It's been cold here lately In the single digit's. Started It up today and It cranked slow but did start.Had the headlights on while cranking. While cranking It pulled the gauge down to 8. After idling for a few minutes I revved It and the gauge went to 16 Volts. Is this normal? I replaced the battery October 2015. This Isn't the factory engine. https://onedrive.live.com/redir?resid=F873A7EBBD561AD5!3873&authkey=!AOkWBX_KrdRMVfU&v=3&ithint=photo%2cjpg
Yes 15 volts at WOT (Wide open throttle) would be normal. When the mower is just sitting without the engine running you should get around a 12.5 reading. The only way you would get high battery voltage readings WITHOUT the mower running is if there is a short in the battery. You might want to put a thinner weight oil in your engine for the winter months and turn the headlights off which will help with your starting. I plow snow with my ATV and run synthetic 0W-40 in it.
#4
LaWn GuY
Ok guys I appreciate the replies but It was a typing error. I meant a tad over 16 volts.
A correctly functioning charging system that is in the 10 to 20 Amp range and regulated, operates at 14.2 to 14.5 VDC.
Make sure that your test meter is operating correctly and use another meter for comparison before you make any decisions.
Get the correct specs for the charging system on your engine and check the system.
Charging systems of this type use a stator which is it's primary source of electricity and produces alternating current when the engine is running.
As the stator output is AC, part of its output is the wrong polarity. The regulator/rectifier, the next item in the charging system, blocks the part of the AC that is the wrong polarity. The part of the AC that is the correct polarity is then regulated and sent thru the electrical system ultimately ending up at the battery. These systems are known as half wave and produce pulsating DC to the electrical system and the battery. The battery has sufficient internal capacitance to turn the pulsating DC into a smooth wave of DC.
