When it comes to lawn maintenance, a large portion involves routine mowing to keep the grass nice and even. It’s common knowledge to keep your mower full of gas, but most people don’t tell you that leaving the gas in storage for too long causes internal damage to the mower.
Draining your gas is just as necessary as keeping the tank full. This article will help you understand why a lawn mower needs the occasional gas drain and techniques to keep your machine functional.
Why Should You Drain Gas from Your Mower?
After you mow your lawn for the day, you put the mower back in storage until the next mowing. However long that takes, the fuel inside the mower becomes unusable. After a while, the chemical compounds of the gasoline evaporate and lose the ability to combust.
The gas will not be reactive and leave behind sticky deposits that can sink into the engine’s fuel system. The next time you use that mower, the sludge clogs up the fuel line and makes the entire machine inoperable.
The gas from the mover should drain every 2-4 weeks before it becomes stale and hardens.
How Do You Drain Gas from a Mower?
Before your old gas becomes varnish that destroys the mower’s engine, it helps to drain it before working on your lawn.
Here are a few ways to drain the gas from a mower.
Gas Siphoning
Siphoning has been the popular way to pull fluids out of storage through a tube. It is a method to remove any liquid from a tank. Before you start siphoning, the fuel inside the mower needs circulation to become fluid and escape the tube.
Once the gas finishes stirring, let the engine cool down and place it on a flat surface. Siphoning gas from an angle makes a mess and spills oil all over the motor.
There are two different ways to siphon gas. The first way involves increasing the air pressure by blowing into the tank through one tube and causing the gas to flow upwards. The second way is getting a siphon pump that works for you with a switch. This approach costs more but makes the process easy for anyone to do.
Remove the Fuel Line
If you don’t have any means to siphon gas, you can remove the fuel line to drain the gas.
The first step is taking out the spark plug. You don’t want the mower to start accidentally, so take safety precautions before draining your gas.
The fuel line resides between the fuel tank and carburetor. Some lawn mower models have this rubber pipe behind the air filter casing. The fuel line stays secured with squeeze clamps, so use a pair of pliers to pull on the clamps and open the pipe.
Keep a steady finger ready if any gas begins to pour out the opening. With another container, start pouring the old gas out of the mower.
Conclusion
Keeping old gasoline inside your mower can cause permanent damage, so it’s crucial to drain it from the engine.
Investing in a fuel stabilizer can help extend the life of your gasoline. You can keep the gas fresh for long periods. The next time you decide to mow your lawn, make sure that you drain your gas and replace it with a fresh tank.