How To Clean The Air Filter On Your Lawn Mower (And Why You Should)

Lawn mowers are made to take a licking and keep on kicking. While going through your yard, the mower will kick up grass, dirt, and any other debris that may be hidden. Of course, your lawn mower is equipped to take on these elements, but only to a certain extent. Without the proper maintenance and care, your machine will eventually experience problems that can spell its end before you know it. Along with maintaining the mower itself, one of the easiest ways to ensure your mower's longevity is by regularly cleaning its air filter. 

Air filters are among the most important components of a gas-powered mower. They keep you machine safe by capturing debris and only allowing clean air to flow into your engine. Available in foam, paper, and hybrid varieties, this is your mower's first line of defense in protecting itself from harm. So as you can imagine, abandoning this crucial aspect of your lawn mower's care can spell bad news for it in the long run. More specifically, excess dirt entering your engine can cause it to wear out sooner and leave it at risk of overheating and becoming a fire hazard. Along with that, the pollutants left behind by an inefficient engine can be bad for the environment. 

The good news is that cleaning your mower's an air filter is not as tricky as you might think. In many cases, little more is required than simply loosening the trapped debris and safely putting the filter back. However, you'll still want to approach the process correctly and know when it's time to get a new filter. 

While every mower differs, many manufacturers recommend cleaning the air filter within the first 25 hours of it being used. This should be more frequent if your mower is handling a particularly dusty or debris-filled area, as the filter will be working even harder in such environments. Depending on the manufacturer and the environment it's being used in, you should fully replace your filter every year, similar to replacing your mower blades.

For your routine maintenance, here's how to clean your lawn mower air filter:

1. Fully shut off your mower's engine and unplug the spark plug. 
2. Unclip and remove the cover concealing the air filter. 
3. Take out the filter. 
4. Give it a thorough inspection. If it's heavily stained, crumbling, or stiff, then it's time to replace it. 
5. If the filter is in otherwise good condition, tap it against a hard surface or blow compressed air through it to loosen up the dirt. Avoid brushing, as this can push dirt deeper into the filter's fibers. 
6. Give the filter's housing a good wipe with a moist cloth to get rid of any excess debris. 
7. Place the filter back in its housing and firmly place the cover back on. 

Never use your mower without an air filter, as this can cause significant damage to your engine. Of course, this is only a general run down of how to go about the process and you should always consult your owner's manual for instructions on your specific machine.