If you've ever let your lawn mower sit with gas in it over the winter you probably realized that was a mistake. If you gas becomes stale, most times your mower will no longer start. That's why it is important to drain your gas tank or run the mower until the gas tank is empty.
One way to make this process much easier is by install a gas shut off valve to your gas line. You can do this by simply cutting the fuel line in half and install the shut off valve on each end of the line. Make sure you empty the tank or pinch the gas line with a crimp before doing this. Hint: if you don't you will get gas everywhere!
Read also: What Type of Gas to Use for Lawn Mower?
Whichever method you choose, you need to empty your gas tank… below is the steps to do that in a safe and efficient way.
Step 1: Parking Your Lawn Mower
The first thing you need to do is park your lawn mower on an even surface after its last usage. You may also use a set of saw horses to set your lawn mower on it so that you will be able to reach the bottom part of your lawn mower.
Please keep in mind that you will need to avoid laying your lawn mower on its side as this will cause damage to it. This is to prevent the oil in the lawn mower from flowing to other areas of the motor. Besides that, you should also make sure that you use the parking brake to fix the position of your lawn mower in one place.
Step 2: Disconnecting the Spark Plug
After that, locate the spark plug and disconnect the connection by pulling its wire from the cap of the spark plug. This step is essential to avoid any kinds of unwanted accidents.
Step 3: Draining Out the Old Gasoline (with Fuel Line)
In a case where your lawn mower has a fuel line that connects the carburetor to the gas tank, the only thing that you need to do is to place a plastic container directly below the tank. Then, simply disconnect the carburetor from the fuel line and let the old gasoline drain out of the tank to the plastic container.
Step 4: Draining Out the Old Gasoline (without Fuel Line)
If your lawn mower doesn't have any fuel line, you will need to utilize the gasoline siphon instead to drain the gasoline from the tank. Firstly, simply put the transparent end of the siphon in a container and insert the other end of the siphon into your lawn mower. Then, be sure to shake it roughly multiple times sideways, up and down.
This shaking action will help you initiate the process of siphoning the old gasoline out of the tank into the plastic container. You will be able to notice the old gasoline flowing from the tank of your lawn mower to the container; otherwise, you will need to check your gasoline siphon to make sure that it's inserted properly into the tank. Repeat this step until all of the gasoline is drained off from the tank.
Step 5: Cleaning the Gasoline from the Tank
Once you have finished draining all of the gasoline from the tank, then it's time for you to get rid of the brass siphon. Regardless of how good your skill is at setting up an excellent siphon pipe, there will always be some residue of gasoline left. You may use rags to clean up any of the remaining gasoline below the tank.
Step 6: Removing the Old Gasoline Residue
Next, it's time to add the new gasoline into your tank. Unfortunately, the brand new gasoline will tend to mix with the old gasoline residue that's still left inside the tank. Hence, you need to drain this mixture out of the tank by using the same method explained in the previous steps.
Step 7: Drying the Tank
Make sure that you have thoroughly drained off all the residue of the old gasoline from your tank. After that, let your tank dry for approximately 5 minutes. Then, proceed to connect the fuel line and the wire of your spark plug back to your lawn mower. Apart from that, be sure to double-check to make sure that your air filters are clear. If your air filters are clogged, you will need to either buy a new one or clean it thoroughly.
Step 8: Final Checking and Refilling
Then, you need to check your oil reservoir to make sure that it's full and good to go. After that, start the lawn mower by pulling the cord and running in idle or static mode until it automatically stops by itself. This is done to ensure that all of the gasoline is properly removed from your carburetor.
Lastly, place your lawn mower on a flat surface and refill your tank with brand new gasoline. Then, try to start your lawn mower. At first, you should hear some sputtering noise for some time before it will finally work like it used to.
Wrapping It Up
I hope these 8 steps on how to empty gas from lawn mower was helpful. Do you know any more tips? Let us know in the comments!
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