ohms law. Yes this might take a week of 1 hour classes, but I guarantee, teaching something practical to children that they can actually use for the rest of their life would be worth a whole lot more than some of the current parts of the curriculum. I realize my ideas are not mainstream, and it will never happen, but I still think it is a good idea.

 

[N80]

I agree completely. I had three years of shop class from 6th through 9th grade and the skills I learned there, mostly carpentry and wood working, I still have. However, the part of the brain that understands electricity is missing in my brain. I took physics in college and I passed it, but electricity, like my two years of Spanish, did not stick. No habla electricity.

 

[k0ua]

I agree completely. I had three years of shop class from 6th through 9th grade and the skills I learned there, mostly carpentry and wood working, I still have. However, the part of the brain that understands electricity is missing in my brain. I took physics in college and I passed it, but electricity, like my two years of Spanish, did not stick. No habla electricity.

Give me two hours with you, and a multimeter, and a few props, and I could get you to the point where you could do and understand all that you need to know to fix anything electrical on a tractor. And I would be happy to do it.