1. Oil: It is vital to ensure that the oil is changed in the engine of your lawnmower every season/ 25 hours to ensure the maximum lifespan of the machine.

Mark explained that changing the oil can be carried out in two different ways. More commonly it is vacuumed out from the top – a small syphon pump to do this costs as little as €6. Alternatively, a sump plug at the bottom of the engine can be opened to drain the oil out. Walk-behind lawnmowers take 500ml to 600ml of oil and ride-on mowers take twice that amount. Briggs & Stratton and Honda recommend different grades of oil, so refer to the owner’s manual or speak to your dealer for advice on the correct oil to use. Engine oil costs approximately €6 for a pint bottle (sufficient for a walk-behind).

2. Air/oil filters: Both air and oil filters should be changed at every service interval. If you are operating the machine in a dusty environment, the air filter will have to be changed more regularly. Likewise, if the engine oil becomes contaminated (eg engine filings), the oil filter will block in less time.

A sign that either of these filters may need to be changed is that the engine won’t be running smoothly. The engine could be spluttering or gasping for air. Again, each engine has its own specific oil and air filters. An air filter typically costs €8 and an oil filter costs €14.

3. Spark plug: The spark plug is straightforward. Mark explained that you have one spark plug on a single-cylinder engine and two on a twin-cylinder engine. It is advised to change them after every 25 hours of use. They are quite simple to change.

To remove it, use a spark plug wrench which is often provided with a new machine. As plugs age, soot (carbon) builds up around the sparking tip and the plug no longer gives the strong spark required to fire the four-stroke cycle. Spark plugs cost around €5.

4. Blade: Normally a walk-behind lawnmower has one blade while most ride-on mowers have two blades. Mark said the best and safest way to sharpen a blade is to remove the blade from the mower and clamp it in a vice before running an angle grinder over the cutting edge. Only the upper side should be sharpened. Garages typically charge customers €5 to sharpen a blade. Sometimes a blade is beyond sharpening if a straight edge cannot be restored to the blade. Replacement blades cost in the region of €25 each.

5. Carburettor: If the engine is cutting out or revving up and down then the carburettor may require cleaning. Mark explained that deposits from the impurities in fuel build up in the carburettor over time no matter how careful the operators are.

These deposits block the jets of the carburettor and when this happens the carburettor has to be removed and cleaned in an ultra-sonic cleaner. A dealer typically charges €30 to dismantle, clean and reassemble a carburettor.

6. Safety features: Before you commence any operations with your lawnmower, it is vital that you check over the machine’s safety features and ensure it is functioning correctly. Mark told us that the most important feature for a walk-behind mower is to make sure that the engine cuts out when you release the operator press-control (OPC) handle. For ride-on mowers, the engine should cut out if the collecting box is not secured correctly. Likewise, the engine should cut out if the driver gets off the seat and, on most machines, the engine is designed to cut out if the mower with an engaged blade is put into reverse.

Service Costings

If servicing your own lawnmower isn’t an option, your local dealer will oblige. A rough guide price of servicing a walk-behind lawnmower is €60 to €70, while servicing a ride-on would cost around €150. These prices do not include collection or delivery nor non-service parts (eg belts). However, it must be noted that these prices may vary depending on exactly what work needs to be carried out on each machine.