A riding lawnmower depreciates at a rate of around 14.29 percent per year.
Factors such as the usage hours, condition of the riding lawn mower and brand of the riding lawn mower also factor into the depreciation of the riding lawn mower.
Riding lawn mowers depreciate quickly, especially in the first year.
You should also expect a significant drop in value of the riding lawn mower as much as 25 percent just from driving or taking it off the lot when you buy it.
The cost to replace a riding lawn mower engine ranges from $500.00 to as much as $1,800.00 depending on the type of lawn mower engine and HP of engine you need.
Labor cost to rebuild a riding lawn mower engine can be as much as $75.00 an hour and labor cost to replace the lawn mower engine can cost as much as $50.00 to $75.00 an hour.
If you can replace the riding lawn mower engine yourself you'll save money and it's pretty easy to do.
you can sometimes find cheaper lawn mower engines on eBay or even good used riding lawn mower engines on eBay.
It is sometimes worth rebuilding a lawn mower engine as long as the lawnmower is a riding mower and the riding mower itself is all in good shape.
And if the cost of the rebuild of the lawn mower engine is less than buying a new engine or new riding mower.
For a push mower it's usually not worth rebuilding the lawn mower engine especially if you have a shop rebuild it.
If you can get the parts yourself and just want to rebuild the push mower engine as a learning experience it can be worth it.
For a riding mower if the riding mower is over a $1,000.00 to replace or even $5,000.00 or more then it can certainly be worth rebuilding the lawn mower engine if the engine can be rebuilt cheaper than buying a new replacement lawn mower engine.
It is better to repair a lawnmower if the cost to repair the lawnmower doesn't exceed or is less than the cost of a new lawnmower.
If the cost to repair the mower costs more than a new lawnmower or even the same or close to the same as a new lawnmower then it's better to replace the lawnmower.
Most push mowers should last 5 to 7 years if maintained properly although some push mowers may only last a few years if not maintained properly.
Most riding mowers should last between 10 years to even 15 years and sometimes longer depending on the quality of the riding mower and how well maintained it is.
As long as you change the oil, keep the lawnmower clean, replace or sharpen blades, replace belts when needed etc the lawnmower should last a long time.
When the lawnmower is getting past 10 years old and is a riding mower especially of the cheaper quality then it may not be worth it to keep repairing it unless it's just small things but even something like replacing the deck belt, deck pulleys and even the deck spindles can be worth it if the engine is in good shape and the mower itself is in good shape.
You can buy a lot of mower parts cheaper online and repair the mower yourself if you know how.
But if you have to hire a repair shop then the labor cost can add up and not be worth the repair of the mower unless it's a very expensive mower such as in the $5,000.00 range or more.
Also when storing the riding mower or push mower be sure to run the gas tank out of gasoline and the carburetor as well.
Gasoline that is left in the carburetor will gum up and clog the carburetor and lead to failure of the engine to start until you clean out the carburetor or replace it and the old gasoline can also turn to varnish in the gas tank.
I always run my mowers out of gasoline before storing and then on my riding mower I shut a fuel shut off valve off and let the engine run until it dies out from no gas which means the carburetor is clear of any gasoline.