Rider Mower battery question

[Ronni]

Hi, im new to rider mowers and just have a few battery questions. #1: When you go to start your mower for the first time in the spring and it doesn't start, do you just go and buy a new battery or do you try to charge it first? #2: If you try to charge it, how do you know if battery will take a charge or not? #3: Is it necessary to charge mower battery beforing storing for winter and before starting in spring? I never do that. I just leave battery hooked up in mower during storage and hope for the best. How do you do it? Thanks

I have the same problem each year with my 20 year old Cub Cadet 42” riding mower. I use a jump starter to get it going after it sits for a while. Walmart sells one for $27.27.

 

[1madmouse]

It really doesn't pay to put off getting a new battery, if it is older, just get a new one and be done with it. Not worth the extra hassle trying to just get by.

 

[toro12439]

Lots of people here talk about taking their batteries inside in the winter. This is foolish. Lead-acid batteries don't like heat. Leaving a charged lead-acid battery in the cold is the best way to treat it. Disconnect the positive lead - not negative like most people think - so you don't have a danger of sparks if you accidentally hit a ground. Nothing on the mower will be hot. Keep in mind though, if the battery isn't charged it can freeze and break the case, but if the top of the battery is clean it won't self discharge in the cold.

While you experts are saying "what does this newbie know about mowers?" I have 40+ years experience with inboard diesel engines on boats 30 miles from the Canadian border (-30*C occasionally) plus many years engineering battery systems in electric utility power stations.

 

[TonyPrin]

Lots of people here talk about taking their batteries inside in the winter. This is foolish. Lead-acid batteries don't like heat. Leaving a charged lead-acid battery in the cold is the best way to treat it. Disconnect the positive lead - not negative like most people think - so you don't have a danger of sparks if you accidentally hit a ground. Nothing on the mower will be hot. Keep in mind though, if the battery isn't charged it can freeze and break the case, but if the top of the battery is clean it won't self discharge in the cold.

While you experts are saying "what does this newbie know about mowers?" I have 40+ years experience with inboard diesel engines on boats 30 miles from the Canadian border (-30*C occasionally) plus many years engineering battery systems in electric utility power stations.

My Cub Cadet manual says, "NOTE: Remove the battery if exposed to prolonged periods of sub-freezing temperatures. Store in a cool, dry location where temperatures are above freezing." Nothing personal, but I'll follow the manufacturer's manual.

 

[Tiger Small Engine]

My Cub Cadet manual says, "NOTE: Remove the battery if exposed to prolonged periods of sub-freezing temperatures. Store in a cool, dry location where temperatures are above freezing." Nothing personal, but I'll follow the manufacturer's manual.

There are lots of facts and nuances to batteries. Batteries are usually amazing for their value in starting an internal combustion engine, especially if trickle charged say once a month. I have spent hours in the past reading about batteries online. Often with batteries, it is like lots of information, and is word of mouth, as opposed to actual research from multiple credible sources.

 

[toro12439]

By all means follow the owner's manual. HOWEVER, no manufacturer will write down anything that could be a liability. If a lead-acid battery is not fully charged or is connected to an on board circuit or is dirty it may get discharged and freeze which causes warranty and/or PR problems.

In-board boat batteries tend to be larger than mower batteries (4-d batteries weigh 100+ lbs) - which are a real problem taking out of a boat. Because of this we tend to leave them in the boat and usually the marina will not allow them to be plugged in while unattended. Here is a thread from a boating forum: https://www.thehulltruth.com/boating-forum/1255504-leaving-batteries-boat-winter.html
Apparently I am not the only one who leaves batteries out in cold temperatures.

 

[bt-99]

I think this is what most people do. If they come out in the spring and the mower doesn't start because of what seems to be a week or discharge battery, they choose some method of trying to get it to crank faster.

Charging the battery or replace the battery are two common ones.
Unfortunately some people try another method which is not really a good one - jump starting it or using a booster pack.
The problem with this is then when the lower does start, it still has a very weak, low battery or even one that won't accept the charge like it should.
This is extremely bad on your charging system and as someone else has pointed out, it will fry your stator eventually.
The stator will actually be overheated and be very dark brown to black in color from the heat and it almost burning or melting.
About the only thing that causes this is when people jump off their mower and then mow their hold on with it repeatedly.
It doesn't usually happen in just one time but it can but they put off replacing the battery and basically every time they need to use it for half a season or a whole season plus and sometimes longer, this is their pattern.

Often, the only reason they stop doing this is once the statot goes they cannot mow their lawn because with no charge being put out, the mower will die in just a few minutes. Even faster if it has an electric PTO clutch.

Thanks TobyU for all your help. So basically if you can't get your mower to start in spring, your first go to would be to put battery on charger and not jump start it correct? Also I was planning to buy a charger for this purpose. Is it fine to charge battery at 10 amp setting? (At least I think thats what my manual says) it says 10 amps for an hour. Thanks