Hi. I'm new to the forum so thanks in advance for any help you can provide.
I just bought a Gravely ZT42 with a 23 hp Kawasaki engine. I noticed that while becoming familiar with the controls a pause to long in one area will cause the lawn to burn. It's not noticeable at first but the next day I can see exactly the areas that I paused to long in. And let me add its only takes a few seconds. I notice that the muffler is at the bottom of the engine just below frame level and the cooling air pours down from the engine over the exhaust down to the grass. I have fabricated a heat shield below the muffler which has a back lip a couple of inches high to keep the heat off the hydraulic drive motors also. I now turn off the mower every time I get off to go through a gate or remove a toy from the lawn which can be irritating and I'm not sure if its good to so quickly stop and start a hot engine.
Has anyone else had this problem and what do you do about it? The dealer say normal but it seems like a leaf fire in the fall could be a big problem.
Other than that I like the mower but hate brown spots.
The assumption that you bought a new mower says:
If the grass can get a burn spot after sitting for ANY time period is a HUGE concern of safety.
I would take the mower back and demand a 100% refund. There has to be a design problem or the vendor left off something. If the dealer balks, call your local fire marshal and show him the problem. It just happens to be against the law:thumbdown: to sell an item that is unsafe to use. Just a little advertisement will go a long way........
Yup, I think your right. I'm going to call Gravely first then deal with the place that sold it to see if the facts match. Just didn't know if this was common like the dealer said and I figured this was a good place to start the investigation. With the thousands of zero turns sold I figured someone else on this forum would haave encountered the same problem.
Just called Gravely and what do you know a heat shield is sold by them for this problem. Customer service said that it was the Kohler engines causing this problem. I don't see how a Kohler can run any hotter than a Kawasaki. Anyway, called the dealer who is looking into the problem and the solution of the heat shield with part # from Gravely. They seem receptive and willing to help.
Seems like Cub Cadet had the same trouble awhile back on here. Nice touch of selling a heat sheild to solve a problem they know about but have not told the dealers or the owners about, or have installed to prevent the problem.
That seems to be the case with alot of things these days. They want to save a few bucks and see if you will complain. I'm hoping they still have the part. When I looked online it said discontinued. Now I'll let the dealer handle it. They have went to bat for me before with Gravely so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.
#7
alienball
I have an Ariens (owned by Gravely) and the exact same problem on my 2350. Do you have a part # for the heat shield. Could you post a pic? thanks
This thread is very interesting to me because I just bought a Toro ZT with a Kawasaki engine and I have the same problem with the burning grass issue:thumbdown:.
I guess I'll contact Toro and my Dealer and see what they have to say about this issue.
The part number is 71512900 Heat shield. I did modify it some with metal flashing which helps direct the heat out the sides and away from the hydraulic motors and bagger unit. I can know leave the mower running over the most tender grass with no issues.
Is it possible for you to post a picture of the shield? I'd like to get an idea of how it's designed. I may have to fabricate one for my Toro.
Is it attached to the muffler?
My shield attatches from the cross bar under the motor to the frame where the hitch attatches. Some models do require drilling, mine did. As far as the Toro mower the one I looked when trying to solve my problem did have a shield on it so you should be able to get one.
This thread might be over but I wanted to post my experience. I had an Ariens 2048 a few years ago that had the very same problem. If I stopped in the lawn (not sure how long it took) I would get burned grass under the mower! Interesting fact though: I now have a Ventrac 3000 with a 19HP Kawasaki and I have the very same problem. Do I just have wimpy grass or what!
No you don't have wimpy grass. With my shield installed I can let the mower sit and run over the same spot for as long as I want with no problem. Call the manufacturer they will probably have a shield for your mower. If your having the problem they probably now about it but won't fix it unless you complain.
No you don't have wimpy grass. With my shield installed I can let the mower sit and run over the same spot for as long as I want with no problem. Call the manufacturer they will probably have a shield for your mower. If your having the problem they probably now about it but won't fix it unless you complain.
Your post caught my eye since I just purchased a Gravely Pro-Turn 152 XDZ a couple of weeks ago. It's my first ZTR and I looked at a LOT of high-end residential and low-end commercial ZTR's before deciding on the Gravely. Upon delivery, I noticed a few scratches on the motor shield on the back of the mower and the dealer ordered me a can of Gravely touch-up paint at no charge and the dealer has a good reputation locally(plus they accepted an offer of approx. $950 off MSRP) so I'm thinking they will address about any problem I have. I haven't noticed, though, the problem with burnt grass but I've only mowed twice thus far. I did stop several times and have not noticed any burnt spots in the grass(although there are "several" divets in the grass where I changed directions....these ZTR's take some getting used to and I'm getting better at making sure "both rear wheels are turning":0)
Anyway, I'm just wondering if your particular model may be having this prolem because of the size of the rear tires and how far your muffler is off the ground. In looking up the ZT 42 it appears you have 18 x 6.5-8 rear tires whereas my Pro-Turn 152 has 23 x 10.5-12 rear tires. That would make my muffler be several inches higher from ground level than yours. That's not to say that Gravely should know that and should have retro-fitted your mower with the shield if it needed it before you ever took delivery. Your dealer "did" get you the shield kit at no cost to you.....right??? I'm going to inspect my Gravely more closely, see if there is anything covering the bottom of the muffler(I haven't really looked or noticed), measure the distance from the ground to the muffler and keep my eye peeled for any signs of burnt spots in my yard. If I have the same problem, you can bet I will insist that my dealer make it right as I hope yours did. The heavy build and warranty coverages of these Gravely's put most of the other ZTR's I looked at to shame, so I can't imagine they wouldn't solve a minor problem like this.
They did cover the cost of the shield at no cost to me. The height of your mower(muffler) off the ground would seem to make a big difference. With my mower you can see the air blowing down against the grass and it was HOT! With the shield it blows the air out to the sides. Problem solved thankfully.
They did cover the cost of the shield at no cost to me. The height of your mower(muffler) off the ground would seem to make a big difference. With my mower you can see the air blowing down against the grass and it was HOT! With the shield it blows the air out to the sides. Problem solved thankfully.
NEgravely,
That's great that the dealer worked with you on that. Well, I looked at my Pro Turn 152 last night and lo & behold it already came with a muffler heat shield......plus the muffler's exhaust pipe faces out the side at the motor cabin shield on the back of the mower. As you eluded to, yours not only didn't have the shield but the exhaust was directed downward towards the grass which is the reason you experienced the burnt grass in the first place. So it seems that Gravely designs their commercial models with a little more forethought than on their residential ZTR's. If I were you, I would contact Gravely directly, describe what you experienced and how dissatisfying it was for the investment you made in their product and provide some constructive consumer feedback that they should avoid these type of problems on "ALL" of their ZTR models.
That was my first step. I called the manufacturer which confirmed they did make a shield and then gave the dealer the part number which ordered the part for me at no cost. Gravely said very few people complain about the issue which means to me if your not happy then contact us then we can help, if you don't complain we just saved money.
One difference I may have made is the redesign of the bagger unit. It was so loose and weak that I told the dealer I would not accept the mower and was going to walk away. The dealer called Gravely and complained. Gravely paid the dealer their repair rate to fix the problem which they did with some fabrication. Now the bagger unit is perfect. Each bagger, at least from this dealer know goes out the door with this fix. Hopefully Gravely adopts the fix as well. At least localy buyers are better off. I was told that the NE part of the US was mower manufacturers problem area when it came to baggers. Most parts of the US mulch and we (NE) bag. That's the excuse I was given anyways.
