Lawn Mower Engines

While the first lawn mowers had the spinning blades powered by the turning of the wheels as the mower was pushed, the addition of an engine made lawn care much easier. Now, the vast majority of lawn mowers are engine-powered, and competition between manufacturers has kept prices reasonable. The engine is probably the part of the mower that will need the most frequent servicing, so you will probably want to look for a quality motor in your mower.

Types of Mower Engines

The first engine-powered mowers were electric mowers. However, these were limited by the fact that you couldn't take the mower any further from your house than your cord reached. Furthermore, if you happened to mow over your cord, you couldn't use your mower until you replaced it. Because of these hassles, gasoline powered engines soon replaced electric ones.

Although gas powered engines aren't without their problems, they are much better suited for lawn mowers. The mobility of the gas engine is a huge advantage over the electric. In addition, gas engines are much better suited to tougher terrain and irregular mowing conditions, since they can produce more power and are self-contained.

There are different sized gas engines for different types of lawn mowers. Push mowers have very small motors, even push mowers that are-self propelled. Riding mowers tend to have much larger engines, sometimes over 20 horsepower, especially large commercial mowers. The engine of your mower will depend largely on how you use your mower, so plan accordingly when looking around. A quality company will be able to answer any of your questions regarding different models before buying, as well as offering support after the purchase.