"and checked the battery"???? What "checks" did you do? It sounds like the battery has gone kaput. How old is that battery? Have you tried removing the battery cables and cleaning the battery posts and cable flats? Also make certain that the battery positive cable is clean and tight where it connects to the "starting solenoid" (magnetic switch or cranking relay) Check that the battery negative cable (ground cable) is clean and tight where it connects to the chassis. Sometimes people forget about the ground side of the electrical system but it is every bit as important as the "hot side". It is not too unusual for a battery to "come out of storage" and subsequently fail after the first or second time of use.

Mine is about the same age. Battery went. Jump it with your car. If it starts, replace the battery.

one other thing - stay away from hosing your machine down with running water if you can. Lawn tractors for the most part cannot tolerate outside inclement weather vs. a car - or soon there will be other problems.
Blowing off dust/grass clippings with compressed air or leaf blower is much better. And, if needed, a wipedown with a soft clean damp rag will restore the shiny machine you remember.

If you didn't hose the engine and behind the dash off it shouldn't of hurt anything. Probably a bad ground connection or dead battery. If you do hose off you lawn tractor don't spray a hot engine or behind the dash area and use a nozzle that has high pressure fan pattern and less water. My cheap pressure washer works great.

I wash mine off all the time and it's 19 years old other it looks like new has been the only effect on it. But, I know where to wash and where not to and I always blow it off especially the deck and harness connections. I also run the machine afterwards to further blow and let the heat dispate any moisture I missed.

You will get different opinions I agree with the above, but I can't stand dirty equipment and I think leaving equipment out in th weather will kill them quicker than anything do to the constant bombardment of moisture every night.

We brought ours out of storage to change the oil. I changed the oli (replaced filter, used 10-30W, etc.) After that it wouldn't turn over. It still had the original battery (DIE Hard).I jumped it with my car and it worked until I disconnected it. It started blowing thick white clouds of smoke (but I dont know if that was the old oil burning off from spills). So, I replaced the battery with a cheap Advance Auto parts battery. I didnt check to see if it was the EXACT same model battery (I didnt think it mattered) Now it wont even do anything when I try jumping it. Does the model of battery have anything to do with it
???

tilley - did you verify that the replacement battery polarity was the same ? some batteries come witjh posts reversed and if installed bsckwards can cause problems, including blown fuses....

BTW, best to start your own new thread here... in this case a copy of my reply to you is going straight to the OP's email box...

No! the model or make don't have nothing to do with the amount of cca (AMPs) the battery will produce which is what cranks the engine over not 12V. 12V is the steady state voltage in the battery but NOT the LOAD capability. But it does have to do with how long you crank the engine before the engine will start to slow down if it don't start. naturally the more CCA or heavier the battery is the more plates it has and the more reserve power it will have.

If you got the battery hooked up right as suggested above I would remove the battery and have it load tested where you brought it It maybe a dead duck battery without any amps, but it may show 12Vs which again is nothing to do with the battery strength.

"If you didn't hose the engine and behind the dash off it shouldn't of hurt anything."

Spark plugs are not generally behind the dash and a lot of "Kill Wire" junction terminals are on the side of the engine, depending on make.

Walt Conner

I also have a 9 year old LT1000 that I have worked really hard, but taken good care of. I had a similar problem, no start, no tunover etc... It was the "Deck Engagement lever" safety switch!

That lever with the knob on it must be ALL THE WAY DOWN. If it is even 1/4" up it will enable the safety switch and you will have a dead battery "symptom". It took me forever to figure it out.

What causes this is when new there is a spring loaded wire that keeps the lever down, once it breaks due to rust, the lever will naturally move up just a little bit causing the switch to disable your starting beacuse it thinks the blades are in the engaged position.

Good Luck
BT