If my lawn is wet, will that hurt the lawn mower?

Question

my mom always said wait till it dries, but its wet now and i was curious as to whether that actually makes a difference

Answer 1

you won't be cutting much of the grass if it is wet.

Answer 2

Don't cut wet grass with an electric mower! If it is petrol or otherwise it should be fine but will involve more work:  the grass will be heavier, more difficult for the mower to "pick-up" if it is of that type, the mower will be more difficult to push and the finish won't be so good!

Answer 3

If you have a push mower (no motor) then you're fine. You'll just need to knock the grass off the blades as it will tend to stick, if wet.

A lawnmower with a motor will tend to get "gunked up" underneath as the wet clippings will be more likely to stick to the underside of your mower, rather than blow out the side or fall back onto the ground. If enough build up around the blade, it could cause strain to the engine...primarily though, its an issue of stopping the mower, turning it on its side, and scraping the wet, matted clippings out from the underside.

Much easier and more efficient to mow when the grass is dry.

Answer 4

no but it will be very hard to mow and the mower could stall but it will be fine

Answer 5

Yes , the grass is heavier , causing "drag" , and it will clump up under the mower and bog it down.

It will cause unessesary strain on the engine , may cause overheating .

Answer 6

Hey, I've mowed my yard many times while it was wet. Never hurt my mower. And, it depends on the size of the yard as wet grass collect around the blade and if it a huge yard, could be a problem if you don't stop and clean out around the blade. My yard is small and have a push mower and occasionally as I'm mowing find a place to bounce the mower up and down and this removes the clippings around the blade.

Don't know how your mom is, but when mine told me something, it was the end of the conversation...loll

Have a great day!

Answer 7

Typically you should not mow wet grass.  A couple times here and there will not affect the mower and a couple years from now you won't notice any long term effects.  

Answer 8

Yes it will cut the grass, but there are several things to consider.  Wet grass is harder for the blade to cut, and will make the mower work harder, using more gas.  Wet grass will decompose more agressively causing the mower deck to rust quicker.  Mowing wet grass also makes the grass more suseptable to fungus and diseases.  Mowing is stressful for grass, and the added moisture is ideal for mold and fungus to attack.  Those are just a few of the technical reasons, but the number one reason is...your mom told you.  Have fun and good luck mowing the yard.

Answer 9

it wont hurt it but it is very difficult to cut and will get an awful lot of grass caught in the blades so be sure to turn off completely b4 trying to remove tis grass

Answer 10

I don't think that this will hurt your lawnmower. However you will get a better result cutting a dry lawn, especially if you mulch. A wet lawn will leave clumpy grass clippings and will cake underneath your mower and will have to be cleaned off (I use a putty knife for this task) to maintain maximum cutting efficiency.

Answer 11

Well it's not that it hurts the lawn mower but rather it hurts the grass.  When the grass is wet it sticks to the blades more and the lawn mower rips the grass out instead of cutting the top of the blades.  So your mum's right to tell you to leave it to dry!