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My Lawn Mower Runs For a Few Seconds and Dies

This could happen with a push mower, self-propelled or riding lawn mower. It doesn’t matter what kind of engine it has on it or the brand. What matters is that the engine is not getting the fuel it needs to continue to run. It will have enough fuel to run for a brief time but then it will die.

This problem with your lawn mower runs for a few second and dies normally occurs in the springtime when you first start the lawn mower. The carburetor is usually the culprit that causes these problems and the fuel that was left inside of it has gelled up and plugs up the ports inside it.

You will need a professional lawn mower mechanic to resolve this issue for you because the carburetor will need to taken apart and cleaned. This is not a job for someone that is not familiar with or have worked on carburetors before. It has many different ports that you must need to know how to clean and where they are located.

You can find a lawn mower repair professional at our Locations page to help resolve my lawn mower runs for a few seconds and dies problem.

Lawn Mower Seems to Run out of Gas

You are mowing along and the next thing you know the mower seems to run out of power and slowly dies. It doesn’t die quickly, it just powers down and then quits.

This problem is not that uncommon for lawn mowers and there are various reasons why a lawn mower would run out of gas. For instance, your gas cap may not be venting or a fuel filter may be clogged with debris. A fuel line could be collapsing or have debris in it.

The easy test it to run the engine with the gas cap loosened a little so air can come through the threads. If the engine still stalls out, then the problem lies elsewhere. Replacing the fuel filter will help eliminate that and from there you need to check out the other fuel related components to see if they are working properly.

If you cannot find the source of the problem, visit our locations page and see if there is a lawn mower repair professional in your area that can resolve this problem.

By testing each component, you can resolve the issue of the lawn mower seems to run out of gas.

Self-Propelled Lawn Mower Will Not Move Backwards

This is a common problem with self-propelled lawn mowers. Over time the mower does not want to go in reverse and the wheels lock up and you must drag it in reverse.

Let’s think about the environment that a mower operates in for a minute. It is a dirty and dusty one and this dirt and dust permeates everything. The dust will enter into the rear drive axle of a lawn mower and begin to build up inside it. This dirt becomes a grinding paste that wears on the plastic inserts in the wheels. It will also build up inside the spring loaded key that is located on the axle and prevent it from moving.

So as the dirt and dust build up, it freezes the mechanisms that allow the wheels to move in reverse and that is often the issue.

You can pull the wheels off the mower and see if you can clean the axle and drive mechanism to see if it helps, but most of the time you have to remove the axle assembly and replace parts.

If you need a self-propelled lawn mower repair shop in your area, visit our locations page for assistance.

 

My Lawn Mower Leaves Tire Tracks

One of the main reasons your lawn mower leaves tire tracks is that the ground is too saturated with water. The lawn will have to dry out more before you can mow. If it is soft to walk on or squishy, it is best to wait to mow.

Other reasons could be that your tire pressures are too high or too low. Check your owner’s manual to see what the tire pressures should be for your lawn mower. You could also be mowing too fast. Turning corners at a high rate of speed will tear up the lawn and leave tire tracks.

If you are using a Zero Turn lawn mower, speed, tire pressure and moving the sticks too fast can also cause tire tracks. Slow down and gently move the sticks through their paces and see if this corrects the problem. It takes a while to get used to how a Zero Turn operates and experience will teach you how to avoid leaving those tire tracks.

The type of tire and lack of tread can also cause the mower to slide when turning and make tire tracks in your yard. Be sure to have lawn type tires that have good tread on them.

These tips should help you correct that problem of your mower leaves tire tracks.

My Lawn Mower Will Barely Run

So your lawn mower is on the edge of its life? You pull the cord and it will begin to start and barely run and then die. Or you turn the key on your rider and the same thing happens.

In many cases it is bad fuel or the wrong fuel altogether. It is not uncommon to find water in the fuel, off-road diesel or regular diesel in fuel tanks that were meant for gasoline. The wrong fuel or water in the fuel will make the lawn mower barely run. It may pop and backfire as well.

Before you go tearing your lawn mower apart, check the fuel to make sure that it is the correct fuel. If in doubt, drain it and put fresh fuel in and then test it. You would be surprised at how fast today’s gasoline goes bad.

If you are still having problems with your lawn mower that will barely run, visit our locations page for a lawn mower repair shop near you.

Having a great running lawn mower makes the chores go much faster so you can get back to doing what you really love to do.

 

Riding Lawn Mower Repair Near Me

Are you looking for a company to repair or service your riding lawn mower in your area? A riding lawn mower shop may be closer than you think and you can find a location near you by clicking on our locations page for assistance.

Many small engine repair shops work on riding lawn mowers. Some shops will come to your residence and perform the work or will pick up your riding lawn mower for you, take it to their shop, repair it and then return it.

There are many different brands of riding lawn mowers and most independent shops will repair all brands of mowers. Some may not repair diesel engines, but all will repair gasoline engine or propane powered lawn mowers.

Fuel problems and damage are most of the common problems associated with riding lawn mowers. A clogged carburetor or fuel filter and a failing fuel pump are normal problems that occur. A blade strike on the lawn is something that happens pretty frequently as well.

To find a riding lawn mower repair near me, visit our locations page for help with your lawn mower repair problems.

Pull Behind Lawn Mower Won’t Start

The ATV pull behind lawn mower is a very unique mower. It is connected to the ATV and there may be a control box on the ATV or on the mower itself.

The key is normally on the control box and you turn it and either nothing happens or the starter may try to turn the engine over and it won’t start. If you turn the key and nothing happens, check the battery and the fuse to ensure that the fuse is not blown and the battery has a full charge.

If the engine turns over but won’t start, check your fuel supply first. If you have fresh fuel, make sure the spark plug wire is attached to the spark plug. You can also check for spark using a spark tester. If you have spark, then you may not be getting any fuel to the engine.

Crank the engine over several times and then remove the spark plug to see if it is wet. If it is wet, then you may have another issue such as leaky valves or bad compression. If the spark plug is dry, then the carburetor may not be delivering fuel to the engine or your valves may not be operating.

If you need professional pull behind lawn mower repair, check our locations page for a shop near you.

Riding Lawn Mower Won’t go in Reverse

If you can go forward but not reverse, let’s be sure we are on the same page with this problem. Will the gear lever move into reverse? Or does the gear lever not go all the way into reverse?

If it goes into reverse, you may have a transmission problem that needs inspected. If it doesn’t go all the way into reverse, check to see if there is something such as a stick or debris at the transmission shift shaft that is blocking it.

Debris can cause the shaft to not move in a certain direction or block it from its normal travel. If you cannot find anything that is causing it to not go into reverse, this would be a good point to take your mower to a repair shop for an evaluation. You can visit our locations page here to search for a lawn mower repair shop near you.

Sometimes the shifting parts get bent or seize up with rust. A bolt can become sheared or a pin come loose. There are many different things that will cause this issue and a good lawn mower professional will find the issue and resolve it.

Riding Lawn Mower Maintenance

Maintenance is one of the most important things you can do for your riding lawn mower. Without the proper maintenance, your lawn mower will suffer from an early breakdown.

Most breakdowns can be prevented by your normal routine maintenance. Things like having the battery serviced every year, changing the air, oil and fuel filters as well as changing the oil. A riding lawn mower is a machine and like any other machine, parts will wear and eventually break.

To avoid these costly breakdowns, you should take your riding lawn mower to a repair shop and have it serviced each year. The best time to have one serviced is in the winter months when the shop is slower and you won’t have to wait very long for the service to be completed.

During the winter most shops are not rushed so you should receive a better quality service than you would when they are backed up weeks in advance.

You can find a list of riding lawn mower repair shops on our locations page.

Maintaining anything is important to keeping it running its best. A breakdown in the summer months can be a long wait to get your mower back.

 

My Riding Lawn Mower Won’t Stay Running

If your riding lawn mower won’t stay running, that does mean that it will run so we can take a lot from that. If it does run that means the starter is working, it is getting fuel and spark and air into the engine.

Now that we know what it is doing, why won’t it stay running?

Let’s say that you mow for a while and then it slowly loses power and then dies. This would be an indication of a fuel problem and the engine is running out of fuel. It could be your fuel cap is not venting correctly or some debris is in the fuel filter or other reasons why it is running out of fuel.

If the lawn mower just suddenly dies, it most likely is an ignition problem. An ignition coil becomes hot and then it breaks down and quits working. Other ignition components can break down and quit working as well.

The best thing to do is to start looking for clues. Is the engine getting fuel? Is the engine getting spark? Does it restart after sitting for a while?

Troubleshooting is a process of elimination. If you need help with your riding lawn mower, visit our locations page today.