To wash or not to wash, that is the question.

artho45

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I believe that I have mowed my yard for the last time this season. Each time after mowing I have blown the mower off with an air hose, but I was wondering about washing it before putting it away for the winter, It's supposed to be sunny today, so I would leave it out to dry well. Any thoughts? 42" Raptor, residential use only.
 

Boobala

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I believe that I have mowed my yard for the last time this season. Each time after mowing I have blown the mower off with an air hose, but I was wondering about washing it before putting it away for the winter, It's supposed to be sunny today, so I would leave it out to dry well. Any thoughts? 42" Raptor, residential use only.

Shouldnt hurt IF it's dried completely, use a blower & / or an air hose, be sure to get the deck & pulleys really good, (they trap water), then a lube job and an over-spay of WD-40 or something similar Don't forget to check the "vitals" (oil, filters, belts, linkages, tires, blades etc. , either now, or before use next season, RUST NEVER SLEEPS !! .. :thumbsup: OH YEAH ..
NO Pressure Washing !!
 

artho45

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Shouldnt hurt IF it's dried completely, use a blower & / or an air hose, be sure to get the deck & pulleys really good, (they trap water), then a lube job and an over-spay of WD-40 or something similar Don't forget to check the "vitals" (oil, filters, belts, linkages, tires, blades etc. , either now, or before use next season, RUST NEVER SLEEPS !! .. :thumbsup: OH YEAH ..
NO Pressure Washing !!

I plan on taking the covers off the deck to clean. I plan on a complete lube job and treat the gas with Stabil. Where would you use the WD-40? blades are fairly new, but will check to see if they need sharpened.
 

Rivets

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Second opinion, we pressure wash and dry all equipment, no matter the season. Never have a problem, do over 50 units a week from push mowers to large tractors and commercial UTVs, even in Wisconsin weather. Just make sure the unit is dry afterwards. A properly maintained piece of equipment will not be harmed by pressure washing, ask anyone who works for a highway department, especially in the northern part of the country. Dirt and salt ruin more equipment than water under pressure. Those who don’t like my opinion can now go to the back of a long line of nay sayers, as I’ve said this before and know I will get some hate mail.
 

Boobala

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I plan on taking the covers off the deck to clean. I plan on a complete lube job and treat the gas with Stabil. Where would you use the WD-40? blades are fairly new, but will check to see if they need sharpened.

At the very last I would spray a soft rag with the WD and wipe the entire machine down ... as if you were applying wax, a thin film removes any moisture and leaves a light coating on it, works for me..... your plan sounds good to me ! Be sure to empty the gas tank and run the engine till it stops, removing as much gas out of the carb and fuel lines as possible, DON'T store it with fuel in the tank or carb ...
 

Boobala

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Those who don’t like my opinion can now go to the back of a long line of nay sayers, as I’ve said this before and know I will get some hate mail.

NOT REPEAT..NOT hate reply....

I'll agree about Press. Washing HEAVY Equipment, I used to work with it myself, the equipment takes a ton of abuse and gets covered with the nastiest of elements that are next to impossible to remove / clean with a wash job, press. washing IS a must but, that equipment is / should be greased EVERYDAY before it even gets re-fueled, ( part of my responsibilty as apprentice operator ) but mowers USUALLY don't operate in those conditions, and I've seen spindles, pulley bearings and axle bearings destroyed by water-intrusion, in many instances from using a press. washer, so Riv, I'm going to the end of your line .. :thumbsup:..:laughing:

Hopefully, agreeing to disagree ... :eek:
 

SidecarFlip

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used to be pretty fanatical about pressure washing all my equipment until I siezed a bearing on my round bailer. Now I blow everything off with a blow gun and call it good. That locked bearing cost me 400 bucks to replace.
 

MowLife

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I been pressure washing all my mowers for 30+ years with no issues. Just use common sense and not blast hard on seals and electrical parts and grease all your fittings when done and spray a little lube on those pivot points that don’t have grease fittings.
 

bertsmobile1

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I also pressure wash, after a blow down but only the engine plus the area immediatly under the engine.
However only on the rare occasions that there is heavy grease / oil contamination.
Perhaps it is a weather thing but down here the bodies & decks tend to rust badly between the powder coat ( a finish I loathe ) and the steel so when you hit it with the pressure wash you knock off large sheets of paint.
Now this is good because loose pant needs to be repaired but next to no one wants to pay for it & everyone likes to blame me . "It wasn't like that before you took it "
Thus I let it go , while alerting the customer that the decks / mower body needs to be repainted but the only people who appreciate it are the pensioners who can not afford to get it done.

As for common sense, it is the defination of an oxymoron
So I never ever advise customers to pressure wash.
If you do it needs to be done to a stone cold machine so the water hitting hot metal joints does not cool the metal and cause the water to get sucked into joints.
There is a big difference between being done by a workshop who do it 20 times a day and in most cases actually know where & how to wash then do actually blow dry cause they do not want the shop floor wet & slippery and Joe Average who just points the nozzle into every nook & cranny then blasts away.

It is no surprise that the cleanest decks require the most deck bearings & idler pulley replacements.
 

Darryl G

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I never wash my mowers, just rinse off mud and dog crap as necessary. I agree that there's a difference between a pro shop pressure washing equipment and the average Joe who may inadvertently cause harm. I routinely do things both to and on my machines that I wouldn't recommend. That's pretty much the story of my life, doing things I wouldn't recommend. :laughing:
 
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