# Batteries and Plow Trucks



## 2dogs2 (Aug 25, 2007)

I have a 89 Full size blazer on my farm that is used 98% of the time solely for plowing snow. Just curious how many people 

1. Either leave the battery connected all the time

2. Disconnect the battery after use.

3. Put a battery kill switch inline.

4. Put a continuous voltage solenoid inline.


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## fruitcakesa (Jan 29, 2009)

My old GMC plow truck sat so long between jobs the bat would go flat.
Disconnected it stayed charged all year


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## carkey351 (Oct 18, 2010)

especially on the older trucks/cars I always have a disconnect switch...saves having to jump them all the time.


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## Dr Who (Dec 16, 2010)

My plow truck is my only truck (for now) 

But on vehicales that I do not drive often, I just pull the hot cable off the battery and they are good to go. I just start them up once every week or two, move them around, mow under them ect....


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## acornish (Dec 21, 2003)

i use a disconect and batt. tender on my hot rod


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## mercer_me (Sep 13, 2008)

Unless you have somthing draining your battery you should be fine.


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## saabman (Sep 20, 2007)

I run dual batteries, and I leave them connected all the time


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## got-h2o (Sep 26, 2008)

mercer_me;1199641 said:


> Unless you have somthing draining your battery you should be fine.


Exactly what I was going to say. Unless something is drawint voltage, a battery will last charged a VERY long time. If it's draining, fix the problem rather than giving yourself more work.


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## mayhem (Aug 25, 2006)

Hook it up in Oct so you can fire the truckup and test it with enough warm weather to fix anything broken, diconnect bat aftert ax day when the snow is done.


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## dave_dj1 (Nov 2, 2010)

The problem with those year GM vehicles is the computer draws a little juice all the time, in about three days your battery will be dead. Disconnect the hot lead or go with a disconnect switch. 
I had a jeep with a plow (91 wrangler, 6 cyl fi) that would sit for weeks at a time with the battery connected and I never once had to jump it. I have a 79 f150 now that sits for weeks with battery connected and I haven't had to jump it either.


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## metalmeltr (Jan 20, 2009)

ALL vehicles with electronic components have small parastatic loads, they draw but a few milliamps and can and will drain the battery over time, a disconect switch and a float charger is the beast way to combat dead batteries on vehicles that are stored for long periods of time.


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## garandman (Jan 13, 2011)

Lead-acid batteries have an internal rate of discharge even if unconnected. 

That's why battery tenders exist, and why a lot of classic car owners and others with vehicles infrequently operated have gone to AGM batteries, which are more expensive but have a lower rate of internal discharge. 

If you hunt around you can find the Battery Tender Jr on sale for as little as $20. They come with alligator clips or a quick disconnect. I use two of them for our boat batteries and two for motorcycle batteries.


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## swtiih (Nov 30, 2008)

try a solar charger


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## Dakota Dave (Mar 3, 2010)

I leave the batteries connected in everything. When I've had a one that drains down I find out why and fix it. It takes a long time for the computer to drain a good battery. The worst was my suburban it would intermintaly drain down. was one of the rear Seat DVD players staying on in standby.


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## got-h2o (Sep 26, 2008)

Dakota Dave;1206345 said:


> I leave the batteries connected in everything. When I've had a one that drains down I find out why and fix it. It takes a long time for the computer to drain a good battery. The worst was my suburban it would intermintaly drain down. was one of the rear Seat DVD players staying on in standby.


Exactly. GOOD batteries. A lot of people will use a battery if it charges and holds it for a day or 2. That's not a good battery.

I mean, when that truck was brand new, do you really think the dealer recommended disconnecting the battery if the truck was to sit for a few days between getting driven? If it's draining, there's a problem. It may not be a major one, but it shouldn't be happening.


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## Snowzilla (Oct 24, 2009)

2dogs2;1197670 said:


> I have a 89 Full size blazer on my farm that is used 98% of the time solely for plowing snow.


I do the same with an '89 k1500. My battery would always drain down. Could never pin point the problem so I installed a permanent Battery Tender and leave it plugged in when not in use. Never had a problem since. Battery is always good for starting and plowing. I used the waterproof version and ran the cord out the grill.


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## Chiputz (Dec 28, 2010)

I have an 89 Chevy 1/2 ton PU I use for plowing only. During the summer I start it about once a month and it stays charged. I usually change out the battery every 2 years simply because a single battery set up is tough on the battery when your plowing.


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## swtiih (Nov 30, 2008)

A standard battery in my opinion is good for 5 or 6 years. Cost is between 75 -$100.
Because our batteries are used part of the year for snowplows and salters I would say it makes good sense to replace every 4. It just isn't worth dealing with a bad battery in the middle of a snowfall or when the temps get down to zero.


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## got-h2o (Sep 26, 2008)

swtiih;1207146 said:


> A standard battery in my opinion is good for 5 or 6 years. Cost is between 75 -$100.
> Because our batteries are used part of the year for snowplows and salters I would say it makes good sense to replace every 4. It just isn't worth dealing with a bad battery in the middle of a snowfall or when the temps get down to zero.


Exactly.......and that's $20-25 a year. Not too much to ask for peace of mind.


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## theholycow (Nov 29, 2002)

got-h2o;1206513 said:


> Exactly. GOOD batteries. A lot of people will use a battery if it charges and holds it for a day or 2. That's not a good battery.


It's good enough for something that gets driven 5 times per year.



> I mean, when that truck was brand new, do you really think the dealer recommended disconnecting the battery if the truck was to sit for a few days between getting driven?


Yup.


2002 GMC Sierra owner's manual said:


> Vehicle Storage
> If you're not going to drive your vehicle for 25 days or more, remove the black, negative (-) cable from the battery. This will help keep your battery from running down.


Sure, if we're talking about a few days then it's silly to disconnect, but if it's going to be weeks then it's worth disconnecting.


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