I live in Western Sydney and since last year my lawnmower has been struggling to cut the grass. At first it was because it was very humid so the grass was constantly wet and the lawnmower wasn’t catching anything and all the clippings came out super clumpy.
Now that it’s colder and the grass isn’t wet anymore I’m still having the same issues except now I think my grass is too thick?
I cut it a few days ago and thought I’ll cut it again in a few days time to make it easier but the lawnmower keeps getting jammed in especially thick parts and I keep having to lift the blade higher and higher, even after I’ve cut it recently. So now my grass looks super uneven and it takes me hours to do because the catcher won’t catch any of the clippings and the lawnmower keeps getting jammed and stopping every 5 seconds.
Does anyone have any ideas? I just want to be able to cut the grass normally again.
by TrxshPxnda
8 Comments
Stop bagging give that a try, sharpen blade also, then raise your cut height then cut again if you want it lower.
😳😬🤢
OMG. No more than a third!!!
Raise your cut height, sharpen your mower blade, empty the bag often or just mulch it. If you’re cutting off too much at a time, you’ll have the issues you’re having. Dull blades, same. Not emptying bag, same.
The general guideline is to take off no more than 1/3 of the blade in a single mow. It looks like you’re leaving 1/3. Mow a lot more often or raise your cut height dramatically and your problem should be solved. As others have mentioned, make sure your blades are sharp too.
Cut 2-3x a week for two months. Just mulch.
It will be thick. The extra cuts really help. And it goes so fast when you’re cutting off so little.
Is that an electric mower? Could be your problem.
Also if you mowed when it was wet and didn’t clean it, then there’s a good chance it’s all gunked up under the deck. Speaking from experience, don’t wait too long or the dead wet grass starts to rot and it gets a bit smelly.
*Disconnect the spark plug first* (so the blade doesn’t accidentally start up while youre under there – trust me)
Then prop the front up and/or weigh the handle down to the ground. Then have a good scrape in and around the underside of the lawnmower deck. I use a small crowbar.
The other thing it may be is either need an oil change or air filter change or both. Maybe it’s all of the above.
There’s a list of things to fix this.
– you’re talking too much off at a time. No more than a third per cut. Make sure your blades are sharp and not upside down. You’d be surprised how many people put them in upside down.
– you’re using an electric mower. They are underpowered compared to petrol, so although that won’t necessarily affect the cut itself, you have to cut more often so you’re not trying to take too much off (as per point above). With an electric you’ll want to be cutting every weekend in season. The other way to reduce the load on the engine is to cut higher. You want to do this in winter anyway so that works to your advantage. The other thing about electric mowers is that because of the underpowered engine they fit flat blades with no lift which doesn’t help with making clippings fly into the catcher.
– It’s heading into winter now so the lawn will naturally slow down. Keep mowing as often as you can, but every two weeks minimum, dependant on weather. Don’t cut while wet if you can help it.
– spring is the time to renovate depending on your lawn type. If you have Couch or Kikuyu, disregard the 1/3 rule, cut really short as a one off, then raise up a notch and leave it there all summer.
– water deeply twice a week instead of lightly and often. Fertilise now to give it something to feed on over winter, then once in September and again in late November