Limping along
Our old farm truck is still limping along. Five months in the swamp and getting yanked out by a tractor necessitated repairing the gas tank and putting the universal joint back in after it fell out.
But we're still suffering from a short that drains the battery after a
few days of disuse. That wouldn't be so bad if the hood latch didn't
stick and require four hands every time we needed to open it.
Our mechanic repaired the
sticking hood latch, but was left scratching his head over the short. I
think I'll install a switch on the battery so I can turn it off when not
in use.
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About us: Anna Hess and Mark Hamilton spent over a decade living self-sufficiently in the mountains of Virginia before moving north to start over from scratch in the foothills of Ohio. They've experimented with permaculture, no-till gardening, trailersteading, home-based microbusinesses and much more, writing about their adventures in both blogs and books.
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Had the same problem with an old minivan I only use once in a while. I installed one of these (http://www.autozone.com/ignition/kill-switch/battery-doctor-mini-master-disconnect-switch-for-top-or-side-post-batteries/422689_0_0/ ) cost $30 plus a short battery cable. Works fine. But it is under the hood.
Hi Mark and Anna,
I too added a battery cutoff switch to my 20 year old truck. Might be a good idea on all of your vehicles that aren't regularly used. Cost me $20.
Solved problem.
I'll probably plow with it today.
John - Concord NH Where people are afraid of snow !!!! What is wrong with their brains.... They probably need some of Mark and Anna's good food!