When mowing season winds down, it’s tempting to park the mower in the garage and forget about it until spring. But a little end-of-season care can protect your equipment over winter and make that first mow next year a lot easier.

When your lawn mower, leaf blower, chainsaw, or other outdoor power equipment starts and seems to run normally, it’s easy to assume everything is fine. But when it comes to small engines, “running” isn’t always the same as running well.

Whether it's your riding mower, push mower, chainsaw, or trimmer, every piece of outdoor power equipment reaches a point where you'll wonder: Is it worth repairing, or is it time to replace it?