Why Gas-powered Lawn Mowers Suck and Other Options

According to the EPA, even though landscaping machines may be small, people own a lot of them and emissions from gas-powered lawn mowers and similar outdoor power equipment are a significant source of pollution, emitting high levels of carbon monoxide, a colorless, odorless, poisonous gas into the air and community. In fact the EPA further notes that 5% of U.S. air pollution is generated by lawn mowers alone and another 5% by all other gas-powered yard equipment.

Brill Razorcut 38 push reel mower

One thing you can do is look into other lawn mower options, some of which include…

• Push mowers! Besides material use these are pretty darn eco-friendly and great exercise.
• Solar powered lawn mowers
• Propane powered lawn mowers
• Electric lawn mowers – these are cleaner than gas-powered BUT note that because they use electricity they still create some pollution.

Until you get your alternative to gas-powered lawn mower, the EPA suggests you do the following:

• Prevent spills and overfills of gas because even small gasoline spills evaporate and pollute the
  air. Use a funnel, or a spout with an automatic stop device when pouring gasoline into your mower, keep the cap twisted on tight, and keep your mower in a cool and dry area.
• Change your oil and clean or replace air filters regularly plus keep up with other lawn mower maintenance to make sure your mower is running as efficiently as possible.
• Reduce the amount of mowing time by having less grass and / or having low-maintenance turf grasses or grass/flower seed mixtures that grow slowly and require less mowing.

More resources:

Lawn Mower Exchange Program Calculator – use this calculator to see how exchanging your gas-powered mower for an electric or reel mower can improve air quality and save you money.

Learn where you can recycle your old gas-powered mower.