Mower deck How often do you clean the deck
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SeniorCitizen
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AH, a self cleaning deck. There are millions of people looking for one of those. Care to share your secret ?
djdicetn
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ProLikeJesus,
I see there being two potential "problems" from accumulated grass/dirt/etc. under a mower deck. The first has been eluded to and that is trapped moisture causing rust and other deck material damage. The second(from my experience) is enough accumulated buildup that it "restricts" the ability of the blades to turn freely after hardening between mowings and when you go to mow again and engage the PTO.....ooooops there went my drive belt(if the blade won't turn.......something's gotta give:0)
In my last two lawn tractors(most recently a Craftsman 54"...made by Husqvarna) the stamped deck design and the blade tip speed allowed quite a bit of accumulation under the deck and after throwing one belt I began spraying underneath the deck with a garden hose each time I mowed to remove most of the large clumps to avoid that happening again.
You may notice some of the recent models of residential lawn tractors(and some ZTR's) have that hose-attachment dooie that allows you to attach a garden hose, turn it on, engage the blades and wash the deck out. My Craftsman didn't have that and I thought I wanted that on my next mower. What I discovered when shopping for a ZTR, though, was that a good quality ZTR(especially the Commercial units) don't suffer as much buildup due to (a)the deck design, particularly the fabricated decks with baffles underneath and (b)the blade tip speeds of around 18,000 fpm(there is so much turbulence and clipping ejection the stuff just can't "stick to" the deck)!!! I have mowed my yard 4 times with my new Gravely Pro-Turn 52" Commercial ZTR since buying it(this weekend after a rain the previous day) and upon inspecting under the deck each time about all I see is a "green stain" on the deck and spindles and very little if any grass stuck to the deck surface underneath(making me a VERY happy post-mowing cleanup guy)!!! I, like user Ric have purchased a MoJack and I will probably clean under my deck like he has recommended occaissionally(every 5 or 6 mowings).
I've also heard and had some advice about spraying underneath a new mower's deck with PAM cooking oil spay and every few mowings but I can't recommend that from experience. I actually tried a product called ZEPLON when I first bought the Craftsman lawn tractor(a "hard drying" form of silicone) but it didn't help a bit. Personally, I don't understand why some mower manufacturer hasn't come up with a mower deck that has a "teflon coating" underneath it.....as they would sell like hotcakes:0)
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didicetn,
Some mowers do have what you call a "teflon coating"...kinda. My Honda HRX's deck is made out of something called NeXite, which is what some car bumpers are made out of. It is very durable and the grass does not stick to it. I can't get myself to go back to the aluminum deck of my other mower!
Some mowers do have what you call a "teflon coating"...kinda. My Honda HRX's deck is made out of something called NeXite, which is what some car bumpers are made out of. It is very durable and the grass does not stick to it. I can't get myself to go back to the aluminum deck of my other mower!
djdicetn
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LMF,
Well you learn something new every day(and when it comes to lawn equipment, I've still got a LOT to learn). Leave it to Honda to pioneer that type of innovation!! I even considered removing the lawn tractor's deck, removing the blades & spindles and spray painting the underside of the deck with either marine or emron(airplane) paint which are supposed to be the heaviest duty(and "slickest") paints available. Then I found out you had to have special paint equipment and apply for a license/permit from the EPA to use emron(very toxic paint spray) and decided to just use the garden hose after mowing:0)
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That would be a good solution (to use airplane paint). It stinks that you need a permit!!
I'm a light duty lawn guy. I have a Craftsman push mower. After every use, I wash the top and underside of the mower with a hose and blow the excess moisture off with the leaf blower. Leave it sitting in the Florida sun for an hour or so and it is ready to go back to the garage. Six years so far and only regular maintenance done.
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djdicetn
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Wag,
I think the key to your regular cleaning method(as well as user Jeep Man) is to be sure to run the mower with blades on or somehow dry as much of the water before storage. When I cleaned under my previous 2006 Craftsman lawn tractor deck(and pretty well washed off the whole mower) with a garden hose spray nozzle I always drove it up & down my driveway with the blades engaged to dry out under the deck(and sling any water off the spindle pulleys to avoid it seeping into the spindles). Once in the garage I would towel dry the rest of the mower before parking it. After 6 seasons(300 hours) it still looked good and I did not detect any adverse effect from the cleaning. So far, though, on my new Gravely ZTR(only 4.5 hours after 4 mowings) I have just been using my air compressor with a pistol-grip triggered tube sprayer @ 125psi and blowing of the whole mower(except under the deck, where thus far there has been no "accumulatiion" just a green "stain" on the deck and spindles). I can't say that I "miss" washing all the grass clippings from under the Craftsman 54" deck(it "accumlated" a LOT of buildup....enough to affect the freedom of the blades to turn if left to dry:0(