The Masked Tulip Posted May 23, 2010 Share Posted May 23, 2010 Got my Flymo hoover out last night to do my first cut of the grass of the season - the grass was very long due to the fact that the back garden is a bog that I cannot cut until it has dried out a bit. Got halfway round and the mower started smoking, caught fire briefly and died. Only 2 years old. Thankfully, the same model is on sale for £50 in Homebase, bad news is they are sold out. Anyhow, I only started cutting grass when I moved into this rental2 years ago - is this kind of thing common with lawnmowers? No real knowledge of mowers. This is the one that burnt and which I am thinking of getting again. http://www.homebase.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=20001&partNumber=1673766&c_3=3|cat_14279546|Lawnmowers|14279598&c_2=2|cat_16849255|Lawnmowers+and+garden+power+tools|14279546&c_1=1|category_root|Gardening|16849255 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest eight Posted May 23, 2010 Share Posted May 23, 2010 Got my Flymo hoover out last night to do my first cut of the grass of the season - the grass was very long due to the fact that the back garden is a bog that I cannot cut until it has dried out a bit. Got halfway round and the mower started smoking, caught fire briefly and died. Only 2 years old. Thankfully, the same model is on sale for £50 in Homebase, bad news is they are sold out. Anyhow, I only started cutting grass when I moved into this rental2 years ago - is this kind of thing common with lawnmowers? No real knowledge of mowers. This is the one that burnt and which I am thinking of getting again. http://www.homebase.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=20001&partNumber=1673766&c_3=3|cat_14279546|Lawnmowers|14279598&c_2=2|cat_16849255|Lawnmowers+and+garden+power+tools|14279546&c_1=1|category_root|Gardening|16849255 I used to work for Flymo. Hated every second of it. That is all. eight Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rolf Posted May 23, 2010 Share Posted May 23, 2010 Motors normally burn out if they encounter too much resistance, is this what happened? Something as deluxe as a Flymo I would have thought should have built-in protection though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Masked Tulip Posted May 23, 2010 Author Share Posted May 23, 2010 Motors normally burn out if they encounter too much resistance, is this what happened? Something as deluxe as a Flymo I would have thought should have built-in protection though. Yes, I suspect the length of grass got too much for it. No built-in protection. Would have thought it would have had a cut-out before burn-out but there you go. Replacement motor is £43 plus p&p, replacement mower if £50. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dinker Posted May 23, 2010 Share Posted May 23, 2010 I gave my lawn it`s first cut in February this year - blade set as high as possible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erat_forte Posted May 23, 2010 Share Posted May 23, 2010 http://www.thegreenreaper.co.uk/showdetails.asp?id=2156 Had one of these 3 or 4 years now, really good German build quality, cuts really well, no more effort so push than a flymo (less actually as you dont have to worry about the cable). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D.C. Posted May 23, 2010 Share Posted May 23, 2010 Motors normally burn out if they encounter too much resistance, is this what happened? Something as deluxe as a Flymo I would have thought should have built-in protection though. Yup. If you don't religiously tend your grass, get a strimmer instead, it will deal with the long grass but you will have to rake it up afterwards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blankster Posted May 23, 2010 Share Posted May 23, 2010 I don't know much about electric lawnmowers, always having had petrol ones - but if my lawnmower had burst into flames I wouldn't go back to the same brand for a replacement! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cockrobin Posted May 23, 2010 Share Posted May 23, 2010 Got my Flymo hoover out last night to do my first cut of the grass of the season - the grass was very long due to the fact that the back garden is a bog that I cannot cut until it has dried out a bit. Got halfway round and the mower started smoking, caught fire briefly and died. Only 2 years old. Thankfully, the same model is on sale for £50 in Homebase, bad news is they are sold out. Anyhow, I only started cutting grass when I moved into this rental2 years ago - is this kind of thing common with lawnmowers? No real knowledge of mowers. This is the one that burnt and which I am thinking of getting again. http://www.homebase.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=20001&partNumber=1673766&c_3=3|cat_14279546|Lawnmowers|14279598&c_2=2|cat_16849255|Lawnmowers+and+garden+power+tools|14279546&c_1=1|category_root|Gardening|16849255 I had nothing but trouble with my Flymo, same as yours. Grass is a little long and it just cannot cope, motor gets hot and burns out if you push it too hard. My advice is; don't buy another electric mower, get a petrol mower. Argos have a few choices but I'm purchasing this one in a few days: http://reviews.argos.co.uk/1493-en_gb/7302859/reviews.htm Not very expensive and the reviews are quite good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cockrobin Posted May 23, 2010 Share Posted May 23, 2010 Check out this for a bargain! Not a brand I have heard of before but the reviews aren't bad. http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/7302299/c_1/1%7Ccategory_root%7CGarden+and+DIY%7C14418702/c_2/3%7Ccat_15701041%7CLawnmowers%7C14418813.htm?_$ja=tsid:11527%7Ccc:%7Cprd:7302299%7Ccat:garden+%26+diy+%3E+lawnmowers+%3E+petrol+mowers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XswampyX Posted May 23, 2010 Share Posted May 23, 2010 I've fixed agricultural machinery for over 16 years. I bet it's the capacitor. Have you stripped out the motor and had a look at it? Capacitor for £8.49 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cockrobin Posted May 23, 2010 Share Posted May 23, 2010 I've fixed agricultural machinery for over 16 years. I bet it's the capacitor. Have you stripped out the motor and had a look at it? Capacitor for £8.49 Be a bit pointless stripping it apart to replace the capacitor only to find the motor windings are burnt out, unless you have nothing better to do. Probably better to chuck it away and buy a petrol mower. Get a good second hand one on ebay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
osbaldwick Posted May 23, 2010 Share Posted May 23, 2010 General purpose lightweight mowers are suitable for cutting normal domestic lawns of normal length. Note the use of the word normal. If you are cutting very long grass the manufacturers would not class that as normal. Many low cost lawnmowers I suspect would go the same way as your Flymo. A more powerful motor is what is required...... Good luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sledgehead Posted May 23, 2010 Share Posted May 23, 2010 I don't know much about electric lawnmowers, always having had petrol ones - but if my lawnmower had burst into flames I wouldn't go back to the same brand for a replacement! My thoughts entirely! It's worth mentioning that EU law or summut has required mowers to be fitted with brakes that stop the mower working pdq once you power down. A mower of mine that would not start was actually perfectly fine save for the fact that the brake shattered, causing the machine to be permanently powered down. I simply removed the brake anf hey presto. It was a hoover-hover rather like the one pictured. If you are technical you might wanna take a peek under the hood, especially if you believe we have become too wasteful as a society. Oh, and mowers should really work forever. The tech is ancient and very hardy (save for the shite placky blades they put on cheaper models - again, another "safety" feature I guess). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deflation Posted May 23, 2010 Share Posted May 23, 2010 I've got a flymo 300, bought it 2 years ago on ebay for £18. Loads for sale this time of the year. Blade is a bit blunt but does the job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Masked Tulip Posted May 23, 2010 Author Share Posted May 23, 2010 Be a bit pointless stripping it apart to replace the capacitor only to find the motor windings are burnt out, unless you have nothing better to do. Probably better to chuck it away and buy a petrol mower. Get a good second hand one on ebay. Yes, I found the replacement capacitor price but then figured that if it is not that then that is about £12 down the drain once I include p&p in it. I was thinking of getting a bloke to come monthly but the s*ds charge £40 to £50 to cut a lawn which soons makes the cost of a lawnmower reasonable. Actually, one of the benefits of renting is that I now know that I do not want a house with a big lawn - you end up spending your spare time mowing. My neighbours are constantly mowing their lawns in Summer, sometimes twice weekly, and, even worse, most of them have largish front gardens that they don't ever use, sit on, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ken_ichikawa Posted May 23, 2010 Share Posted May 23, 2010 If it burnt out and caught fire then why are you buying another one? Just buy a big bucket of roundup and chuck it over the grass. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Masked Tulip Posted May 23, 2010 Author Share Posted May 23, 2010 If it burnt out and caught fire then why are you buying another one? Just buy a big bucket of roundup and chuck it over the grass. Because I is thick. Well, it was OK for 2 years and for £50 I am hoping the next one will last long enough for me to get out of this rental and into my own home... which hopefully will have less lawn... Aren't all these types of lawnmowers, whatever make, basically the same? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scunnered Posted May 23, 2010 Share Posted May 23, 2010 A more powerful motor is what is required...... Or Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Masked Tulip Posted May 23, 2010 Author Share Posted May 23, 2010 Or Actually, I do drink goat's milk so maybe I could kill two birds with one goat? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XswampyX Posted May 23, 2010 Share Posted May 23, 2010 This just sums up what's wrong with the world. Come on, it's 3 screws. Have a look. The innards come out when they are gone, kinda like jam from a donut. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Masked Tulip Posted May 23, 2010 Author Share Posted May 23, 2010 This just sums up what's wrong with the world. Come on, it's 3 screws. Have a look. The innards come out when they are gone, kinda like jam from a donut. I have opened it up. I have looked at it. The capacitor does not look as if there is anything wrong. The motor was sparking - I could see this under the plastic cover just before it died - so assume that it is likely that the motor windings are burnt out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XswampyX Posted May 23, 2010 Share Posted May 23, 2010 Fair enough. Looks like a trip to Argos then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scunnered Posted May 23, 2010 Share Posted May 23, 2010 Actually, I do drink goat's milk so maybe I could kill two birds with one goat? Go for it! You'd be able to drink it straight from the goat. Just remember to make sure you get a female though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr C Posted May 23, 2010 Share Posted May 23, 2010 keep the blades sharp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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