Home Improvement and Remodeling Tips

Anyone who grew up with a lawn would certainly remember
being told to mow it during weekends. It was a boring and
tiring task, but somebody had to do it.

But just imagine cutting the grass without a lawnmower. The
task would be even more difficult. So whether you like it
or not, lawnmowers are made for a reason, and it’s a good
reason at that.

More than just a chore machine for teenagers, lawnmowers
help cut grass on lawns quickly and evenly. This is because
of the revolving blades under its hood.

These blades may be operated using pure manpower (i.e.
pushing the lawnmower) or by using a motor (electric or an
internal combustion engine).

They also come in different shapes and sizes. Usually,
smaller and simpler ones are meant for small lawns of
households. On the other hand, larger and more powerful
ones are used in larger areas such as lawn tennis courts
and even stadiums.

Sure enough, lawnmowers do a great job at making life
easier when it comes to cutting grass. But they aren’t used
only for that purpose.

Some lawnmower enthusiasts have modified their machines to
become racing machines. It sounds crazy at first and yes,
it still sounds crazy no matter how many times one hears
it.

What lawnmower racers do is take a stock ride-on mower (the
type which can be ridden by a person), remove the blades
for safety and do other modifications to make it go faster.
And voila! They can now go racing at little or no cost at
all!

Lawnmowers are machines that are meant to last. Even the
cheapest brands can last up to 10 years while more
expensive ones can last twice as much.

However, owners need to maintain them well in order to keep
the mowers running smoothly for a long time. Below are some
tips on how you can take care of and maintain your mower.

1. Keep your blades sharp

- sharp blades in lawnmowers are a gardeners’ delight. Not
only do they cut the grass cleanly, they also keep the
grass healthy because of the clean cut. Blades typically
become dull after a month or two of regular use. They
should therefore be taken out of the mower (making sure
that it is turned off before doing anything) and filed to
make them sharp again.

2. Replace or clean your air filter

- motorized mowers are usually equipped with air filters.
In time, they get clogged and so they should be replaced or
cleaned depending on the material they are made of. In
general, paper filters are meant to be thrown away while
those made of foam should simply be cleaned.

3. Keep the tires well-inflated

- well-inflated tires keep mowers running evenly,
especially in the case of the ride-on variety. The tire
pressure should therefore be checked everytime before
operating the mower.

4. Use the right kind of oil

- oil is needed by motorized mowers to keep the engine
lubricated. The right kind of motor oil should always be
bought to avoid destroying the engine.

A lawnmower is fitted with sharp blades in order to cut
grass cleanly and evenly. And since there are sharp objects
involved, safety concerns come with using this machine.

From the period 1996-2004 alone, almost 670,000 were
injured by lawnmowers according to the Annals of Emergency
Medicine.

Here are some tips on how you can use your lawnmower
safely.

1. Be careful of debris

- mowers, the motorized types in particular, can hurl
debris such as rocks with tremendous force. That is why
other people should steer clear of it when it is in
operation.

2. Be careful of hot surfaces

- there are other injuries caused by touching hot surfaces
of the lawnmower. People should therefore avoid coming into
contact with a mowers’ surface when it is being used or
right after it has been put into use.

3. When servicing the mower, make sure it’s turned off

- believe it or not, people are also injured by their
mowers when they tried to service the mower without turning
the machine off. This isn’t only irresponsible, this is
plainly stupid.

4. Careful with those blades

- as mentioned earlier, the blades of mowers are extremely
sharp so people should be careful when handling them or
replacing them.

5. Avoid those feet and hands

- running a mower over feet and hands is another cause of
lawnmower-related injuries. People operating this machine
must avoid mowing where there are people or at least tell
the people to move away while gardeners do their job.