Husqvarna YTH 22V46

 

I've had this mower for a couple of years (bought it used) and it's always run like a champ.  The only thing I've done to it since I bought it was change the oil, spark plugs, and air filter.  I also switched out the blades for mulching blades.  A few days ago, I was mowing and the mower suddenly stopped running.  It behaved as if I had tripped a safety switch.  The local repair shop wanted a $35 pick up fee plus $$$$ bench time, and said they would have to keep the mower for two weeks.  Two weeks!  You know how tall my grass would be in two weeks?  I decided to see if I could solve the problem myself. 

Because of the sudden way the mower stopped running, I decided it wasn't fuel.  Plus, there was gas in the tank and it hadn't been sputtering.  So, not fuel.  Had to be fire, right?  I thought I would start with something easy, so I disconnected the battery to see if it would reset any tripped safety switch.  No joy.  (The battery tested fine, by the way.)  Next, I decided to change the one and only fuse on the mower.  Easy and cheap, right?  The owner's manual said the fuse was located behind the dash.  Indeed it was.  Way, way, way behind the dash.  This mower has the battery box in the rear, under the seat, and I found the fuse under the right fender after I removed the battery.  So, "behind the dash" meant tucked up under the rear fender.  

The new fuse didn't solve the problem.  Rats!  

The solenoid was located right next to the fuse.  I'd never had a solenoid go bad on a riding mower.  But, it was easily accessible.  It was electrical.  And it would be a cheap part and easy to replace if it was bad.  

I put a screwdriver across the two screws you see in the photo above and the starter spun, which meant the solenoid was bad.  If you decide to bridge the two screws with a screwdriver, be prepared for a couple of sparks and please don't burn down your garage!  Safety first, people.

Removing the solenoid was easy.  I disconnected the two nuts with lock washers attached, removed the wires behind the nuts, unplugged the two connectors under the wires, and removed the bolt that holds the solenoid to the mower body.  A local auto sports shop had the correct solenoid for around $15.  

This is what the nice, new, clean solenoid looked like.  Installation took only a few minutes.  After I installed it and reconnected the battery, the mower fired up and was ready to go.  

The moral of this story: Don't trust the manual and don't be afraid to get your hands dirty.  Time to mow!