Grass build up under mower deck

[Rowski]

Does anybody have an idea on how to keep (or at least slow the process down) grass from building up under the mower deck? Thanks

Derek

 

[mrolson]

Derek, I clean mine every time I sharpen blades(about 30 hours). Do you have to clean more often ?


Mark

 

[gws]

The old man down the road says spray it with silicon spray. I have also heard PAM cooking spray works to keep the build up down.

 

[Bird]

I suppose different things work for different people, but I tried silicone spray, Pam, and repainting the underside with what was supposed to be a paint that the grass wouldn't stick to. None worked very well. I still can't say I've found anything that was perfect, but the best thing I've found is to spray on a mixture of 75% diesel and 25% motor oil before mowing.

Bird

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Bird,

That's definitely different...

How do you clean up the deck... strike a match?

 

[GlueGuy]

It didn't help the buildup much, but my dad fitted a hose fitting to the top of the mower deck. After mowing, he would attach the garden hose, and rev up the mower. The water would hit all the same places as the grass, and it all came out the chute. Wasn't perfect, but it was cheap, simple, and quick.

I like Bird's suggestion too. Never heard of that, but would be fearful of any sparks /w3tcompact/icons/shocked.gif in the near vicinity...

The GlueGuy

 

[Bird]

Well, I don't smoke while I'm spraying it./w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif And I use a sprayer that puts out a very fine mist, so a gallon of that mixture lasted me 3 years. Sometimes when I finish mowing, I blow any grass off with the air hose, and sometimes I wash it off with the garden hose, and sometimes I don't need to do anything to it.

Bird

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Do you only mow dry grass? I have heard that wet grass will stick to your mower deck besides loading the engine more than dry grass.

Now, a _completely_ serious question...

Why do you guys clean out under your mower decks? I have seen decks worn out from mowing so much grass that they wore away from the constant sanding action, but I haven't ever seen one rust away. ?????

 

[Rowski]

I have never timed it. I seems like maybe 6 to 8 hrs for the build up to get to the point where it effects the cut quality. I sharpen my blades twice a season. I'm very careful of not hitting rocks. This is on my JD318.

Derek

 

[Rowski]

Bird

For some reason the mixture of diesel and motor oil mixture sounds familiar. Any special weight of oil?

Derek

 

[Bird]

Derek, I've mentioned the diesel/motor oil mixture before on the forum, and so did someone else. I doubt that the weight of the motor oil makes much difference, but I just use plain 30W myself.

Bird

 

[Mike_S]

Derek--On the last three mower decks I have used John Deere Slip Plate which comes in an aerosol can and while that does not prevent grass build up, it certainly eases the abiity to powerwash the deck and keep it pretty clean. (In case you are concerned about the color--it is not green but black since it contains graphite).

 

[rja]

I had also raised this question and have been using Bird's diesel/oil mixture. I thought that diesel fuel was not as flamable as gas and that it would take more than a spark to ignite. The mixture works ok but is a pain to apply (I am using a spray bottle because I did not want to put diesel fuel under pressure with a pressure sprayer). I like the idea of the JD slip plate stuff. Is this a paint or a non drying coating? How expensive is it? Thanks Rich.

 

[ejb]

Diesel is not very flammable at all...neither is motor oil. Both will of course burn, but not like gaslone.

 

[Bird]

ejb, you're right of course, but I spray it as a very fine mist, so with it sort of atomized already, I suspect it could be explosive. I use a cheap siphon gun hooked to my air hose with another hose into my jug of diesel/motor oil, so it's very fast and easy.

Bird

 

[StoneHeartFarm]

Bird,

Are you using new motor oil or the left over stuff from oil changes?

SHF

 

[Mike_S]

Rowski--Slip Plate is an aerosol that goes on like dark gray paint and it dries to look like dark gray paint. Normally, it stays put for an entire season, but when I powerwashed the underside of my mower deck today since I had mowed a wet yard, I noticed that much of the Slip Plate had come off--there must have been some kind of coating on the deck that prevented it from sticking. Mike S.