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battery question

I'm having a lot of problems keeping my truck batteries charged while plowing snow. I do a lot of plowing and my charging system can't keep up. The charging system checks out fine. I've been told I could put a relay in the system, but do not know where or what size or type to install.

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Permalink Reply by Gary Prawdzik on February 9, 2010 at 12:19pm

I don't think adding any kind of relay is a answer. If everything is right - everything should work fine. I think a trip back to your shop is in order. I suspect they missed something.

Did they check the plow ground? Did they check to see if your plow or anything else is drawing current with the ignition switch off? Have them check the current draw of your plow pump motor.

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Permalink Reply by Mr. Plow on February 9, 2010 at 12:21pm

Most snow plowing is done at low engine speeds. You can reduce your alternator pulley diameter. Just a little will help a lot. Maybe an eighth or a quarter of an inch. Also did your shop check your low speed alternator output? High amp alternators do not have much low speed output. A smaller pulley will increase your alternator speed. A weak or small a battery will not store a lot of energy.

Other suspects include your cranking system or the starter. Hope that helps.

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Permalink Reply by Chris lawn care services on December 11, 2010 at 10:40pm

We had the same problem with a 1996 ford f250 with a boss plow and the problem was a bad battery and than i took it to a mechanic and he tested the plow and the motor was tge problem we replaced the motor and so far so good.

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Permalink Reply by Dirty Boys Concrete LLC on December 19, 2010 at 11:14pm

I run a chevy/gmc trucks with saltdogg 2000 and boss 9'2" XT. I had a problem with the batteries dieing when you are moving the plow a lot and salting on and off. I through in the highest cca(coldcracking amp) batterys i could find. This helped but then i swapped out the 105 amp alternators and through in 145 amp alternators. Fixed the problem. DO NOT put in a rely its a waste of money, if the high output does not work, through in the diesel battery setup of your truck, usually concists of cables and a battery pan. But you should be good with just the alternator. PS check all plow and battery connections to make sure they are tight!!!!!! that will kill your power faster then anything.

Jadon-DBC