Lawn mower Archives

Home » Lawn mower

Oil for under your mower deck

Dave Farquhar DIY September 23, 2016November 21, 2018Blade, Lawn mower, Marvel Mystery Oil

Someone asked me to recommend oil for under your mower deck. If you’re not familiar with this trick, it’s a good idea to oil the underside of your lawnmower deck to keep grass from sticking to it. This helps keep your blade from bogging down and your deck from rusting.

What oil do I like? The person brought up Marvel Mystery Oil. I do like Marvel Mystery Oil inside the mower. But I think it’s too expensive for the deck.

Dave Farquhar

David Farquhar is a computer security professional, entrepreneur, and author. He has written professionally about computers since 1991, so he was writing about retro computers when they were still new. He has been working in IT professionally since 1994 and has specialized in vulnerability management since 2013. He holds Security+ and CISSP certifications. Today he blogs five times a week, mostly about retro computers and retro gaming covering the time period from 1975 to 2000.

dfarq.homeip.net

Lawn mower wheel height adjuster stuck? Free it!

Dave Farquhar DIY June 28, 2016September 17, 2023Lawn mower, WD

I had a lawn mower wheel height adjuster stuck hard a week or two ago. I bought it off a neighbor for $20, so I expected a few problems. I fixed it with a screwdriver and a hammer.

Dave Farquhar

dfarq.homeip.net

Marvel Mystery oil in a snowblower

Dave Farquhar DOS December 2, 2015November 21, 2018Lawn mower, Marvel Mystery Oil, Missouri

I’ve had such success with Marvel Mystery Oil in my lawn mower than I’ve gotten questions about Marvel Mystery oil in a snowblower.

Yes it will work. It will work in any gasoline-powered yard tool. And I would expect the same results. It works in small engines, it works in cars, and some pilots even use it in airplanes.

Dave Farquhar

dfarq.homeip.net

How to winterize a lawn mower

Dave Farquhar Saving money March 27, 2015April 23, 2017Blade, Lawn mower, recycling, Spark plug

It’s very easy to winterize a lawn mower and I definitely recommend doing it–nothing gums up a mower like sitting in a garage for five months with a full gas tank. Taking fifteen minutes out of your day sometime in November can save you lots of heartache, and maybe 50 bucks, come spring.

Dave Farquhar

dfarq.homeip.net

I didn’t winterize my lawnmower but I got away with it. Here’s how.

Dave Farquhar DIY March 26, 2015April 10, 2021hardware store, home depot, Lawn mower, Marvel Mystery Oil, recycling, Spark plug

Last year I didn’t winterize my lawnmower at the end of the season. Shame on me. So I took some extra precautions this year to avoid a $50 lawn mower repair, and got away with it. Here’s what I did.

Dave Farquhar

dfarq.homeip.net

How we learn

Dave Farquhar Uncategorized July 29, 2013July 28, 2013IBM, insulin, Lawn mower, lifehacker, XT

An article on Lifehacker this week explained a lot about how I initially became a computer professional. Its advice was to fly by the seat of your pants, try things without guidance or manuals, not be afraid to fail occasionally, and learn before you go to sleep.

So when I spent many nights in my late teens disassembling and reassembling obsolete IBM PC/XT clones to learn how they worked, I was unwittingly doing all of it right.

Dave Farquhar

dfarq.homeip.net

Synthetic oil + Marvel Mystery Oil = happy lawn mower

Dave Farquhar Landlording July 24, 2011November 21, 2018Advance Auto Parts, hardware store, Lawn mower, Marvel Mystery Oil, sears

I’ve always hated my lawn mower. But once I started using Marvel Mystery Oil in a lawn mower, and putting synthetic 10w-30 oil in the crankcase, I’ve been much happier. It makes me feel like I discovered one of the secrets of the universe.

While you’re at it, check the air filter. You’re supposed to change that every year, at least. The combination of a fresh air filter, Marvel Mystery Oil, and synthetic oil gives me easier starts and smoother running.

Dave Farquhar

dfarq.homeip.net