Can I Hose Down My Riding Lawn Mower?

If you have a riding lawn mower, you likely have a lot of lawn to cover. You purchased the machine to save time and effort, so it makes sense that you'd want the cleanup to be the same. There are plenty of lawn mowing mistakes to avoid at all costs to keep your yard looking fresh, but what about looking after the equipment itself? When your riding lawn mower is caked with wet grass and mud, can you just hose it down to keep it fresh? Luckily, yes, you can. However, there is a right and wrong way to do things so you don't cause it any damage. 

You need to be careful about which parts of your riding lawn mower you get wet. While blasting its blades with a heavy stream is a great way to remove build-up when you're done outside, all that moisture can also damage more sensitive components. You should avoid washing the entire thing like a car. Instead, remember not to hose off the engine of your riding lawn mower, nor the filters (both oil and air). In fact, a lawn mowing tip that will make you an expert  is to remove the spark plugs from the machine completely before you start maintenance of any kind. This way, you don't risk damaging this important part of the machine. 

Read more: Unreliable Lawn Mower Brands To Avoid (And The Best Options Worth Your Money)

How to properly hose down your riding lawn mower

The easiest way to rinse off your riding lawn mower is to use its built-in wash port. Many popular brands have one, like the John Deere S100 and the XT1 Enduro series. The port is typically located on the top of the deck and has a connection where a garden hose can be added in order to rinse off the blades. 

You also need to move the mower deck to its lowest setting, so it's touching the ground, which creates a sealed washing machine. This is one of the only times your mower deck wheels should be touching the ground , as you'll need to readjust them after to get a good mow. From there, turn on the hose, as well as your lawn mower. Run them both for a few minutes, so the whirlpool can dislodge all the dirt and grime on the inside. After removing the hose from the port, you can also rinse down all parts of the wheels without any issues.

If your machine doesn't have a wash port, you can install one aftermarket. While it's easy enough to tip a push mower on its side to hose it down, riding lawn mowers are much bigger and heavier, making this task impossible for most. The Dreyoo Lawn Mower Deck Wash Kit is an easy DIY to make cleaning much easier. You just drill a hole in the wheel deck cover and screw the adapter into it.

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Read the original article on Hunker .