You can do nearly everything right for your mower, string trimmer, and other lawn equipment and still run into trouble. That’s what happened with my self-propelled gas mower the other day when I tried to mow in a hurry before dinner.
I know I didn’t do everything the mower needed to be in tip-top shape—no grease yet for the wheel axles, for instance. But last fall, I had drained out the leftover gas (including what was in the carburetor bowl) and taken it to a local service station for recycling. I’d changed the oil, spark plug (gapped it, too), and air filter.
Nevertheless, the electric start was having trouble no matter how much or little I primed the mower. I’d already mowed a few times this season, and each time the mower had started—but grudgingly. What had I done wrong?
As a last resort, I drained from the mower the gas I’d stored in the shed since the last month of winter. I siphoned out what I could, then tipped the mower to spill the last drops into my waste-gas container. New gas did the job, and the new stabilizer I mixed in should help with subsequent uses. But starting was not easy. I needed to use the pull-cord and run the mower a few minutes before engaging the blade. (See the video above for more on features like electric-start systems and blade-brake clutches.)
As long as you have a four-cycle engine, with gas and oil separate, there’s an easy way to dispose of that gas without hassle: your car. As for me, I’ll kick off the next mowing season—and the first firing of the snow blower—with a fresh can of gas.
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