Skip to main content

DIY Lawnmower Maintenance




DIY Lawnmower Maintenance

It's that time of year when your grass is growing faster than you can cut it.  Your lawnmower has been sitting in the shed all winter and hasn't been cranked in months.  Small engines need to be cranked regularly and after sitting up all winter, your lawnmower will likely not start.  Most people who own lawnmowers don't know anything about small engines and don't want to fool with repairs.  It's actually very difficult these days to find someone willing to work on small engines.  So they head to the store for a new lawnmower.  What these people don't know is that there are a few simple things anyone can do to maintain or repair their lawnmower.  So before you buy a new one, try these:

1.  Replace the spark plug.  The spark plug looks like a little space rocket that screws into the engine.  They are approximately 3 inches long.  It will have a black rubber hose connected to the tip.  Disconnect the hose, unscrew the spark plug (may require a wrench), and take it to your local hardware store and they will give you a new one for under $5. 

2.  Replace the air filter.  Air filters vary from lawn mower to lawnmower.  Some are foam pads underneath a vented, plastic casing.  Some are hollow cylinders or squares with a corrugated felt-like material.  Locate your air filter and remove it.  It shouldn't take more than unscrewing a wing nut.   Take it to your hardware store and match it up with a new one.  

3.  Change the oil.  The oil tank should be easy to find.  Unscrew the cap, turn the lawnmower over while the gas tank is empty, and drain the oil.  Replace with new oil.  It is usually SAE 30.  

4.  Change the gas.  Any gas sitting in your lawnmower over the winter is likely no good.  Drain the gas by removing the gas cap and tilting the lawnmower.  Be sure not to use regular gas in your lawnmower.  Ethanol is terrible for small engines.  Find ethanol-free gas at either your local hardware store or a marine gas station.   

5.  Change the blade.  If your lawnmower is running but not cutting well, it is likely your blade.  They only last a few seasons with regular usage.  Turn the lawnmower on its side and inspect the blade.  If it is warped or too worn, it needs to be replaced or sharpened.  It can be removed with a wrench by unscrewing the nut in the middle of the blade.  Your hardware store can sharpen it, or if it is too far gone, give you a new one.  

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Make Your Own Organic Weed Killer

Make Your Own Organic Weed Killer The class action lawsuit against Roundup for the potential connection between the main ingredient glyphosate and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma has many people looking for other ways to kill weeds. As our weather warms up, weeds are popping up everywhere, and pulling them by hand hardly seems an option. There is an easy solution; make your own organic weed killer. All you need is:  One gallon sprayer One gallon of vinegar 2 cups of Epsom salt (or table salt) 1/4 cup of dishwashing soap Sunshine Mix the vinegar, salt, and soap in the sprayer. The cheapest soap and vinegar you can find will work. You can use table salt,  but Epsom salt is safer in areas where you may want other things to grow. If you don't care about growing anything in an area, use table salt. Pick a day when you don't expect any rain. Spray your weeds in the morning before the sun hits them so that you can get the advantage of as much sun as possible. The dish soap helps the salt a
1 comment
Read more

FLIES IN YOUR EYES, AIN’T NO BIG SURPRISE

  FLIES IN YOUR EYES, AIN’T NO BIG SURPRISE By: Mick Blankenship                It feels like Ethiopia outside, and my friends and I can’t stop the heat. Mosquito, gnat, ant, and fleas have reunited this black summer with unlimited love for you as the Red Hot Chilin Pests.  By the way, the bugs around here will eat you up so terribly, there’ll be nothing left of you but your soul to squeeze. Twisting and turning, your bug bites are burning, they’re biting your girl.  Forget about relaxing on your front porch swing, these bugs will make you want to give it away.  The mosquitoes will wait for you under the bridge downtown.  They’ll have you drawing blood, and it seems they just can’t get enough.  The dark necessities of the ant will leave you so bitten up that you are left with scar tissue.  The flea will have you sucking his kiss from the other side of your sock, no matter where you wear it.  The gnats will make you want to get in your airplane and head west for some Californication, o
Post a Comment
Read more