Ariens Zoom 42 mulching problem

[djdicetn]

My mulchkit is nothing. It's just something that blocks the chute. I agree that the design doesn't seems to be really good but right now, it's doing an OK job of mulching. The flying grass and under deck clogging is probably a side effect of the poor design of the mulchkit but I can't says that for sure. The deck and mulchkit design have been change in 2012 on my model so it maybe be a new problem. This I mainly why I posted it here to try to see other user experiences with the same model but nobody with this model respond.

As for removing the mulchkit and installing gator blades, I would try it but I can't find the right size gator blade for my mower. It's 3 blades of 14.xx inches (i can't remember the exact size...).

Finally got a chance to post some pictures of my Gravely mulch kit. Check out the link below, and if your mulch kit isn't designed like mine(heavy gauge steel, fully encloses the blades and extends to the bottom of the deck edge), which you indicated that it is not, most likely your results won't be as good as mine are(mine works GREAT)!!! I hope you get your dilemma resolved and get a professional looking cut on your lawn which should be expected!!

http://www.lawnmowerforum.com/hustler-forum/20286-clogging-deck-2.html#post131312

 

[sebastien32]

Finally got a chance to post some pictures of my Gravely mulch kit. Check out the link below, and if your mulch kit isn't designed like mine(heavy gauge steel, fully encloses the blades and extends to the bottom of the deck edge), which you indicated that it is not, most likely your results won't be as good as mine are(mine works GREAT)!!! I hope you get your dilemma resolved and get a professional looking cut on your lawn which should be expected!!

http://www.lawnmowerforum.com/hustler-forum/20286-clogging-deck-2.html#post131312

No, mine doesn't look like this at all. The only baffle that my deck has is in the back but this part is not part of the kit, it's welded to the deck. There's even a removable extention part to this baffle that make it to the bottom of the deck edge but it needs to be removed (just the extension) when installing the mulchkit.

 

[djdicetn]

No, mine doesn't look like this at all. The only baffle that my deck has is in the back but this part is not part of the kit, it's welded to the deck. There's even a removable extention part to this baffle that make it to the bottom of the deck edge but it needs to be removed (just the extension) when installing the mulchkit.

Yeah, if you looked at my "B4" pictures you would see the baffles at the rear of the deck that are wleded and part of the deck like yours. The "black steel" pieces in the "After" pics are the actual mulch kit.

Soooooo, is your doing better now????? Have you changed to gator blades if still mulching or what??? Like I've said, my next-door-neighbor has a 15-yr-old Ariens Zoom 42 and his yard looks GREAT(with just the OEM blades). You should definitely get the same kind of results.

 

[sebastien32]

Yeah, if you looked at my "B4" pictures you would see the baffles at the rear of the deck that are wleded and part of the deck like yours. The "black steel" pieces in the "After" pics are the actual mulch kit.

Soooooo, is your doing better now????? Have you changed to gator blades if still mulching or what??? Like I've said, my next-door-neighbor has a 15-yr-old Ariens Zoom 42 and his yard looks GREAT(with just the OEM blades). You should definitely get the same kind of results.

Nothing changed... I still mulch with good result when I cut frequently. I will wait at the end of the mowing season to have it checked by the dealer and Ariens. My main problem (flying grass clipping) is more notable now in the fall because of the fallen leaf. When I mow over them, the first 3/4 of the deck (from left to right) mulch them and they just disapear but the 1/4 at the right throw them out of the deck. there seems to be to much air flow that tries to escape where the chute is. I even did some test of going over a single leaf. When I go over it from the right side it gets immediatly ejected from the deck. everywhere else, it gets mulched.

When I think about it, it's kind of normal. I have 3 blades that want to send the clipping to the same place and this place is blocked so the air have to go somewhere. I think the big difference with yours is that mine don't have the separation between each blades.

 

[Talons06]

Here are some updates...

I Checked the deck levelling and found that the deck was higher by a 1/4 inch in the front instead of being 1/4 inch higher in the back. The deck was also higher on the right side. I made the changes and now to cut quality is really better and I get no more grass clogging laying on the grass. However, the grass flying from the right front side is still there. The buildup under the deck is also still an issue and I suspect that the 2 are related. The front wall of the deck is the worst part. It can have easily 1 to 2 inches of grass packed there after only 1 mow. The other problematic area is behind the center blade.

Also, what about the space between the deck and the mulching baffle that I talk about on 07-08-2013? Is it normal.

NO Man!!! Here is a fix for your problem. Meg-Mo Systems - Lawn Mower Blades, Replacement Mower Blades, Sharpen Lawn Mower Blades, Mulch Grass Watch this blade do its' thing. They cost a bit much but it's worth it. Less sharping, no vibration, no piles of grass on your lawn. Cost less for these blades after setup.:thumbsup:

 

[djdicetn]

NO Man!!! Here is a fix for your problem. Meg-Mo Systems - Lawn Mower Blades, Replacement Mower Blades, Sharpen Lawn Mower Blades, Mulch Grass Watch this blade do its' thing. They cost a bit much but it's worth it. Less sharping, no vibration, no piles of grass on your lawn. Cost less for these blades after setup.:thumbsup:

You actually run those Meg-Mo blades on a Gravely???? What year/model#/deck size??? Do you have a mulch kit on it or do you side discharge with those??? I looked at those before when a user asked about them and they really looked like a "gimmick" to me(like the similar style blade attachments for a grass trimmer). If you have first-hand experience that proves otherwise, PLEASE post some pictures here showing the cut quality of your lawn that you purport that they give for our edification!!!!!
P.S.
I ALWAYS reserve the right to be wrong:0)

 

[sebastien32]

Little update...

My mower spend to entire winter at the dealer because they didn't had the time to investiguate the problem because of snow blower work. They just called me to tell that ariens is not really helpful on their side and that they will order a new deck and mulching kit (under warranty), do a proper setup and pray for the problem to be gone.

I'm not really confident about that but let's hope that it will solve it. My mowing season start in about 3 weeks.

 

[djdicetn]

Little update...

My mower spend to entire winter at the dealer because they didn't had the time to investiguate the problem because of snow blower work. They just called me to tell that ariens is not really helpful on their side and that they will order a new deck and mulching kit (under warranty), do a proper setup and pray for the problem to be gone.

I'm not really confident about that but let's hope that it will solve it. My mowing season start in about 3 weeks.

I sure hope that corrects your problem...Ariens are vey good machines but you may very well have gotten a warped deck or something like that. Keep us posted about how it performs when you start mowing!!!!

 

[sebastien32]

My problem is still there :-(. Nothing has changed so I will need to call my dealer back. I'm starting to think that it's a design issue and that I will have to live with it.

 

[tigercat]

Then your only option is to remove the side cover and cut the grass like it's not a mulcher. Sorry to hear of all your troubles.