You would never think that smoke can blow blue until your lawn mower is suddenly clouded by blue smoke.
It can be concerning when your lawn mower starts to smoke, indicating that something isn’t quite right with the machinery.
A lawn mower will start to smoke in different colors depending on what the problem is. At least when you see blue or even white smoke around your lawn mower, you can already narrow down what the problem is.
Here, we will talk about what causes your lawn mower to blow blue smoke and how you can safely fix it.
Don’t worry about having to replace your lawn mower as fixing it will be much cheaper.
Why Is My Lawn Mower Smoking Blue?
Out of the few variations of smoke color that a lawn mower can blow out, blue smoke is one of them. Let’s see what the cause of this blue smoke is and how we can fix it.
What Causes Blue Smoke?
In a lawn mower, blue smoke is caused by an oil spillage inside of the machinery.
An oil spill can happen for numerous reasons. You might have just filled the oil reservoir too high and some splashed out while moving the mower.
Another reason why a spill can happen is just from moving the mower around a lot.
Do you tip your mower over frequently to clean or fix the problem? Do you tend to fill your oil to the very top and proceed to move it a lot? Is your lawn full of small hills that will make your mower move at an angle?
Specifically, blue smoke happens when oil spills onto the engine. With how hot the engine gets, the oil will burn and produce a cloud of blue smoke.
Should I be Concerned By the Blue Smoke
With how rarely we normally see something smoke blue, it can be concerning when we see our machinery producing a cloud of blue smoke.
This is really true if you have never encountered this kind of problem with your lawn mower before.
However, in most cases, this smoke isn’t something to be worried about. Normally, you can fix the problem in a short amount of time and the smoke will go away.
Let’s go over the quick fixes first before starting to worry.
Further Reading: How to Fix a Smoking Lawn Mower? (3 Causes & Solutions)
Fixing Your Smoking Mower
The first thing you can do to get rid of the smoke is to let your lawn mower burn off the remaining oil.
In cases where the blue smoke is caused by a bit of spillage onto the engine, the easiest thing that you can do is allow that oil to burn off.
It should take no longer than 15 minutes and at that point, you shouldn’t see any more blue smoke.
If you are still seeing smoke, you might be dealing with too much oil in the reservoir. In this case, your next step should be to check the oil level.
Remove the oil dipstick that is attached to the cap of the oil reservoir and dip it in.
When you remove the stick, you will see how high the oil is against the fill lines of the dipstick. This will let you know if there is too much oil.
When you have too much oil, tip your lawn mower over to drain out a little bit of the oil. Don’t spill too much as then you’ll be wasting oil. When you are done, check the oil level again to see the changes.
When emptying out some of the oil, you might have spilled some on the inside of your mower. Take a towel and wipe the area down just to make sure none has splashed onto the engine that will cause blue smoke again.
Close everything up and put your mower back upright. Let it run. You might see some smoke for a couple of minutes from any spilled oil that you missed.
However, if your mower still continues to smoke blue after 15 minutes, you might have a bigger problem.
Further Watching:
Damage to the Lawn Mower
If you are still seeing blue smoke coming from your lawn mower, you might have some structural damage that you are dealing with.
Some possibilities include a broken head gasket, a broken cylinder, or worn-out piston rings.
Here’s the thing with a damaged engine: It is not easy to solve the problem on your own. With the above problems, they can be tedious work and can be difficult to successfully pull off.
There are online sources that can take you through the steps of fixing your engine if you don’t want to take your lawn mower into a shop, such as this video.
However, a lot of the time you will need the aid of a professional to fix your lawn mower.
You might have to get parts replaced or even have the whole engine replaced. See if your lawn mower has a warranty as it will help with the price of getting it fixed.
If you don’t have a warranty, try going to a local shop as you are likely to find help for a lower price there.
Check the Manual
Always check the manual of your lawn mower before doing any sort of repairs.
Each lawn mower is different and may require different steps depending on the repair that you are doing. To prevent causing any additional damage to your lawn mower, check to see what the manual tells you to do.
As an additional note, always allow time for your mower to completely cool down before even touching it.
Because blue smoke indicates an issue with extra spilled oil, that means you are dealing with temperatures hot enough to instantly evaporate the liquid.
That will cause some serious burns if you try doing repairs before your mower cools down. It isn’t worth it to rush the repair process, be patient with your mower and be kind to your hands.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do I Know If My Lawn Mower Has Blown a Head Gasket?
The possibility that your lawn mower has blown a head gasket will come when you have gone through the quick fixes to your lawn mower, and you are still seeing blue smoke. At this point, you should inspect the engine of your lawn mower.
You will know that you have blown a head gasket when your lawn mower randomly stops when you use it and oil will spread to the inside of the filter cover. If you have a broken head gasket, you will want to take your lawn mower to a repair shop.
How Much Does It Cost to Replace a Head Gasket on a Lawn Mower?
Still on the topic of head gaskets, these can be expensive to replace if they are the cause of your lawn mower producing blue smoke. On average, replacing a head gasket can cost from $1300 to $3000.
This is why it’s important to check if your lawn mower has a warranty. If your lawn mower still falls under a warranty, you won’t have to pay such a high price.
Why is my Lawn Mower Blowing Grey Smoke?
Not only can a lawn mower blow blue smoke if there is a problem, but a lawn mower can also blow grey smoke.
There are a few causes of grey smoke in a lawn mower. A broken head gasket can cause both blue and grey smoke to cloud the area around your lawn mower.
Another cause of grey smoke is a rupture in the breathing tube. This tube allows air to go from the combustion chamber to the exhaust, allowing air to have proper circulation within your lawn mower. If this tube is broken, then your lawn mower won’t be able to keep a proper circulation of air which means pollution will be built up and spill out as grey smoke.
Can Too Much Oil Cause Blue Smoke
Too much oil is one of the main causes of blue smoke as it will likely spill out of its reservoir and onto the engine. The engine gets super hot when the lawn mower is running and the oil that is spilled onto it will instantly evaporate.
This burning oil will cause blue smoke to form.
Final Thoughts
A smoking lawn mower can be concerning or even frustrating to deal with. Knowing the cause of the smoke allows you to be able to fix the problem with more ease.
When you refill the oil in your lawn mower, always check the level before going on your way.
Making sure that your lawn mower doesn’t have too much oil in it is one of the best ways to prevent spillage and therefore blue smoke from appearing.
If you are dealing with blue smoke coming from your lawn mower, let us know what you did to fix it in the comments below.
Tell us how you keep your lawn mower clean and how you prevent future smoke problems from happening.
