What kind of petrol for a lawn mower

I'm 'Lawnmower Larry', a lawn mower and lawn care expert. I'll help you find the best lawn mower for your lawn. It is not unusual to see a red-faced gardener, building up a sweat, pulling and pulling again at the starter cord with no result.

The cause might be a burnt plug or a clogged filter, but is most likely the wrong fuel — and not taking the proper care of the fuel during down time is the cause. Very important, the petrol must be fresh. Two-stroke engines will use a mix of high-octane petrol and special two-stroke oil in the ratio of 50 parts petrol to 1 part oil.

This mix should be done in a container, not in the tank of the mower. If your engine is, however, completely covered it is likely that your mower fuel tank will be too and you should skip this step altogether.

Finding the fuel cap should then be easier — it is usually black in colour with a symbol on the top that clearly states the container is for petrol. Remove the fuel cap usually a threaded one on mowers; just twist it off and place a funnel into the opening.

Petrol Rotary lawn mowers are the most popular type of petrol mower. They are generally the cheapest type of petrol lawnmower you will find. Any kind of rotary lawn mower cuts the grass by slashing at the grass with a rapidly rotating blade, that spins paralell with the ground. This type of cut is effective but not as fine as a cylinder cut for example. If you want your rotary mower to produce a striped finish, look out for a mower that is equipped with a rear roller.

Petrol Rotary mowers are extremely good at coping with longer grass, due to the cutting action coupled with a motor that is generally more powerful than anything electric. Petrol cylinder mowers are the choice of the connoisseur or professional grounds keeper. They offer the very best finish due to their scissor like action, coupled with the range and felxibility that a petrol engine brings.

Petrol Cylinder Mowers are more expensive than the rotary equivalent because of the precision required to manufacturer the blades and to assemble a machine with more parts.

A petrol cylinder mower is what would be used to prepare bowling greens and cricket pitches so you have an idea of the quality of the cut. All cylinder mowers struggle more with longer grass than the equivalent rotary, as they may flatten the long grass a bit rather than cut it.

A Hover mower cuts in the same way as a rotary mower, with the horizontal blade spinning quickly and slashing the grass. What a petrol hover lawnmower also has is a fan usually part of the same rotation mechanism as the blade and a "skirt" which helps trap and direct a cushion of air to make the mower float. This makes a hover mower ideal for uneven surfaces, especially where there is banking.

Hover mowers are generally therefore very easy to manoeuvre, as they can go in any direction you wish, unlike their wheeled counterparts. Don't make the mistake of assuming you know what type of fuel to add to your lawn mower. If you use the wrong type, you could do damage to your mower's engine, and in some cases, you could void your warranty. The mower's owners manual should outline the specific recommendations for your model, but in general, mowers use high-grade unleaded fuel or a fuel-oil mix.