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Whats the average amount of hours for a residential mower before it needs to be replaced? commercial?

I'm asking because I have a early 1990s John Deere 320 Lawn tractor that has about 506 hours on it....this mower is almost 20 years old and has 500 hours...to me, that seems wayyyyy under par. I'm wondering how many more years (if any) i can expect out of this type of lawn tractor.

On the same level...what make/model do you have, and how many hours on it? I'd love to hear!

Re: How many hours do you have on your mowers & how long can I expect mine to last?

One of my JD's is a 1965......Have no Idea how many hours on it.
Did a valve job on it about 15 years ago.

Re: How many hours do you have on your mowers & how long can I expect mine to last?

I've got a 1996ish vintage cub cadet 2164 with about 800 hrs on it, a 1978 craftsman GT with 635, and some older stuff laying around with no history or Hobbs meters. I see quite a few commercial pieces in the 1500 to 2100 hr. range.:smile:YMMV...:biggrin:
I think the standard formula for longevity applies; who's running it, who maintains it, and how well it was built to begin with.

I usually get 3000 hrs out of commercial mowers. By that time they start to become a money pit. Do still have some older machines but they are usually kept for specific tasks and don't see too many hrs in a year. Have a 1985 toro groundsmaster 327 with about 2500hrs. A 2000 toro 328d 4wd with 2800hrs but is a dedicated leaf blower so it only sees about 20-30hrs a year.

Re: How many hours do you have on your mowers & how long can I expect mine to last?

I have a 2011 Mountfield SP414 2.6HP 100CC Walk Behind mower with about 4 hours on it, as I've only used for half of this years mowing season.

I don't think there is really a certain amount of hours a mower gets before it dies.

It is all about maintenance.

A mower that gets oil changes only when the oil turns black, gets ran with a dirty, or no air filter, stays filled with fuel over winter etc... Isn't going to last long.

A mower that is very well cared for, as I hope all LMF members treat their mowers, should last a long time, but as I say, there isn't a real figure that signifies the life of an engine.

There are just too many variables to give a certain figure.

I'd say around 3000 hours would be the kind of usage you could expect from a well treated Lawn Mower.

Re: How many hours do you have on your mowers & how long can I expect mine to last?

benski said:

I think the standard formula for longevity applies; who's running it, who maintains it, and how well it was built to begin with.

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I totally agree.

The problem is the mowers I use don't always have the same operator. The Jacobsens and husq zt always have competent operators(myself or one other gent). We tend to put the summer kids on older equip.
We I started when I was 19 I didn't really care about the mowers. Did my daily routine checks but was no way easy on the equip. Now I love mowing. And treat my machines accordingly. And have taken over the service and maintenance so I know everything is taken care of.

Re: How many hours do you have on your mowers & how long can I expect mine to last?

well...they dont explode at a certain point....so the question is....When do things start to fail......id say your at the start of things wearing out....just be diligent with maintence :thumbsup:

Re: How many hours do you have on your mowers & how long can I expect mine to last?

reddragon said:

well...they dont explode at a certain point....so the question is....When do things start to fail......id say your at the start of things wearing out....just be diligent with maintence :thumbsup:

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Well thats not really what i meant, more so ...at what point does it not make sense to put money into them anymore. Like a car...you're average car is going to give you problems at what....180k...200k? This is more what I meant...

Re: How many hours do you have on your mowers & how long can I expect mine to last?

the biggest are engine and tranny....i would say when one of those go....you might want to start looking for a replacement mower....unless you can get a good deal on used parts....hrs are ambiguous ....its how hard those hrs are....if you dont know the history...i would play it safe and upgrade

Re: How many hours do you have on your mowers & how long can I expect mine to last?

I've got a 10 year old JD LT150 with between 500 and 600 hours on it, and its still running strong. I expect something else will break and put it out of commission before the engine does, but I don't expect that to be any time soon. If you take care of your equipment, it'll usually last a lot longer than expected. Every piece of small engine equipment I've had or used has lasted at least 15 years. 500 hours in nearly 20 years is pretty "low mileage" though. That's roughly 25 hours a year. I consider mine "low mileage".

Re: How many hours do you have on your mowers & how long can I expect mine to last?

:laughing:

reddragon said:

the biggest are engine and tranny....i would say when one of those go....you might want to start looking for a replacement mower....unless you can get a good deal on used parts....hrs are ambiguous ....its how hard those hrs are....if you dont know the history...i would play it safe and upgrade

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Re: How many hours do you have on your mowers & how long can I expect mine to last?

kalaukia37 said:

:laughing:[/QUOT

WELL GENTLEMEN; I HAVE A JOHN DEERE, A115, 42 inch deck, 19 hp. IN 2006, bought it new at LOWES. ONLY HAD ONE MINOR PROBLEM, THE IDLER PULLY BROKE. COST ME $12.00 TO FIX. ALSO UPGRADED THE BATTERY MANY YEARS AGO. I HAVE ONLY ABOUT 75 HOURS ON IT, PRAISE THE LORD! I HAVE ONE ACRE TO CUT, BUT IN THE SUMMER TIME, THE GRASS DOES NOT GROW, SO I JUST PUT ON THE TRINCKLE BATTERY CHARGER TO KEEP THE BATTERY ALWAYS FULLY CHARGED. JUST CHANGED. I JUST CHANGED THE OIL AND OIL FILTER LAST WEEK. ONLY USE FULLY SYMTHETIC FOR MAX PERTECTION. I AM A RETIRED MACHINIST. ALWAYS KEP IT INSIDE YOUR GARAGE. NEVER COVER IT UP! THAT CAUSES CONDENSATION.

NOW I ALSO BOUGHT A NEW STX 38 OVER 22 YEARS AGO. NEVER HAD A PROBLEM WITH IT UNTIL THE DECK ARM RUSTED OUT, ON ME, SO I GAVE IT TO MY FRIEND. IT IS STILL RUNNGING TODAY. JUST WELDED THE DECK ARM BACK. I DESERVED A NEW MOWER ANYWAY. HERE IN HAWAII, WE HAVE ONLY ONE DEALER. VERY, VERY BAD SERVICE IN THE PAST.THEY MOVED SO I DO NOT KNOW IF THE NEW DEALER WILL BE OK. AS FAR AS HOW LONG IT WILL LAST, WELL HERE IS A LITLE SECRET: ALWAYS GREASE YOUR NIPPLES WHEN REQUIRED.

NEVER WASH YOUR DECK WITH WATER AFTER USING. ALWAYS USE A BLOWER TO CLEAN IT OR PUT IT UP ON A STAND AND SCRAPE THE MUD OR RUBBISH OFF THE DECK. BEFORE I EVEN USED MY J.D. A 15. I PAINTED THE UNDER DECK WITH TWO COATS OF RUST PROOF OIL BASE PAINT, SO THAT IT WILL NEVER RUST. ALWAYS RUN A FUEL STABILAZER IN YOUR GAS TANK, IT KEEPS THE FUEL LINES CLEAN. RUN YOUR MOWER EVERY TWO WEEKS FOR ABOUT 5 MINUTES. HERE IN HAWAII WE CAN RUN OUR MOWERS EVERY WEEK. IN THE MAINLAND YOU NEED TO PUT YOUR MOWERS INTO STORAGE. WHEN YOU DO THAT ALWAYS DISCONNECT YOUR BATTERY AND BUY A TINKLE BAT:licking::dance1:TERY CHARGER. TAKE CARE OF YOUR MOWER AND IT WILL SERVE YOU WELL.

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Re: How many hours do you have on your mowers & how long can I expect mine to last?

I have no idia how many hours i have on my mowers non of them have a counter! but i should expect a commercial mower would last a 1000 hours before it begins to have problems with wear. Even then it will usually only be simple things.

Re: How many hours do you have on your mowers & how long can I expect mine to last?

In my case I put 75 to 100 hours per year. My 96 Craftsman GT has approx. 1,300 hr. At this point, I have several back up tractors, but I would say that it is time to change when reliability becomes an issue. When I spend more time making repairs I start to think change.

I spend as much time as necessary in the winter going over my equipment. It cost what it cost.. Come summer I don't want to be working on repairs when I should be cutting :thumbdown:

This is my story and I'm sticking to it:smile:

Paul

Re: How many hours do you have on your mowers & how long can I expect mine to last?

kalaukia37 said:

kalaukia37 said:

:laughing:[/QUOT

WELL GENTLEMEN; I HAVE A JOHN DEERE, A115, 42 inch deck, 19 hp. IN 2006, bought it new at LOWES. ONLY HAD ONE MINOR PROBLEM, THE IDLER PULLY BROKE. COST ME $12.00 TO FIX. ALSO UPGRADED THE BATTERY MANY YEARS AGO. I HAVE ONLY ABOUT 75 HOURS ON IT, PRAISE THE LORD! I HAVE ONE ACRE TO CUT, BUT IN THE SUMMER TIME, THE GRASS DOES NOT GROW, SO I JUST PUT ON THE TRINCKLE BATTERY CHARGER TO KEEP THE BATTERY ALWAYS FULLY CHARGED. JUST CHANGED. I JUST CHANGED THE OIL AND OIL FILTER LAST WEEK. ONLY USE FULLY SYMTHETIC FOR MAX PERTECTION. I AM A RETIRED MACHINIST. ALWAYS KEP IT INSIDE YOUR GARAGE. NEVER COVER IT UP! THAT CAUSES CONDENSATION.

NOW I ALSO BOUGHT A NEW STX 38 OVER 22 YEARS AGO. NEVER HAD A PROBLEM WITH IT UNTIL THE DECK ARM RUSTED OUT, ON ME, SO I GAVE IT TO MY FRIEND. IT IS STILL RUNNGING TODAY. JUST WELDED THE DECK ARM BACK. I DESERVED A NEW MOWER ANYWAY. HERE IN HAWAII, WE HAVE ONLY ONE DEALER. VERY, VERY BAD SERVICE IN THE PAST.THEY MOVED SO I DO NOT KNOW IF THE NEW DEALER WILL BE OK. AS FAR AS HOW LONG IT WILL LAST, WELL HERE IS A LITLE SECRET: ALWAYS GREASE YOUR NIPPLES WHEN REQUIRED.

NEVER WASH YOUR DECK WITH WATER AFTER USING. ALWAYS USE A BLOWER TO CLEAN IT OR PUT IT UP ON A STAND AND SCRAPE THE MUD OR RUBBISH OFF THE DECK. BEFORE I EVEN USED MY J.D. A 15. I PAINTED THE UNDER DECK WITH TWO COATS OF RUST PROOF OIL BASE PAINT, SO THAT IT WILL NEVER RUST. ALWAYS RUN A FUEL STABILAZER IN YOUR GAS TANK, IT KEEPS THE FUEL LINES CLEAN. RUN YOUR MOWER EVERY TWO WEEKS FOR ABOUT 5 MINUTES. HERE IN HAWAII WE CAN RUN OUR MOWERS EVERY WEEK. IN THE MAINLAND YOU NEED TO PUT YOUR MOWERS INTO STORAGE. WHEN YOU DO THAT ALWAYS DISCONNECT YOUR BATTERY AND BUY A TINKLE BAT:licking::dance1:TERY CHARGER. TAKE CARE OF YOUR MOWER AND IT WILL SERVE YOU WELL.

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And obviously not a retired typist :laughing:

No need for the capitals please!

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I have a 1998 John Deere lx 178, has about 2000 hours on it. Works great still! It all depends if you do routene maintenance on it ( oil change, fluid fill ups ) taking care of equipment will for sure give it a longer life span.

Re: How many hours do you have on your mowers & how long can I expect mine to last?

Lukeslawn said:

I have a 1998 John Deere lx 178, has about 2000 hours on it. Works great still! It all depends if you do routene maintenance on it ( oil change, fluid fill ups ) taking care of equipment will for sure give it a longer life span.

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Amen to that :thumbsup:

Re: How many hours do you have on your mowers & how long can I expect mine to last?

1985 Ingersoll 448 repowered in 1996, sold in fall 2009 with 1960 hours. 1989 Ingersoll 4018 repowered in 2005 2,300 hours. 2008 Scag Tiger Cub 340 hours. All machines have collection systems and are/were used commercially. When engines start to get tired or have a major problem they get replaced. I have had more lawn tractors in the past, Simplicity, Gilson, Gravely. Did snow removal for many years also. I'm slowly getting out of the lawn care business, this year may be my last. Too many getting into the lawn care business with big box store machines on tiny trailers!!! I've seen many come and go, most don't last long when they find out that it is work!!!
Mad Mackie in CT:biggrin::laughing:

Re: How many hours do you have on your mowers & how long can I expect mine to last?

Oddball said:

I've got a 10 year old JD LT150 with between 500 and 600 hours on it, and its still running strong. I expect something else will break and put it out of commission before the engine does, but I don't expect that to be any time soon. If you take care of your equipment, it'll usually last a lot longer than expected. Every piece of small engine equipment I've had or used has lasted at least 15 years. 500 hours in nearly 20 years is pretty "low mileage" though. That's roughly 25 hours a year. I consider mine "low mileage".

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Just submitting information here, not bashing.

I have a JD LT160, bought from JD dealer ten years ago for considerably more than what I see being sold at Lowes now. Roughly 450 hours on it now. I have a large shop, and the mower has been in there its entire life when not in use. Like others on here, I am somewhat of a maintenance nut; I enjoy it and find it to be relaxing.

The first year I had it the left front guide wheel just fell off, bracket and all. Returned it to dealer, they welded it back on at a cockeyed angle instead of angled correctly with the other one. I said WTH, they basically rolled their eyes and said that was the best they could do. It of course subsequently immediately broke off again, so I just removed the other wheel.

Last season, two of the pulley bracket welds on the deck literally began tearing loose from the deck. My father in law the architect, car nut, and handyman supreme, took the deck, stripped it, repainted it, and re-welded everything that needed re-welding (including the afore-mentioned front guide wheel bracket, perfectly in line with the other). I replaced the grass deflector shield, which was also in pretty shabby shape, with a new one, a presto...I had what looked like a new mower.

Opened the hood after a cut to blow everything off and ballooonk...the hood breaks off and falls unceremoniously to the ground. I kid you not.

It is now as of this past week in the shop with what I'm fairly confident is a transmission; I'll find out later this week.

When I bought it, the dealer told me it was the last lawn tractor I'd ever buy; he was half right.

In fairness to JD, it was the longest lasting of the three lawn tractors I have owned. Bought a Roper model in 1998 that lasted 7 years (when I called for a part, a steering wheel bushing, the customer service representative rep told me that their research says the average owner keeps the mower for five years so thats how they design them), a Husqvarna that lasted 8 years, and the JD lasted 10.

Re: How many hours do you have on your mowers & how long can I expect mine to last?

1985 Ingersoll GT 448 2nd engine, 2,000 hours, sold in 2010.
1989 Ingersoll GT 4018 2nd engine 2,400 hours still own it.
2008 Scag Tiger Cub ZTR 2nd engine 520 hours, 43 since new engine.
All above machines have collection systems installed.
2012 Hustler X-ONE ZTR 80 hours.
No idea of time on smaller equipment, but I upgrade every 5-6 years.
Mad Mackie in CT

Re: How many hours do you have on your mowers & how long can I expect mine to last?

My grandfathers mower which was a craftsman from the good days it would guess about 1500 hours on it only problem we had was steering last year then I sold it this year with the motor still running great take care of any mower they should last a while :thumbsup:

Re: How many hours do you have on your mowers & how long can I expect mine to last?

650 hrs on my 13 year old Toro Wheelhorse 268H and it's still going strong except for the front wheels being towed out (instead of slightly in) from hitting a tree head on, and a cracked hood (same tree).

My new Bob-cat Fastcat Pro will outlive me (I'm 58) as the price of mowers has gone up so much that I simply must take better care of this one.

Re: How many hours do you have on your mowers & how long can I expect mine to last?

nate81 said:

Whats the average amount of hours for a residential mower before it needs to be replaced? commercial?

I'm asking because I have a early 1990s John Deere 320 Lawn tractor that has about 506 hours on it....this mower is almost 20 years old and has 500 hours...to me, that seems wayyyyy under par. I'm wondering how many more years (if any) i can expect out of this type of lawn tractor.

On the same level...what make/model do you have, and how many hours on it? I'd love to hear!

Click to expand...

I have a JD x320 2006 model with 1760 hrs. No problems yet, bought this second hand, been told if taken care off they have seen these engines go 3000 hrs.

Re: How many hours do you have on your mowers & how long can I expect mine to last?

Well I have a 1966 8/30 Rover Rancher 2 with an up front 28" slasher.
Still on original motor & 3 speed Peerless ( prior to tecumseh ) box.
I got it from a market gardener & orchardist who used it to mow under the trees & fences + spray weeds.

Had to weld every pivot hole closed & redrill them so a lot of hours went into that but that machine does 100 hours of very hard work clearing lantana, blackberries, privite & other unwanted undergrowth from 8 km of fence line then mowing the other side plus under the fence.

As the boys have already noted it is the type of use, conditions of use and quality of maintenance that makes the difference.
Regular sharpening & changing blades will add hundreds if not thousands of hours to a machine as sharp blades take a lot of load off not only the engine but all of the deck mounting points & height mechanism spindle bushes & bearings.
Replacing pivot pins when they just start to wear insed of waiting till they break in 1/2 and fall off makes a big difference.
Dotto for springs and a little spot of weld on spring mounts before they elongate to the point of being usless also makes a big difference to the longevity.

A few drops of oil to ALL the places shown in the owners manual really does make a big difference.

I get a lot of mowers in with major repair problems because the owners did their own maintenance which they considered was naught more than changing the oil & filters.

Then they get bills in the order of $ 450 to replace the steering fan gear & bush because they never lubed it & think I am a thief.

There are a lot of Great Danes on my run but only 1 owner allows me to do proper maintenance and his mower has worked all day 6 days a week for 12 years and never missed an hour.
It is almost as good as new save some ovality in the anti scalp roller axels.
I tell him what needs to be repaired at its bi-annual service and he always OK's every thing, I buy in the parts & fit them on the next scheduled service.
The service usually go around $ 600 now that I bypass the local dealers & buy parts direct from the USA.

The others do scheduled grease, oil & filters but never replace anything till it actually brakes , their mowers are junk and a 2 week down time repair is not uncommon.