'Tis the season - dead lawn mower batteries

[Donald]

Are you sure it's a AGM vs SLA? I will bet SLA.

I have not done any real research but I have an SLA for small generator and it was not obvious how to set my normal car/truck battery tester so I could test the battery.

A decent AGM battery should be able to make it through the off season without loosing much charge. But an SLA probably would loose a significant amount.

I don't think the charging systems in these cheap mowers are very sophisticated so it may never really fully charge the battery.

Friends don't let friends buy MTD.

 

[Hermann]

2.5 years ago I injured my right hand and could not ride the motorcycle. Instead of charging the battery constantly during my layoff, I disconnected it. Once a month with help from my phone calendar I hooked it up to charge for several hours. Now that I am riding again the battery is now 5 years old and shows no ill effects.

I take the battery out of the riding mower after mowing season and charge in a similar manner. The original battery lasted 4 years. Replaced at Wal-Mart for $30 Now in its third season.

 

[Hermann]

Are you sure it's a AGM vs SLA? I will bet SLA.

I have not done any real research but I have an SLA for small generator and it was not obvious how to set my normal car/truck battery tester so I could test the battery.

A decent AGM battery should be able to make it through the off season without loosing much charge. But an SLA probably would loose a significant amount.

I don't think the charging systems in these cheap mowers are very sophisticated so it may never really fully charge the battery.

Friends don't let friends buy MTD.

I don't know if Murray is MTD but I have had very good luck with their stuff. My $730 38" Murray from Wally gets into places other riders won't, starts instantly and is easy to maintain. It's six years old and has caused zero problems.

 

[Tdbo]

Is the battery in question a YTZ10S ? I ask because nowhere can I find a ETZ10S.
The first thing that you should instruct your neighbor is why is he overpaying Lowes for a battery that only lasts a year?
Should it be the battery I noted, a quick Amazon search indicates that there are quite a few available for < then $35.
There are several for < than $30. However, here is one for $39.99 that even includes a trickle charger:

https://www.amazon.com/Replacement-...6a189fef09ff332ce88f29&qid=1751125382&sr=8-41


This might be the ticket for him. However if I were in that situation, I would look into the possibility of swapping in a UT1 or something similar, if possible.

 

[50yr Street Mech]

Glad you got lucky. I didn't. Had an Optima AGM in my CRV, on a battery tender. Got down to 0 , maybe less with the wind chill. Next morning, it was frozen and dead. Maybe 2 yrs old. I stick to plain flooded batteries since then. No more problems. That was 8 yrs ago.

 

[Donald]

Glad you got lucky. I didn't. Had an Optima AGM in my CRV, on a battery tender. Got down to 0 , maybe less with the wind chill. Next morning, it was frozen and dead. Maybe 2 yrs old. I stick to plain flooded batteries since then. No more problems. That was 8 yrs ago.

Wind chill does not matter for a battery. While the battery will probably cool down faster in the wind it will never get below the actual temperature even in 50 MPH winds.

There have been problems in the past with Optima batteries. The Optima AGM need a battery charger with a special setting for spiral wound AGM batteries.

I have the plain AGM batteries in my pickup and one in my boat. I will switch to AGM for all car/boat batteries as the flooded wear out

The AGM seem to go for a long long time without loosing much of a charge.

 

[4WD]

2.5 years ago I injured my right hand and could not ride the motorcycle. Instead of charging the battery constantly during my layoff, I disconnected it. Once a month with help from my phone calendar I hooked it up to charge for several hours. Now that I am riding again the battery is now 5 years old and shows no ill effects.

I take the battery out of the riding mower after mowing season and charge in a similar manner. The original battery lasted 4 years. Replaced at Wal-Mart for $30 Now in its third season.

Yep, putting a Perko switch on my boat battery was a game changer …

 

[50yr Street Mech]

I'm not feeding Optima anymore of my money. I'll stick with old school FLA batteries, and just check the electrolyte 2X a year.

 

[repairman54]

If springing for a premium battery Odyssey is the one. 14 yr. old one in my HD is still cranking fine. Always on a BatteryMinder when in the garage also. Optima's are over rated. When my generator needs one it's getting a Odyssey like my old gen set did.

 

[50yr Street Mech]

Hold on, I never said they were no good. They have a great reputation. They had a BETTER reputation before they moved their manufacturing operations to Mexico. Dollar to a doughnut, that 14 yr old you have was made in the states. But, it is a fact, an AGM will freeze before a FLA battery. Maybe mine was getting slammed with cold winds, and it had none of that insulating material around it either. Most of the newer cars batteries are insulated from heat/cold. If you had great luck with them, stick with them. I just so happened to get burned, so went back to FLA ( too hot in Florida now, what am I thinkin LOL )

 

[burbguy82]

My neighbor text me asking if I had a battery tester. His mower won't start. He bought the mower 3 years ago and tells me he's had to replace the battery every spring at $70 a pop from Lowes because it's where he bought the mower. He haggles with them every year about it and sometimes receives a slight discount.

I go over there with my 12V load tester and multi-meter and find a TINY ETZ10S size battery, much smaller than what I'm used to seeing in a mower, sealed AGM type. Initially the battery looks good, reads 12.6V. Put any kind of load whatsoever on it and it flatlines to millivolts.

Questions: 1) I've never experienced that in load testing... and 2) why on earth would they use that tiny AGM battery instead of the universal, dirt cheap standard mower battery? Is this the new normal?

Mower in question is a cheap MTD rider, made in China, probably the least expensive on Lowe's lot at the time. I suggested he use something along the lines of a Noco Genuis 1A maintainer during the off season.

Many small batteries are AGM. Used in Lawn mowers, and ATVs alike. No issue with AGm, but the size is likely common on other things like ATVs and side by sides, where an AGM might be beneficial.

 

[4WD]

Many small batteries are AGM. Used in Lawn mowers, and ATVs alike. No issue with AGm, but the size is likely common on other things like ATVs and side by sides, where an AGM might be beneficial.

All of my small batteries are AGM - tiny one on my generator is 3 years old and sat for 3 months - just fired up like new …
(Nice thing about propane too) …

 

[50yr Street Mech]

Like I said, I never had a problem with my Yellow Top AGM Optima.. Could be 100 degrees out, no problems....Just that ONE particular winter night, it was COLD, the wind was howlin. Weather said it got down to -15 degrees with the wind chill, and the battery froze. Yes, Odyssey is the better battery, hands down. It's just my personal decision to go back to Florida ( FLA) Besides, WM customer service does not pro-rate, re-charge, test any battery you bring back within warranty. They just throw it on a pallet, and tell you to go get a new one off the rack. That's a win win for me.