Glow Plug Controller Broke Off!

[IDIBRONCO]

Yes a 10 amp fuse will be enough. I agree with Selahdoor on some things. I've experienced a situation where I didn't have a good connection by just pushing the original connector back onto the terminal to hold the new wire on. A nut was required to get a good enough contact. It usually works. On my first 85 F250, I spliced my manual control wire into the purple wire (I left about 3 inches of the purple wire). Pushing the original connector back onto the terminal worked until the day that I wrecked it. My current 85 F250 was done by a previous owner and uses a nut on the terminal.
I have to say that I read post #23 by the OP as the manual control push button is supplying power, not ground. The purple wire has been cut although it isn't visible in the picture. I will say that ,depending on how the push button is wired, the key position (on or off) may not have any effect on whether or not the push button has power. It can be wired to a constant hot power source and since he's asking about a 10amp fuse, it sounds like it's a separate fuse and may be hooked into a constant hot. Mine is and there's no issues with it (yes it has it's own fuse right after the power source). One more thing. If you have the controller unplugged, there's no reason (other than as a precaution) why you'd even have to disconnect the purple wire. It gets it's power from the controller as the controller acts as a thermal switch. If the controller isn't plugged in, it can't send power down the purple wire at all.

 

[Stu Bailey]

Okay, so I messed up. There is 12VDC at the purple post.... I removed it and put a nut on it. I have the positive meter lead on the battery positive and the negative meter lead at the purple post and there was 12VDC. There is also 12VDC if I go positive battery terminal to glow plug harness connector. There was only 1VDC at the post opposite the purple post. I know it’s something simple, I’m sorry to confuse the hell out of you all. Obviously the GP are getting power if the meter hooked up like I just mentioned read 12v correct? Positive lead at battery positive, negative lead shoved into the glow plug harness connector?

 

[Stu Bailey]

Just read your post Bronco, thanks for the input. After all this, watch me go out there and slap a nut on the post to make a good contact and then the truck fire up. FML. Called it quits for now though, slight rain out there and it’s 9 o’clock. Plus wifey just asked rob take a shower together thanks again guys

 

[dgr]

Who's Rob?

 

[IDIBRONCO]

After all this, watch me go out there and slap a nut on the post to make a good contact and then the truck fire up.

A quick way to check would be to squeeze the end that goes onto the post just slightly. This will make it fit tighter and it may make good enough contact. If it fits tighter, it may hold just a little bit more pressure on the eyelet and keep contact. The nut is a better way though. There could be a little bit of corrosion on the terminal and running the nut down will clean it off.

 

[IDIBRONCO]

The biggest issue that I had with the slip on connector was on the last Dent Side that I had. It had a 460 in it. The engine and trans were both swapped out of a car into the truck without separating them. The owner let another guy borrow it right after the swap to pull a trailer somewhere a few states east of here. While in Ohio (I think) the mechanical fuel pump went bad. The borrower bought a cheap, low pressure electric and bypassed the mechanical pump. He used the keyed hot terminal on the starter solenoid (not the "start" one) to power the pump. He just used the factory push on wire end to hold the power wire on. It worked for a couple of years until I bought the truck. I was driving it into work one nice, snowy day and it stalled out. I got it running again and went a mile or so down the road and it died again. I figured out that there wasn't any gas getting into the carb. Before I got any farther, a guy stopped and offered me a ride so I accepted it. He dropped me off at work and I called the sheriff's department right away to tell them what happened and ask them not to have it towed. Naturally, I got a phone call a couple of hours later, at work. The sheriff's department wanted to know if it was my truck and they told me that it had been towed (naturally). I got a ride over to the towing company over lunch. I had a nice tow bill plus impound fee waiting for me there. I paid the bill them went out to get my truck. I popped the hood, took the power wire off of the solenoid and shoved it onto the battery positive. The pump started pumping and I started the truck and drove it back to work where I pulled the power wire off of the battery cable. After work, I slid it underneath the the positive battery cable end so it would stay for the drive home. Then, after it warmed up, I cut the end off of the factory wire where it had been on the starter solenoid and held both that and the pump power wires onto the terminal with a nut. I didn't have any issues with it until I replaced the mechanical pump and put the electric on a toggle switch.

 

[dgr]

have the positive meter lead on the battery positive and the negative meter lead at the purple post and there was 12VDC.

That doesn't tell you anything. You're reading voltage through the relay to ground. To test your new wire, disconnect from the relay, put your meter between battery negative and your wire. Press your button and you should see 12v.

There is also 12VDC if I go positive battery terminal to glow plug harness connector.

You're reading through the glow plugs. This also doesn't tell you anything. To test that side, go from battery negative to that side and then press your button.

There was only 1VDC at the post opposite the purple post

Measuring from battery positive to that black wire should give you 12V. It should go straight to ground.

Is your momentary switch wired to a hot wire in the cab? These relays need two wires to trigger. One small post needs ground. The other small post needs hot.

There are only three possibilities. Your hot wire from your switch isn't hot. Your ground wire is bad. Your relay is bad.

 

[Selahdoor]

Lets start from the beginning.

Do this step by step.

First, let's leave your button switch out of this.

Take both small wires off of the relay.

Hook a test light to the battery negative.

Now test each of the two wires.

Does the light light up on either? That wire has power.

Does the light NOT light up on either? Good.

Now take the test light off the battery negative and put it on the battery positive.

Test each of the wires again.

I am betting that the light will light up when you test the wire that is opposite where you put your white wire.

And not when you test the white wire.

~~~

Now, hook your test light to the battery negative again.

Have someone hold in your momentary on button on the dash, and test your white wire.

If the light lights up, then you are set.

Put your white wire and the other wire back on, and your GPs should be getting juiced.

~~~

If the light does NOT light up on that last test, then you need to figure out if your white wire is good. Figure out if the switch is good. And figure out if the switch is connected via the other side, to a good power source.

~~~


Here. Let me see if I can draw something that will help.

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[IDIBRONCO]

Hook a test light to the battery negative.

Now test each of the two wires.

Does the light light up on either? That wire has power.

Does the light NOT light up on either? Good.

Actually, it probably shouldn't light up on either one. If one is ground and the other (purple) wire has been cut then neither wire should have a positive going to it.

The red circle is, was, where the purple wire connected to the relay post. I clipped it and used it to hold down the new ring terminal that goes back to my momentary push button.

Right here. ^^

 

[Selahdoor]

Actually, it probably shouldn't light up on either one. If one is ground and the other (purple) wire has been cut then neither wire should have a positive going to it.

Hence why I said: Does the light NOT light up on either? Good.

 

[Cubey]

Here. Let me see if I can draw something that will help.

You must be registered for see images attach

Handy. The purple wire is just red looking on my E350. I really should put in a button. Oreilly sells a small momentary push button for $5. I used it on my f250 6.9's 7.3 style GP system.

 

[Stu Bailey]

You guys are all awesome and thank you for all the mechanical wisdom! Hearing the stories is also great in the learning experience. The truck is up and running! It makes a huge difference having 8 working glow plugs, she fires up in a split second. I ended up buying a new relay from Napa for 19 bucks and once I slapped that on there I could hear the relay closing when I mashed the push button. Once I heard that going off i cranked it over after 8 seconds and walah! This really is a super easy swap, there was so much info on this forum and YouTube. I should have started with the relay tests sooner and stopped messing around. Thanks!

 

[IDIBRONCO]

Glad to hear that you got it starting easily.

 

[eacars]

Looks like spray foam insulation. That stuff is very gluey. Probably why it broke, that bottom is glued in place.

It may be Gorilla Glue. It turns that color when activated with water...Strong stuff

 

[Noiseydiesel]

I have a '87 F250 6.9 that originally had that controller.
I believe you can put on a newer glow plug relay and it has the ability to cycle the glow plugs without that coolant controller.
I also have a '94 idi Turbo 7.3 and both are running a toggle switch on the dash that allows anyone to drive the truck. Switch closed, normal operation. Switch open, no power to relay.
I generally activate the switch first time in the morning cold start and after it has started, open it and after running about 5 minutes, don't worry about it for the rest of the day.
If some one needs the truck, activate the switch and leave it . It will act normally and nothing gets damaged.
Yet.