What do sparks mean?

[Iplayfarmer]

I was tilling a neighbor's garden tonight and I saw sparks coming out of my exhaust. It may just be that this is the first time that I ran the tractor very hard in the dark (work has been pretty busy lately), but I haven't seen sparks come out of the exhaust before.

Is that normal?

Does it indicate that there might be some problem?

Like I said, I was tilling. I was running at pretty high RPM's and working the tractor hard but not really "Lugging" the engine or anything.

 

[ALABAMA_KID]

It probably is rust scale in the muffler and pipe blowing out.
They are very thin and are "glowing red" when they come out.
I see it on some of my equipment that may set for a while between work outs. Dosen't take long for something to have surface rust after being hot..

 

[thcri]

I have seen it many times on gas engines. Usually it is just rust spots in the muffler or pipe. But I can't say I have ever seen it on a diesel?

murph

 

[ccsial]

My ford 1910 has always made sparks at night. I think it is quite normal.

 

[hudr]

Work any engine hard, and you will get rust scale, carbon deposits and other detritus blowing out the exhaust. It is normal. Not much on a tractor to "trap" that stuff before it makes it to the outside world.
neat anecdote: we have an old 806 International that had WAY too much fuel turned to it. On a cool night, pulling a 12'7" cutting disc, it could be made to run about 4" of fire from the exhaust. looked cool, but not a good idea to keep crowding it like that though. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
Don't worry about the sparks. they are normal.

 

[Steve_Miller]

I'll second what Hud has said. My old B7200 Kubota used to do this on regular basis when you work it hard. I used to notice sparks every five to ten seconds when I was snowblowing at night. Some of the newer machines do have spark arrestors on the exhaust. With most forestry equipment I think it is pretty well mandatory to have spark arresting exhausts.

Steve

 

[hobbyfarm]

Iplayfarmer,
I have to agree with what the others have said. It could be rust or loosened bits of carbon somewhere in the exhaust system.
This is why the Forest Service wants all engines to have some sort of spark arrestor on the exhaust.
Be careful that you don't start a grass fire when conditions are dry.
That could be a big OOPS! /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

 

[bam747]

FYI, Deere offers a spark arrestor as an option (in their configurator) for the 4x20 series.

 

[jimainiac]

I, too, encounterd this phenomenum this summer with our old L245 while running flat out down a gravel road to bushog. It was mid day, so I didn't see it but felt it. I thought gravel was hitting my arms. It was the muffler/stack self-destructing from rust.

 

[CT_Tree_Guy]

IPF:

I agree with all the other posters that it's probably perfectly normal. I experience the same thing when cutting wood as the light is failing - I can see little sparks flying that I don't see in the daytime. And of course I mean when cutting good clean wood, not dirt or rocks - THOSE sparks I CAN see in the daytime. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

I guess the sparks are from little bits of mineral in the wood that account for the unavoidable kind of dulling of saw chains. If the chrome edge of the cutters never encountered anything harder than themselves, maybe theoretically a chain would stay sharp forever.