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What To Consider When Buying A Lawn Mower

Before buying your new lawn mower take some time to consider which kind of mower would be the best for you and your lawn. The following considerations will help you make a decision.

How big is your lawn?

If your lawn is small a push cylinder mower may be perfectly adequate and will give you a good finish and a smart lawn. For a bigger lawn you may want to consider an electric or petrol driven mower. If your lawn is much larger than the average then a ride-on mower would be more practical and easier on you.

How level is the lawn? Does it have banks and dips?

Where there are banks a push mower might not be sensible, and a ride-on mower would not be safe as it could tip over.

Do you require a tidy appearance, maybe with parallel stripes, or are you more concerned with the need to keep the grass neat and tidy?

What do you want to do about the grass clippings? Do you want a mower that gathers the trimmings in a box you need to empty or do you have the time to rake the clippings up once you have completed mowing the lawn. If you don’t have time for raking you should consider a mulching mower that can chop up the grass trimmings well enough that you can leave them on the lawn so that they will speedily decompose and feed the lawn.

If you are considering a power mower make sure the lawn is small enough to reach all of it with an extension lead.  If you plan to buy a petrol mower will all those who will be using it be able to start it without problems – many petrol engines can be tough to get going if they have a cord that needs to be pulled sharply.

Consider safety carefully. Lawn mowers are dangerous to use so safety should take precedence. Look at features like power cut offs on electric mowers, how easy the mower is to overturn, how exposed are the blades.  

Do you want a cylinder, mulching or rotary mower? Here are the main features of each:

Cylinder Mowers

These have a rotating cylinder with blades fixed to it in a spiral pattern and give the finest cut from any lawn mower. Confirm the mower has enough blades for your purpose – the more blades the better the lawn finish will be. Additionally check how wide the mower is, you will need to walk less with a wider mower but the downside is it will weigh more. Cylinder mowers can be manual push mowers or electrically or petrol driven. They often have a grass container to collect the clippings in addition to a roller to create stripes while you mow. These mowers are ideally suited to level lawns and shorter grass.

Rotary Mowers

Rotary mowers have a horizontal blade that revolves from the center of the mower. Because the spinning blade necessitates a power supply these mowers can’t be purchased as manual push motors, but both petrol and electrical rotary mowers can be obtained. These mowers are more suited to uneven lawns and those with rougher grass than cylinder mowers. Although a rotary mower won’t produce as fine a cut as a cylinder mower you can still get stripes by selecting a rotary mower with a rear roller.

Mulching Lawn Mowers

With a mulching mower you won’t have to keep emptying a grass container, or having to rake the clippings from the lawn each time you cut it, and then get rid of the cut grass. They operate by recutting the cut grass into smaller and smaller pieces and then blowing them back onto the lawn. This requires more power than a conventional mower so these mowers will need a bigger engine. Some mulching mowers will also have a grass container if for some reason  you need to store the trimmings instead.

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