I have a Scott's By John Deere riding mower I purchased from Home Depot many years ago ( between 6-9 years ). 42 inch deck with a 17.5 HP Kohler gasoline engine ( I believe that is the HP rating ). It has performed perfectly throughout the years. Until recently.

I didn't post in a manufacture specific forum because I believe this is more of a general motor/electrical related issue. Here's my story:

I was using the mower and it ran out of gas. I didn't have any gas left in the can and waited till the next day to fill it up. Filled it up and tried starting it. No luck... I left the key on and the battery died. Put it on a charger, stated her up and off I went mowing the lawn as usual.

About 20 minutes into mowing the mower died. Tried starting it off the mower and nothing. Found a blown fuse. Replaced it and back to mowing. About 15-20 minutes later... dies again. Fuse is blown. No additional fuses so I put it away and put a charger on the battery, thinking maybe the battery wasn't fully charged and it is causing an issue.

Next day I got another fuse and started her up. Started no problem... died 5 minutes later, blown fuse. Now I know it is something else... I do some checking with a multimeter for high draw. I hear something clicking in the bowl of the carb that I never heard before, but I never listened for it so it may have always been there.

The lights are not on when the fuse blows. The fuse does not blow unless the engine is running. I could turn the key on and the light on and it doesn't blow until the engine is running.

Do you think that maybe because I left the mower on and drained the battery it could be causing a problem while trying to charge the battery? I have had to jump start the unit after long periods of sitting but I never left the key on to drain the battery.

This unit has worked flawlessly for years and the above story is everything that happened. When it died the first time it was simply because I ran out of gas.

Thanks for any help you can provide.

Where in the electrical circuit is this fuse?

Is there an electric PTO clutch on it?
There are a couple things that come to mind. ...


KennyV

You said you hear a clicking form the carb bowl. Sounds like maybe the solenoid on the bowl has gone bad.

Sounds like it could possibly be a bad voltage regulator or magneto. If it's putting out too much voltage then the fuse will blow, as it's designed to.

The fuse is located right near the battery. It is 15 amps and looks like just about everything runs through it.

There isn't a PTO on the mower. Just a lever that engages a belt to the mower deck. Fuse blows without engaging mower deck.

Could any of the proposed issues from the above posts be caused by leaving the key on and allowing the battery to drain overnight?

I have a hair under 12 volts at the battery when not running and a little over 12 volts while running.

I really believe the issue has something to do with leaving the key on overnight. Before that the unit ran flawlessly. It would be VERY coincidental if the problem was unrelated.

Originally Posted by indypower

You said you hear a clicking form the carb bowl. Sounds like maybe the solenoid on the bowl has gone bad.

It clicks when I turn the key on and clicks again when I shut the key off, without the mower running. The fuse does not blow if I turn the key on and leave it on, only after the engine is running.

When you charged the battery... you didn't charge it backwards did you... neg on pos and pos on neg?

You can reverse charge a battery when it is completely dead... not good for the battery and will blow the fuse when the charge system tries to charge in the correct polarity... KennyV

Originally Posted by KennyV

When you charged the battery... you didn't charge it backwards did you... neg on pos and pos on neg?

You can reverse charge a battery when it is completely dead... not good for the battery and will blow the fuse when the charge system tries to charge in the correct polarity... KennyV

I would say no I didn't but I will check that with a multi-meter to be 100% sure. Would the mower still start if the battery was charged backwards?

[QUOTE=davidwm71;12027 Would the mower still start if the battery was charged backwards?[/QUOTE]

That would depend on how the starter was designed...
But that's a situation that I have seen happen, and if the charging circuit is not protected with a fuse it will roast the alternator windings and rectifier.

Discharging the battery completely will not cause your type of problem.
Double check your polarities and then check your voltage regulator... KennyV