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lawn tractor battery

15 years ago

I have two battery dependant mowers both are 12v. I use one all summer the other rarely. Both go dead in the winter and I am not able to recharge them. I use a trickle charger but only get about 2 years out of them. Any advice is appreciated. GW

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Comments (7)

bill_kapaun
15 years ago
I assume you mean you leave the trickle charger on them all the time, or all the time during the Winter?
IF so, I wouldn't.
I'd "top them off" every couple weeks or so during the Winter.
2 years isn't really out of line for a tractor battery.
I think some of the "more rudimentary" charging systems may pass along a bit of AC, which is bad for batteries. Same with cheap trickle chargers.
Just MHO
njdpo
15 years ago
I hear bringing them indoors can add to their shelf life - but have not confirmed it.

I can say that I use one of my tractors on the average several times a month. I can say that on the coldest days (in NJ) i need to have my starting procedure straight - as sometimes I dont have a lot of cranking amps and a strong second chance ...

Once the motor has run for 2-5 minutes - I have a charged battery and a warm motor - so startups are not much of a problem.

I was thinking about running both batteries on the winter mower. Basically to double my cranking capacity, add a some weight to the mower for snowy days, and to keep both batteries charged.

You need some type of electrical adaption to get he second battery in - But I think you also need to have something in the wiring harness to prevent some type of potential damage (i think this is for when one of those batteries actually dies) ... Technical electric stuff which im not up on ....
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optsyeagle
15 years ago
"2 years isn't really out of line for a tractor battery"

How long on average should they last and why do they not last longer?
bill_kapaun
15 years ago
There really isn't an average, since they can be subjected to so many differing conditions.
Vibration, charging systems that don't filter out the AC voltage component very well or regulate the peak voltage, sitting idle for months etc. can all contribute.
optsyeagle
15 years ago
Does a lawn tractor battery draw power when the motor is sitting idle? Would it be better to disconnect the terminals for the winter?
bill_kapaun
15 years ago
Some systems with a charge diode have 12V on the battery side of the diode at all times. IF the diode has any reverse leakage, there will be "some" current flow.
Now we might be talking micro amps here.....You probably have that traveling across the battery top, if it's not "surgically" clean.
If you have a voltmeter, put the black lead on the - post and poke around different areas of the battery with the red lead.
Other systems totally switch out the battery.
metal
15 years ago
The battery I bought has a 3 year warranty, so I expect it to last 3 years and one day ; ) In reality my batteries usually last 3-5 years.

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