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In a perfect world, there’d be one type of power system for pretty much every single product. One kind of USB port. One kind of fuel.
Unfortunately, we do not live in a perfect world. And the kind of gas that can fuel one piece of machinery won’t necessarily work for another. One man is going viral for calling that out.
‘Such a scam’
Georgia-based content creator Chelc (@chelc805) posted a video of himself in the lawn mower aisle at his local Lowe’s. He discussed the gasoline logistics of one specific brand of lawn mower. The video has since accumulated more than 95,000 views.
“So I’m here at Lowe’s, ‘cause my lawn mower just took a dump on me,” Chelc said. “And I was like, ‘You know what? Before I buy a lawn mower, let me see what kind of gas it uses.’”
Chelc went on to say he’d “been mowing lawns for [his] whole life” and, turning his camera to the label on a Toro lawn mower, he invited his viewers to “check this out.”
The cap on the lawn mower’s gasoline nozzle featured a gasoline logo to the left of two circles. The top circle had “E0” and “E10” inside it. The bottom circle, which was slashed through to indicate what gas not to use, had “E15” and “E85” in it.
“E0, E10 only,” Chelc said. “No E15 or E85. So how is that gonna work with all of the new gas stations getting E15?”
Chelc was most likely referencing a recent emergency waiver issued by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that according to Argus Media, “[allowed] refiners and retailers to supply a gasoline blend with more ethanol than is usually allowed in some states … and [waived] other fuel rules, amid efforts to temper pump prices that have surged because of war in the Middle East.”
Chelc voiced concern that this waiver would prevent him from being able to purchase the lower-ethanol gases.
“Am I just not gonna be able to mow my lawn?” he asked, concluding his video. “Or am I gonna have to buy all this specialty [expletive] gas that they got here at the Lowe’s for super expensive? Such a scam.”
Did commenters agree with Chelc?
Chelc’s viewers flooded his comment section with one repeated piece of feedback. Some said that he shouldn’t be using gas with any ethanol at all for his lawn mower. The top-performing comment under his video said, “Only use ethanol free gas with your small engines!!” Another viewer explained this is because “ethanol clogs the fuel system after it sits for a couple months” in a lawn mower.
“Buy premium gas without ethanol,” one viewer wrote. Another responded, “I thought ppl knew it was no ethanol forever.this video shocks me now.”
“Should only run ethanol free in Small engines anyways,” another commented. “Probably why you are shopping for a new mower anyway.”
“Buy ethanol free gas for small engines/atvs/dirt bikes,” another viewer specified. “Some Stations sell it, just look around. costs a bit more, worth it.”
On the other hand, multiple viewers encouraged Chelc to abandon fuel-reliant lawn mowers altogether and instead “go battery powered, stop wasting time.” And when one commenter called out the inconvenience of having to replace batteries mid-mowing session, others clarified that electric lawn mowers, such as EGO lawn mowers, are ideal for smaller lawns.
“People who buy battery powered ones for bigger lawns are dumb,” one viewer wrote. “I have a much smaller lawn and run an ego. One charge.”
Engine manufacturer Briggs & Stratton confirms on its website that only “gasoline with up to 10% ethanol … is acceptable” for small engines.
“Some fuel stations are now selling gasoline with up to 15% ethanol,” Briggs & Stratton writes. “This E15 product is not recommended or approved for use in small engines.”
The Minnesota Corn Growers Association (MCGA) echoes this advice, while assuring folks that E10 is in fact okay for lawn mowers, meaning that folks don’t need to stress getting perfectly ethanol-free gas.
“There is no need to spend extra money on ‘premium’ fuel that doesn’t contain ethanol,” MCGA writes. “You can save money … simply by choosing E10 for your small engines.”
Buzz News has reached out to Toro and Lowe’s via email, as well as Chelc via TikTok comment.
