Cleaning Underside of Mower???

[Biker1mike]

I do not clean it as often as I should but it still has been around for a long time. I remove the drive shaft and throw a small come-along over the ROPS and attach it to the top link under the seat. Tip it up and clean with a nail puller and hose. I clean until it is good enough.
CAMO strap is for safety. Visions of having the deck slip and take a kneecap off.

 

[ve9aa]

A nail puller?

 

[Biker1mike]

A nail puller?

Some call it a pry bar.

 

[TomRC]

o

I do not clean it as often as I should but it still has been around for a long time. I remove the drive shaft and throw a small come-along over the ROPS and attach it to the top link under the seat. Tip it up and clean with a nail puller and hose. I clean until it is good enough.
CAMO strap is for safety. Visions of having the deck slip and take a kneecap off.

View attachment 84957

Is it tricky relaxing pressure on the come along without the mower crashing down?

 

[Biker1mike]

o

Is it tricky relaxing pressure on the come along without the mower crashing down?

My come-along has two cogs on the winch gear. One is the stop/safety and the other is on the handle. To let down you pull the handle as in raising the deck . This releases the safety and you can hold it open. Let handle lower deck a few inches ( it will only go a couple of inches and it stops), let the safety cog snap back in place. The handle can then be moved again. It is a slow and tedious process but extremely safe.
It is almost impossible to by-pass the safety when there is tension on the cable but it is possible. Without being specific you can use the procedure that allows the cable to be let out quickly for set-up.
With a thousand pound mower, I'd say it is the suicide method.

I should add. The actual come-along is on the mower side of this rigging. That way there is no cable moving and digging into the PROPS. A large rag site between the PROPS and the steel cable

 

[mikester]

I'm cutting about 5 acres a week with my B2601 and 5' Finish Mower. One of my frustrations has been figuring out the best way to clean the underside of the mower as it cakes up really bad. I try to cut when its dry but you know how that goes. Plans don't always go according to plan. Anybody got any tip to cleaning the underside, anything to spray on the underside to make grass stick less? I can't lift it high enough with the 3 point hitch to really clean it out so I unhook it then lift it with the loader and chains and the go to scraping with a machete, long screwdrivers, etc. Tried a pressure washer the other day and lets just say I ended up dirtier than the underside of the mower.

Anyway, its something I need to do on a regular basis and trying to figure out a way to make life a little easier with regards to this task! Thanks!!!

I have an air hammer and use a 4 inch wide chipping bit. Peels the stuff off nice and easy with the least amount of effort. I also have an air powered scraper tool with a 2 inch blade that works for fine clean up.

https://www.amazon.com/Sabre-Tools-Thinset-Removal-Pneumatic/dp/B09T5W7X8L/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=2JOU3E526AFX&keywords=pneumatic+chisel+bit&qid=1659974241&sprefix=pneumatic+chisel+bit%2Caps%2C155&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1

https://a.co/d/hOW5pFY

Best tool for clean decks is prevention. Avoid cutting wet grass.

 

[dieselbob69]

I've tried many things over the 30 plus years of mowing. Still haven't found anything that lasts more than a few mowings without re-applying. I've tried Slip-Plate, Mow E-Z, Fluid Film, I even had the underside of deck sprayed with a glossy bed-liner type of coating. We also have a creek near my house, used to run deck in that once in awhile to clean off. Since I've had the loader, I have a log I pull up to, curl bucket down, then set bucket on log, lower loader so it brings the MMM into the air. I then use a long stick to clean out the underside. For the OP, if you have a blacktop/concrete driveway- raise the rear mower just a little off the pavement and spray a stream of water from garden hose underneath deck while it's running. Just be careful if you're able to do that on your machine....

 

[Dave Ogren]

We pressure wash the Kubota zero turn mower deck after each mowing.

 

[lynnmor]

We pressure wash the Kubota zero turn mower deck after each mowing.

I have a Country Clipper with a stand up deck, so it wouldn't be hard to pressure wash. I don't do it because the deck inside top is double plates in about 3/4 of the area leaving considerable access for water and dirt to be force in. Is your deck one complete sheet of steel?

 

[Bri-Guy-GA]

I used a putty knife to get the big clumps than pressure wash what evers left. I only do it a few times a season though.

 

[TomRC]

Just an unpleasant task with no easy solution. Unless I pressure wash after every mowing session the pressure washer just doesn't do a good job once the grass hardens at all and I have a very good pressure washer. Takes me about 4 hours to mow my place and pretty much a weekly task so by the time I'm done mowing my "old back" is just not up for unhooking the mower, grabbing the chains, lifting the mower with the front end loader, getting the pressure washer, then the whole cleaning process then hooking everything back up. I miss the days of having a healthy back where this type of weekly task was not that tasking!!

Every 2 to 3 weeks though I will just go through this process though. The other day I lifted the mower a little higher and the process was easier. Put a big tarp underneath, scraped all the hardened gunk off which fell off and on to the tarp. Folded tarp and put in loader bucket and hauled off. I may try lifting it from the rear with a come along as described above.

 

[JimKul]

I'm cutting about 5 acres a week with my B2601 and 5' Finish Mower. One of my frustrations has been figuring out the best way to clean the underside of the mower as it cakes up really bad. I try to cut when its dry but you know how that goes. Plans don't always go according to plan. Anybody got any tip to cleaning the underside, anything to spray on the underside to make grass stick less? I can't lift it high enough with the 3 point hitch to really clean it out so I unhook it then lift it with the loader and chains and the go to scraping with a machete, long screwdrivers, etc. Tried a pressure washer the other day and lets just say I ended up dirtier than the underside of the mower.

Anyway, its something I need to do on a regular basis and trying to figure out a way to make life a little easier with regards to this task! Thanks!!!

I have always used a pressure washer with great success.

Dan

I put in 2 4x6 posts three feet apart, about 4 ft high. Then I lean two ramps on them. Drive up the ramps, set the e brake and you have great access underneath. I have done this for 20 years.

 

[Flintknapper]

We pressure wash the Kubota zero turn mower deck after each mowing.

This what I do as well. Both my Zero Turn and Finish mower. I just use a garden hose and sprayer head to clean the deck BEFORE it all has time to dry.

Maybe a five minute process at most. I like for my equipment to be ready to use the next time I need it. Not have to work on it before I can use it.

The OP has physical limitations (bad back) so I'm not sure the best solution for him.

I am able to drive my machines (one side) up on a 10" ramp which provides plenty of access (and view of what I am doing) just by laying on my side.

But the key is NOT to let everything build up over multiple mowings and under no circumstance let it dry.

 

[Ktrim]

Air needle scaler

 

[fried1765]

Spraying with water can work OK as long as you get to it BEFORE all the dirt and grass dry to the deck. Afterward....you are just trying to erode it away.....takes forever.

Since your 3 point won't lift it high enough for you, you can build/buy a STURDY ramp to drive one rear tire up on and get all the clearance you need to be able to see under it. You won't be able to stand and clean the deck obviously. But easier than having to unhook from it and then lift the mower.

I clean the deck on my zero turn mower that way.

I put a strap around the front wheels on my ZT, and use my FEL to lift the mower front just as high as I can,
so I can reach under.

 

[GreensvilleJay]

Kinda curious if anyone has used a 'spray on TEFLON coating' on a deck ? NOT the lubricant, but the 2 part version similar to frying pans and such .

 

[2001TLB]

In the spring time, my brother in law flushes his front mount Kubota deck in the big puddle in front of his shop. He lowers the deck into the puddle and runs it for a minute or so. He says it works pretty well. Otherwise, the big puddle is not very desirable to have.

Later in the year of course, that does not work for him- puddle is dry.

I blow out the 72" deck on my F3060 with a leaf blower after every mowing, if the grass is dry. Otherwise I need to hose it off (pressure washer if faster if I feel like dragging it out). It is made easier with the feature that makes it pretty easy to flip the front up to gain reasonably good access.

Doug

 

[SidleSam]

I put in 2 4x6 posts three feet apart, about 4 ft high. Then I lean two ramps on them. Drive up the ramps, set the e brake and you have great access underneath. I have done this for 20 years.

Hi JimKul I am planning to build something like this, any chance of a pic of your setup please? Or if you cant do that a bit more info about the size and types of ramps you are using? I want to use timber rather than buying expensive metal car ramps but the B series is fairly heavy so i'm worried timbers will just flex if they dont have some support. cheers

 

[Russell King]

For a good way to make ramps from woos see this video. Omit the hinged part if you don’t need the access from the sides.