Should I bother with a lawn sweeper?

[RayCo]

About one acre of my property is grass, and that is all surrounded by woods, mostly tulip poplar trees. So, needless to say, there is constantly debris in my yard. For the most part, I just toss the sticks and things I find into the woods whenever I'm outside walking around. But the seed pods from the trees are way too plentiful for this. I could rake them all out, but that would get old quite fast.

So, I'm wondering if a lawn sweeper is something that is actually effective for such things. I'm talking about just little sweeper that I'd pull behind my lawn tractor, not some sort of PTO- or engine-powered vacuum. Would I just be wasting my money on such an item, or would it actually do a somewhat decent job of getting most of these things up.

I wasn't able to find a picture of the seed pods, but they're the ones that you might have split open and stuck to your nose as a kid. Either that, or you tossed them into the air to see them come down spinning like helicopter blades.

As for the lawn sweeper, it'd just be something like this.
http://bestlawnsweeper.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/Agri-Fab-38-Inch-Tow-Lawn-Sweeper.jpg

Thank you

 

[Yankee]

I've got one (and in fact, it's an Agri-Fab, though an older model). Fills too fast, doesn't hold as much as it looks like it might, and mine has developed drive problems. Don't waste your time.

 

[oldballs]

Ray, I wish that I knew the answer to the question. For I have the same problem with countless pine cones, assorted leaf types and a multitude of dead branches that come from Sycamores, Walnut and Pines. Especially when a big wind front blows thru, there is detritus from the roof down. For thirty-five years I've just hand picked the stuff up. But I'm old and tired now. It appears that the sweeper that you show would work only in limited circumstances. Larger branches wouldn't fit and the fall leaves would overwhelm the thing. I'll say this however, pickin' all that stuff up by hand sure has kept me lean ....and mean.

 

[Botabill]

Unless you have a use for the clippings i.e. compost pile I'd say the best thing to do is leave the clippings on the lawn. It feeds the worms that fertilize your lawn that makes your grass grow and gives you an excuse for seat time.

 

[Kevin M]

Heres my two cents, once a year i dethatch my lawn and after i borrow a buddys sweeper. It picks up everything sticks, leaves, maple seeds ( aka helicopters) cig butts etc, works good for low volume . I also
have an 8hp Trac Vac which i use for heavy leaves, the sweeper would fill up too quick! Find a friend that has a sweeper and borrow it, good luck!

 

[DMW]

I sweep my grass clippings and leaves and place in a compost pile. Turn with the FEL every month or so. Anywhere between 8-12 44" sweeper loads every time I cut. You need room for a large mulch pile. Mine takes 12-18 months before it's usable. It can be adjusted to pick up everything but the larger sticks, these I usually mow over and sweep up the smaller pieces that are left. When sweeping leaves I also run them over first with the lawnmower, makes them pack a lot tighter in the hopper after they have been shredded a bit. Most sweepers are meant for smaller residential lots and won't last that long in heavy use. Pawl gears have had to be replaced every 3-4 years. Try to avoid any plastic drive parts. If you decide to get one, ensure all the drive components are metal, they will still wear out and have to be replaced, but cost a lot less. Usually it's the pawl gears that wear out, not the gears on the drive wheels. My present Agrifab Smartsweep 44" lasted less than a month before needing the plastic drive wheels replaced. Metal pawls and plastic gearing on the drive wheels are a bad mix IMO. I had an older 42" Brinly that worked well for years until the light tubular frame and hopper started to disintegrate.

 

[uphill]

I've had 2 sweepers. The 1st was cheap made and lasted about 3 years. The current came from Sears($300), is about 6 years old, has a larger basket than the Agri type pictured in the earlier post and works great. You just have to sweep and dump, over and over. If mine tears up, I'll go get another one.

 

[jebster54]

Well worth it's it weight in gold and works like a :thumbsup:dream!

 

[bjr]

Jebster, What brand and model are you talking about? I need a sweeper as well, I've got two lawns to get lawn clippings and dog poo up. Will they do that? Any new reviews on the Brinley make? bjr

 

[sunnyside360]

I have the largest Sears Craftsman equivalent to the one in your picture. It works great. Probably made by Agri-Fab.

 

[RayCo]

Well, it sounds like it's worth giving it a try. Excellent. Thank you all!

 

[Bedlam]

I have a question are they somehow ratchet driven so you can back up and not have it turn? In other words back it up and then pick up forward. back and forth if needed?

 

[arrabil]

They list the drive ratio on them, ie: how many times the sweeper turns for every turn of the wheels. Make sure you get a hi ratio one. The lower ratio ones barely work. Flat (as in not bumpy) terrain is pretty much essential too.

 

[tsteahr]

Has anyone tried one of these Ingersoll sweepers? They look really nice. Made in Maine I think.

 

[BXpanded]

Has anyone tried one of these Ingersoll sweepers? They look really nice. Made in Maine I think.

Yep! Had one several years ago with the CASE name. Really sturdy, heavy duty sweeper. It filled too fast to be useful for leaves so I didn't use it much. Worked well for most things.
Notice that it has a double brush set up. One brush picks up the debris, the next shoots it forward toward the operator into the hopper. There is no top for the hopper. It can blast acorns or hickory nuts at you with surprising force!

 

[Iplayfarmer]

I borrowed a sweeper from a friend once to see how it worked. It didn't.

I bit the bullet and bought a blower and bagger attachment for my riding lawn mower. Best thing I ever did for that mower. When I'm mowing up leaves in the fall or any other "vacuum operation" I leave the deck a little high to allow more air flow under the deck. I can fit two or three sweepers worth of debris into my collection bags because the stuff is finely chopped. It speeds up the composting process too.

 

[buck12]

I use my neighbors sweeper a few times each year. It does a poor job behind my mower because the mower does not pull it fast enough to through the debris to the back of the hooper. However it does an excellent job behind the ATV. The ATV pulls it faster and I can fill it completely. The neighbor borrows the ATV to pull the sweeper also.

 

[Sackett2]

I borrowed a sweeper from a friend once to see how it worked. It didn't.

I bit the bullet and bought a blower and bagger attachment for my riding lawn mower. Best thing I ever did for that mower. When I'm mowing up leaves in the fall or any other "vacuum operation" I leave the deck a little high to allow more air flow under the deck. I can fit two or three sweepers worth of debris into my collection bags because the stuff is finely chopped. It speeds up the composting process too.

I agree. While I don't have the blower attachment, the standard mower with bags worked well for me. I had a larger city lot in North Dakota that had 9 large trees. Fall was a b*tch until I got my Sears Craftsman lawn tractor with bagger. I mulched it all, small twigs and branches and leaves. It would get every leaf off the lawn, 3 mulched pickup loads every time. I don't rake or sweep any more, let the mower deck do the hard work...

 

[Gem99ultra]

>snip Fall was a b*tch until I got my Sears Craftsman lawn tractor with bagger. I mulched it all, small twigs and branches and leaves. It would get every leaf off the lawn, 3 mulched pickup loads every time. I don't rake or sweep any more, let the mower deck do the hard work...

<snip

Absolutely the best way I've found too. I also had a Craftsman sweeper, but had to empty the basket way too often to be convenient. And sticks simply jam it it. Then bought a grass catcher attachment for my Snapper mower. It worked like a charm, chopping up leaves, sticks, etc. It would average about 100 garbage bags of leaves per acre in the fall. That's a lot of getting off, bagging, etc. Too much work for me...

Now I simply mow with my Husky mulching mower. I do have to pick up the larger limbs, but anything 1" or less just gets mulched up and left for fertilizer.

 

[bjr]

I'm thinkin' there's gotta be a lawn sweeper better than a 3304 Dixon bagger. The Dixon just doesn't pickup lawn clippings. It's a 30" single blade and is butt worthless on bagging and this is over a ten years of trying all kinds cutting conditions, dry lawn, short lawn. I'll be investing in somekind of sweeper this year just don't know what brand. I suppose I wind goin' with Agfab just because that what the local farm store carries and I usually don't do a lot of shoppin' around. bjr