“Its A Mower – Not A Shelf Queen!”
Despite the factual statement above, we have no problem cleaning our house floor, our cars, boats, airplanes and even our pets. We clean a cement mixer after using it to mix cement, most people on a budget clean the brush they used to paint the deck. Why? Because we’d like to see it in good shape and use it again. We spend $$’s on stuff.
But, Everyone Is Busy!
If I spend a total of 15 minutes on cleaning after each 2.5 hour mowing cycle, mowing once a week for 32 weeks out of the year, I will have spent a total of 8 hours on cleaning and upkeep of my mower. I will have worked the mower for roughly 80 hours during one season. Mechanical maintenance, if done self (oil, air filter, spark plug changes excluded. Lets say the average person makes $20/ Hour, which brings your time/ value for upkeep to $160/ Year.
Picture: Husqvarna.com
The average neglected and abused mower will cause increased repairs, parts and shop-visits well exceeding that amount. I recently paid $90+ to have a different mower serviced and repaired and its still not running right. Despite the shop maintenance, the mower may still need to be replaced before it’s 5 years old. Either the engine will have developed trouble, or corrosion will do its job. After a years worth of spending the equivalent of $1.600 dollars of my time, taking care of my lawn, another $160 for upkeep and maybe $150 on maintenance its more of a hobby. If you enjoy the exercise and working in the yard, like I do, its time well used. Having done commercial lawn care for a while, I know the feeling of being heavy and tired at night, and that was after sitting on a ZT for 8-10 hours straight. Cleaning time should not be a hassle, though. Well kept machines perform better and are easy to keep in top shape.
How To Make It BLING
A good start is a pressure washer and a brush to get the gunk cleaned out from underneath the deck. In some cases some dis-assembly may be required, but after the work is done, you should be able to see the deck, screws and contours again. Slapping a whole lot of paint on the underside of a mower-deck isn’t really smart, stones, sticks and wet grass will have that paint gone and history in no time. However, reducing the cause of corrosion will always pay dividends. Make sure to remove all the sticky grass from all the crevices, whatever it takes to get back down to the base. A small amount of dish soap will soften up the dried on grass and dirt and make removal and cleaning a breeze. Key is to clean after each mowing! Remember, once grass dries on, it connects to whichever surface it calls home and it won’t like to leave again. 6 hours in the sun is enough to bake the grass into the deck and paint, requiring much more work to get it cleaned up.
Top Finish & Paint Protection
Credit: Nufinish.com
Out of the box, a layer of wax will protect your mowers upper finish from the elements, sun, dirt and water. Again, dish-soap is a good detergent if it has a few minutes to soak. Important is not to “wash” the mower with dirt and dust still lingering on the deck as it will scratch the paint. I will hose the mower down before washing, most of the time hosing it down will remove all the dirt and hand-washing is only required on the sides of the deck. Soap removes most of the wax, so a quick wipe down with a good quality sealer like Nu Finish will go a long way and make the next cleaning simpler. I find that investing this time and effort, instead of leaving the paint unprotected, has yielded only benefits. Apply a thick coat to hidden collection spots for dirt and cleaning will be a breeze.
Once a year, I will spend the time to take the mower apart, service it, clean it, wax it and put it back together. Some people will call that a obsession, some will think it’s overkill, some others say it will void the warranty. Not so, I think. No manufacturer would ignore a warranty request for a machine that was always treated well and professionally. Its a machine that deserves attention and some care. A nice lawn and a mower that keeps on working, week after week, is the result. I have had no single issue with either the mower or the engine. Both have kept their promise.
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