On Apr 3, 6:15*pm, panabiker wrote:
I have a TroyBilt (MTD made) riding mower and the battery is dead
after only 4 summers. I figured I used it no more than once a week for
no more than 25 weeks a year. If I start engine twice each time I cut
the lawn, that's 50 times a year and 200 times in 4 years. Compared to
a car, it's about 3 and a half months of worth of starter usage. My
question: which is the main cause of very short battery life?

1. Lawn mower batteries are not nearly as well made (1yr warranty vs
6-8 yrs for auto batt.), or
2. The mowers don't charge batteries properly, or
3. Lack of use in winter drains and damages the battery, or
4. Something else?

I'm going with #1. We have orchards and use lawn tractors like farm
tractors due to being able to maneuver them between the trees. I start
mine more per day than most home owners would in a year. the only
thing we have found to work is gel cell wheel chair batteries. they
are the right size and seem to last many times longer than the lawn
tractor batteries.