Power Equipment Tips and Maintenance

Spring is on its way and we are all ready to spend time outside in the lawn and garden, we are so ready too. You want your outdoor power equipment to be ready and tuned-up before it needs to come out.

Before using any gas power equipment this coming season, come into Euston Hardware in Kansas City so our employees can aid you in getting all the correct advice to get your power equipment prepared to fire up.

Some Starter Tips:

• #1 – Find and start with the owner’s manual for the power equipment you’re using. 

Note: You should always keep the referenace book from when you buy the equipment or tool, but if you don’t, sometimes it is available on-line, just google it!

• #2 – Look at the manufacturer’s guidelines on operation and requirements from the instructions. Make known and be sure that you have read what kind of cautions to take when running your yard or lawn equipment, you could have forgotten over the winter.

Always inspect your power equipment. A few steps to help along the way:

• First – Check for loose belts and any missing plugs that might have been chewed through by little critters.
• Second – Examine the safety features that have come with your power equipment and verify that they are all still safe.
• Necessary maintenance is imperative for working equipment that operates again and again.

• First – Replace all of the old oil in the equipment. Also, make sure to dispose of the oil, in the decent way, safely. Change the plug and fill it up with the recommended oil.
• Next – Be Sure the gas in your equipment is on empty because starting it with old gas in the equipment might possibly impair it. Nearly all fuel contains some sort of ethanol, which this kind of fuel can isolate after awhile. Note – Try not to leave fuel that is more than 30 days old in outdoor power equipment.
• Drain the gas tank and fill it up with brand-new fuel that has 10 percent or less ethanol. Some gas stations may offer E15 or other types of fuel, but this higher-ethanol gas is unhealthy for consumption by animals and is also illegal.
• lastly - Start your lawn equipment up and let it warm up and make sure it is sounding ok and there aren’t any leaks.

A few more things to inquire about:

• When starting to use your outdoor equipment again you might want to detach the spark plugs and also check the undercarriage and make sure there isn’t any old debris. Grass and weeds can stick, and might certainly have been there during the cold months, so make sure to verify and clean it out. Even still, after all of the upkeep steps are complete, it’s a nice idea to replace the air filter(s) in the equipment. Equipment runs lasts longer with new oil, gas, and especially new air filters, even the paper air filters need to be interchanged, some equipment may have a foam filter and those may be able to be used again, just check the owner’s manuel.
• Later, check that the blade is sharp enough for use. Confirming the blade is sharpened is important because it could fray the grass in the improper way. Sharper blades mean lawns will be healthier and also easier to manage the equipment.

Tip - Before mowing, attempt to gather up the yard and get rocks, and sticks or anything that may hurt the blade out of the grass. The mower blade might hit something and ruin the blade, so any help preventing this will be better maintenance for your blade.

You should always get a general power equipment checkup by skillful and qualified person.

• Tune-ups or checkups should be done yearly. Your equipment will stay restored with parts that need to be replenished. Tune-ups can also encourage your equipment to produce fewer emissions. A tune-up can additionally help your equipment run smoothly and last longer, therefore preserving and saving you money in the long run. 

Conservation, as a whole, associates all of the stuff required to keep your power equipment working; it could be that it will last longer if you provide yearly care to your equipment. To close; You might just want to include a yearly check of your equipment by lubricating the moving parts, sharpening the blades, replacing any wires that look damaged, as well as, the spark plugs, filters, oil, and gas. Not everyone can do this kind of work… connect with a local professional or stop into our store to ask!

Need a new part? See us at Euston Hardware in Kansas City and let our lawn equipment associate help you finish the conservation of your lawn equipment stuff.