Is It Possible To Jump-Start A Dead Lawn Mower Battery With Your Car?

Keeping your riding lawn mower in the best possible working condition means regularly performing several kinds of maintenance tasks — changing the oil, sharpening the blades, replacing the spark plugs, etc. You should also bring its battery indoors to protect it before winter. Unfortunately, even if you care for the battery perfectly, it's going to wear out sooner than you'd probably like. If your riding mower has a lead-acid model, it probably will last two to three years, while a lithium-ion device will last three to five years. If you have a cheaper, off-brand battery, it might die even sooner.

Whether it's because of age or neglect, when your battery is not delivering the power needed to turn over the engine and start the lawn mower, it doesn't matter if you have the best model there is. At this point, you have a very expensive machine that can't do its job. But before you go through the hassle of buying a new battery, you might want to try firing up the mower with a jump-start. Although there are a couple of ways to do this, such as with a portable jumper pack, one of the most convenient options is using your car. As long as both batteries have similar voltages and you connect the jumper cables correctly, you can effectively jump-start the mower with your vehicle.

With proper maintenance, how long can a riding lawn mower last? You could receive somewhere between 10 and 20 years of performance from the machine. Considering the battery will only last a few years, you're going to experience problems at some point.

Why does the jump-start process work for these two different kinds of vehicles? Both motor vehicles and riding mowers typically use 12-volt batteries, meaning they're compatible, even if they aren't the same physical size. A lawn mower battery may need between 145 and 300 cold cranking amps (CCA) to start, while an average car battery offers 450 to 660 CCA, giving it enough power to successfully complete the jump-starting process.

Bear in mind that this won't work if your riding mower uses a 6-volt unit, which is possible with smaller models. Look at the label, which should be clearly marked as 6V or 12V. Additionally, although you should have the donor car running when jump-starting a dead battery in another vehicle, its engine should be off when jump-starting a mower. The car's battery will produce more amps when it's running than the lawn mower can handle. As a final precaution, look at the riding mower's battery for any damage or leaking acid. Do not try to jump-start a damaged device, which could lead to a fire or other damages.

After jump-starting your riding lawn mower with a car battery, you might wonder whether you can do the same with other machines. The answer is yes — as long as the two batteries are both 12-volt systems. In addition, always read the owner's manual for both the car and the other vehicle that you want to jump-start to be sure that the manufacturer says this is a safe process.

Jump-starting a motorcycle battery from the car is possible, though some models might have electrical systems that aren't compatible with jump-starting from a car. Make sure you don't leave the car running during the process, and once your motorcycle is running, let it idle for a few minutes before disconnecting the cables. You can likely follow a similar process for jump-starting a four-wheeler or ATV with a dead battery. Again, you need to be sure the two batteries are compatible. Most four-wheelers have 12-volt units, but if yours doesn't, you could damage the vehicle's electrical system. Similarly, when using a car to jump-start the ATV, make sure its engine is off to avoid damage to the four-wheeler's battery.