6 Ways To Reduce Lawn Mower Noise That Work. Quietest lawn mower muffler

Is it possible to make a mower more quiet?

Been hearing from other members and I myself about neighbors and or House wives complaining about loud mowers. Is there some sort of silencer or way to extend the pipe or even make an exhaust tip that is baffled?

If we can make guns quiet and make exhaust tips that are mellow sounding why can’t we make mowers more quiet?

” There is no wrong way on getting new customer’s if you have a good long term plan.”

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MOturkey

No doubt the exhaust could be quieter, but a goodly portion of the noise is from the blades themselves, so I’m not sure a quiet engine would make all that much difference.

XLS

look into a silencer for a 4 wheeler i forget the name but you can order them at hunting stores. It just clamps onto the end and functions as a 2nd muffler. Posted via Mobile Device

Richard Martin

A huge potion of the noise comes from the engine it’s self, not the exhaust. I can also usually tell if someone is on a Exmark. They have super whiney hydros.

SouthSide Cutter

The only way you could is like my Honda Generator. Its really quiet compared to others. And at alot of races you can run it and the Yamaha after hours when you cant run nothing else due to noise. The motors and gens are inclosed probably would cost alot. The gen was alot more than the cheap ones.

mowerbrad

If the customer wants to buy me a new mower that runs quieter or wants to buy me any add ons to help make it quieter, then sure I’d do it. But I am not going to spend money on stupid crap like this.

How many people are truely bothered by our equipment. to the point that they confront us about it? Maybe 1-2%.

I’m annoyed by the “home boy” who drives by our house on occasion with his loud exhaust on his civic. I’m annoyed by the drivers who pull out it front of me on the road. I’m annoyed by my ethics professor who says “right” at the end of every sentence. I’m annoyed with the people who walk their dogs then don’t pick up after them when they take a squat in my lawn.

People need to realize that they can’t have every they want. It isn’t just them in this world.

Ways To Reduce Lawn Mower Noise That Work

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If like me you love mowing your lawn but hate the noise, you might be wondering how to reduce lawn mower noise.

To reduce lawn mower noise, you can try options such as tightening all the screws, replacing the muffler, changing the engine oil, adding mass to the deck, and fixing the blade assembly.

In this article, I’ll look at why exactly lawn mowers make so much noise, along with the best ways to make them quieter. None of these are particularly complicated so should be easy for you to do at home.

Why Are Lawn Mowers So Loud?

Let’s be fair: not all lawn mowers are created equal. Some are much louder than others in the first place, and this only gets worse with age and wear.

What’s more, lawn mowers aren’t designed to be quiet machines. Very few lawn mowers designers have ever considered noise levels when designing their product, as their main FOCUS is to function.

But why are lawn mowers so loud? Like all machines, lawn mowers have lots of moving parts in their engines. Electric lawn mowers are generally quieter, but they can still make plenty of noise.

As the engine ticks over, it vibrates. These vibrations travel through the lawn mower’s body and turn into sound waves. So along with the noise, the engine makes directly, you also have to deal with the sound of the body rattling.

A standard lawn mower operates at around 90dB, which is loud enough to cause damage to your ears when exposed to it for too long. This is reason enough to want to make your lawn mower quieter.

Over time, wear and tear to the machine will often cause it to make more noise. Screws can come loose, causing parts to rattle more, and things can get stuck or be broken.

Some of the most common issues that cause it to make more noise are:

• A cracked or broken muffler
• The blade assembly has come loose
• There’s a build-up of debris under the deck
• You haven’t changed the engine oil in a while

You can avoid all of these by regularly inspecting and maintaining your lawn mower. Ideally, you should solve these problems before they start making noise, as this can be a sign of damage.

These issues are characterized by clunking, knocking, or squeaking noises, so if you hear any of these be sure to get it checked out.

I’d recommend giving your lawn mower a thorough inspection before you start trying to reduce the noise it makes. The last thing you want to do is cover up a sign of a bigger problem.

How To Reduce Lawn Mower Noise

Once you’ve checked your lawn mower over and are aware of any signs of damage, you can move on to making it quieter.

Some of these options are about noise reduction but others are simple fixes for these common problems. I’d recommend starting with these and then moving on to the other options if you don’t get the results you want.

Tighten all the screws

Loose components rattle more than they should, which increases the amount of noise coming from your machine. Start by giving it a once over and tightening all the screws you can find.

You might need to remove some parts of the body to expose the inner workings, but it’s worth checking all of this over for loose screws before putting everything back together again.

Fix or replace the muffler

A muffler is a device fitted onto an exhaust pipe to deaden the sound that escapes from it. It contains several chambers and insulation to reduce noise but also increases engine pressure for greater efficiency.

The muffler on your lawn mower will break over time because it’s put under reasonable stress. Any cracks or gaps will allow sound to escape, which reduces its effectiveness.

There might also be damage to the gasket seal that sits between the exhaust and the muffler, which also allows sound to escape.

Follow these steps to inspect the muffler:

• Unscrew the exhaust pipe, only when the lawn mower is completely cool.
• Remove the exhaust so you can access the muffler, which might be hidden inside the lawn mower’s body.
• Undo the mounting bolts so you can remove the muffler entirely.
• Inspect it for signs of damage, both inside and outside. Cracks may only show on one side, so check both.
• Any minor cracks can be fixed with something like FiberFix (Amazon), which is specifically designed for this.
• If you see any signs of rust or any cracks that look fairly deep, replace it with a new one.
• Now is also a good time to fit a new gasket.
• Check the exhaust pipe for damage before replacing too.

If you need to replace the muffler with a new one, shop around for the best option. Longer mufflers reduce noise levels more than shorter ones, so this could be a good idea if you want a quiet lawn mower.

Change the engine oil

As with all engines, you need to change your lawn mower’s engine oil regularly to keep it in good working condition. The oil lubricates the engine’s moving parts but can become clogged with debris over time.

Change the oil each spring and possibly in fall too depending on how regularly you use the lawn mower.

• Oil changes are best done shortly after the operation because warm oil flows more easily.
• Put the lawn mower on a raised surface and angle it on its side.
• Locate the oil fill cap and put a pan underneath.
• Remove the cap and allow the oil to drain out. This takes a few minutes.
• Fill with new engine oil (amazon). Brands intended for cars are usually fine for this purpose, but the owner manual will give you the right information.

Pay attention to the old oil as it drains out. If it’s particularly dark or full of debris, this can be a sign of bigger issues inside the engine. It might be a good idea to take it to a specialist.

Add mass to the deck

The deck is the part that sits over the blade and is usually made of plastic. It’s not designed to be particularly soundproof, which you’ll likely notice if you ever run over a stone.

You obviously can’t soundproof the blades directly because you’ll stop them working, but you can add more mass to the deck. This will dampen the noise you hear coming from the blades underneath.

I’d recommend using either mass loaded vinyl or car sound deadening mats (Amazon links) for this job. Both will be fine, but sound deadening mats might be the better option because they have an adhesive backing.

• Tip the lawn mower on its side so you can see the blades underneath. It might be worth removing the spark plug so it doesn’t turn on.
• If you can use water, spray the underside of the deck with a hose to loosen the grass build-up.
• Use a scraper to remove all the grass and debris underneath. This will reduce the amount of noise it makes.
• Turn the lawn mower right side up and clean the top of the deck to improve adhesion.
• Cut your sound deadening material to size. Small panels will be easier to fit around awkward shapes.
• Stick the mats down, making sure to not get in the way of any moving parts. You can add more than one layer if you want.

The idea here is that adding more mass to the deck means it won’t vibrate as much while also deadening sounds coming from the blades underneath.

Fix the blade assembly

A loose blade assembly can cause plenty of rattling noise when operating. Over time, this might cause damage to the lawn mower too, as things aren’t where they’re meant to be.

• Remove the spark plug from the engine and tip the lawn mower on its side.
• Use a wrench to test the bolt holding the blade in place.
• If it’s loose, jam the blade in place using a piece of wood and then tighten the bolt.

If this doesn’t fix the problem then your blade might be out of balance. This happens over time and means it won’t spin efficiently. Luckily this is really easy to solve with a blade balancing tool (Amazon).

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How to Make a Lawn Mower Quieter – 5 Methods That Actually Work

Lawn mowers can be very noisy machines. The engines are often fairly loud, as only a small muffler is attached to each engine’s exhaust port.

They’re not contained, as car engines are, but the small muffler should at least help keep an engine’s noise at a tolerable level. However, over time, the muffler may crack, or the gasket seal will become useless at muffling the air blowing out of the engine’s exhaust port. This, in turn, will cause the engine to get louder.

With that being said, here are five ways in which you can make your lawn mower run more quietly.

How to Make a Lawn Mower Quieter

Check the Muffler For Defects

Most of the noise a lawn mower makes usually comes from the blade or engine itself, and there isn’t much you can do about that, unless you want to invest in a new engine. However, there are lots of other issues that could also be causing the unwanted noise.

You can start by inspecting the muffler. After a period of time, you can expect your lawn mower’s muffler to get dirty, become worn out, and crack. While I was inspecting my lawn mowers, I came across a muffler that was cracked at the pinch seam.

This isn’t a huge problem and is often quite easy to fix, depending on the size of the crack. The only thing you’ll need to do is weld the affected area or cover it by using some high-temperature spray paint. I suggest that you check out this type of paint. which is available at an affordable price.

If the level of damage is too high, then the best thing you can do is replace the existing muffler with a new one. I personally recommend getting this Briggs and Stratton muffler. The price isn’t that expensive, but before you buy one, you’ll also need to determine whether it suits your lawn mower’s model.

If you’re a handyman, you can try making your own custom muffler by using a tin can and some screws. I don’t suggest doing this, though, as they probably won’t last long and you’ll end up replacing the muffler all over again.

Installing a New Muffler

This is quite an easy project that’s definitely worth completing, even if it reduces the overall noise level by only 15 percent. What it entails is adding an additional muffler onto your lawn mower. You can start by attaching one in the position of your current muffler, and installing the other one on the air inlet. Once you’re finished, you should have both ends covered.

Quiet the Deck

Despite not having many options for silencing the deck, this will help reduce vibrations, the sounds made by rock pings and the noise coming from the blades. The best way to solve this problem is to cover the deck with sound-deadening material that’s similar to what we use when we’re soundproofing vehicles.

The material I recommend using is FatMat. You might find it a bit expensive, in comparison to other products, but it’s quite effective, so it’s worth the investment. It’s also a self-adhesive material, so you won’t have to use an additional spray adhesive to attach it to the deck.

You can start by simply cutting it down to size. Next, cover the deck with the material and your job is done!

You might even consider using Dynamat instead of FatMat, but that’s not necessary, as it costs more and you wouldn’t really notice any difference between the two materials. Either way, the level of sound reduction will be the same.

Use Ear Protection

Even after you’ve followed each step above and have properly quieted your lawn mower down, it’ll still produce a considerable amount of noise when you’re using it or standing next to it.

The noise coming from your lawn mower isn’t good for your eardrums. I know many people who are half deaf, partially because of loud machinery noise. To prevent this from happening to you, you can use either earplugs or earmuffs. I highly suggest using earmuffs, because they cover a person’s ears in their entirety and provide more substantial noise reduction results.

I’m not a huge fan of earplugs, maybe because I don’t like having plugs stuck in my ears, and I find them very uncomfortable to sleep in.

You may want to check these earmuffs out, as they’re quite effective at muffling sound, and are pretty tough as well. I highly recommend them for long-term use.

Buy a Quiet Electric Lawn Mower

There are a lot of different lawn mower models on the market, so I recommend that you get a quieter lawn mower. As you should know by now, some lawn mowers are much quieter than others.

An electric lawn mower is definitely quieter than one that’s powered by gas. Furthermore, mowers with smaller engines are much quieter than those with bigger ones. So if you don’t mind spending some money, it’s best to replace your existing lawn mower with a smaller electric one, if none of the other methods mentioned above has worked for you.

A couple of months ago, I decided to exchange one of my older lawn mowers for a new electric one. I went with the Black Decker Electric Mower. and I must admit that it’s so much quieter. I’m not sure about the decibel level of this electric mower, but I think it’s around 70 dB, while standard gas mowers have a decibel level that’s around 90 dB.

Conclusion

Now, you should know a few ways in which you can make your lawn mower a little bit quieter. As you can see, there aren’t many ways to quiet a lawnmower. The two most effective solutions include replacing it with a new, quieter one or adding an additional muffler.

For the blades, you’ll need to cover them by using sound-deadening materials. If you’re the one who’s going to be using the lawn mower, you should definitely obtain some earmuffs, because the mower is still going to be fairly loud and losing your hearing over time is possible.

If you have any questions about this article or soundproofing in general, let us know by leaving a comment down below.

Alwayne G

Alwayne is the founder of Soundproof Wiz. He is a passionate writer who loves writing about home improvement to help people overcome an obstacle: soundproofing, upgrading appliances, remodeling the backyard and much more.

Why Are Lawn Mowers So Loud? (Solved)

We are all familiar with a peaceful Sunday morning in the summer being interrupted by the sound of someone tending to their lawn.

For some of us, it can occasionally be annoying.

Noisy Neighbors Revenge PAYBACK

There are a few reasons and we are going to delve into them all here.

Why Are Lawn Mowers So Loud?

Lawn mowers are loud because they have very little in the way of soundproofing to dampen the sound their engines make. Unlike cars they don’t have proper mufflers or water-cooling jackets for their engines. Economically the cost of reducing the sound of a mower is probably not worth it for the manufacturer, who want to keep lower for consumers.

Reason #1: No Mufflers

In short, the main reason lawn mowers are so loud is because they don’t have proper mufflers.

Regulation for a lawn mower stipulates that a muffler is only required to be a spark arrestor for the exhaust. Its job is to stop a stray spark from setting dead grass on fire.

Its primary role is not to reduce sound.

The noise regulation around cars is much more stringent as they are literally everywhere at all times.

On top of that, most people want their car to be as quiet as possible for them when they use it, when it comes to lawn mowers people aren’t so concerned about that.

As such a car’s exhaust system is much more complicated with large resonators and exhaust mufflers to dampen the sound of the engine.

Remove the muffler from your car and sound levels with increase dramatically.

Add a muffler to your mower and you will be able to mow your lawn in near silence.

Reason #2: It is Down to Cost

So why don’t lawn mowers have mufflers? Or why haven’t lawn mower manufacturers invested more time in finding a solution to make them quieter.

The honest truth is, it all comes down to cost.

It would take a lot of engineering effort and manufacturing expense to find a reliable solution to make a lawn mower quieter, particularly a gas-powered mower.

It would probably require the entire fuel delivery system to be reworked for starters.

So it could be done, but it would push up the price of mowers.

I think most consumers would rather have a noisy mower which is cheaper but does the same job, than a quieter mower which is more expensive.

Again, if we are using cars as a comparison, people are more willing to spend money on a quieter car as it is something they use a lot and will want to last a long time.

A mower you might only use for an hour or so every week.

Exhaust For TRACTOR MOWER��

Also the cost of a car is much higher anyway, so the cost of adding sound dampening is much more easily absorbed.

After all, if a car costs 40,500 instead of 40,000, the price difference is much less noticeable in comparison to a lawn mower manufacturer who puts the price of a mower up from 400 to 500.

Reason #3: The Blades

All the mechanical parts of a mower make noise, but it is the airfoil on the blades that makes it discharge the grass that contributes most of it.

In fact, often the blades make more noise than the engine.

As alluded to above the blades also act as blowers. They must be efficient enough to cut the grass, but then also blow the grass out from under the deck of the mower and discharge it into a bagger or onto the lawn.

Trying to make any kind of blower silent is neigh on impossible, so this also adds to the noise.

Reason #4: The Engine

Lawn mowers have small engines, which are designed to be light, compact and reasonably priced.

Because of this, they have very thin castings with minimal sound insulation.

When you are mowing what you hear is a mix of the engine sound and the noise of it vibrating. The relative lightness of the engine makes it more prone to moving around in comparison to a much heavier car engine.

Car engines have thick castings and water-cooling jackets that are very effective at absorbing their own noise.

Lawn mower engines are air-cooled with no sound insulation, so are much better at transmitting noise than absorbing it.

Reason #5: The Design

Size and design are both important factors when it comes to the sound lawn mowers emit.

Obviously a car’s engine is inside the body of the car, and it comes complete with a range of sound-dampening measures mentioned above.

A lawn mower’s engine is on the outside of the mower and much more exposed, without anything to reduce the sound it creates.

Cars are much bigger and have much more space for sound alleviation. If you were going to encase a lawn mower engine in a sound-reducing enclosure and add a large muffler and a proper exhaust you would at least double the size of the mower!

It would become hefty and much more unwieldy, for the sake of reducing the sound.

Also due to the size of a car, you are obviously much further from the exhaust whilst you drive it, so it will sound quieter.

With a mower you are right next to the exhaust outlet when you use it.

Gas v Battery v Electric Mowers

I think the key takeaways are that lawn mowers are loud because:

• They have little in the way of insulation to dampen the sound of their engines.
• Economically it is not worth the expense for manufacturers to find a solution in terms of making them quieter as the consumer is prepared to put up with the noise for a relatively short period of time in return for a cheaper mower.

There are other factors, shown in the infographic above, such as the engines themselves and the blades, and some mowers are quieter than others, but it all comes down to a lack of sound proofing and costs at the end of the day.

So yes mowers could be redesigned to make them quieter, but be honest would you pay 400 for a mower that is quieter or 300 for one that does exactly the same job, but is louder?

Why are Lawn Mowers so Loud?

If you wonder why lawn mowers are so loud, you are at the right place. In this article, we explain why the lawn mowers produce so much noise and how to diminish this type of loudness. When mowing, make sure you always use proper hearing protection.

Why are lawn mowers so loud?

Lawn mowers are so loud because the internal parts are making a lot of noise. The mufflers that are installed onto most lawn mower engines are absorptive mufflers. This type of muffler creates a minimal amount of restriction in the gas flow, which is suitable for power.

However, it makes a lot of noise. It is possible to reduce this kind of noise, but it would create a change in the cost and power of a mower. For these reasons, the manufacturers decide to keep the level up to 95dcb, which is an official noise level target for mowers.

Mufflers can get hot quickly, and these are suffering from corrosion and cracking. Baffles that are inside the muffler sometimes break free and cause a metallic sound. This may be the cause of the noise of your lawn mower. At the same time, muffler gaskets can be source of the noise.

These are metallic pieces that stand between the engine and the muffler. The primary purpose of these parts is to make a seal, and if they break, you can hear the sound and notice the gas coming out.

It is recommended to check these parts occasionally and see if these are placed correctly. If only one part of the mower is broken, you can hear the annoying sounds, and your mower can be in danger to suffer from a bigger problem.

What else creates the loudness?

Blades create a lot of noise as well. Most lawn mowers have two or three blades that cut the air at more than 200 mph, which is very effective for the functionality of the mower, but these blades make much noise. To diminish this noise, you can remove the deck to coat the underside by using the truck bed liner. This will help in reducing the noise and protecting against corrosion.

Engines are another source of loudness in lawn mowers. Crankshaft, valves, and the fan can make a noticeable noise. You should check and adjust valve lash each year to ensure optimum performance. There are also essential factors that affect the engine in a large amount, like the oil quality. When the oil is old, it may affect the sound of the engine. Check the performance of the engine every season to ensure the effectiveness of the engine.

When it comes to the engine fan, it needs to be well maintained to stay cool. Its main role is to cool down the engine, and you can lower the loudness of the fan by putting the self-adhesive bitumen where the hood’s underside is placed. This will help reduce the noisy effect of the fan.

Other parts of the lawn mower like deck linkages, levers, body panels, and seat and hood rubber stops need attention as well. Greasing and spraying these parts will help reduce noise in the days to come.

How to get a quieter lawn mower?

Most lawn mowers have absorptive mufflers that are very noisy and very basic in functioning. These mufflers usually come with a spark catcher. It represents the mesh screen that holds the sparks that go out from the engine. Absorptive mufflers are fitted to most engines of lawn mowers. These mufflers make slight restrictions to the gas flow. This is why the noise is huge when it comes to these mowers.

The other type of muffler is a reflective muffler or resonator. These mufflers use clever engineering to reduce the noise and push the sound waves through the baffles in the chambers where the noise is reduced. The bad side of these mufflers is the flow restriction of the gases, which creates the back pressure. As a result, the engine’s performance is reduced.

Usually, the vibrations that come from engines and blades produce large consequences to the overall mower quality. Over time, the mower parts become more sensitive to these vibrations, and your mower starts to have problems. If you want to prevent the mower’s loudness, it is good to have frequent checkouts and spraying methods. This will prevent the mower from having a loud sound, and your mower will be more efficient in the long run.

The easiest alternative for a quiet lawn mower is getting an battery powered mower. Check out our reviews on electric zero turns and electric push mowers.

Wrapping It Up

We hope we answered the question “why are lawn mowers so loud?” Let us know in the Комментарии и мнения владельцев how you prevent the mower’s loudness!

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