Most Common Overlooked Dangers of Push Lawn Mowers
1. Be Aware of the Spinning Blades!
The most likely cause of injury from a lawn mower is from the spinning blades. A push mower has those same rotating blades that the riding versions are equipped with. These blades can cause serious injuries that could be life changing. Losing a limb due to carelessness is not unheard of when it comes to these machines.
2. Pay Attention!
A little mindfulness goes a long way in ensuring you return to the house safely. Just paying attention to what you are doing is common sense when using a potentially dangerous machine. As long as you keep your mind on what you are doing, you will remain aware of the possible dangers. Thinking about the Yankees baseball game later that night might just cause you to get your foot run over.
3. Steep Terrain
As for mowing on hills, you can use a push mower safely. You just need to make sure your footing is sound and that the incline is not too steep to handle. If there is any chance you could slip or the mower could tip over, don’t take that risk. Steep areas like this are what hand held weed whackers are made to tackle. Don’t use the wrong tool for the wrong job.
4. Safety Switch
Fortunately, mower manufacturers know how boneheaded we can be when using lawn tools. They install safety switches made to prevent certain actions. For example, if you fall while pushing your mower, the machine will shut down as your hand lets go of safety bar that is standard on most any push mower. The problem with safety switches is that they can be a little aggravating in some situations. So some folks will disable the safety switch. That is a big no-no! You might only need the safety switch once in your life. It would be a shame if you had disconnected your own protection.
The bottom line is to respect any motorized machinery. That includes that cute little push mower. It can take a bite out of you just like a big boy mower. Be aware of the push lawn mowers. Who would have ever thought…..?!
Happy Mowing!
