My Lawnmower Stalls While Cutting Heavy Grass

Horsepower

• No hard and fast rule tells you how strong a lawn mower is needed to cut a certain thickness of grass. The bottom line is that the horse power of the engine does have something to do with it. A stronger engine can power the cutting blade through thicker grass without clogging up or dying. If you have tried everything you know and the problem persists, you might have an underpowered mower for the job at hand.

Deck Height

• A quick fix to some heavy grass issues is to raise the mowing deck. With most mowers, this is a fairly simple procedure, often involving moving a lever at each wheel location. Since grass is thickest and heaviest at its base, raising the deck allows you to make an initial cut up higher where it isn't so heavy. After cutting it on the higher setting, lower the deck back to the original height, and try cutting it again if you're not satisfied with the result.

Cutting Path

• To maximize the blade width and minimize mowing time, you may tend to take as big a bite of the grass as possible with each swath cut, and although there's nothing wrong with that, if the grass is exceptionally heavy, the sheer weight of the buildup beneath the blade might be bogging the engine down. Try moving over slightly and following a path only half as wide as normal, which takes some of the strain off the engine, allowing it to run at full power again.

Maintenance

• Fresh gas and a clean air filter will go a long way towards letting your mower work at the top of its capabilities when cutting thick grass. Sometimes the problem is as simple as a dull blade. Cutting blades lose their edge over time from collisions with rocks, sticks, and other yard debris. Changing or sharpening your blade periodically should allow it to cut thicker grass without undue trouble.