Wife can't mow, need assistance please.....

[Wilber256]

Hello, I have a 10-12 year old Exmark laser Z 54" or 60" I honestly can't recall, I am a disabled senior and my Wife has been mowing our 3.5 acres since my injury in 2005, but anyway when she engages the blades the belt comes off every time regardless of how gentle she tries to engage them. We purchased a new belt late last summer but it has progressively gotten worse, to the point the blade belt comes off every single time and she is 66 years old and does not need to push mow this 3-4 acres of lawn and very fast growing old pasture with nothing but trash grass, sage, amoung several other fast growing grasses/weeds. Also the charging system does not work and she has to use NAPA 1500 amp jump starters, it will pull one down and kill the engine before she completes all the mowing so she has two and its requires both, and then they get weaker and weaker from such a deep discharge so we have to purchase a new one every spring and continue to use the strongest of the two from the prior season, that is cheaper than having it repaired although it is very aggravating. As I stated earlier iam a disabled senior and my wife is retired and we survive on very limited monthly incomes and can't afford to take it into the Exmark dealer for repairs, any and all suggestions/recommendations/help is very greatly appreaciated, given the proper troubleshooting and repair instructions our son in law hopefully can make the repairs. Thanks in advance for all that may contribute, not much I can do as I am 98-99% bedridden. Ancienly awaiting your reply.

Thanks

 

[bertsmobile1]

That mower sounds like it is well & truely past an important appointment with a workshop.

Belts jumping off are usually due to alignment problems and on big decks the usual culprit is the tensioning pulley and / or arm.
It is essential that they get greased regularly and the spring tension gets adjusted as needed.

The motor obviously needs some attention but the information you have given us is tandamount to useless.
Describe exactly what you see & hear from the second she turns the key, clicks, whines, bangs, pops the lot. Treat us as if we were deaf & blind, because that is exactly what we are.
You are our eyes & ears.

So for starter we need to know the model number abd year of the mower the brand sizw and model number of the engine.

Finally we need to know your mechanical & electrical ability and what tools you have available.

 

[mechanic mark]

Call nearby churches & see if they have a member or members that can help you folks out, by repairing your mower or cutting your grass, it's not about the money, it's about serving. I'm truly sorry you are bedridden Wilber256.

 

[Wilber256]

OK, After getting the wounds patched up from skinning and cutting arms and right knee I have some info.

eXmark Lazer Z
Model #LZ23kC604
Serial #34266
Kohler Command
Pro 23
Date of MFG ?

I removed the belt covers and I believe there is some problems with the idler pulley and maybe spring, of course the belt was off the majority of the pulleys so there was no tension, but the tension spring is loose and fell off its notches when I touched it and it will not stay up where it belongs. I can't remove the belt myself to see if there is a number on it, it is very unlikely the dealer gave us the wrong belt but possible, it tried to move the pulleys for slack mtThe ones I could reach all were tight, I moved the idler/blade engage pulley to the tigh position but being the belt is off I am not sure if it is correct or not but it just don't feel right to me. As far as noise is concerned there is none with either problem, starts up good the start to engage blades and you hear the engine slightly bog down as usual for 1/2 second or so then the engine picks back up as expected. As far as the charging problem you can't hear any different sounds just normal cranking/starting sounds it just don't produce voltage to charge the battery if fact it will pull the 1500 amp jump starters down to the point of the engine dieing and requires the other jump starter to be use to finish mowing. On occasion it will kill both batts and the one on charge has not charged enough to start the mower and park it in the shed. As far as my aptitude I was a Electrican/HVACR/Plumbing Contractor. I have several hand tools, what I can find and hasn't been stolen, while the cat was down and the mice where still around. Mechanic Mark thank you for the kind sentiment. Thank you guys for taking your precious time to attempt to help, in my days I gave away about as much as I made to the needy and seniors on fixed income, I have even done heating repairs on Thanksgiving for a elderly lady without heat and of course there was no charge, have worked on Christmas Day before as I could not stand knowing someone was needing heat and I could do something about it, now I know how they feel first hand.....

 

[bertsmobile1]

Thank you for the information.
Like the others on here I would be happy to do a job on your mower labour free but it is a long way from Australia.

On the side of the plastic cover you will see the regulator / rectifier.
It will have 3 wires on it.
The two outer wires are the AC direct from the alternator. the center wire is the + DC out put and the metal case is both the earth & a heatsink.
Kohler fit a strip of brass between one of the rectifier mounting bolts and one of the cover mounting bolts.
The cover bolt tends to loosen and fall out and thus there is no circuit for the DC output.
On commercial mowers I make up a second earth strap and earth both sides ( belt & braces approach ) of the regulator.
Between the two AC terminals you should see 30V to 50V AC if the alternator is working. Anything less and you have troubles with the stator.
We will also need a resistance measurement for the clutch so dissconnect the clutch & meaasure the resistance between the wires you should get quite a few hours out of a jump start pack so I will guess the clutch is causing you greif.
The clutch could also be behind the belt throwing problem but they ain't cheap so it is better to test first.
The bearing in the center cops a hiding and they are only a light bearing to start with and a non serviceable item to boot.

 

[Wilber256]

Thanks bertsmobile1, Weather permitting tommorrow I will see if I can locate the alt/rectifier and have a look. On the clutch situation I am not certain I understand, this mower is a clutch free ZTR neutral, forward and reverse by using the left and right sterring/forward, reverse sticks, I can't recall a clutch inthe system, please elaborate. Thanks for your kind offer for repairing the mower, that is a very nice jesture.

 

[bertsmobile1]

Sorry.
The clutch I am talking about is the blade clutch. Sometime called the electric PTO.
That is the only thing that draws power while you are mowing.
When you are under the mower it is the big thing hanging lowest on the motor shaft.
The pulley that drives the pump and thus the wheels is right up high where you can hardly see it let alone get to it.
If you have car ramps try reversing the mower up them it will make things much easier to get at.
These can go bad and draw a lot of power, more than the mower can generate so after a while it just stops mowing and the battery never recharges.

You should see the rectifier on the right side ( discharge side ) of the mower towards the front of the engine it is about 3" x 1.5" and the 3 prong connector is quite stiff to get off if tou have to do it latter on.

 

[reynoldston]

I understand your situation. I am retired and do a lot of volunteer work in which I do meet a lot of people in your situation. One of the best places I do meet these people is that I deliver home meals to them called Meals on Wheels. What I will do for them if they can pay for parts I will pick up their mower and furnish pick up, delivery, and labor free. What we have in our county is Department of Aging which will work with senior people in need. I don't know what you have where you live but you might what to check out what your town or county has for help.

 

[Shughes717]

P

I understand your situation. I am retired and do a lot of volunteer work in which I do meet a lot of people in your situation. One of the best places I do meet these people is that I deliver home meals to them called Meals on Wheels. What I will do for them if they can pay for parts I will pick up their mower and furnish pick up, delivery, and labor free. What we have in our county is Department of Aging which will work with senior people in need. I don't know what you have where you live but you might what to check out what your town or county has for help.

What a great program! We have meals on wheels, but never heard of the department of aging. Is it run by your local government, or is it A state organization? I know here in Tennessee there are some churches that will help people in such situations. I weed eat the ditch bank for the elderly couple across the street from me from time to time. The man is disabled and I saw his wife one evening last summer trying to mow that steep bank with her push mower. She nearly fell in the ditch and stopped for the night. After she went inside, I went into my shed, grabbed my weed eater and did the job for her without asking. I have offered to mow their lawn for them at no cost, but they refuse. He says he can do it with his riding mower.t worst part of it is, they have an adult son living with them. He doesn't lift a finger to do any yard work there.

 

[reynoldston]

P

What a great program! We have meals on wheels, but never heard of the department of aging. Is it run by your local government, or is it A state organization? I know here in Tennessee there are some churches that will help people in such situations. I weed eat the ditch bank for the elderly couple across the street from me from time to time. The man is disabled and I saw his wife one evening last summer trying to mow that steep bank with her push mower. She nearly fell in the ditch and stopped for the night. After she went inside, I went into my shed, grabbed my weed eater and did the job for her without asking. I have offered to mow their lawn for them at no cost, but they refuse. He says he can do it with his riding mower.t worst part of it is, they have an adult son living with them. He doesn't lift a finger to do any yard work there.

Its called RSVP ( Retired & Senior Volunteer Program ) and funded by federal, state, and local governments. They also get money from United Way and contributions from people. I work through a three county program called Department of aging and youth. As far as I know its a well run national program and they like a lot of paper work to go along with it. Then once a year they give us a nice meal with a good speech as to all the good we are doing.