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Deck maintenance

#1

S

stymie222

I have constantly pressure washed the under side of my deck after mowing.
I wish all manufacturers would use a Teflon or other similar coatings that would shed the grass, especially the damp grass so the deck doesn't develop rust.
It's the number one cause of serious problems and expensive replacement.
Anyone know of any kind of spray that would help shed the clippings ??


#2

S

Skippydiesel

Friend - I am against washing of any mower (perhaps once in many years is okay) I use compressed air to clean my mower after every use.

Reasons;
  • Grass, (particularly when wet) ferments/rots and produces a highly corrosive liquid. The liquid loves aluminium alloy spindle housing and cutter decks.
  • Dust & chaff needs to be blown out of the engine/transmission cooling system to maintain its efficiency - while engine running, blow compressed air through all apertures
  • Same for transmission
  • And again, around all parts of chassis, body & electrical system


#3

Ozcub

Ozcub

I have one patch of small sticks and leaves that I mow last , they scour out any stuff stuck under the deck without doing any damage
Deck wash no way
Oz


#4

Tiger Small Engine

Tiger Small Engine

stymie222 said:
I have constantly pressure washed the under side of my deck after mowing.
I wish all manufacturers would use a Teflon or other similar coatings that would shed the grass, especially the damp grass so the deck doesn't develop rust.
It's the number one cause of serious problems and expensive replacement.
Anyone know of any kind of spray that would help shed the clippings ??
Click to expand...
Mow when grass is dry. Scrape deck underneath when sharpening blades. Avoid pressure washing except very occasionally.


#5

K

Kenbu

Check out a product called Slip Plate, which works well for mower decks.

Ken


#6

B

bob47907

Kenbu said:
Check out a product called Slip Plate, which works well for mower decks.

Ken
Click to expand...


#7

B

bob47907

$367.00 for a 12oz can @Home Depot.


#8

S

slomo

Agree with Skippy. Once a year wash, no power wash might be okay. Blow off with compressed air and fog with silicone spray. Lube throttle cables and wax the deck.

Blow out the cooling fins all around the block area and behind mufflers.

Hit it with the backpack blower after every mow.


#9

S

Skippydiesel

bob47907 said:
$367.00 for a 12oz can @Home Depot.
Click to expand...
$367 will likly purchase a compressor and air gun, good enough to air- bast clean your mower and pump up your tyres. Probably last quite a few years of use - may be a better investment than a fancy can of graphite 😈


#10

S

Skippydiesel

slomo said:
Agree with Skippy. Once a year wash, no power wash might be okay. Blow off with compressed air and fog with silicone spray. Lube throttle cables and wax the deck.

Blow out the cooling fins all around the block area and behind mufflers.

Hit it with the backpack blower after every mow.
Click to expand...
You have my admiration Slomo - you realy look after your mowers(s).

Some points;
  • I doubt a backpack or any "leaf" style blower will come close to a more focused high pressure air blast from a compressor.
  • Many "throttle" style cables will be damaged by adding lubrication - you need to know if your cables have an inner teflon(?) liner or not.
  • Using a blower to clear dust/chaff from cooling fins may not be as effective as compressed air or better still, removing the air shroud and manually cleaning the fins.
  • Any persistent anti water/moisture treatment will help in minimising the effects of corrosion - go for the most cost effective.


#11

Tiger Small Engine

Tiger Small Engine

bob47907 said:
$367.00 for a 12oz can @Home Depot.
Click to expand...

$20 per can on Amazon for Slip Plate, which is a spray on graphite. The point is, that mowing dry grass is the key. When you have to mow wet then scrape deck with paint scraper. Many decks that come in for tune ups are absolutely packed with grass. I have never used any products that are applied to underneath the deck to prevent buildup. It is a temporary solution at best.

Any good leaf blower will blow more than an air compressor air gun. You can blow your mower off all the time, however, some mower designs simply gather more debris under the engine shroud than others. Ideally, remove engine shroud once a year and check and clean. I see several engines each year that are close to overheating each year once engine shroud is removed and cooling fins are cleaned.


#12

S

Skippydiesel

Tiger Small Engine said:
Any good leaf blower will blow more than an air compressor air gun. You can blow your mower off all the time, however, some mower designs simply gather more debris under the engine shroud than others. Ideally, remove engine shroud once a year and check and clean. I see several engines each year that are close to overheating each year once engine shroud is removed and cooling fins are cleaned.
Click to expand...
"Any good leaf blower will blow more than an air compressor air gun."
Click to expand...
Leaf blowers deliver high volume air, at relativly low pressure - A compressor delivers high pressure air, at relativly low volume. The compressed air will do a far better job, on a mower, blasting dust/chaff out of every nook & cranny - simple physics!
Click to expand...
I used to remove my engine air shrounds every year - now every second year. This change is due to using compressed air after every mowing - I found it to be so effective that when I removed the shroud annually, there was little if anything to clean.
It's not just the engine that gets an air blast, it's the whole mower - using the gun directed into every possible chaff/dust collection point 😈


#13

S

slomo

Skippydiesel said:
You have my admiration Slomo - you realy look after your mowers(s). Just a home owner trying to keep my Snapper fleet slaying some grass.

Some points;
  • I doubt a backpack or any "leaf" style blower will come close to a more focused high pressure air blast from a compressor. I have both and agree a focused blast is better than more volume.
  • Many "throttle" style cables will be damaged by adding lubrication - you need to know if your cables have an inner teflon(?) liner or not. I have old mowers. Most are the coiled outer sheath with the cable in the middle.
  • Using a blower to clear dust/chaff from cooling fins may not be as effective as compressed air or better still, removing the air shroud and manually cleaning the fins. Agree.
  • Any persistent anti water/moisture treatment will help in minimising the effects of corrosion - go for the most cost effective. Silicone spray is an anti-moisture goo.
Click to expand...


#14

S

slomo

Tiger Small Engine said:
I see several engines each year that are close to overheating each year once engine shroud is removed and cooling fins are cleaned.
Click to expand...
Yup. Take your mower and scalp your yard. You will have clippings a plenty or I do on my yard. Tifway Bermuda is tiny bladed Bermuda. Has mountains of clippings each spring.

Baggers and scalpers need the fins cleaned more often than once yearly. Only takes a few minutes to pull the shroud off and clean some fins.


#15

S

Skippydiesel

slomo said:
Have you ever pulled the metal engine shroud and cleaned the top of the block and cooling fins? This is a yearly maintenance item in ALL engine manuals. Neglect this and you are looking at engine damage.
Click to expand...
Check out what I wrote, for your answer 😈


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