Belarus 562 battery explosion

Truman123 · Oct 23, 2020

I have a belarus 562 with an electrical issue. Last year I had some wires that apparently shorted and melted together from the battery to the starter (3). I replaced 2 that were obvious where they went and a third wire that I believed went to a terminal just below the hood towards front of tractor. Tractor started and ran ok for several months.
This tractor doesn't get used very often and I went to start it this spring. batteries were low so had to recharge. When I went to start it, the battery on left side (looking from behind) exploded!! Never had that happen before, swapped the battery and started ok. Tractor sat for few weeks before using again and once again batteries were low. Recharged and went to start and the swapped battery exploded. Replaced the battery and started OK.
Now I'm apprehensive about even starting the tractor. Never have had a battery explode before, but to have two at the same location is kinda scary. Is that bad luck or what may be wrong. When you replace the battery it starts fine? Any help or advice. Thanks Ron

flying belgian · Oct 23, 2020

Hmm. Must have a short on the positive cable right in the battery box. Or is the battery box cover touching the +terminal.

BarnyardEngineering · Oct 23, 2020

The battery is off-gassing hydrogen and a spark is igniting it. Think Hindenburg disaster.

Charging the battery generates the hydrogen gas. A poor connection can spark when you hit the starter. BOOM!

DaveBN · Oct 23, 2020

Is this a 24 volt system? If so the batteries should be connected in
series. I would check how they are connected to each other.
Dave

MSM · Oct 23, 2020

If I remember it starts
on 24 volts and runs on
12 volts through a series
parallel switch. The
tractor may not be
charging and the low
battery may be gassing
off under load and arcs
on a bad connection. Test
both batteries, should
have 12.2 volts if the
tractor is charging. If
both batteries are low
the tractor isn't
charging, and putting in
another battery may give
it enough to crank

Bruce from Can. · Oct 23, 2020

I agree with Barnyard Engineers, the reason the
battery exploded was because it was venting gas.
When you turned on the ignition, a spark ignited the
hydrogen gas. Buildings like warehouses, that run
electric fork lifts have hydrogen gas detectors,
because recharging the fork lift batteries gives of
the explosive hydrogen gas. If allowed to build up
inside of a building, it could cause and explosions.
Probably we will all being to heat more in the
future about hydrogen gas as an alternative fuel for
automobiles. The idea is the hydrogen gas would
be used to power a fuel cell. Burned hydrogen
exhaust is as I understand, water. Creates vision in
my mind of cars in cold climates with large icicles
hanging on tail pipes, lol. Sounds pretty far fetched,
but so did flying back in 1900.

John T · Oct 23, 2020

Pretty basic and simple really. Overcharging or even regular charging and/or a bad battery causing explosive hydrogen gas out the top coupled with a nearby (especially a terminal) spark caused by a weak or arcing connection EXPLOSION !!!!!!!!!!!

John T

Truman123 · Oct 23, 2020

(quoted from post at 10:26:25 10/23/20) Pretty basic and simple really. Overcharging or even regular charging and/or a bad battery causing explosive hydrogen gas out the top coupled with a nearby (especially a terminal) spark caused by a weak or arcing connection EXPLOSION !!!!!!!!!!!

John T

Thanks, I often need my battery charger because tractor set awhile between uses. If I wait an hour or so after charging will that gas have dissipated or can I use a fan or something to blow it away. Ive cleaned and greased all terminal connections to eliminate spark. Can I be confident that this just a random occurrence due to overcharging and not some other cause? Ron

Russ from MN · Oct 23, 2020

Being low on water can contribute to batteries exploding, but there has to be a spark from somewhere to ignite it.

retired farmer · Oct 23, 2020

You better check it over very carefully. Had a Case 2290 set over the winter and six months later both batteries blew up one
night and burned the tractor to the ground.

Case Nutty 1660 · Oct 23, 2020

For Sure a short at the battery I would guess a bad cable where two did it

37 chief · Oct 23, 2020

I had a battery explode. It was on a Ford Pinto. The battery had just been charged. When I started it the top blew off. Ford mounted the starter solenoid right above the battery. Not a good idea. Stan

Tom in TN · Oct 23, 2020

I was in the US Navy a long time ago. We had a room FULL of lead acid batteries for a communication application. As part of our routine maintenance we checked the
specific gravity in each and every cell about once a month. We had a chief petty officer who was a complete idiot in charge of our shop. One day I was doing the
specific gravity checks and our idiot chief came walking into the room smoking a cigar. It took me about 10 seconds to get out of that room and shut the door behind me.
I went to our division officer and requested that he move me to a different shop. He didn't, but I never saw that chief smoking in the battery room again.

Tom in TN

phil25 · Oct 23, 2020

I don't know your model exactly, just wondering if there is a "ground switch" located under the dash, left side, facing forward sitting in the seat?, it connects the neg post of the battery to the tractor frame.
With the same battery exploding, after charging this switch is within inches of that battery could be your ignition source? does the battery explode when this ground switch is made? or when you turn the key to either pre-heat or directly to start?
Are you charging the batteries with this ground switch on or off, maybe its a reason why the left is over charged compared to the right? sort of one battery instead of two being charged?
With the 12/24 system are you using a 12 volt charger and one at a time, or a 24 volt charger to do both batteries?
hope it helps

ss55 · Oct 23, 2020

A simple battery disconnect switch works well to reduce battery drain on vehicles that are sit idle for weeks or months at a time.

Truman123 · Oct 23, 2020

My ground switch is on the right side of battery compartment. Opposite side of battery that exploded. Explosion occurred when I hit the starter switch. I’m charging with ground switch off and a 12 v charger and can’t remember for sure, but may have run my assist charger at 40a for a few minutes. I’ve often started with the larger charger. This is a 24v starting system.
1.At this point, I guess I did the rewiring correctly or it would never start and run. There are two wires that attach to the positive terminal of the battery in addition to the starter cable.
2. I’ve cleaned and applied thin coat of grease on battery terminal, but apparently still creating an arc someplace near the battery. I’ll look over more closely before I start again.
3.in lieu of a disconnect switch, I’ve just disconnected the battery for now.
4. In both cases the battery blew out the side of the case, So am assuming the arc would have to occur at the terminals.
Going forward, when I need to utilize the charger, is there away to remove this gas build up prior to starting the tractor. Over the years I’ve done this so many times on this tractor and other equipment. Now after reading all these post, getting a little gun shy.

I appreciate all the info you guys have given. Nice to know there’s help out there. ‘‘Tis Ron

DavidP,South Wales · Oct 23, 2020

This is something everyone needs to be aware of. I was charging a
tractor battery some years ago and without any thought started using
an angle grinder nearby. As you say, BOOM!!!!! A piece of the battery
top went up about 10 feet and through the clear plastic roof sheet.
Been more careful since!!!!
DavidP, South Wales

willie in mn · Oct 23, 2020

Truman
You mentioned cleaning the terminal & applying a thin coat of grease. Just exactly where are you putting the grease??
Grease is an insulator! It prevents the cable clamp from making a good connection. If there is a trace of grease between the clamp & the battery post it can't make good contact. It might make enough contact for a light load, but the heavy draw of the starter makes it arc & go BOOM!
Another possibility is a bad connection of the clamp onto the end of the cable itself.

HTH
Willie

Truman123 · Oct 23, 2020

WOW, didn’t know that. I’ve been putting grease on the battery post and connector for years. Was told that it would cut down on corrosion to the battery post. Will clean that all off before I try again. Do you know if there is a way to dilute the gas after using a charger? I have several pieces of equipment using one or two batteries and seems I always have a charger hooked up somewhere and had never considered that as a potential problem. Tks

SDE · Oct 23, 2020

Check your charging system to see what it's output is. A short could cause it to be charging at a full capacity rate of charge. I was driving a WD 45 when the battery exploded. The battery might have been run dry from an excessively high rate of charge. I don't think it exploded from a spark igniting fumes, but something did cause it to explode.

SVcummins · Oct 23, 2020

If you can smell the battery you have overcharged it . Do not
try to do anything until the smell is gone or ka blewy

phil25 · Oct 24, 2020

was reading the latest on this and with the ground switch off you must be connecting to
actual posts of the battery's? being in parallel before trying to start/switching to 24 volt.
Just a thought, but are you getting the same charge voltage at both batteries? And if you disconnect the starter cables at the starter, do you get 24 volts when trying to start?
I leading to could it be the 12/24 switch not doing its thing?
As if one battery is being over charged and then excessive current drain trying to start while still in 12volt position?
I had the 12/24 system [switch shorted and burnt] removed it and put on a gear reduction starter using on two 12volt batteries in parallel, cheaper than a original starter, no problems for 3 years now, but that is a worse case scenario, not exactly what you have.

Jeff in ND · Oct 24, 2020

Your 562 must be different to the one my late Dad bought new in '89 that is still on the farm and I use for bush hogging, driveway grading, etc. there.

I had to replace the batteries a couple years ago on it. They were old and would not take a charge anymore. 2 very large 6v ones in series in a box behind the seat. That was fun lifting those out/in! There is no wiring going off the center tap between the batteries so the tractor is all 12v.

There is a big cut off switch with a locking push button inside the cab to the right rear of the driver when sitting in the seat. Incoming to that is direct from the pos post of the right side battery. There is no power anywhere in the tractor w/o that ON. Then the dash lights up and you can use the key for glow plugs and starter, etc. With that off, the batteries should have no drain and are still OK after setting all winter.

It does sound like gas and a spark here. But, you should not be getting that much gas from a charger I would think?

Jeff in ND · Oct 24, 2020

Replying to my post to correct a error and add info.

The cut-off sw does not come from the positive, its a negative and grounds the neg to the tractor frame.

I have all the manuals my Dad got with the tractor here and was looking to see if anything about a 24v system was in there. From past times trying to find stuff in them I know that not all of it applies to that specific tractor so maybe there was something about the 24v versions....

No such luck. There are several wiring harness diagrams and also a schematic but they all show the 2 6v batteries in series w/o anything coming off the center tap that you would need for a 12 running 24 starting setup.

(quoted from post at 14:44:30 10/24/20)
Your 562 must be different to the one my late Dad bought new in '89 that is still on the farm and I use for bush hogging, driveway grading, etc. there.

I had to replace the batteries a couple years ago on it. They were old and would not take a charge anymore. 2 very large 6v ones in series in a box behind the seat. That was fun lifting those out/in! There is no wiring going off the center tap between the batteries so the tractor is all 12v.

There is a big cut off switch with a locking push button inside the cab to the right rear of the driver when sitting in the seat. Incoming to that is direct from the pos post of the right side battery. There is no power anywhere in the tractor w/o that ON. Then the dash lights up and you can use the key for glow plugs and starter, etc. With that off, the batteries should have no drain and are still OK after setting all winter.

It does sound like gas and a spark here. But, you should not be getting that much gas from a charger I would think?

Belarus 562 battery explosion

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