OT: zero turns & lawn care
I figured I would consult all the MGoDads on here and inquire about lawn care when you have over an acre.
I'm probably going to invest in a zero-turn. Any recommendations on brand? Also, if anyone has made the leap to electric/battery powered, any pros/cons/considerations?
Lastly, any tips on tick control and other woodland/lawn pests? No, I won't be shooting gophers, Mrs. Dennis and I like animals too much.
Just about everyone, including me, in my subdivision has a zero turn. No need to use a trim mower in most instances. Service on my Toro is easy enough to do myself, except for sharpening the blades. Every other year the dealer picks it up for service. I love it. Service costs about $70.
I have just over an acre, and I went with the Ryobi zero turn. I'm moving away from gas powered tools as much as possible, and this seemed like a good step. I've had it about 1.5 years now, and here are my thoughts.
The Good
- Quiet (can mow earlier in the morning or later at night with the headlights on)
- Super maneuverable (helps to park and mow in tight spaces)
- Extremely fun to drive
- Makes a great cut
- Can tow a small trailer with no problem
- Very limited maintenance (outside of sharpening blades)
The Bad
- After 1.5 years the batteries are starting to go bad and they only have a 12 month warranty. It's about $1k to replace them. This means now I can only mow half my yard without a recharge, instead of having a 50% left after doing the whole yard.
If I had to do it again, I'm not sure I would make the same choice, based on the battery issue alone. They have a newer model with different battery technology, so that may have fixed the battery issue mine has. Other than that, it is a fantastic machine for what I need it for.
Samesies even though I only have need for a push mower. Last year I purchased an eGo Power+ Select Cut SP with the 7.5ah battery and after using it for a year and a half, feel like they are overpriced by a mile and can have costly issues later on. More specifically, for the first 4-6 cuts this spring, I had trouble with the battery and it either not wanting to charge or falsely flashing red (i.e. dead) when put into the machine right after charging. While I didn't have trouble contacting support, they also never actually did anything and the batteries are only warranted for 3 years.
The above compared to my Husqvarna which started on the first/second pull each spring and never asked for anything other than gas made for a frustrating start to the second year of ownership.
Zero turns are great for speed but not very versatile. I keep about 5.5 acres of our property cut with a JD 1023 subcompact and 60” deck. It’s not the fastest mow but it cuts really nice. The versatility of the machine more than makes up for the slightly slower mowing. The front end loader is priceless. I have a rear blade for it that I use for snow removal on our drive. It runs a 4’ tiller for our garden with ease. I can drag logs out of the woods with it and it will haul my 16’ utility trailer loaded with firewood and brush with no trouble. Try hauling a loaded trailer that size with a zero turn. Your transmission will just cry tears of sorrow.
Turf grass is the most irrigated and harvested crop in America. But how does it taste?
Toro Timecutter. Do. Not. Look. Back.
Unless you have a commercial-sized proprety or something 2 acres or so, then go exmark.
They're both owned by Toro. It's honestly best in class and the warranty and customer care departments are amazing.
Condo
At one point, my wife and I were mowing more than 30 acres. We have backed off to about 12 acres. We swear by our Scag Turf Tiger 2 with a 72" deck. It's about 3 years old and the only problem we have encountered was a poorly tightened arm upon return from the shop after a tune up. Having one arm become useless while motoring down a wooded path was a shock!
I remember a useless arm nightmare, but enough about the Gary Danielson Lions.
Tick control - BifenXTS is cheap and extremely effective. It's also oil based, unlike IT that is water based, so it has a longer residual. Higher concentration so applications are less costly. It also works great on the mosquitoes here in Florida.
We use Bifen on our yard at deer camp for ticks. They are horrible this year. Got to the point our kids couldnt even walk in the grass behind the house (surrounded by hay field, no woods within 50-75 yards) without getting ticks on them. Found one dug into my son after we had already drove 2 hours home. That was the final straw.
For equipment, your budget and additional needs are going to determine where to go. I'm currently on just over an acre, with 18k sq ft to mow, so a basic Husqvarna garden tractor is more than enough. We're looking to build on a 10 acre lot in the future, so we'll likely end up with a Ventrac. They're a front mount tractor with over 40 different implements. 4 or 5 different mowers, brush cutters, flail mowers, cultivators, stump grinders, snow blowers, etc.... They just release a fuel injected Kubota version that should last a lifetime.
I have a 3 acre lot and was constantly changing lawn care services because I was never happy with their work. Three years ago I finally got fed up with cuts in pouring rain and other debacles so I went out and bought a 60 inch Hustler zero turn and have never looked back.
It’s expensive but man does it make short work of the lawn, is comfortable to ride and it’s fast. Two of my neighbors liked the look of my lawn once I took over cutting so much they went out and bought one too!
My god, this thread is an incredible mix of the off-season and a holiday/Father's Day weekend. Might get the most comments of any thread this month.
And I say that as a dad and a homeowner/occasional lawn mower (electric push - wish I would have made the switch years earlier).
14 years ago I bought a mid 80’s Toro zero turn walk behind with a 14 horse Kohler and 48” deck for $500 from a landscaper. Still works great. Zero turns will look better if your into the stripes. As far as weeds go, I don’t put anything down. I mow high. Weeds can’t compete with grass if you mow to the correct length. Most people who complain about weeds mow way to short.
I still have the gas mower, but for everything else I got rid of the 2 strokes and the push mower and went electric.
A couple weekends ago I did a real dad/grandpa thing and built a charging station for the batteries.
Zero turns are the best. Used a JD one for 20 years with no major problems.