Mind Your Mower

Contractors don’t schedule downtime on their agendas, and they don’t plan for the hours that mechanical repairs can sponge out of their workday. When the mower isn’t running and the timecard is, landscape companies sacrifice productivity and profit.

"For a commercial mower to go down, that would be like being laid off," compared Maria Nicholson, technical adviser, Snapper, McDonough, Ga.

Mower maintenance can prolong the life of the machine and save the company some bills. Regular equipment care is an appointment contractors should make and keep to ensure their capital investments last, Nicholson stressed.

"If that machine goes down or if it blows an engine because of lack of maintenance, that’s a lot of money," she added. "Parts can be expensive, but not nearly as expensive as labor."

Staying on top of simple tasks, like changing oil, sharpening blades and checking tire air pressure, is a small price to pay compared to steep hourly rates at a dealer repair shop. Frank Patane, owner, Golden Gate Landscape Management, Santa Rosa, Calif., allots 45 minutes per mower each week for maintenance, similar to scheduling an extra job, he said. In this time, technicians can accomplish a couple oil changes and blade sharpenings.

"Time is the largest cost," he calculated. But keeping up with basic mower care is a necessity contractors can’t afford to ignore.

DAMAGE DOCTOR. "Maintenance is like taking a physical," related Ken Taylor, manager of the commercial business unit for Husqvarna, Charlotte, N.C. "For a product to last as long as possible, getting the machine to operate at its optimum level is important. A figure I use on a preventive maintenance campaign is about 5 percent of the purchase price. Contractors who perform regular "check-ups" on mowers can avoid large invoices from doctoring equipment. A Snapper maintenance guide cites dirt as the primary "pathogen" that contaminates oil and clogs air filters, resulting in less clean air circulation in the engine, which makes mowers difficult to start and inefficient to run. And because of the nature of the environment where equipment is operated it is nearly impossible to prevent air-borne dirt particles from saturating a mower’s organs, according to the guide. Companies that allow damage to continue will pay the price—repairs due to air filter and oil neglect generally are not covered by engine warranties.

Servicing basic components takes little time and decreases risk of engine failure, Nicholson added. "Most commercial cutters spend time on maintenance daily—upkeep' doesn't take much time."

THE BASICS. Minutes dedicated to mower maintenance should address necessities such as changing the oil, lubricating fittings, checking drive belts, sharpening cutting blades, cleaning or changing the air filter and checking the tire air pressure, Taylor suggested.

On riding mowers, he suggested checking castor swivels. And whether it be a walking or riding hydraulic unit, hydraulic oil needs to be changed annually to ensure clean, fresh lubrication in the engine."

Oil changes topped the checklist for most contractors—every 50 to 100 hours is a target mark, Taylor recommended. Mowers that drinks dirty oil suffer, burning up the engine, he added. "If you hold up water that hasn’t been purified, you see junk. Do you want to drink it or do you want a nice, clean glass?"

Consequently, engine manufacturers have little sympathy for oil-related damages.

"Warranties are rejected usually for two reasons," said Tom Dibble, supervisor of technical services for Kawasaki. "First, lack of lubrication if the oil is way too low. Second, dirt ingestion because an oil filter was not maintained. [Negligence] has been known to cost people an engine or two."

Commercial engines can last several thousand hours depending on care and use, Dibble estimated. Contractors accented the importance of tire air pressure and sharp cutting blades. These performance-oriented tasks determine a cut's appearance, Patane noted."Sharpening blades increases the life of the mower and makes the lawn look better," Patane said. "Another performance issue is proper tire inflation pressure to keep the mower level. If one side is lower, it makes for a funky cut," he said, adding that contractors should recognize that the front tires on walk-behind mowers have a higher pressure than back tires and adjust accordingly.

Patane covers these basics in employee training and requires technicians to block time for these needs, adding that it is obvious when a technician skips these steps.

"Common sense" care includes keeping machines out of the elements, Nicholson said. Also, a trouble-shooting tactic that does not require time or tools is one many are guilty of skipping: reading the owner's manual.

"It’s not keep-awake stuff," Nicholson admitted, "but [manuals] have so much information. So often, a buyer doesn't read the owner’s manual, and it costs them parts."

TAKING RESPONSIBILITY. So who is responsible for mower attention? Who maintains? Who repairs? Some lawn care companies split the duties, dedicating daily and weekly needs to technicians while outside repairmen handle complications that surface. Other operations hire in-house mechanics to service equipment.

"Both the mechanic and employees are responsible," Taylor said. "[Maintenance] is like driving a car—is the owner or the mechanic who takes car of the car responsible? Make sure the operator is familiar with the equipment, whether or not it is running well or pulling one way or the other. The operator can do a quick walk-around to ensure the mower is set up properly."

Taylor suggested stocking basic parts such as blades, belts, wheels, batteries and spark plugs, to solve minor blunders. He also recommended miscellaneous hardware to assist with "non-mechanical" service. He rationalizes this by "looking at things that can keep mowers running or that stop them."

Hiring in-house mechanics can be a financial strain for many companies, especially if repair is their sole responsibility, Taylor commented. Often, dealers are the most economical service source.

"I base it on revenue," he explained. "If you have to pay technicians $25,000 to do the job right, for that person to do some of the functions a retailer would do on service, you would have $50,000 and then another $15,000 in shop equipment. You’re going to have a $100,000 investment in the technician, shop and special tools to work on the equipment. If you have that kind of investment, what type of return does it take? "

Besides the investment involved, the credibility of employees, technicians and mechanics a contractor hires is critical, Nicholson added. Essentially, a company’s profit lies in their hands, and speedy service is key.

"Since these units are the contractors’ bread and butter, dealers will do anything they can to get them in and out the door," Nicholson noted. "The mechanic might not know what is wrong and end up on the phone talking through the problem. A dealer will get the mower back up and running."

TIME TO RETIRE. Despite thorough maintenance regimens, mowing miles eventually cost contractors more than they want to spend on parts and repair services. The point when it is time for a mower to retire from the fleet varies among companies, Nicholson said.

"A lot of it depends on how many hours are on [the mower]," she said. "Some people that have them for 10 years, and others change them like a leased car."

A three-year benchmark—after 1,000 to 2,000 hours of use—often signals the end of a mower’s prime, Taylor noted, adding that mower life beyond a three-year trade out is a winning situation for the contractor.

Patane’s equation for mower replacement is when a repair costs more than half of the mower purchase price. "If everything else is in good shape, we can pop a new engine in there and get a couple more years out of it," he said. "Even if you use preventative maintenance at five years, there is a point where these components will start costing money."

But mowers can age gracefully if cared for properly, Nicholson reminded. "We have units that have been out there since the 1950s, and it is no more unusual than seeing a car from the 1950s. This means the mower has been maintained and taken care of."