10 things that ruined our $300 mower faster than expected

Cheap mowers can get the job done, but they don’t leave a lot of room for error. If you’re not careful, little mistakes can wear them down faster than they’re built to handle. We learned the hard way with a $300 mower that started acting up way too soon. Some of the issues were user error, others were maintenance shortcuts—but all of them could’ve been avoided. If you’re trying to make your mower last, these are the things to watch out for.

Mowing With a Dull Blade

A dull blade forces the engine to work harder and tears up your grass in the process. It’s one of the fastest ways to put unnecessary strain on a lower-end mower. You’re not just cutting less efficiently—you’re heating up the motor and pushing it longer than needed.

Sharpening the blade or replacing it when it’s worn doesn’t take much time, but it can make a big difference. Skip it, and you’ll notice a drop in cut quality—and sooner or later, that motor’s going to let you know it’s overworked.

Letting Grass Clump Underneath

If you’re mowing wet grass or tall patches without clearing the underside, it starts to build up fast. That grass gets packed in tight and blocks airflow, which throws off the cut and makes the mower work harder to keep spinning.

You don’t need to scrape the deck every time, but letting it cake up week after week leads to overheating and uneven performance. Cleaning underneath even once a month helps keep the whole system running better and longer.

Storing It Without Cleaning

Leaving grass, dirt, and leaves all over your mower before storing it for the day—or worse, the season—is asking for corrosion and breakdowns. Moisture from the grass sticks around and starts eating away at metal parts.

It’s not about making it look good—it’s about preventing buildup that ruins cables, dulls blades, and locks up the drive system. Even a quick brush-off after use goes a long way in keeping a $300 mower from falling apart before its time.

Skipping Oil Changes

That little engine needs clean oil to stay lubricated and avoid overheating. Skipping oil changes (or not checking levels at all) is one of the fastest ways to burn up a cheap mower motor.

Most people don’t think about it until the engine starts knocking or smoking. But at that point, it’s already too late. Changing the oil once or twice a season costs a few bucks. Replacing the mower? Not so cheap.

Running It Low on Gas

Running a mower until it sputters and dies doesn’t sound like a big deal, but it pulls gunk from the bottom of the tank into the fuel line and carburetor. That buildup leads to clogging, stalling, and eventually full engine failure if you don’t catch it.

Keeping the tank topped off—not overfilled—is better for the engine’s health. Cheap mowers have smaller filters and less margin for error, so even one clog can knock them out permanently.

Using Bad Gas

If your gas has been sitting in a can all season, it probably has water in it—or it’s broken down enough to mess with the carburetor. Ethanol especially can gum up small engines fast if it sits too long.

Fresh gas with a little stabilizer keeps things running smoother, especially in budget mowers that aren’t built with premium fuel systems. Bad gas is one of those issues that’s hard to reverse once it starts acting up.

Mowing Tall Weeds Like It’s a Brush Cutter

A $300 mower isn’t made to take on saplings, thick weeds, or overgrown brush. It can get through a little, but pushing it through anything dense is a good way to wreck the blade, overheat the motor, or snap a belt.

If your yard’s gotten out of control, you’re better off knocking it down in stages or using something heavier-duty first. Forcing a budget mower through tough stuff is an easy way to end up replacing it.

Ignoring the Air Filter

Air filters clog up fast, especially in dusty or dry yards. If the filter’s dirty, the engine won’t get the airflow it needs and will start running rich—which burns more fuel and gums everything up.

Checking or replacing the air filter every season keeps your engine breathing clean. On a budget mower, a clogged filter can wear it out faster than you think. It’s one of those $8 fixes that saves you from a full replacement.

Hitting Rocks or Roots

One surprise root or rock is all it takes to bend a blade or knock something loose. And if the deck is thin (which most $300 models are), you can end up with a warped housing that never cuts straight again.

You don’t have to scout every inch of the yard, but it’s worth knowing where the worst spots are. Even one solid impact can throw off the whole alignment or damage something the mower can’t recover from.

Leaving It Out in the Weather

Rain, sun, and heat will wear down a budget mower fast. Plastic parts get brittle, cables rust, and that bright red paint starts flaking off by the end of the season if it’s left outside uncovered.

A cheap mower needs a little more babying if you want it to last. Even tossing a tarp over it or pushing it into a shed helps keep the damage down. Exposure to the elements was one of the biggest things that wore ours out early.

*This article was developed with AI-powered tools and has been carefully reviewed by our editors.