Fred & Gerry's

Lawn Mower Tune-Up Made Easy

The basics are remarkably similar for all mowers, weed whackers and edgers. They all use an air cooled engine with a design that's been around forever. And with proper care, they're pretty simple to maintain. A once a year tune-up will keep the mower in good running order.

Let's begin with a short lesson in how the engine works. It's designed to mix air and gasoline, compress the mixture with a piston and ignite it with electricity from a spark plug. If any one of those elements is missing the engine will not start or run. So much of our spring tune-up will be to make sure that all those things can happen efficiently.

The first thing we'll do is to remove the old spark plug. You'll need the correct size socket or a spark plug wrench to loosen it. If you don't have one and can't borrow one from a neighbor, you'll find them for a couple of dollars in a lawn center or auto parts store. Pull on the spark plug wire to remove it from the plug and then turn the plug counter-clockwise.

Once the plug is removed the engine will not start so you don't need to worry about accidentally cutting yourself. Putting in the new plug will be the last thing you do.

Next drain the gas from the mower if you didn't already do that last fall. Just tip the mower over and pour the unused gas into a coffee can or other container. Gas goes 'stale' after a month or two and can plug up the engine. Do not pour it onto your lawn or driveway. Once the job is through you'll take the gas to a recycling center.

Next we'll sharpen the blade. Turn the mower over and notice the direction of the cutting edges of the blade. Then remove the blade. Typically you'll find one large nut holds on the blade.

You sharpen the blade much the same way you would a knife. Using a file or grinding stone, re-establish a sharp 'v' on the leading edges of the blade. Because of their curves, mulching blades can be hard to sharpen and you may need to replace them instead of sharpening. Remember that a sharp blade makes cutting easier for you and the mower.

This is a good time to clean out all the grass clods and dirt that cling to the underside of the mower. This should be done every time you cut grass, but sometimes people forget.

When you've finished sharpening, replace the blade on the drive shaft. The cutting edges face in the same direction they did before removal.

Our next step is to do an oil change. Begin by draining the old oil. Check your owners' manual to see if the engine has a drain plug. If so, remove it and catch the oil in a coffee can or other receptacle. If there isn't a drain plug, you'll need to pour the oil out of the filler spout on the top side of the mower. Remove the filler cap (typically marked 'oil') and tip the mower over. Take the oil, along with the gas, to an auto parts store for recycling. Then refill with new oil. Your manual will tell you how much is required. Usually it's a quart or less.

Our next task will make sure that the engine gets clean air and enough of it. The air filter will be made of foam or treated paper. It blocks dirt and debris from the engine but becomes clogged over time. You can expect to find the filter inside a cover so look at your manual to find it's location. A couple of screws or clips will release the cover. Pop the new one in the same position as the old and replace the cover.

Now we'll turn our attention back to the spark plug. To operate at peak efficiency, the spark plug should be gapped to specifications found in the mower's manual. 'Gapping' the plug requires a $2 tool from your auto parts store. But if you bought the correct plug for your mower, it's probably already set to the proper gap. If you don't have the tool, you can put a new plug into the mower without checking the gap. You will not harm the mower. It could run a shade less efficiently, but that's all. And it will still be better than using old plug.

Once you've replaced the plug, you're ready to start cutting. It's that simple. The procedure for gas-powered edgers and weed whackers is almost identical.

This is the kind of do-it-yourself project that's not too hard, can be completed quickly and is pretty foolproof. In fact, we think there's a mower in our garage that could use a little attention!

Here's approximate Prices for a Briggs 3 1/2 HP Tune Up Kit

We'd like to thank

Point Grey Sales & Service

3588 W 16th. Vancouver BC

Phone: 731-8633