A mechanical question...

[AllCape]

I own a 1995 Vermeer 1230 chipper with the Perkins Diesel. I bought it and a Rayco RG 1620 JR off of another tree company that went under in my area. I paid 8,000 for the both of them. I thought it was a pretty good deal. Machine ran perfectly fine all through the season. But as winters go around here things got slow and it ended up sittin for about a month through some nasty weather. Mostly rain but a little snow and some cold.
As I went to start it up to check on it for an upcoming job. It started up fine, but after about 5 min. or so the murphy switch kicked on with the low oil pressure/water temp lights. Now I know there was no way it could be the temp since it was about 20 degrees out. So, I changed the oil (it was on my list of things to do anyways) checked all my grounds, checked all my power and connections. Started it up... and it did the same thing. So, figuring obviously it was the Murphy Switch going on me, I ordered a new one, along with a new ignition circuit. Popped that in. Same two lights... I know the oil pressure switch was just recently replaced and it was getting power, but...
Before I start going through replacing everything I figured I'd see if anybody had any insight on this or a similar problem. Thanks

 

[Frank Boyer]

Check the oil pressure with a "known good" mechanical gauge. Make sure that the thermostat isn't stuck shut.

 

[treemandan]

Key on engine off the lights should be on. Stop throwing parts at it and take it to the dealer. Have them check the whole thing out and we will see if it was such a great deal. clogged fuel filter? Maybe. Worn out major part? Could be that as well.

 

[capetrees]

this might sound stupid but whats a murphy switch?

 

[AllCape]

Key on engine off the lights should be on. Stop throwing parts at it and take it to the dealer. Have them check the whole thing out and we will see if it was such a great deal. clogged fuel filter? Maybe. Worn out major part? Could be that as well.

Well considering I paid it off already and even if it did crap out on my I could trade it in by itself for 8,000 on a new chipper. And my Stump Grinders still working beautifully. I'm pretty satisfied with the deal.

 

[AllCape]

this might sound stupid but whats a murphy switch?

its the low oil pressure bypass buttun. The button you hold in when you start the engine.

 

[capetrees]

When you changed the oil, did it have water in it? With the stack exterior iof the chipper, maybe water got in through the stack and into the engine oil. Happened to me years ago with an old chipper but once the oil was changed, no problems. Also, like on my dump, the water level guage may be acting up if your chipper is fitted with one. Water goes below a certain level in the radiator and the warning lights come on to tell you to attend to the problem which is just filling it up.

 

[Freakingstang]

this might sound stupid but whats a murphy switch?

In most applications, it is a float setup that regulates the flow of reserve oil to keep the oil level at a safe level.

I don't know what it is on this application. could just be a pressure switch as murphy makes all kinds of cool stuff.

 

[AllCape]

When you changed the oil, did it have water in it? With the stack exterior iof the chipper, maybe water got in through the stack and into the engine oil. Happened to me years ago with an old chipper but once the oil was changed, no problems. Also, like on my dump, the water level guage may be acting up if your chipper is fitted with one. Water goes below a certain level in the radiator and the warning lights come on to tell you to attend to the problem which is just filling it up.

no, but it was pretty sludgey.I put on an L pipe for that very reason. Strangley it came equiped with a straight pipe. Like you said the Water level/oil pressure switch might be actin up. it was only 20 bucks so I went ahead and ordered it on Friday. I'm just hoping its not the oil pump. But the weird thing is two completely seperate warning lights came on out of nowhere which makes me suspect it's something electrical.

 

[capetrees]

Like everything that I run, especially in the winter that goes on the road with the salt and sand, its probably a ground or short due to salt corrosion

 

[AllCape]

yeah checked/ grinded and reground them.

 

[Frank Boyer]

Like everything that I run, especially in the winter that goes on the road with the salt and sand, its probably a ground or short due to salt corrosion

1. Get a digital volt ohm meter and check the values of the sensors.

2. Learn to use the DVOM to check for voltage drop (not voltage). That way you can see if you have a bad connection and/or ground and save a lot of time finding and fixing the real problem. Equipment that sits outside over the winter will develop strange electrical problems that usually are caused by bad connections.

 

[treemandan]

Well considering I paid it off already and even if it did crap out on my I could trade it in by itself for 8,000 on a new chipper. And my Stump Grinders still working beautifully. I'm pretty satisfied with the deal.

Wasn't asking about your deal, just advising to find out if you should trade it in. Even if paid for machines cost a lot, part after part and downtime is stressful. As it gets older it gets worse; right?
Anyway did you even ever check the fuel filter or for sediment in the tank? I would clean out the low oil pressure switch too. What kind of voltage do you have at these switches? Find out if the same voltage that goes it comes out. You might try grounding the low oil pressure wire and see what happens.

 

[AllCape]

Problem Resolved

Well, I'd just like to say thank you for the help. I met with a well known diesel mechanic this morning and apparently it was a short in my Oil Pressure Switch. It wasn't grounding itself off internally, so it wasn't sending power back to my Murphy switch. So, Damn I guess I was on the right track. That was the next thing on the replacement list. Guy did me a favor on the price and all in all cost me about $50 to fix. ( $80, but now I have a spare Murphy.)


Jon

 

[capetrees]

Cheap fix, thats the best part. And as usual, grounds, grounds grounds.

 

[TomSawyer]

It is ALWAYS a ground. Next time someone asks you to help them with their trailer lights, remember this.