Long-form mower advice.
Practical, independent guides on buying, troubleshooting, and choosing UK lawn mowers. Written for adults; no affiliate fluff.
How to get rid of moss in a lawn (and keep it gone)
Moss is the most common lawn complaint in the UK, and no wonder: our damp, shady, often-compacted gardens are exactly what moss loves. You can kill it and rake it out in a weekend, but if you stop there it comes straight…
How to cut grass properly: a simple UK guide
Cutting grass looks like the simplest job in the garden, and it nearly is, but the difference between a lawn that looks tired and one that looks great is mostly down to how you mow. Cut too short, too rarely, or with a b…
How often should you cut grass in the UK?
There is no single magic number, because how often you cut grass depends on how fast it is growing, and that changes through the year. But the pattern is simple and predictable in the UK, and once you know it you can sto…
The best time of day (and year) to cut grass in the UK
Timing your mowing well is a free way to get a better, healthier lawn. It costs nothing, takes no extra effort, and mostly comes down to avoiding wet grass and the hottest part of the day. Here is when to mow, both the t…
How to stripe a lawn: get those crisp Wembley stripes
Those crisp light-and-dark stripes on a bowling green or a football pitch look like the work of a professional, but they are surprisingly easy to do at home. The secret is not a special grass or a chemical, it is simply …
How to keep your lawn green: a UK year-round care guide
A green lawn is not luck, it is a routine. Most people think the secret is some expensive feed or a fancy mower, but the truth is duller and far cheaper: a handful of jobs done in the right order, at the right time of ye…
How to inspect a used Stihl RM 448 T — UK guide
The Stihl RM 448 T is the German premium-mid self-propelled petrol mower in the UK. Built to a noticeably higher build standard than the Mountfield equivalent, but it commands a premium used as well as new. Here is the 1…
How to inspect a used Kubota ride-on mower — UK buyer guide
Used Kubotas are not the same buying experience as used Mountfields. These are agricultural-grade Japanese machines designed to be serviced for 20+ years, and the right inspection should reflect that. Here is the 15-minu…
How to inspect a used Cobra MX534SPC — UK guide
The Cobra MX534SPC is the larger sibling of the MX46SPB — a 53cm cut, Briggs 750EX engine, rear roller for stripes. The Cobra that handles lawns over 800m² comfortably. Here is the 10-minute used-mower inspection.
How to inspect a used EGO cordless mower — UK guide
EGO 56V cordless mowers are the UK's top-selling premium battery mowers and a strong used buy — but battery health is the single biggest variable. Here is the 10-minute inspection that prevents you buying an underperform…
How to inspect a used Husqvarna Automower NERA — UK guide
Husqvarna NERA Automowers (the wire-free EPOS-satellite variants) are the newest premium robotic mowers in the UK. Lots of used units appearing as early adopters move to the latest models. Here is the inspection routine …
How to sharpen a lawn mower blade — UK DIY guide
A sharp blade cuts grass cleanly; a blunt blade tears it, leaving brown tips and weakening the lawn. Sharpening takes 15 minutes with a metal file and saves £35-£50 per service. Here is the UK DIY guide to doing it prope…
How to winterise a petrol lawn mower — UK guide
The single most common spring problem on UK petrol mowers is a varnished carburettor from sitting all winter with stale fuel. Twenty minutes in October prevents £40-£100 of dealer work in April. Here is the proper winter…
Petrol vs cordless lawn mower — UK 2026 buyer's guide
Cordless has caught up with petrol on cut quality and runtime in 2026 — but petrol still wins on tall wet grass and lawns over 1500m². Here is the definitive UK decision framework, with our recommendations at every budge…
How to change lawn mower oil — UK DIY guide
Engine oil is the single most important maintenance item on a petrol mower — and the easiest DIY job. Twenty minutes once a year keeps Briggs, Honda, Stiga and Kawasaki engines running for their full design life. Here is…
How to inspect a used Stiga Twinclip — UK guide
The Stiga Twinclip 50 SQ B is the Italian-built premium petrol mower with the twin-blade hub for an ultra-fine cut. Same parent company as Mountfield, but tuned for ornamental-lawn buyers. Here is the 10-minute used-mowe…
Used ride-on lawn mower buyer's guide — UK 2026
Used ride-on lawn mowers are the single biggest savings opportunity in the UK garden-machinery market. A new £4,000 ride-on becomes a £1,800 used unit at year 5, often with documented service and 80% of its working life …
How to clean a robotic lawn mower — UK maintenance guide
Robotic mowers do most of the work, but they need a 15-minute monthly clean to keep cutting cleanly and to prevent the £200 repair bills caused by grass build-up around drive motors. Here is the universal guide that work…
UK lawn mower brands — who actually makes what in 2026
The UK lawn mower market has dozens of brands but only a handful of actual manufacturers. Many brands you think compete are owned by the same parent. Here is the 2026 map of who makes what, where, and what it means for b…
How to inspect a used Honda HRG 466 SK — UK guide
The Honda HRG 466 SK (Izy series) is the mid-range Honda for typical UK gardens. Cheaper than the HRX, simpler mechanism, same Honda GCV engine pedigree. Here is the 10-minute used-mower inspection.
10-minute spring mower service — UK checklist for under £15
Your mower has been in the shed since October. Half the petrol mowers on Marketplace this week aren't being sold for cash — they're being sold because someone tried to start a neglected machine and gave up. Here's the te…
How to inspect a used Mountfield SP46 — UK guide
The SP46 is the best-selling self-propelled petrol mower in the UK. It's also the most-listed used mower on Marketplace — meaning condition varies wildly. Here's the 10-minute inspection that catches every common fault.
How to inspect a used Hayter Harrier 41 / 48 / 56 — UK guide
Hayter Harriers — the 41, 48 and 56 — are British-built premium roller petrols with Honda GCV engines underneath. Built to last 20 years. The catch is that some on Marketplace have done 18 of them already.
How to inspect a used Husqvarna Automower (305, 310, 315 NERA) — UK guide
Husqvarna Automowers are the longest-lived robotic mowers on the market — 12-15 years of service is realistic. But the battery is consumable and the mainboard isn't economic to replace past 8 years. Here's how to spot a …
How to inspect a used Stihl iMOW — UK guide
Stihl iMOW is the orange answer to Husqvarna Automower. Better dealer network, similar reliability, slightly higher used prices. Here's what to check before paying.
How to inspect a used EGO 56V cordless mower (LM2135, LM2114, LMX5300) — UK guide
EGO's 56V Arc Lithium platform is the cordless that beat petrol on cut quality. Used EGOs are usually decent buys — the bottleneck is the battery, which is the most expensive component to replace.
How to inspect a used Bosch Indego — UK guide
Bosch Indego uses a clever LogiCut mapping algorithm — straight-line back-and-forth instead of the random pattern Husqvarna and Stihl use. Cleaner-looking lawn, faster mowing time. Here's what to check on a used one.
How to inspect a vintage Murray 11/30 ride-on — UK guide
Vintage Murray ride-ons turn up on Marketplace every week, usually red-and-yellow striped, usually £400-£800. Built simple, easy to fix, parts cheap. The catch is age: most are 25-30 years old now and need a careful look…
How to inspect a used John Deere X-series ride-on — UK guide
John Deere X-series ride-ons hold their value better than any rival. A 10-year-old X300R will sell for 50% of new. Here's how to spot the ones worth that premium and the ones that aren't.
How to inspect a used Cobra MX46SPB — UK guide
Cobra mowers punch above their weight on price-to-feature. The MX46SPB combines a Briggs 500E engine with a rear roller for stripes — at £100 less than the equivalent Mountfield. Used examples are good value if you check…
How to inspect a used Mountfield 1530H lawn tractor — UK guide
Mountfield 1530H is the entry-tier lawn tractor that British DIY sheds default-recommend. New it's £1,499; used at £700-£1,000 it's the best-value hydrostatic ride-on on the UK market. Here's what to check before paying.
Briggs & Stratton engine codes — what 500E, 575EX, Intek and Vanguard actually mean
You're standing in someone's garage on a Saturday morning looking at a used Mountfield. The seller says it's got a "Briggs 575EX." You nod, because admitting you don't know what that means feels like losing the negotiati…
Best lawn mower under £200 UK 2026 — corded, cordless, hover, used
£200 is the budget where you stop choosing between bad mowers and start choosing between good ones. Below £150 you're in disposable territory; at £200 you can pick a Bosch Rotak with a roller, a Flymo Hover Vac, an entry…
Husqvarna Automower 305 troubleshooting — UK guide
The Husqvarna Automower 305 is the most-bought robotic mower in the UK and also the most-asked-about when it goes wrong. Husqvarna's reliability is excellent — these run for 15+ years if maintained — but a few specific f…
Bosch Rotak vs Flymo EasiMow — which corded electric should you buy?
Two mowers dominate the sub-£200 corded electric market in Britain — the Bosch Rotak and the Flymo EasiMow. They look superficially similar (cable-fed motor, 36–38cm cut, plastic deck, around 13kg) but their engineering,…
How often should you sharpen a lawn mower blade — UK guide
A dull blade tears grass instead of cutting it, leaving the lawn yellow-tipped and stressed. Most British gardeners go years without sharpening — often the entire life of the mower — and accept the patchy finish as norma…
Lawn mower winter storage checklist — UK guide
About half of all British lawn mowers refuse to start in spring. The faults are predictable and avoidable — stale fuel, varnished carbs, dead batteries, mouse damage to the wiring. A 30-minute end-of-season routine saves…
How to inspect a used Honda HRX before buying — UK guide
A clean used Honda HRX 476 VY is one of the smartest mower purchases you can make in the UK — a £900 mower that sells for £450–£600 second-hand and keeps running for another decade. But about one in five used HRXs on Fac…
Mountfield SP46 won't start: troubleshooting guide (UK)
Mountfield SP46s rarely die — they're the most common UK petrol mower for a reason. But almost every one will refuse to start at some point, usually after a winter of sitting in a damp shed. About 80% of these failures f…
Best lawn mower for a sloped lawn — UK guide 2026
Wheeled mowers need flat-ish ground. The moment your lawn slopes more than about 15°, traction starts to fail and the mower either drags itself sideways or refuses to climb. For British gardens with banks, churchyard plo…
Robotic mower boundary wire repair — diagnose and fix a broken loop
Boundary wires break. Frost, mole tunnels, garden forks, and lawn aeration are the four common causes; once-buried wires also work to the surface over time and get cut by mowing. When the wire breaks, the robot stops mov…
Petrol vs cordless lawn mower in 2026 — which is right for your UK garden
The argument is over. In 2026, cordless lawn mowers have fully caught up with petrol on cut quality for any UK garden under about 1,500m². Above that, petrol still wins, but the cross-over point keeps moving as battery c…