flat battery

pete_inthehills · flat battery

last spring I noticed that the battery for my very old ride on mower was dead. As that battery was 5 years old, I thought I'd invest in a new one. Last weekend I went to start my mower and I've got a flat battery again.

I thought that I'd done everything to keep it safe, but obviously not. I do have a crap battery charger, but it doesn't seem to work very well.

Do I need a better battery charger?
Is that battery usable once its charged?

Or do have to buy a new battery. Again?

pete
inthehills

Ina

Hey - what do you need a mower for - you have three ride-on mowers in your field!

Sorry, not being very helpful, am I... I have no idea about those things, really.

IainC

Maybe the alternator of the ride on mower is knackered? Don't think my dad has changed the one on his more than once in *years and years* and it's never so much as seen a battery charger in that whole time.

Lord_Azrael

I assume you've been using it all the time the new battery has been fitted?
If so, get the battery charged back up, re-install and put a multimeter across it to see if it's charging ok whilst the engine is running (you'll need to check a manual for the exact details on this as I don't even know what voltage battery you're running). If it's not, and the voltage drops below the specified rating, then it's an alternator fault. If the battery is a standard 12v one, you'll be looking for around 13v whilst it's running.
However, it could also be a wiring fault in the system as I had with my last bike, but you don't want that I assure you!

The best chargers I've found are the Accumax or Optimate units as they can be left connected until you need the vehicle, keeping the battery charged and conditioned or just plugged in when needed and they'll keep the battery in good health. I use the Accumax on my Yamaha and it's been a great bit of kit. (It even works on the huge industrial battery for the 4.6l V8 Crown Vic!!)