June 13, 2021
If you decide to buy a new lawn tractor battery, you’ll be surprised by the fact that there are myriads of battery brands on the market today to choose from. Confused, you will merely scratch your head, and you may end up buying the wrong one that does not suit your requirements. Hence, to ensure that you are getting the most out of your hard-earned money, you need to know the essential features to consider in order for you to buy the right lawn tractor battery. Equipped with the proper knowledge on how to obtain the best lawn tractor battery, you will inevitably never end up hoodwinked into purchasing something that is subpar to your expectations.
Basic Features that You Should Look for in a Lawn Mower & Tractor Battery
If you have a sizeable lawn, you would surely need a lawn tractor or something like a riding mower. In fact, having a lawn tractor may be the best thing that you could ever have when tending to your lawn. The reason for this is that—compared to a lawn mower—a lawn tractor can help you perform the essential garden tasks with efficiency, quickness, and ease. However, operating a lawn tractor necessitates a lawn tractor battery, without which your lawn tractor will never have enough power to execute the different garden tasks. Moreover, it will surely not function well without a good battery, and you will end up messing up the cutting of grass and other basic garden tasks if your lawn tractor isn’t operating well.
My favorite professor in college often reiterated that “knowledge is power.” Hence, if you got enough knowledge about something like the battery of lawn tractor, you will surely end up buying the best lawn tractor battery even if there are myriads of brands on the market today. Knowledge about lawn tractor battery likewise helps you familiarize yourself with the best brands on the market.
The first knowledge you should have about lawn tractor batteries is that they utilize lead acid. This implies that every lawn tractor battery generally undergoes a charge cycle. Knowing this, you should always keep your battery on check, because if you don’t charge your battery for several days or week, chances are, its lead-acid content will crystalize, and eventually, your battery will lose its ability to charge. Hence, it is necessary that every once in a while, you should charge your lawn tractor battery if it is not in use, especially during winter time when it is just lying around unused. You can use a maintenance charger for this purpose. Here are the different factors that you should bear in mind before zeroing in on a particular battery brand:
Battery Sizes
The size of the battery is an important consideration when buying a lawn tractor battery. The important point is that you should know the voltage rating of the battery that you intend to buy. This is important because the bigger your tractor’s size is, the higher the voltage it would be needing. A bigger-sized tractor, for example, usually requires around 36 to 40 volts from its battery. Hence, before you zero in on a particular brand, you should know whether its voltage rating suits your tractor’s need. Aside from its voltage rating, you should also figure out if the actual dimensions of the battery you’re going to buy fit into the battery slot of your tractor. The general battery types, for example, for tractors under U1 group is 8.3″ x 5.1″ x7.25.”
The Condition Resistant
Since your tractor will be exposed to various types of conditions depending on the way and manner you are going to use it; you should at least try to buy a battery that is also resistant to temperature changes. This means that the battery you should be choosing is a certified all-season battery that could withstand the abrupt and radical changes in the weather. It must be designed for extreme weather conditions. Moreover, it should not be prone to heating up when continuously used for longer period.
Voltage Rating of the Battery
When buying a battery for any use, you should make it a habit of looking at the voltage rating of the battery. It is necessary, therefore, if you are going to buy a lawnmower battery, to buy something that has a voltage rating of 12 volts, although you can also opt for batteries with higher voltage rating. The ideal thing to do is to know the voltage rating requirement of your lawn mower before deciding to buy its battery. The voltage rating indicates the amount of current the battery is capable of delivering. As a rule, lawn tractors generally require a 12V battery.
Battery Mounting Position
Ideally, a lawnmower battery should be mountable in any four directions. Since it is mountable in any direction, the battery should be designed in such a way that it is completely sealed to prevent spilling. Since lawnmowers generally are used in different areas like bumpy roads and steep terrains, your battery that is slated on your tractor should also be spill-proof.
Protection of the Battery
Of course, batteries are built in such a way that they are naturally protected from possible damages. However, aside from these inherent protections, you should also ensure that the battery that you select is shockproof and is invulnerable to vibrations caused by bumpy roads. You should also choose a battery that has sturdy casing and is capable of heavy-duty usage. It should also be resistant to chemicals that may accidentally be spilled on it.
Position of Its Terminals
Batteries generally may either have left-side or right-side positive terminals. You should be very meticulous when connecting the cables to your battery to avoid inadvertently damaging your battery and your vehicle.
Battery Construction
Gone were the days when most batteries’ metal plates were immersed in highly sulfuric acid. Nowadays, batteries have calcium in their plates to allow them to last longer and not dissipate. With this new method, the plates do not readily corrode leading to more durable batteries. Moreover, contemporary batteries are no longer vulnerable to damages caused by high impact or high vibration. If you are going to buy a battery, therefore, you should at least choose AGM batteries because they are designed to prevent spilling.
Furthermore, you should also consider looking into the cold-cranking amps rating of every battery. This rating indicates the ability of the battery to work even at freezing temperature. Cold-cranking Amp rating is usually determined by simply measuring the amount of current delivered within a half a minute timeframe when operating in freezing temperature. The rule is the greater the CCA value, the more powerful and reliable the battery is. Additionally, you should also carefully consider the charging time of the battery for this may factor well in your usage of the tractor.
Tips on Maintaining Your Battery
Maintenance prevents you from buying a replacement to your old battery. Hence, maintenance is valuable, and you should at least engage in regular maintenance of your battery if you want to make it last longer in usage. Here are some short tips on how to maintain your lawn tractor battery:
1) Constantly Charge Your Battery
Please remember to charge your battery constantly because all batteries necessitate a constant charge cycle.This is to prevent the crystallization of your battery and the eventual losing of their ability to charge. You can use a maintenance charger for this purpose. Another caveat that you should take heed of is this—that you should not overcharge your battery. Excessive charging may cause the acid inside your battery to fizz out, and this may cause your battery to explode.
2) Always Check the Connections and Tighten Them
Loose connections between terminals and cables may lead to faulty batteries. You should replace the fasteners if you think that they are not hooking up well on the terminals.
3) Occasionally Clean the Battery
Corrosion is one of the major causes of the malfunctioning of your lawn tractor’s battery; hence, to prevent the early malfunctioning of battery, you should ensure that you regularly clean your battery to avoid dealing with a heavily corroded battery. You can use a steel brush for cleaning the terminals and other parts of your battery.
4) Applications
It is also important to bear in mind that you should buy something that is compatible with your lawn tractor. Non-compatibility may lead to battery damage and may cause the fuse to be busted.
5) Store the Battery Properly
If the battery is not in use, you should keep it away from humid or damp places because this may shorten its lifespan. Moreover, storing them in damp spots may inadvertently cause electrical shocks to you from the terminals. You should also not expose the battery to excessive sunlight for it may be bad to the battery. Additionally, long exposure to sunlight may warm your battery casing and eventually may lead to circuitry damages.