I might have set the Record?!? (Battery)

OK as most know, I have bad luck! But it’s better than no luck at all (maybe ) So this year as I try trying to be a better man; I was looking over last years to do list. I wrote new battery Bota.

Well, Bota did not want to start last Thursday (4/23/26) it was below 40° so I used glow plugs and she complained but started. Ok looked up how old Bota is 2005; original battery that’s 21 years at least!

I thought zero turn was great over 12 years old
Pic of label

Will try to buy a new one that has at least 1/2 the longevity.. suggestions welcomed

 

I would buy another tractor battery from the dealer. I just replaced, last year my Deere 2008 "strong box" with another one and it was comparably priced.
At one time another dealer, case IH had cut open battery's to show the difference and a ag battery definitely has tougher guts.

 

Unfortunately, back in the day (who thought I would say that for something as recent as the early 2000's?) it was not unusual to get batteries that were rated to last at least 7 years - and have them last longer.

Now, it is 3 year batteries unless you pay out the nose for a 5 year battery. I got caught with my Explorere just a couple of months past the 3 year buy date and the battery cr*pped out (vehicle was used, but it did come w/new battery). It never dawned on me that such a short life battery was even a thing - all mine had lasted for much longer. Had to replace with another 3 year battery because longer life wasn't kept in stock.

Hopefully you can find a long lasting battery for that 'Bota for a decent price!

 

Thanks bogieb , my beautiful wife like it when all she cleans out bushes and flower gardens and a drive up she takes dead and puts in bucket. “It’s nice to have a motorized wheelbarrow “

 

That’s pretty good! I wonder if battery life could be extended substantially if a trickle charger is used as well. Never tested it, just a thought.

 

I didn’t use trickle charger BUT I did add a block heater and plugged her in for 2 hours in the cold. Diesel doesn’t like cold. I read that as much as 30% wear on diesels is during warm up..

 

Yes I’d believe that. My 7.3 doesn’t like the cold very much but it will start. My bobcat seems indifferent. It runs a bit rough for 10 seconds when it’s cold enough but smooths out and warms up. When it was really cold I’d hit the glow plugs for 30 seconds and it started easy enough.

 

I had to change out my stock 03 last spring. Truly remarkable batteries and not for sale in US best I can ascertain. Mine sits under a shelter but otherwise in the weather. No tender or maintenance.

 

Wow. I thought I did good getting 15 years out of my Kubota battery.

 

Same here with 13 and 15 year old OEM Motorcraft battery's at work!

 

One of the poorest batteries I experienced was factory OEM in a 2017 Honda CRV. I think it was near 2 years or so. I generally have good luck, occasionally using a trickle charger with batteries that sit.

 

So is the consensus to go back to Bota dealer for replacement?

My Bota I like because it’s straight reliable! But it’s a tool, tools need to work period! A snowblower that dies in snow is beyond useless. It’s irritating

 

Bota doesn’t get used daily BUT rarely sits for more than a week at a time.. without a few hour job

 

I doubt that I would...what you get from them now will likely be very $$, and not the same quality that you had...same with the replacement battery I got for the trucks at work...I went back with a Motorcraft battery, but only because the dealer is close by, and their price was half decent. They said the "black label" battery that Ford uses on the assembly line is not available as a replacement...now, that said, the replacements have been fine so far too.
For myself I usually buy batteries from RKO, they are the best bang for the buck these days IMO, but I know you don't have Rural King over there...

 

Dealer batteries may not be the same supply chain/source as OEM, even with the same/similar label.


manual trickle chargers shouldn't be left connected to the battery for too long, automatic smart float chargers can be. Some people use the term on both so just be careful what you've got and use appropriately.

New batteries don't seem to give ya much warning that they are dying. One slow crank in the morning and caput. Not like the old days where you might have a week of slow cranking to let you know it's time to start shopping.

 

I go have Tractor Supply and Running

I called Dealer to check it’s $162 2 year warranty

 

That doesn't sound horrendous, but I bet you can still get a better warranty than in the $160 range...

 

I’ll have to check what type of battery I have in the ol’ Snapper LT16 garden tractor. I do know it’s a box auto parts store brand. A few years back, I bought a solar panel and charge controller from Amazon. The brand is Solperk (or something like that). As an experiment, I left the battery in the tractor over the winter and it fired right up in the spring. I think that was 2-3 years ago? So the solar thing works. This is in CT.

Ironically, I have the same unit in VT. Well, the charge controller took a dump and I believe overcharged the battery in my ATV. Luckily, some distilled water and and overnight on a Schumacker plug in battery charger/maintainer did the trick. I have a new controller and I’ll hook that up and see how it does.

Long story short, maybe get a solar panel and a charge controller to keep things topped off.

 

Ok Skier76 I’m confused why solar panel? Barn garage have power. I have trickle chargers and battery charger/maintainer/boost that plug into outlets

 

Bit of a long story……

I had a friend that flew into Phoenix or maybe Mesa Arizona a couple years ago to visit an ailing friend. He got a rental car at the airport that was just barely 2 years old. On day two the battery gave up and he called the rental company. They sent someone out and replaced the battery and he was back in business with little hassle. He got to thinking about it and thought it was strange for the original battery in a relatively new car to give up so soon. So over the course of the remainder of his trip, he started talking to random locals. He said he asked over a dozen people, “ how long does your car battery last?” He stated that every person asked didn’t hesitate a bit or even have to think about it. And every response was either, “2 years” or “24 months” and was very matter of factly stated.
Apparently the steady over 100 degrees ambient temperature combined with the high under the hood temperature combination cooks batteries to death in a short and consistent amount of time!