How do you know when you need a new battery?

[Mith]

my lawn tractor - it seems to have no charge, sometimes its fine others its flat
i have it on a battery conditioner/charger which should make up for the lack of run time
i can decide wether its because i start it than dont let it run for long or wheter its a knackered battery, it always seems so low on charge
is there any way i can tell, what do you think
thanks

 

[Gunfighter]

How old is the battery, if it's three or four years old it maybe past it's prime...

Give it a good charge, disconnect it from the tractro an leave sit over night.
Then try it in the morning, if it's dead or low buy a new one...

If it held the charge, you should look for other problem...

Richard
West Michigan

 

[JimR]

I usually only get 2-3 years tops out of my battery for my lawn tractor. You can also put a meter on it to see if it is charging. Usually the headlight is good enough to tell if it is charging. Start it up and let it idle. If you have a headlight turn it on. Now watch the light and rev the motor up. The light will brighten up.

 

[Cliff_Johns]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( I usually only get 2-3 years tops out of my battery for my lawn tractor. )</font>

That seems like a very short run. I've got the original battery in the LT I bought in spring '98. I never thought about it.

Cliff

 

[NIXON]

Mith,
Generally a decent battery will last from two to 5 years . You can average that out to about three .
A lot depends on the initial quality of the battery . But it also depends on the care of that battery . Lightly charging ,and adding water ,over the periods of Non -use can extend the life of the battery. It's most liklely that You need to replace you battery . John

 

[Mith]

thanks for all the posts
ive owned the tractor, and therefore the battery, for 3 years almost to the day. the battery wasnt new when i bought it and i havent changed it
there havent been any peroids of non use when it stands, i use it all year round
i will try the suggestions, taking it off and charging it
i disconnected the headlight as i wired it in myself, i thought it might be draining the power when it was off, not the case
i really dont want to get a new battery, btu if i have to.....
thanks

 

[Egon]

Mith:

If you can get at the battery cells a hydrometer [ maybe $10 ] should tell if the battery takes a full charge or has a bad cell. The maintenance free ones can be taken to a shop where they can check the condition of the battery.

After all is said and done if you suspect battery it's probaly battery. Use some booster cables from another battery when you start it. That should tell the tale.

Egon

 

[Mith]

egon
i work at such a place that has battery equipment at the weekends
gunna take it in and test it next saturday
thanks all

 

[billbill1]

Mith, are you sure the connections are all clean and tight? If it starts OK sometimes and not others, you might have a loose or dirty connection.

 

[Mith]

ok - ill look tomorrow
what do i coat the connections with - ordinary grease?
the are kinda corroded, maybe they need a clean
the main problem is it tuns over real solow - not fast enough to start the engine - i presumed this was lack of power in the battery
thanks