How To Sharpen Mower & Riding Lawn Mower Blades Without Removing Them!

Any keen gardener will know the importance of keeping your lawn mower blades nice and sharp, as well as what happens if you don’t. but not everyone knows the best way to go about sharpening mower blades. Is it possible without removing them first?

(close-up of a lawn mower blade)

Whether you have a push mower of some kind or a riding lawn mower, sharp blades are the key to grass-maintaining success. Sharp blades will help to ensure all blades are sliced cleanly and evenly rather than being ripped haphazardly, and will also help to keep your grass and soil healthy.

For more information on how sharp blades are one of the cornerstones of thriving lawns, and how dull blades can damage grass both aesthetically and health-wise, check out this post.

Because push mowers and riding mowers are so different in shape and assembly, it makes sense to tackle blade sharpening for each one individually. As push mowers are more commonly used by residential gardeners and those with small plots of land, that’s where we’ll start!

Before we get there though, let’s go over some basic but important safety requirements.

Safety First: Preparing for Blade Sharpening

Whether they’re at peak sharpness or not, lawn mower blades of any size and type can be dangerous. To minimise the risk of accidents and injuries taking place, it is vital that you have all the right safety equipment prior to beginning.

(image of safety goggles or gloves)

For your own personal safety, you should consider the following:

• Safety goggles or other protective eyewear – to stop any grit or debris from entering your eyes.
• Protective gloves – to protect your hands from any sharp edges.

You also need to think about how to make the lawn mower as safe as possible while you’re working with it, but we’ll look at this in more detail for each different example.

Sharpening Your Push Mower’s Blades

Is it possible to sharpen your push mower’s blades without removing them from the mower? In most cases, the answer is yes. Because most lawn mowers are fairly easy to manoeuvre, lift, and turn, it doesn’t matter too much about what type of push mower you have, be it electric, petrol, or traditional manual.

Getting Ready

No matter the type of lawn mower you’re working with, there are several bits of equipment you’ll need for the sharpening process:

• Your lawn mower (obviously)
• A grinder or metal file
• A bucket of water
• Putty knife or paint scraper
• Several blocks of scrap wood
• Steel wool or a wire brush

(image of a grinder and/or a metal file)

Once you’ve got these things, you can begin.

Start by ensuring your lawn mower is not plugged in (if it’s electric) or remove the spark plug (if it’s petrol). Basically, whatever you need to do to ensure the mower will not start up while you’re working, do that! The last thing you want is to lose a finger. This is the most important safety step in the whole process.

Moving On

Next, you want to carefully tip the lawn mower onto its side. Be cautious when you do this as even though most lawn mowers are easily moved by one person, they’re still heavy and can damage your back if approached too casually.

If you’ve got a petrol mower, ensure the fuel tank and carburettor are on the uppermost side.

(image of petrol mower on its side)

Wedge the wooden block underneath your mower to keep it stable and make sure it doesn’t wobble even if you apply some pressure. Sharpening blades is risky business so it’s best to ensure the mower isn’t going to fall on top of you while your hand is inside it.

Take a second wooden block and use it to secure the blades by wedging it under the blade. Use your putty knife or scraper to remove any debris stuck to the blades, using some water to rinse away any remnants before you begin sharpening.

At this point you can also use the steel wool or wire brush to scrap away any rust or other stubborn mess that will interfere with the sharpening process.

Sharpening the Blades

Once the blades are clean and clear, it’s time to start sharpening. Because you want to end up with as close to a 45-degree angle at the edge of your blade as possible, you’re going to move your grinder or file in one direction only as opposed to going back and forth.

Whichever of the two tools you use, you’re going to start at the centre of the blade and work outwards towards the edge, maintaining enough pressure throughout to ensure you’re creating an angle. This angle will be what results in sharpness.

Most lawn mowers have two blades made from the same piece of metal – in other words, each end of the metal bar is a blade. You’ll need to repeat the sharpening process for both blades. Instead of trying to reach over to the furthest one away from you, unwedge the wooden block keeping the blades stable and turn the blades so the next one is in front of you, then restabilise it with the block.

When both blades are equally sharp (try to get them as similar as possible in order to keep the blades balanced), you can remove the wooden block and return the mower to its upright position, ready for it to be used again.

(close-up of sharpened mower blade)

Sharpening Your Riding Mower’s Blades

Because riding mowers are so much bigger and heavier than an electric or petrol lawn mower, the process for sharpening their blades without removing the blades is quite different and far less ideal.

In theory, you should be able to follow similar steps to those detailed above however, because riding mowers are so large and heavy, you can’t just tip it onto its side to see get access to the blades. You’d need to lift the riding mower with a jack or similar system in order to get underneath it.

(image of riding mower lifted by jack)

Before even doing this, you need to make sure the ignition is off, all switches and levers are off, and that your parking brake is engaged. You can also wedge the tyres with bricks to make double sure that the mower isn’t going to roll or move while you’re working. You also need to remember to remove the spark plug.

Once you’ve done this and have lifted the mower up, you can then set about cleaning and sharpening the blades. While this is possible to do without removing the blades, it will be very awkward and difficult, and will likely result in subpar results with unbalanced blades.

For this reason, it really isn’t practical, and it would be much simpler, easier, and quicker to sharpen the blades after removing them. It would also be safer for you and give you a better, more even result. Long story short, you’re far better off removing the blades of your riding mower.

How to Remove Your Riding Mower Blades for Sharpening

The first thing you’ll need to do is make sure everything is off and unplugged as mentioned above. Once you’ve lifted your riding mower and you’re sure it isn’t going anywhere, you can use a clamp or a block of wood to wedge the blades in place to make it easier to remove them.

The blades are held onto the spindle by a nut, which once removed, will allow the blades to just slip off. You can remove this nut using an appropriately sized socket wrench. If you try to turn the nut without securing the blades first, the blades will naturally try to turn along with the nut.

(image of socket wrench)

By securing the blades in place with your wooden block or clamp, you will get more leverage on the nut and be able to turn it more easily to release it. Once you remove the nut, the blades should fall off the spindle easily.

With the blades removed, you can then get on with sharpening them, which you can do with the same tools and method as the push mower, using a file or grinder to create as close to a 45-degree angle at the edge of the blades as possible.

To do this, you’ll need to start in the centre of the blades and work outwards towards the edge as described above, lifting the grinder or file after each sweep and thus avoiding a back-and-forth motion.

Removing your riding mower blades will allow you a much better visual so that you’ll be able to balance the blades much more accurately and easily. To try and do this well with the blades still attached to the mower deck will almost certainly result in unbalanced blades and an uneven finish.

Once the blades are sufficiently sharpened, you can reattach them to the deck by replacing and tightening the nut. Then all that’s left to do is lower your mower back to the ground, plug everything back in and you’re good to go!

Even if You Can, Should You?

We’ve now seen how it is possible to sharpen a push lawn mower’s blades without removing them from the mower first. In the case of the different types of push mowers, it’s actually fairly simple and shouldn’t take you too long.

With that said, you’re still probably likely to get better, more balanced results if you take the blades off the mower before sharpening them. This allows you to see all angles of the blade better as well as make sure that each side is equal. So, although it might be slightly more effort, removing the blades is still probably the better way to go for optimal results.

In the case of riding mowers, keeping  the blades attached to the deck whilst sharpening them is difficult, awkward, and even dangerous so without a doubt, removing them to sharpen them is the best way forward. It will be quicker, easier, and will give a much better end product.

It’s always better to take a couple of extra steps and do thing’s properly the first time around than to have to correct mistakes at a later stage. It’s also important to know when you’ve met your match and when replacement is a better option than sharpening.

(image of a lawn mower on fresh cut lawn)

How Long Do Riding Mower Batteries Last & How Fast Do They Go?

So, you’ve got yourself a riding lawn mower and it’s the greatest thing since sliced bread – it just makes cutting the grass so easy! But you still have questions: How long until it runs out of battery? How fast can it go? Read on to find out!

(image of riding lawn mower)

Lawn mowers have been around for a long time now and you’ll be hard pressed to find a household with a garden that doesn’t have one. Riding lawn mowers are a bit newer to the gardening scene and as you may well know, come with a whole range of benefits over their standard pushed counterparts.

The most obvious of these benefits is that their motorised design allows for more grass to be mown more quickly and with reduced effort from us. It’s much easier to hop on this strange little grass-cutting vehicle and let it do its thing than it is to manually push a normal mower up and down our gardens.

Like any battery-powered appliance, riding lawn mowers are not immune to flat batteries and they will require charging between uses. How long does the average battery last though? How often do they need to be charged? How fast can a riding lawn mower go?

These are all good questions, and ones you’ll get the answers to after a quick history lesson:

A Bit of Lawn Mower History

The first discernible lawn mower invented was a creation of British inventor, Edward Budding, in 1830. The aim of this invention was to maintain the grass at sporting grounds and large estates more efficiently and easily.

(image of the first model of lawn mower)

Lawn mower popularity soon grew and has done so ever since, with more and more models being produced all the time with different sizes, shapes, and features. It wasn’t until 1956 though, that the very first riding lawn mower was conceived.

We have American businessman Cecil Elwood Pond to thank for this invention, and his riding mower revolutionised lawn maintenance, boosting the speed and ease of grass cutting substantially.

Since the late 1950s, riding lawn mowers have only continued to improve in design and efficiency. Batteries have greater capacities than they did in the beginning and the riding mowers of today are able to get a lot more mowing done before needing a battery replacement.

What’s the Battery Lifespan Like?

Understandably, people contemplating getting a riding lawn mower are often concerned about battery lifespan as replacing a mower battery can be a costly exercise. This will vary from model to model, of course, but due to the size of riding mowers, the batteries they require are substantial – both in size and expense.

In short, the longer the battery lasts, the less frequently you’ll have to replace it, and therefore the less money you’ll need to spend on your riding mower.

Generally speaking, most riding mower batteries can last between 3 and 5 years. If you don’t use your mower too often, you might be able to squeeze as many as 6 or 7 years’ worth of battery life out of it but most people find themselves somewhere in the former range.

Depending on the battery type and model, 3-5 years’ worth of battery life equates roughly to around 500 full charges.

Types of Riding Mower Battery

There are two main categories of battery when it comes to riding mowers: lithium ion, and lead acid. Each has its pros and cons and there will likely be one kind that best fits with your machine. Below you’ll find a brief outline of each of the two types.

Lithium Ion

• More modern and typically more popular than lead acid batteries.
• Powered by the movement of ions from the cathode to the anode of the battery through a medium of conductive liquid electrolytes.
• Lower rate of self-discharge than lead acid batteries.
• Lithium ion riding mower batteries come in a variety of voltages from 18 to 100V+.

(image of a lithium ion battery)

Lead Acid

• Less expensive than lithium ion batteries and tend to hold a steadier charge.
• Battery capacity decreased with every full discharge so it’s important not to allow the battery to go completely flat.
• Take longer to charge fully than lithium ion batteries but they can hold charge for up to three times longer than lithium ion batteries.
• Commonly come in 112V.

(image of a lead acid battery)

Which type your mower has will depend on various factors such as its age and model but don’t let either type deter you; as long as you do what you can to look after whatever battery you have, your riding mower should have a long and productive life.

How Much Mowing Can You Do Before the Battery Dies?

How long your riding lawn mower battery lasts during each mowing session will depend on a number of factors such as the size of your garden, the type of grass you have, your own weight and others.

A larger garden will require longer sweeps with your mower which will obviously drain more battery than mowing a smaller garden, and a if heavier person is riding the mower then the battery will drain more quickly than if a really light person is riding it. Likewise, if your grass is very long and unruly, it might take more energy to cut than shorter, tamer grass.

It’s really difficult to pin down a specific answer to this so the best thing to do is get mowing! By using your riding mower a few times, you’ll get to know exactly how much mowing you can do before the battery drains and you’ll be able to plan your mowing better for the next time, ensuring your mower is sufficiently charged.

Ways to Improve Your Riding Mower's Battery Lifespan

While there’s no way to make your battery last forever (all good things must come to an end, right?), there are strategies you can employ to make sure it lasts for as long as it possibly can.

You can start by ensuring the battery you start with is of a decent quality. Trying to preserve a poor-quality battery will be a bit of an exercise in futility as there will be little you can do to keep it alive for any remarkable amount of time. Higher quality batteries might cost a bit more, but they last longer as standard and will be easier to support to further preserve their lifespan.

Similarly, ensuring you use the manufacture recommended charger will also help the battery to charge fully and properly, and last longer. Using off-brand chargers can reduce the battery’s capacity to hold charge in the long term so don’t be tempted by budget prices!

Store your mower in a dry and cool area such as a garage or shed to ensure excess moisture doesn’t cause rust or electrical shorts, and that the battery doesn’t overheat when not in use. Excessive heat can drastically minimise the battery’s ability to hold charge, and diminishes its lifespan as a whole.

Excessive cold works in a similar way so it’s equally important to ensure your mower is not stored anywhere too cold either. Not too hot and not too cold –  riding mower batteries are basically Goldilocks!

If your mower has a lead acid battery, be careful not to use it until it’s completely drained, as mentioned above, this will decrease the battery’s ability to charge fully in the future. Lithium ion batteries have a bit more leeway here but it’s still probably best to leave some charge on them rather than draining them completely.

The Final Question: Need for Speed

And finally, the question you’ve probably been waiting for: how fast can a riding lawn mower go? How quickly will you be able to zoom around your garden and get that grass cut? Will this boring gardening chore become a fun joyride?

Probably not, unfortunately. While a riding lawn mower can move significantly more quickly than the average person pushes a conventional mower, there won’t be any call to hold onto your hat!

Riding mowers come with a variety of speed capabilities but typically fall somewhere in the 5-7mph range. If you’re disappointed by this news, just think, it’s still faster and more pleasant than pushing a heavy gas mower along at a snail’s pace in the sweltering heat!

(image of the Honda Mean Mower v2)

The fastest riding mower is the Honda Mean Mower V2 which smashes all previous records with a staggering top speed of 150.99mph! Yes, you read that correctly – a lawn mower…going 150mph! Unfortunately though, this little stunt by Honda is not commercially available so you can put any dreams of having mower races with your neighbours safely to rest.

What it All Boils Down To

How long your riding mower battery lasts will depend on the type of battery, model of mower, frequency of use, and how well you look after it. You can improve its overall prognosis by making sure you charge and store it properly as well as ensuring you don’t frequently drain it fully, but at the end of the day, riding mower batteries aren’t designed to last forever.

And while your personal riding mower isn’t going to break any Guinness World Records, it is still faster than the average pushed lawn mower by a couple of miles per hour so either way you slice it, you’re in a good position.

How To Know For Sure If Your Mower Blades Are Blunt/Dull? Find Out Here!

Mowing your lawn can be an uphill battle at the best of times – it’s not a chore most people think of as fun. Blunt blades can make it even more unappealing, but how do you know if your blades are indeed blunt?

Being able to identify when your lawn mower blades are dull is really important. Trying to cut grass with blades that are on their last legs can be quite ineffective and can even cause damage to your mower and lawn, which is not something you want!

Most people don’t mow their lawns very often. This might be because it’s not a task that’s required very frequently, because they’ve got someone else to do it for them, or because they just don’t want to. Whatever the reason, lack of familiarity with your lawn mower can make it difficult to know when the blades need sharpening or replacing.

If you find yourself in one of these categories and are worried about the state of your mower blades, keep reading! You’ll soon find out the tell-tale signs that your blades are getting dull.

Hints that Your Mower Blades Are Blunt

Inexperienced lawn mowers need not despair! Lawn mowers are inadvertently pretty helpful when it comes to letting you know their blades need sharpening. Keeping an eye out for these few simple signs can help you to know for sure that it’s getting to that time.

(image of a streaky lawn)

One of the first things to look out for is unevenness when you’re mowing. If you’re used to seeing seamless strips of cut grass and instead you’re getting ragged or haphazard looking sections, this is a sure-fire sign that your blades are dull. Blunt blades will also be worse at cutting all grass to the same height, so if you notice you’re having to make several passes over the same area, a dull blade could be to blame.

The quality of the cuts themselves is another hint that your mower blades might be blunt. For example, a sharp blade will slice cleanly and evenly through each blade of grass, but if on closer inspection you notice the cut tips are torn or jaggedly ripped, the likelihood is that your blades are no longer at their peak.

(close-up of a poorly cut blade of grass)

Browning and streakiness once you’ve mown your lawn can also mean that you’ve been mowing with blades that aren’t quite up to the task. Dull blades can damage your lawn leading to discoloration and grass deterioration which not only looks ugly, but can also lead to more long-term issues.

Routinely Checking the Blades

Another way to ensure you catch dulling early on and stop it in its tracks is to check the blades of your lawn mower routinely. Every once in a while, take some time out to inspect your mower blades to look for any signs of wear that could signal blunting or other issues.

(close-up of a damaged blade)

Things like dents and nicks in the blades are good indicators that the blades might not be as sharp as they should be, and can cause damage to your lawn, so finding them soon means you can resolve them before mowing. This will in turn, preserve the quality and health of your grass.

Over time, blades can also be worn down by bits of grit or soil, so blade thinning is another issue to look out for when inspecting your lawn mower blades. A blade that’s worn too thin is liable to break if it hits a stone or uneven patch of ground, which could lead to shrapnel flying into other parts of your mower or into you!

As a general rule, lawn mower blades should be sharpened after around 25 hours of mowing time. The time it takes to each 25 hours of mowing will vary from person to person and lawn to lawn, so use your intuition, but this is a handy benchmark to keep in mind.

If you’re having trouble visualising what 25 hours of mowing time looks like or how long it might take you personally, here is some more information that might be helpful. As with all things, mower blades will also need replacing once in a while, so it’s worth keeping track of how old your blades are.

What Happens if Your Continue to Mow with Blunt Blades?

Ignoring dulling mower blades is not in your best interests or in the best interests of your garden. It might not seem like that big of a deal, but mowing with blunt blades can cause more harm to your grass than you might realise.

Unevenness

Unevenness in your lawn is not just an aesthetic issue. You might think that a streaky lawn is not the end of the world, but the damage goes deeper than simply having a stripe patten on your lawn.

Unevenness can lead to a whole host of issues. One such issue is that not all your grass will be cut to the right height, as mentioned above. As a rule of thumb, you should only cut your grass by 1/3 of its height. Cutting any more off than this will lead to prickly and stiff grass that’s unpleasant to walk on and less lush.

(image of spikey, brown grass)

Cutting grass too short will also put it at risk of drying out, diseases, and premature browning. Take unevenness seriously when you see it and stop mowing. Once you’ve sharpened and adjusted your blades, you can then continue.

Bald or Sparse Patches

Using a blunt mower can lead you to damage your lawn by leaving sparse patches or even patches without any grass at all, as blunt blades can rip up whole plants rather than slicing through just the leaf tips. Now this will look atrocious, but that’s not the worst part.

Bald patches in lawn are weak points where weeds will thrive. Without grass to compete with, and stray weed seeds or roots that make their way into the gaps will proliferate and get stronger, potentially spreading to areas of healthier grass too.

(image of weeds)

This will mean more work and expense for you than if you had just sharpened your blades in the first place. Bald patches will also be more susceptible to disease and dehydration as there will be no grass to protect the soil.

Grass Recovery Time Increases

Just as cutting any living thing will harm it, cutting your grass technically also causes trauma. This might sound silly but when you think about it, mowing grass is an unnatural act that puts stress on the grass – after all, wild grass doesn’t get its leaves chopped off at the tips!

While mowing your lawn is necessary and will aid it’s overall health in the long-term, the act of mowing does essentially damage the plants. Cutting with a sharp blade will cause minimal trauma to the grass and will allow each grass blade to recover pretty quickly and continue growing.

(image of a healthy, green lawn)

Cutting grass with a dull blade however, can rip and tear it which means more stress and a longer recovery time. This means your damaged lawn will take longer to heal and continue growing which can leave you with spikey and unattractive grass in the meantime.

In a Nutshell

Hopefully, this post has given you a good idea of the signs to look for to know when your lawn mower blades are starting to get dull, as well as some more information on why it’s important to mow with sharp blades.

It might seem like a trivial thing, especially to people who don’t mow their grass very often, but using sharp mower blades can quite literally make or break your lawn. For more information on how to go about sharpening your lawn mower blades, check out this article.

There are far more benefits to mowing with sharp blades than there are inconveniences, so to make the most of your garden, it’s vital to look after it properly. The last thing you want is to accidentally kill all your grass by cutting it with a blunt mower – think of the hassle and expense of having to reseed your lawn or buy and roll out turf (no thanks!).

A lush, green, healthy lawn is such a wonderful feature to have in your garden, not only for aesthetic appeal, but also for all the many uses a lawn can offer. Garden parties, barbeques, playing football with your children and so many other activities rely on a lawn, and if you can ensure your lawn is in great shape, why wouldn’t you?

(image of children playing on a lawn)

Are Lawn Mowers Cheaper During The Winter Months? Should You Wait To Buy?

If you’re in need of a new lawn mower, or you’re thinking of buying your first ever lawn mower, you should be prepared to part with a decent chunk of money. A new lawn mower is an investment, but is there a best time to buy one? Are they cheaper in the winter?

The assumption many people make is that because winter is the time when you’re least likely to mow your lawn, it would also be the cheapest time to buy a lawn mower. This logic does make sense as most seasonal items go through a price decrease as the demand for them decreases.

(image of a new lawn mower)

However, surprisingly, winter is not necessarily the cheapest time for lawn mowers, and we’ll go through why that is. We’ll also take a look at some other ways to make sure you’re getting the best deal on your new lawn mower – there’s no sense overpaying if you don’t have to, right?

There’s no set in stone perfect time to buy a lawn mower so take the information below with a pinch of salt and treat it as a guideline rather than a direct recommendation. Things like region, general weather trends, and the type of shop you’re looking at might affect when you’ll get the cheapest lawn mower deals.

Without further ado, let’s take a more in-depth look at when the supposedly best times are and why this might be.

If Not Winter, When?

In most cases, the theory that the winter months will be the best time to shop for a new lawn mower is not necessarily accurate. Blindly following this suggestion without doing some research first could result in you buying a lawn mower in the winter thinking you’re getting the best deal when in actual fact, you could have gotten the same mower for less at another time.

But when is this other time? If winter isn’t the best time, when is?

As far as seasonal items go, retailers have a very clear idea about demand and customer buying trends. Stores know exactly when their customers will be buying different items and what the peak seasons are.

(image of a seasonal items sale sign)

Where lawn mowers are concerned, the period between May and July is considered peak time and this is where lawn mower prices will be the highest. The demand for mowers is at a high as more people are spending time in their gardens, so retailers can afford to boost prices slightly, knowing that people will still purchase lawn mowers.

The drop-off point for lawn mower season is actually August as most people have already done the bulk of their garden preparation and will already have a mower by this point. This means that from August onwards, lawn mower prices start to drop.

As a result, the cheapest time to buy a lawn mower tends to be between August and September, just after peak season, rather than in the winter.

How Come August and September are So Cheap?

There are a number of factors that determine why August and September will get you a better deal than in the winter, which we’ll look at now.

After peak mowing season, stores know that people are not going to need to buy as many lawn mowers, owing to the fact that they presumably already have one that they’ve been using all summer.

This drastic decrease in demand means stores can afford to lower their prices in order to shift any remaining lawn mower stock. This is not only a benefit to the savvy customers looking for a better deal, but also for the stores as they now need to make room for different items.

(image of a trend on a graph going down)

Lawn mowers are large and bulky and take up a lot of valuable shop-floor and storage space. The more mowers a retailer can get rid of at the end of season, the more space they’ll have for storing and displaying new items. This is the main reason lawn mower prices drop just after peak season.

In other words, end-of-season discounts and sales are a great way for shops to shift the last few lawn mowers that they would be unlikely to sell post-season.

Why is Winter Not Quite as Cheap?

While this will vary from place to place and store to store, generally, the winter months do not represent a great time for buying discount lawn mowers. In addition to the reasons above, there are a few other factors at play.

Most people are not thinking about their gardens as much in September to November as the weather starts to cool and summer festivities start to wane. So, in some respects, you’d think this decreased demand would lead to a continuation of the end-of-season discounts. To a degree, this does happen, but then it gets to a point where there just aren’t many lawn mowers around anymore as different items take over.

Demand tends to trend upwards again over the Christmas period as people start thinking about gifts and home improvements, which means prices can then start to go up as well. When the new year rolls around, people start making resolutions and goals which for many people, include their gardens, so again, lawn mower prices can afford to rise.

In the latter half of winter, people begin planning their gardens again, making preparations for the spring when lawns start to flourish again after snow and frosts. Because people begin thinking about their gardens more, they get into the swing of buying equipment and tools to prepare for the warmer months – lawn mowers included.

For these reasons, winter is really not an optimal time for buying your new lawn mower. Retailers are psychology experts, and they know what people are likely to be thinking at different times of the year. Coupled with their economic understanding, this psychological approach ensures they maximise their profits through all seasons.

Are There Any Other Cheaper Periods?

Perhaps counterintuitively, late spring right before the summer takes off is probably the next best time to buy a lawn mower. April and the beginning of May are generally fairly cheap times for buying lawn mowers as flash summer sales are often taking place.

Retailers want to kickstart their summer earnings and they do this by slashing prices of big-ticket items like lawn mowers for a short time to encourage consumers to buy, buy, buy! This will vary from brand to brand and retailer to retailer so don’t take this information as gospel.

If you’re after a new lawn mower though, and weren’t able to get one in August – September or during the winter, this late spring period right before peak season is probably a good time to shop around again.

Other Ways to Get a Cheaper Lawn Mower

Outside of watching sales trends, there are alternatives for finding more budget-friendly lawn mowers. A lot of people and businesses sell used lawn mowers and other tools in excellent working condition at the fraction of normal retail prices.

(image of a second-hand mower)

People sell things for all sorts of reasons so as long as there’s nothing obviously broken or wrong with the way it operates, a second-hand lawn mower might be a great budget option. With that in mind, use your best judgement when scoping out second-hand options.

Big sales events such as Black Friday and the like could also provide good opportunities for saving on expensive items like lawn mowers, although you should do some research before buying anything to make sure the advertised savings are actually savings rather than just discounts on marked-up prices.

(image of a Black Friday sign)

Many online retailers will also have lower prices than their in-store counterparts so it’s worth having a virtual window-shop to see if you can snap up any good deals.

Shop Smart and Save Money

At the end of the day, there’s no perfect formula for getting the cheapest possible lawn mower. So much depends on regional trends, different brands, and retailer habits so the best thing you can do is keep your eyes open.

Bear the information above in mind when you’re shopping as there are some useful tips that could help you to save a lot of money, but also make sure you’re shopping around to make sure you’re exploring all your options.

As a general rule, August and September are your best bets for cheaper lawn mowers so this period will be a good jumping off point. Saving money can also come in the form of looking after and preserving your mower for as long as possible, so here are some tips for prolonging the life of your mower.

Can You Use An Electric Mower On Wet Grass? Should You?

This is a point of contention for many gardeners the world over. It can be so tempting to quickly zoom your mower around your lawn after a bit of rainfall or after your sprinklers have done their thing, but before you do so, keep reading!

A lawn mower is an expensive bit of gardening kit, so the last thing you want to do is damage yours. Knowing the best conditions for mowing and the conditions to avoid can help to ensure your lawn mower is kept in tip-top shape for as long as possible!

So, what’s the answer then? Can you use your electric mower on wet grass?

Most experts would say definitely not, and they would be absolutely correct! Using any kind of lawn mower on wet grass could spell catastrophe for both the mower and the user, but electric mowers in particular are not a good pairing with a soggy lawn.

Although it can be tempting to mow your lawn when it’s looking shiny and luscious from being damp, this will only cause you more problems and if you keep reading, you’ll find out exactly why. The issues you’ll face fall into three main categories which we’ll explore: dangers to you, dangers to your lawn mower, and dangers to your grass.

Dangers to You

It’s easy to forget that we become a part of the mowing ecosystem when we cut our grass. I mean after all, the mower does all the real work, we only have to push it along. But let’s be honest for a second here:

You are far more important than your lawn mower (no matter how expensive the model is) and you’re definitely more important than your grass.

So, it makes sense that as much as we want to make our lawn look nice and tidy and manicured, and as much as we want to keep our lawn mower in good condition, we should also want to make sure we are safe while we mow our lawns.

And therein lies the problem with using a lawn mower on wet grass. From an early age, we are taught that water and electricity don’t mix. That’s why we don’t use our hairdryers while we’re in the bath or go swimming during electrical storms.

Using an electric lawn mower on wet grass can lead to a risk of electric shocks, particularly if your lawn mower is a bit older or has loose connections or other component damage. Getting shocked is not a pleasant experience even if it’s mild and ultimately harmless so it’s best to avoid wet grass when mowing.

When pushing a lawn mower, you exert some force on the machine and tend to lean forwards a little bit, even if you aren’t pushing hard or fast. Leaning forward even slightly whilst standing on wet grass can result in your foot slipping and you falling over.

In the best-case scenario, you just fall over and get back up with some damp patches on your hands and knees. In the worst-case scenario, you fall forwards and smack your face on your lawn mower or catch your hair or fingers in the blades – safe to say no one wants that!

Dangers to Your Lawn Mower

Electric lawn mowers are generally very efficient and reliable machines that can last for many years with regular use. Introduce water into the mix however, and you’ve got a recipe for disaster. For the same reason that you wouldn’t leave your lawn mower out in the rain, you shouldn’t use it on wet grass – water can cause all kinds of issues!

Any exposed connections that get wet could cause an electrical short, or other issues that could mean long-term damage, and as we all know, moisture causes rust in some metals. There’s a high likelihood that your electric lawn mower has some rust-susceptible components that will be damaged if water droplets or damp grass clippings get caught in them.

Clumps of wet grass also pose another danger in that they become more difficult to remove as time goes on and can cause blockages if not dealt with immediately. Anything that hinders the rotation of your mower’s blades or the movement of other parts will cause additional resistance that will result in damage to the machine.

Motor strain is another danger, as wet grass is typically much harder to mow than dry grass, especially if it’s a bit on the long and unruly side. If your electric lawn mower motor has to work too hard for too long, it could stop working altogether.

Wet grass is also more likely to stain your mower than dry grass, and although cosmetic issues aren’t that big of a deal and won’t affect the operation of your mower, they’re still worth considering.

Dangers to Your Grass

The whole point of mowing your lawn is to keep it in good condition and looking healthy and tidy. Mowing your lawn when it’s wet can completely negate this point and actually ruin the aesthetics and health of your grass.

Wet grass, particularly if it’s long enough to need mowing, will likely be slightly bent over or hanging due to the extra weight of the water. This means that when you mow over it, you won’t be cutting the same amount off each blade of grass, which could result in an uneven and prickly lawn once it dries.

Wet grass tends to clump together too, which will mean increased resistance for your lawn mower blades. If your blades aren’t perfectly sharp, you also run the risk of them not being able to slice through wet grass clumps at all, knocking them over instead. Once these clumps dry and spring up again, you’ll be able to notice all the patches you missed.

If your lawn is wet, it’s probably also a bit muddy and as we all know, mud is not the most stable of surfaces. Mowing on muddy terrain can leave wheel ruts in your lawn, rip up grass instead of cutting it, and cause you to trim too much or too little if the muddiness has created depressions in the lawn.

All of these issues will not only make your lawn look uneven and patchy, but will also affect the integrity of the soil and health of your grass.

Ideal Lawn Mowing Conditions and Tips

As you can probably tell by now, the best conditions to break out your electric lawn mower will be when it’s dry outside and the ground is also dry. In peak mowing season, dry days shouldn’t be too hard to come by and the temperature should be nice and warm too, helping to dry out any residual moisture.

Mowing in midday sun can be quite strenuous so to avoid risking things like sunburn, heat stroke, dehydration, and exhaustion, it’s best to mow your lawn earlier in the morning or in the afternoon when the sun is not at its harshest.

If you have any newly seeded areas in your lawn or have been trying to fill out any bald patches, you should avoid mowing over these bits until the new grass is at least 4cm tall. Mowing over young grass seedlings will be too harsh on their tender stems and could kill them, putting you back at square one.

If you’re going to be using the mulching attachment on your electric mower then it’s also important to do so on dry grass. Trying to mulch wet grass clippings will only result in a sludgy, clumpy mess that is difficult to spread evenly across your lawn and more difficult for microorganisms in the soil to break down.

So, What Should You Do?

Cutting your grass is not a life-or-death situation and it will be extremely unlikely that there’s an important deadline you have to meet. The best advice therefore is just to wait until your lawn has dried completely before you attempt to mow it.

Not only will you be ensuring you keep yourself safe, you’ll also be preserving your electric lawn mower and your grass – everyone wins!

It’s important to mention that any shaded areas of your garden will take a bit longer to dry as the evaporation of moisture will be slower in the cooler, darker conditions. Testing shaded areas for dampness is probably the best way to see if your lawn should be mowed as it will give you a more representative measurement.

There are some lawn mower models that have been specifically designed to be able to mow in wet conditions so if for some reason you feel this is necessary, it’s definitely worth researching a waterproof model.

Short of having a waterproof mower, no mower wants to be used on wet grass, especially your electric mower!

Will Your Lawn Mower Pick Up Leaves On The Grass? Find Out Here!

If you’ve got trees in your garden, or if you have neighbours who have trees that hang over into your garden, you might find leaf litter to be an issue that’s both aesthetically unappealing and effort to clean up. Could using your lawn mower to pick these leaves up be the answer?

Whether the leaves are yours or yours or from your neighbours’ trees is irrelevant; they’re in your garden so they’re your problem. You’re the one who has to see them every day fluttering about your lawn in the breeze and collecting on your patio furniture. It’s no wonder you’re looking for a solution!

(image of autumnal trees, losing leaves)

When autumn rolls around and falling leaves seem like an endless onslaught, the issue magnifies and can become a bit overwhelming to deal with, especially if there are a lot of trees around your garden. You want a solution that’s going to be efficient and sustainable – no one wants to be running outside every day picking up leaves manually.

In this article, we’ve outlined how your lawn mower could be the answer to your prayers, because yes, it will pick up leaves as you mow. We’ve also included a few alternative methods. Hopefully you’ll find something that could help you with your leaf litter problem, so you can say goodbye not only to the leaves, but to the stress that they come with too!

Using Your Lawn Mower to Mulch Leaves into Your Lawn

This is probably the most popular method of using your lawn mower to get rid of leaves on your grass as it comes with several benefits. With a few adjustments, you can turn your lawn mower from merely a grass cutting machine to a grass cutting and leaf mulching one!

With a standard petrol or electric rotary mower, you just need to insert the mulch plug and close the discharge port so that all clippings are directed back onto the lawn instead of shooting out the side of the mower or being collected in the compost bag attachment.

(image of mulching lawn mower)

With these slight modifications, your mower will be able to redirect not only grass clippings, but also chopped up leaf bits onto your lawn as a fine mulch. Setting your mower to its highest setting will also help to pick up any leaves on the grass more effectively so you don’t leave any behind.

Picking up leaves from your grass only to redeposit them onto your lawn in a slightly different form might seem counterintuitive when we’re trying to get rid of them, but mulching your lawn with leaf matter is a great way to add nutrients to the soil and aid healthy grass growth.

The chopped-up bits of leaf and grass clippings have been superficially broken down by your lawn mower blades and the smaller pieces will then be broken down completely over time by microorganisms in the soil. Once your lawn has the chance to absorb the newly released nutrients, it will flourish!

Using Your Lawn Mower to Pick Up and Compost Leaves

If you find there are too many leaves on your grass, then the above method for dealing with them might not be the most appropriate. After all, your lawn will only need a very thin mulch layer which won’t require too many leaves.

If your garden situation is more of a blanket of leaves rather than a scattering of leaves, then composting is your best option! This method is equally simple, and all you need to do is attach the compost bag rather than the mulch plug.

The compost bag is the attachment that would normally catch and store all the grass clippings, but if you’re mowing over a substantial number of leaves, then these leaves will get caught and stored too as you go over them. Again, it’s best to keep your mower on a high setting to get the most leaf-gathering power.

(image of a compost bin or compost pile)

Once your bag attachment is full, you can transfer the leaves and grass clippings to a compost bin or special composting bag and wait for it to decompose down. Once it’s turned into compost, you can then use it to add nutrients to your garden beds and any potted plants you might have.

Both mulching and composting leaves provide sustainable solutions to getting rid of leaf litter. Instead of incinerating and essentially wasting all that natural material, you’re putting it back into the soil which enriches it and improves plant growth and health.

The Old-School Method: Using a Rake to Collect Leaves

You’ve most probably used this method at some point in your life and if you have, you’ll know how much effort it is and how frustrating it can be. Maybe you were given some pocket money as a child to rake leaves into piles, or maybe you give your own children some money to do this chore.

(image of a rake or of someone raking leaves)

Although the right type of rake can be quite effective at gathering large volumes of leaves relatively quickly, rakes are not very good at picking up any stragglers that might be left on your grass after the bulk have been removed. Raking is also not very practical if you have a very large garden as it’s quite physically intense and would be much slower than using your mower.

If you do rake leaves though, once they’re in a pile they’re fairly easy to stuff into bags or scoop onto a compost pile, although still not as easy as simply emptying a mower bag attachment.

The Combo Method: Using a Leaf Blower, Rake, and Lawn Mower

Depending on the size of your garden, number of leaves on the grass, and amount of time and energy you have to spare, you might consider a combination of methods in one. Using these three different tools can be a really effective way to make sure no leaves are left on your lawn at the end of the day.

Start by using a leaf blower to gather all the leaves into one area or pile. This will help to make them easier to deal with and get rid of than trying to pick up leaves from all different parts of the garden.

(image of someone using a leaf blower)

Then use a rake (or your hands) to scoop leaves into a compost pile or bin, or into leaf composting or disposal bags. When there are only a few leaves left on the grass that are getting more difficult to pick up with the rake, it’s time to get the lawn mower out.

Mow over the leaves with the highest setting activated and the mower should pick up the remainders, either mulching them or depositing them in the compost attachment – depending on which route you’ve decided on.

You should be left with a lead-free lawn at the end of this process!

Which Option to Choose?

What option of the four listed above you go for will depend on a number of factors:

• How big is your garden?
• What volume of leaves are you dealing with?
• What tools do you have at your disposal?
• Is there a deadline or can you afford to take your time?

If your garden is only small and there aren’t too many leaves, then a quick sweep with a rake might be all you need. For larger gardens with more dense leaf blankets, a leaf blower or lawn mower will provide a more efficient solution.

Likewise, not everyone just has a leaf blower sitting around in their shed, so it goes without saying that you should choose an option that suits your means. There’s no sense going out a buying expensive garden equipment that you might not need.

What to Do with the Leaves?

As we’ve seen above already, composting and mulching are two of the most sustainable and eco-friendly options, with the added benefit that both of these methods will add nutrients back to your soil, improving the health and growth of your grass and plants.

But if you don’t have the space for a compost bin or your lawn doesn’t require mulching, then what else is there to do with your leaves?

(image of garden waste bag)

One simple option is to bag up your leaves with your other garden and organic waste and organise a garden waste collection from your council. This is a good option if you’re looking to dispose of large volumes of organic matter, so ideal after a day of pruning, strimming, or other landscaping tasks.

If you have a firepit or space for a bonfire, you could consider burning your leaves and other organic material, but make sure you’re allowed to do this in your area and that any smoke caused won’t be affecting neighbours.

If you have a friend or neighbour who has an allotment, you might be able to organise a collection with them if they’d like to add your leaves to their compost or mulch, and social media platforms are also a good way to find people that might want to take your leaves off your hands.

Overall…

Lawn mowers are a great help in picking up fallen leaves on your grass, and there are several ways in which your lawn mower can help to utilise them. If using a lawn mower isn’t for you, then fear not as there are always other manual options.

Whatever you decide, make sure you’re using your equipment correctly and safely, and that whatever disposal method you choose is not going to negatively impact people around you or cause damage to the environment.

How Many Calories Do You Burn Pushing A Lawn Mower? Find Out Here!

If you’ve got a lawn, then unfortunately, one inconvenience you’ll face is having to mow it every so often to keep it looking tidy. Mowing might seem like nothing more than a chore, but if you knew you could burn calories doing so, would it seem more worth your time?

Intriguing right? There are two questions to think about here:

Firstly, does pushing a lawn mower burn calories? And if so, how many?

You’re probably already getting the feeling that the answer to the first question is a resounding yes, and you’d be absolutely right! Like all activities in our daily lives, pushing a lawn mower requires movement and energy so therefore calories are burnt when we do it.

This is a great start if we’re hoping to get a bit of a workout in while we keep our lawn in tip-top condition, but the question of how many calories are burnt is a little more complicated. This article will go into a bit more detail about the ins and outs of calories, how they relate to our bodies, and the factors that will dictate how many we burn whilst mowing the lawn.

On that note, let’s get started with the basics.

What is a Calorie?

If your high school science knowledge is a little rusty, have no fear! The most common way to describe a calorie is the amount of energy it takes to raise the temperature of 1g of water by 1°C. 1g of water equates to 1cm³ of volume, so picture a small cube where each face is 1cm x 1cm – that’s how much water is heated through 1°C by 1 calorie of energy.

Calories can be measured in two different units. The first of these is the most modern and most common, and is simply the calorie (or kilocalorie for larger amounts), with the unit symbol cal (or kcal in the case of kilocalories). 1 kilocalorie is made up of 1000 caloriesor:

1kcal = 1000cal

Calories can also be measured in joules and kilojoules, although this is less popular and more antiquated. For simplicity and relevance’s sake, we’ll stick to the cal/kcal measurement.

How Many Steps Does it Take to Burn 1 Calorie?

This is a more complicated question than people usually realise, as there are so many factors to take into account. We’re all different and we all have different bodies, so essentially, there is no black and white, one-size-fits-all answer.

In the most basic of averages, the range tends to be around 20-30 normal steps to burn 1 calorie. Even this average answer is flawed though, because what constitutes a “normal” step will depend on each person’s height, weight, age, and individual gait.

Coming back to mowing your lawn, there’s another factor to think about, and that is the dimensions of your lawn itself. At this stage you might be thinking “20 steps for 1 calorie burned, that doesn’t seem like very much in my small garden” and you’re probably right.

However, mowing a lawn entails going up and down across the whole garden rather than just once down the length of it (unless of course your garden is only a strip the width of your lawn mower!) so the steps will add up quite a bit. There may also be patches that are particularly overgrown that might require several passes with the mower.

So we’ll move onto the next section to answer the second question…

How Many Calories Do You Burn Pushing a Lawn Mower?

We’ve now seen what a calorie is and generally how many steps it takes to burn one. But what happens when you add the weight of a lawn mower to the mix?

Again, there is no set answer to this because of all the personal factors mentioned above. The heavier you are, the more calories you’ll burn and the older you are, the less calories you’ll burn. Your height and gait will also impact how much energy you exert to do a task, so take these figures with a pinch of salt as they really are only rough averages.

The average person burns between 350 and 450 calories pushing a lawn mower for an hour. If you use more force or push more quickly then you’ll burn a bit more and if you take it easier, you’ll burn a bit less but that probably goes without saying.

The type of lawn mower you’re using will also impact how many calories you burn as each type will come with different weights and shapes that might make it easier or harder for you to push. Different kinds of lawn mower might also have different types of resistance depending on the mechanism they use to cut the grass.

For a person weighing between 70 and 80kg a power motor used at a moderate rate for an hour burns approximately 370cal whereas the same rate and time with a hand mower will burn around 440cal.

In a nutshell, it’s very difficult to pinpoint exactly how much energy you’ll burn while mowing your lawn, and again, the size and shape of your lawn will also have an effect. One thing you can count on though is that mowing the lawn is a great form of low-impact exercise that will get your heart rate up whilst also allowing you to complete your garden chores.

Other Gardening Tasks that Burn Calories

Everything we do in everyday life burns calories, we know that. But we rarely actually THINK about it, about how many calories we burn just doing the things we need to do. Gardening is no exception and there are loads of tasks we need to do to keep our garden’s looking tidy which means there are loads of opportunities for calorie burning!

Here are a couple more examples as well as the rough average amount of calories they burn:

Using a Riding Mower – approximately 180cal

Watering Your Plants or Lawn – approximately 110cal

Raking with Moderate Effort – approximately 280cal

Applying Compost to Beds or Seeding a Lawn – approximately 220cal

Weeding or Planting – approximately 300cal

As you can see, all different types of tasks in the garden burn calories, and perhaps unsurprisingly, mowing the lawn with a mower you have to push is at the top end of the scale in terms of how many.

What are the Other Health Benefits of Mowing the Lawn?

Apart from just burning calories, mowing the lawn can have a whole range of other health benefits, so if you needed more incentive to get your lawn summer-ready, here it is!

Mowing the lawn is a form of aerobic exercise, which as we mentioned before, means it gets your heart rate up. Aerobic exercises are really good for improving lung health and capacity, regulating blood pressure, and minimising risk of illnesses such as heart disease, obesity, and stroke.

Pushing a lawn mower is also a form of resistance exercise which means your body is working against an opposing force. You might think of resistance exercises as things like lifting weights where you’re working against gravity, and using resistance bands where you’re working against tension in the band, but mowing the lawn works in the same way.

When pushing a mower, you’re exerting force against an object that is heavy and therefore exerting a force against you as well. Pushing against this resistance engages your core, arm, and leg muscles as well as muscles in your back, hands, and even neck.

This is not to say you’re going to sprout Hulk Hogan muscles after one lawn mowing session, but with consistency, you will feel yourself getting stronger.

Mowing the lawn also provides an opportunity for you to get outside and get some fresh air which is always a good thing. As a society, we spend entirely too much time indoors, in front of screens, hunched over and stressing. Feeling the sun on your face and the breeze in your hair while you do some light exercise is a great way to break up the day and refresh yourself.

Exercise and a Tidy Garden? Yes Please!

It really doesn’t matter if you’re burning 1000s of calories or only a couple of hundred – anything you burn will make you feel better. Even light exercise can help you to feel more energised and focused, as well as positively impacting your general health and wellbeing.

These benefits coupled with the fact that you’ll have nice, neat grass and a perfect canvas for your summer barbeques make mowing the lawn all the more enticing. It’s not a job that needs doing too frequently, but keeping on top of it will get you outside, get you moving, and make it a less daunting task each time.

Mowing your lawn might also inspire you to get on with other gardening tasks such as edging, composting, and pruning – all of which also burn calories and improve the appearance of your garden. With all these arguments stacked in favour of mowing your lawn, why wait?

If you’re in need of a mower upgrade or replacement but don’t want to break the bank, here are some budget options that will give you good results without the wallet-ache.