RE: (ET) Ccccold Batteries

["T Humphrey" <thumphrey mynra com>]

Sorry for the confusion, It's my Go Pedal that doesn't return, not 
the brake pedal. It will continue to creep, until I lift the 
slider with my toe, or engage the brake, which drops out the 
contactor, which won't engage again until the go pedal resets 
(returns to "zero").

Stay Charged!
Hump


---------- Original Message ----------------------------------
From: "Pieter Litchfield" <plitch attglobal net>
Date:  Tue, 20 Jan 2004 15:09:50 -0500

>As to the brake pedal - sounds like a helper spring (like an old 
screen door
>elongated "snake"style spring) might be helpful.  In addition, it 
may be
>that the brake cutout switch is not resetting after the pedal 
moves back
>automatically.  In this case, you may have to add a helper spring 
to the
>brake cuttoff switch.  Never disconnect it because I'll guarantee 
that the
>motor is more powerful than the wimpy brake on an ET, and plowing 
up the
>neighbors car probably would not be well received.
>
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: elec-trak-bounces cosmos phy tufts edu
>[mailto:elec-trak-bounces cosmos phy tufts edu]On Behalf Of T 
Humphrey
>Sent: Tuesday, January 20, 2004 2:43 PM
>To: elec-trak cosmos phy tufts edu
>Subject: (ET) Ccccold Batteries
>
>
>OK Where do I start.....
>
>It's cold and so are my batteries. So obviously I have reduced
>range.
>
>I have noticed two things and have some questions also so if my
>thoughts seem distracted it's because they are, please bear with
>me.
>
>
>I have a Landis controller. I noticed one day when it was a nice
>warm -10 degrees outside (yeah, neg 10, not uncommon in the
>northeast lately) that my range was greatly reduced. I was plowing
>the driveway, then the neighbors driveway, and  STOP, no slowing
>down just STOP. No readings on the gauges, no power to anything.
>Actually I should confess, my wife was doing the plowing, and
>could not tell me what the gauges were doing just before the shut
>down. Anyway after about 6-7 minutes, click, everything came back
>up. I told her to take it back to the garage.
>
>Plugged it in, it immediately started to charge, .....good. I am
>fortunate that I heat my house with a wood boiler, and it is in
>the same garage stall as the ET. So I have a real good reason to
>visit the ET every 4 hours or so. I noticed after about 12 hours
>that the charger had stopped and was now in the "Landis Phase".
>This seemed really bad to me, since when I was using the stock
>timer it would run continuous for what 15-18 hours or so. Has
>anyone timed the timer?
>
>Two days later, she was plowing again. She could not finish our
>own driveway, let alone the neighbors. I figured it was not a full
>charge on the batteries. (Yes David, I will go get a hydrometer).
>So I did two things;
>
>1. I made a jumper wire that I can clip onto the Landis Controller
>to bypass it, which allows it to run constantly until I remove the
>jumper.
>
>2. Figuring in the sub-zero cold this time of year, I reset to
>Landis Controller to come on at 41v.  Thats 2.27 vpc, is this too
>high, should I go higher? I will reset it back to 39 when the
>warmer weather comes. I noticed after a 36 hour constant on charge
>(very slight gassing, almost unnoticable) with the controller set
>at 41v, it is still cycling every 20 minutes or so.
>
>After my 36 hour charge, I was able to plow my driveway and have
>lots of power when I got done. Put it on charge, let the Landis
>charge it, It started cycling after less than 8 hours so I
>bypassed it for the overnight, in case I needed it again in the
>AM.  Then let the Landis take over. Like I said I am in the garage
>at leat every 4 hours, so there's no chance that I will forget to
>remove the bypass.
>
>There is one more possibility that could result in my wifes loss
>of power on the tractor. The pedal is very sluggish on the return
>stroke when it's this cold. If she, I, we, were to stop the
>tractor with the brake, and the pedal didn't return all the way
>off, then the tractor will not restart until it gets "reset to
>zero". I noticed many times, when I was plowing, that I had to
>lift the slider with my toe. Any suggestions, I'm thinking heavier
>spring as this one is pretty weak at the top.
>
>
>trying to...
>
>Stay Charged!
>Hump
>I-5 NY
>
>
>
>
>
>
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