Picture this: You’ve finally got some free time in your busy schedule and the weather is dry. You decide to head out to your backyard so that you can trim your overgrown lawn. You grab your lawn mower and turn the ignition key, only to find that it just won’t start.
Sound familiar? You might be dealing with a faulty solenoid. Testing your lawn mower’s starter solenoid can seem like a daunting task – but so long as you are implementing the proper safety precautions, testing a lawn mower starter solenoid is something that you will be able to do by yourself.
This is where we come in to help. Below, you will find everything you need to know about testing a lawn mower solenoid. From equipment to instructions, we have made sure to cover all bases. So, without further ado, just keep reading to discover more.
How To Test A Lawn Mower Solenoid: Equipment
To help you discover how you easily test your lawn mower’s solenoid, we are going to be talking you through all of the necessary steps that you need to follow below. First, we’ll be starting with the equipment – let’s take a look at them below.
Equipment You’ll Need
To make sure that you are going to be able to safely test your lawn mower’s solenoid, you’re first going to need to make sure that you have all of the necessary equipment to be able to do it.
Here is quick breakdown of what you’ll need in order to be able to test the solenoid:
- DC power supply
- Jumper cables
- Adjustable wrench
- Screwdriver
As a side note, if you do not have a DC power supply, then you can alternatively opt to use a 12V separate battery.
How To Test A Lawn Mower Solenoid: Step-By-Step Instructions
Step One: Troubleshooting
First things first, you’re going to need to go ahead and make sure that you have carried out some initial troubleshooting just to double check whether or not the solenoid is actually the issue or not.
In some instances, you might find that the issue is due to another component of the lawn mower, and you might regret going to the trouble of removing the battery and solenoid if it is not to blame.
Step Two: Check The Battery Voltage
After you have checked over all of the internal components of your lawn mower, you can then proceed to go ahead and check over the battery voltage of your lawn mower.
It is extremely important that you are making sure that the battery is able to provide enough voltage to the electron mangent inside the solenoid, otherwise it won’t be able to work.
Take your DC power supply and connect the multimeter’s positive and negative ends to the DC volt setting. If your battery gets more than 12V or higher, then your battery is working optimally.
Step Three: Safety Precautions
Before you proceed to check the starter solenoid, you’re going to need to first take a few moments to make sure that you are going to be able to stay safe. As you’re going to be dealing with electrical circuits, you’re going to need to make sure that you are wearing rubber shoes for safety.
As well as that, you are also going to want to make sure that you are not touching any bare cables or terminals of your mower’s battery, which is why we recommend that you also wear rubber gloves.
Step Four: Check The Starter Solenoid
After you have done all of the above – you are then going to be ready to go ahead and begin checking the starter solenoid. In order to locate the solenoid, you’ll need to lift up the hood of the
If you can see a black circular object with two metallic ends located right next to the starter motor, then you have found the solenoid.
After you have located the solenoid, you will then be ready to unscrew the bolts to remove the solenoid from the mower. All the while, make sure that you are not touching any of the electrical posts. First, you’ll need to check the terminals for any corrosion.
If there is corrosion, then you will need to replace it. If this is not the case, then you should proceed to check the solenoid for a clicking sound. A clicking sound is good, as this means that the electromagnet inside the solenoid is working, if it’s not, then you are going to need to replace the solenoid.
Ensuring that your starter solenoid’s electromagnet is working properly, the only last fault left to check is the continuity within the terminals. To troubleshoot this, you’ll need to perform a continuity check using a multimeter. In order to perform this test, connect the solenoid posts to the voltmeter’s terminals.
Then, set the voltmeter to continuity and wait for a few moments. If the meter offers some reading, then this means that the terminals are jumping the circuit correctly, which means that your solenoid is in working order. If there is no reading, then your solenoid will need to be replaced for a new one.
As a side note, if you don’t feel comfortable checking the starter solenoid of your lawn mower yourself, there are other options available to you. If you would like someone else to do this for you, then we recommend hiring the assistance of a mechanic who will be able to check your lawn mower’s starter solenoid for you.
Alternatively, in some instances, you might be entitled to a free check-up by the manufacturer of your lawn mower. In order to check whether or not you might be entitled to this, we recommend that you take a look at your lawn mower’s warranty.
Final Thoughts
To sum up everything that we have talked about above, testing a lawn mower solenoid at home is easy enough to do, so long as you are following the necessary steps to stay safe and following proper guidelines.
Now that you have read all of the above, we are hoping that you are now feeling much more confident to test your lawn mower’s starter solenoid yourself.
However, if you are still not feeling confident enough to check your solenoid yourself, then we highly recommend that you consider hiring the help of a mechanic, or even asking a friend that has technical knowledge of lawn mower maintenance – we’re sure that they’ll be more than happy to help.
Thanks for reading, and bye for now!
