A mower that will not return to its dock and a mower that docks but never charges look identical on the app dashboard — battery low, job incomplete — but they have almost nothing in common underneath. Work out which one you have first. It saves most of the diagnostic effort.
Start here: which problem do you actually have?
Walk out to the dock and watch one full return cycle. Send the mower home from the app, then observe.
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It never physically arrives, or arrives and reverses away repeatedly — this is a docking problem.
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It seats itself in the dock and stays there, but the charge level does not climb — this is a charging problem.
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It seats itself, charges for a few minutes, then stops or drops out — treat this as a charging problem, and pay close attention to the contact and temperature sections.
If the mower never leaves to begin with, or shuts down mid-lawn, that is a different fault path — start with robot getting stuck in the same spot instead.
Part 1 — The mower will not dock
1. Clear the approach path
Nearly every robot mower docks by following a fixed approach line into the station. That line needs to be genuinely clear, and more clear than people expect. Check for:
- Anything within about three feet either side of the dock — hose reels, planters, bins, garden edging, a parked wheelbarrow
- Grass that has grown long directly in front of the dock, which can lift or deflect the mower as it approaches
- Seasonal changes: a shrub that was fine in April may be blocking the line by July
- Anything overhanging the dock that was not there when the system was mapped
Your model's manual states the required clearance in front of and to the sides of the station. Meet that figure rather than eyeballing it — the approach corridor is usually larger than the dock itself.
2. Check that the dock is level and has not shifted
Docks move. Ground settles over a season, frost heaves stakes, and a hard knock from a mower approaching at an angle can shift a station by enough to matter. Confirm:
- The base sits flat, with no rocking when pressed at each corner
- Ground stakes or screws are still fully seated
- The station is level side to side — a tilted dock means the mower's contacts meet the station's contacts at an angle, or miss entirely
- The approach ground has not developed a rut or dip from repeated passes along the same line
3. Confirm positioning is healthy at the dock specifically
A mower can navigate the open lawn perfectly and still fail at the dock, because the dock is often the worst-positioned point in the yard — tucked against a house wall, under eaves, beside a fence.
- On RTK or GNSS systems, check the signal quality reading while the mower sits at the dock, not in the middle of the lawn
- Walls, eaves, gutters, and dense tree canopy directly above the station degrade the fix and cause reflected-signal errors
- On boundary-wire systems, confirm the wire is intact near the station and the loop signal indicator on the dock is healthy
If positioning is weak specifically at the dock, that is the fault. See robot mower losing RTK or GPS signal before going further here.
4. Clean the docking sensors and contact surfaces
Docking alignment relies on small sensors and contact strips that sit low on the machine, in the dirtiest position on the whole mower. Grass sap, pollen, and fine soil build up as a film that is easy to miss.
- Wipe the metal charging contacts on both the mower and the station with a dry or barely damp cloth
- Clean any lens, window, or sensor strip on the front or underside of the mower
- Look for a green or black film on the contacts — that is oxidized sap, and it insulates
- Clear grass clippings packed into the station base
Do not use solvents, abrasives, or a wire brush on contact surfaces. A dry cloth, or a pencil eraser used gently on metal contacts, is enough.
5. Rule out a map or boundary problem near the station
If the dock sits close to a no-go zone, a boundary edge, or a narrow passage, the mower may be unable to plan a legal route into it even though the dock itself is fine.
- Open the map in the app and look at the area immediately around the station
- Confirm the docking area is inside the working boundary, with margin
- Check that no exclusion zone has been drawn overlapping the approach corridor
- If the mower must pass through a narrow channel to reach the dock, confirm that channel meets your model's minimum passage width
Part 2 — The mower docks but will not charge
1. Contacts, again — but for conductivity this time
In Part 1 dirty contacts stop the mower seating correctly. Here they stop current flowing even though the mower is seated properly. Same clean, different failure.
- Inspect both sets of contacts for pitting, corrosion, or a dull gray-green film
- Check the spring-loaded contacts move freely and return — a contact stuck compressed will not meet its partner
- Look for burn marks or discoloration. Stop and contact us if you find any — that indicates arcing, and it is not a cleaning problem.
2. Confirm power is actually reaching the station
Obvious, and frequently the answer.
- Check the status light on the dock or power supply. No light means no power — the problem is upstream of the mower entirely.
- Test the outlet with something else you know works
- If the outlet is a GFCI, press reset — outdoor GFCIs trip after storms and nobody notices for a week
- If the dock runs through an outdoor timer, smart plug, or extension lead, bypass it and plug directly into the wall as a test
3. Inspect the power supply and cable run
- Follow the low-voltage cable from the power supply to the station, looking for cuts, crush points, or rodent damage
- Check where the cable passes through door frames, under gravel, or across a path — these are the usual failure points
- Confirm the connector at the station is fully seated and free of moisture or debris
- Feel the power supply brick. Warm is normal; hot enough to be uncomfortable to hold is not — unplug it and contact us.
4. Check battery temperature
This one causes a lot of "faulty battery" reports that are not faults at all. Lithium batteries refuse to charge outside a safe temperature window, and the machine will sit in the dock doing nothing until it is back in range.
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Too cold: in near-freezing conditions many mowers will not accept charge at all. This is protective and correct.
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Too hot: a mower that has just finished a long job in direct sun may need to cool before charging starts.
- If charging begins on its own once conditions moderate, there is no fault — plan around the window, and check whether your model has a winter storage mode.
5. Consider battery age and health
If the mower charges but the charge does not last, that is a capacity problem rather than a charging problem. Runtime declining gradually over two or more seasons is normal wear. Runtime collapsing suddenly, or the machine shutting down at a charge level it used to handle, is worth reporting to us.
6. Check for a pending firmware update
Charging and docking behavior are frequent subjects of manufacturer firmware fixes. Open the app and confirm both the mower and, where applicable, the station are on current firmware. Let any update finish completely before testing again.
Reading the indicator lights
Light patterns are the most direct signal the machine gives you, and they are entirely brand-specific — the same slow red pulse means different things on different makes. Do not rely on a pattern you read about for another brand.
Find the indicator table in your model's manual, then write down exactly what you see: color, whether it is steady or flashing, roughly how fast, and whether it is on the mower, the station, or both. That description is often enough for us to identify the fault immediately.
What to record before contacting us
- Model name and serial number
- Purchase date
- Which problem it is: never arrives, arrives but will not seat, or seats but will not charge
- Exact indicator light pattern on the mower and on the station
- Any error code shown in the app, written exactly as displayed
- Whether charging ever starts, and if so for how long before it stops
- A photo of the dock in position, showing the approach path
- A photo of both sets of charging contacts
- A short video of a return attempt, if the mower reaches the dock and reverses away
What to try, when to contact us, when it is a warranty claim
Try these yourself
Clear the approach path, re-level the dock, clean both sets of contacts, verify power at the outlet and the GFCI, check battery temperature, and confirm firmware is current. This resolves the large majority of docking and charging reports.
Contact Yard Automation Pros when
- You have worked through the steps above and the behavior has not changed
- An error code or light pattern persists after a full power cycle
- Positioning is weak specifically at the dock and moving the station is not practical
- The mower charges intermittently with no pattern you can identify
- You are unsure whether what you are seeing is a fault or normal protective behavior
We are reachable by email and phone, Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 5:00pm Eastern Time. The site chat widget is an AI assistant available at any hour and can help with setup and documentation questions immediately, but it does not open warranty claims.
It is a manufacturer warranty claim when
- Charging contacts show burning, arcing, or melting
- The power supply overheats, or fails with no external cause
- The battery will not hold charge and the machine is within its warranty period
- A charging or docking fault code persists after every setup and environmental cause has been ruled out
- There is visible damage to the charging system that did not come from an impact or misuse
You do not need to contact the manufacturer yourself. Send us the information listed above. We rule out the causes that are not hardware, then we submit the claim and advocate for you — we keep it moving and keep you updated. The manufacturer decides the outcome, sets the coverage terms, and performs any repair or replacement.
Safety
Do not open, disassemble, or attempt internal repair of the mower, the battery, the station, or the power supply. Charging systems carry stored energy and lithium batteries are hazardous when damaged. Opening the machine also voids the warranty on most brands, which removes the route we would otherwise use to get you a repair or replacement. If a fault is internal, that is exactly the case the warranty exists to cover — let us open it for you.
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