60V AEROCORE battery storage and winter layup
| Bulletin number | SB-2026-02 |
|---|---|
| Issued | 6 February 2026 |
| Models affected | 60V AL 18" AEROCORE (565855) and every 60V battery pack and charger in the range |
| Classification | Advisory. Follow it before any machine or loose pack goes into off-season storage, on the floor or in a customer's hands. |
Why this matters
A lithium pack left on the charger, or left flat, through a cold store loses capacity permanently. The two failure patterns reported from the field are a pack that will not wake after four months on the shelf, and a pack that reads full but runs for a third of its normal time. Neither is a manufacturing fault, and neither is covered, which makes this a conversation to have with the customer at the point of sale.
Storage state of charge
| Situation | Leave the pack at |
|---|---|
| Between uses, in season | Any state. Charge before use. |
| Off-season storage, 1 to 6 months | 2 of 4 LEDs, roughly 40 to 60 percent |
| Dealer floor stock and demonstration machines | 2 of 4 LEDs, re-checked every 8 weeks |
Procedure for winter layup
- Run or charge the pack to two of four LEDs. Do not store a pack fully charged and do not store one flat.
- Remove the pack from the machine. A pack left in the machine keeps drawing the controller's standby current.
- Disconnect the charger from the wall. The charger is not a maintainer and must not be left connected.
- Store between 5 and 20 degrees Celsius, dry, off concrete, away from metal swarf and out of direct sun. An unheated shed that drops below freezing is acceptable for the pack but the pack must be brought back to room temperature before charging.
- Clean the terminals with a dry brush. Never use a solvent or a wire brush on the contacts.
- Re-check the charge state every 8 weeks and top back to two LEDs if it has dropped to one.
- Before the first charge of the new season, let the pack reach room temperature, then charge fully and confirm run time against the customer's expectation before handing it back.
Do not
- Charge a pack that is below freezing or above 40 degrees Celsius. The charger will refuse and repeated attempts log a fault.
- Open, dry out or attempt a cell-level repair on a pack. A pack with a cracked case, a swollen face or any sign of liquid is scrap and must be handled as damaged lithium.
- Mix a pack from another brand or an unapproved charger with the machine. Doing so voids the express warranty on the machine as well as the pack.
Coverage
Battery packs and chargers sold with a machine are covered by its 3-year limited warranty; a pack or charger sold loose is an accessory with a 1-year limited warranty. Claim against the registered serial number of the machine they were sold with, or against the pack's own serial when it was sold loose. Capacity loss from storage outside the conditions above is an exclusion, not a warranty failure. Register the machine at Warranty & serials and open any claim from Warranty claims, quoting SB-2026-02.