Lawn mower batteries are junk even when new

[Allaned]

I can't seem to keep a battery for my sit on mower for more than a few months. I bought one in February, 2025 and it was replaced in 11 months (under a 1 year warranty)_ Now the replacement after 5 months won't hold a charge. Alternator is good and putting out 14 volts. I have a jump starter battery charged up and have been using it to start the mower. I don't think there is anything I am doing wrong. The original battery that came with the mower lasted 3+ years but all these replacements have been very poor. I see why they are only sold with a 1 year warranty.

 

[SC Maintenance]

Do you have any history of it holding a charge ever on that machine?

Do you ever put a maintainer on it?

Could be the battery, could be the charge system. Just because it puts out 14V isn't a guarantee there is enough current, or possibly its over charging?

 

[thastinger]

Believe it or not, my 2014 ZTR has the original NAPA battery it came with. I've never even trickle charged it over the winter. Maybe your charging system is weak?

 

[Allaned]

Do you have any history of it holding a charge ever on that machine?

Do you ever put a maintainer on it?

Could be the battery, could be the charge system. Just because it puts out 14V isn't a guarantee there is enough current, or possibly its over charging?

Thanks for the reply
1. Yes
2. No, but I am talking about week to week not holding charge between cuttings.
3. Don't know. Checked the connections. There is enough current to keep the engine running for hours once I jump it.

 

[Pablo]

I can't seem to keep a battery for my sit on mower for more than a few months. I bought one in February, 2025 and it was replaced in 11 months (under a 1 year warranty)_ Now the replacement after 5 months won't hold a charge. Alternator is good and putting out 14 volts. I have a jump starter battery charged up and have been using it to start the mower. I don't think there is anything I am doing wrong. The original battery that came with the mower lasted 3+ years but all these replacements have been very poor. I see why they are only sold with a 1 year warranty.

What replacements are you talking about and where are you buying them?

 

[JayhawkRoy]

I gave up and put all my garden tractors on a trickle charger. Northern Tool used to have good sale prices on them> Walmart is a bit more expensive but they work fine also.

 

[zzyzzx]

There is a lawn mower battery with a 1 year warranty???
I thought it was 3 months now (and not just at WalMart for their Everstart lawn mower batteries).

 

[SC Maintenance]

Thanks for the reply
1. Yes
2. No, but I am talking about week to week not holding charge between cuttings.
3. Don't know. Checked the connections. There is enough current to keep the engine running for hours once I jump it.

If it were me I would buy a battery tester unless you just want to throw batteries at it. Test the new one - check it after you mow, check it again a week later before starting. May give you some clues.

I sincerely doubt your mower needs any battery at all once started. Depending on how these new ones work. Are they still a magneto?

 

[Allaned]

There is a lawn mower battery with a 1 year warranty???
I thought it was 3 months now (and not just at WalMart for their Everstart lawn mower batteries).

Yes 1 year warranty. As stated above one was replaced free to me after 11 months.

 

[dippschtick]

No matter what brand lawn mower battery I buy they all seem to last about 3 years.

 

[GRUMPYDUDE2]

I gave up and put all my garden tractors on a trickle charger. Northern Tool used to have good sale prices on them> Walmart is a bit more expensive but they work fine also.

This is the only answer that has worked for me getting 3yrs or more out of small batteries!

 

[Allaned]

Thanks all for the ideas. I’ll work on things. You are helpful as always.

 

[TnT_M]

I can't seem to keep a battery for my sit on mower for more than a few months. I bought one in February, 2025 and it was replaced in 11 months (under a 1 year warranty)_ Now the replacement after 5 months won't hold a charge. Alternator is good and putting out 14 volts. I have a jump starter battery charged up and have been using it to start the mower. I don't think there is anything I am doing wrong. The original battery that came with the mower lasted 3+ years but all these replacements have been very poor. I see why they are only sold with a 1 year warranty.

Sounds like you have a parasitic draw. Try disconnecting the battery cables for 1 week and see if it holds the charge. My cheap Menards FVP battery is on year 4 or 5, I think, and still going strong.

 

[zzyzzx]

No matter what brand lawn mower battery I buy they all seem to last about 3 years.

The last one I changed was 5 years old.

 

[IndyIan]

My mower seems to charge the battery well enough, once I unplugged the head lights. They were on anytime the ignition was on for some reason? Before that, it wouldn't get the battery charged enough to start reliably after a week.

 

[Astro_Guy]

@Allaned Something other than the battery is wrong here. There must be some slow drain going on. My last Walmart battery went six years. Do you have a multimeter? Can you disconnect one side of the battery and measure the current flow between the battery and its lead?

 

[Lubener]

I can't seem to keep a battery for my sit on mower for more than a few months. I bought one in February, 2025 and it was replaced in 11 months (under a 1 year warranty)_ Now the replacement after 5 months won't hold a charge. Alternator is good and putting out 14 volts. I have a jump starter battery charged up and have been using it to start the mower. I don't think there is anything I am doing wrong. The original battery that came with the mower lasted 3+ years but all these replacements have been very poor. I see why they are only sold with a 1 year warranty.

Maybe try retrofitting a bigger tray so you can use an automotive battery instead.

 

[Silverado12]

FWIW I get the expensive 350 CCA batteries at NAPA; they're the only ones that last more than a couple of years. I can get 4-5 years out of them w/o using a tender and starting/running the mower for about 15 minutes twice a month year round.

 

[The_Eric]

@Allaned Something other than the battery is wrong here. There must be some slow drain going on. My last Walmart battery went six years. Do you have a multimeter? Can you disconnect one side of the battery and measure the current flow between the battery and its lead?

Agreed. Either there is something wrong that is making multiple batteries fail or he has a gray cloud over his head all the time.

 

[Pablo]

What exact battery brands are we discussing? OP didn’t respond