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#1
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Airens riding mower???
First of all, I know nothing about riding mowers. My neighbor has an Airens and the battery keeps going dead. Not sure where to start to find problem. Is there a alternator on them to keep the battery charged when running? He thought there was a problem with the head lights so he unplugged them. Battery still goes dead.
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#2
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Mowers with batteries have some type of charging system but not an alternator like on cars. Its internal to the engine running off of the drive shaft sending current to a regulator then to the battery.
If he can charge up the battery using a charger and the mower runs for a while then quits, its not getting charged. That leaves the regulator or the internal coils. Hopefully its just the regulator. I've had the internal coil go bad on a 4-wheeler and they are a PITA to repair, not to mention the expense of the parts. On some engines the magnet/coil are under the flywheel. Getting to them and pulling the flywheel is more of a job than a lot of guys would want to tackle. |
#3
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Get a new battery. I think they're $20 or so at Fleet Farm.
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#4
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I have an Ariens rider. It does a great job cutting level with no scalping. After the 2nd year you pretty much had one chance to start it, because the battery was weak. I replaced it 2 years ago with a good battery and it's all good.
My guess is the battery that comes with them when they are new isn't the best and isn't meant to last long. He may have another issue, but a new good battery worked foe me. |
#5
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Quote:
No sense in buying a new battery if the VR is not working and charging the battery. If you don't know how to test the VR, you can test the voltage at the battery before starting and while running. You should have about 13.5 volts while it is running. Last edited by thump55; 06-18-2019 at 08:47 AM. |
#6
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With any of these "garden type" batteries, two years is a reasonable life. The replacement batteries are $30 - $50.
Before doing anything, install a new battery. ========================= Here is a you tube video on removing and installing a new charging coil or alternator and the diode box or voltage regulator on a typical small engine that may be found on the engine of the mower in question. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwUEmVwnlB4 If you look at time stamp 3:39 - you see a picture of the alternator coils as well as the attached voltage regulator or diode box. Having said that - the alternator coils almost never fail on these engines. Also, the diode box or regulator also almost never fails. Start with the battery and if that does not solve the problem move into the possible alternator or voltage regulator. ============= Remember, this is an alternator and it supplies AC voltage to the rest of the lawnmower. Normally the voltage from the alternator comes directly off of the coils and is used to power the head lights of the machine. The lights work just fine on AC or alternating voltage. But, the battery is charged more efficiently With dc, so it goes through the diode box to convert the voltage to a DC voltage. But, if one of the diodes in the box shorts, the voltage on the battery can be drained backwards through the shorted diode back through the alternator coils to ground. So, if the new battery does not solve the charging issue, then replace the diode box which is more prone to failure than the alternator coils. Note in the You tube video at time stamp 3:38 - that the voltage regulator block can be replaced without removing many additional parts since it is mounted on the outside of the engine with a single bolt through the center of the diode block. Normally, the diode block is accessible from the outside of the engine with minimal extra parts removal so go there first before ever dealing with the alternator coils. Good luck Last edited by REW; 06-18-2019 at 01:11 PM. |
#7
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Quote:
Why would you spend $ on a new battery before checking the voltage on the battery when its running to see if its getting proper charging voltage? Its a simple trouble shoot. If its getting proper voltage, then get a new battery. |
#8
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Simply because if you have a bad battery, you could load down the alternator so that you get a bad reading - which would point to a bad alternator when it is not really bad.
Good luck |
#9
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Absolutely, check the voltage. At least know what the voltage is.
Best wishes. |
#10
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My thoughts exactly. A voltage regulator is cheaper than a battery...why replace a more expensive item without checking?
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