Booster pump. Transposed from Ford Talk

In the spring, many of us have to cut wet lawns/fields/improved pastures and all. If using a typical 3 blade manufactured deck (welded not stamped) it is a big mess under there. I have 3 ways of getting at mine but surely there is a better way. Yes I've seen the one that the deck tilts up and think that's a super idea. Just doesn't have spring suspension so my newest one is a Ferris without the feature.
Yesterday I took a few pieces of PVC and made a triple head squirter that I just slides up under the machine, one "fan pattern" head per blade, turn the water on, get in the seat, turn on the PTO and have at it....is the plan.

Haven't used it yet but surely it will work to some degree just as the deck flush ports work to some degree....have that too and not all that great...reason for the different approach.

Community water station sets dynamic water pressure at around 60 psig. PVC is rated for 250. Wondering if there is a sensible garden hose to garden hose electric booster to run me up a hundred # or so. I have an electric clearwater centrifugal pump but it's only rated at 30 psig...HF special for irrigating from your pond water. Looking for 5 gpm capacity rough estimate.

Thanks,
Mark

Since you plan to run the PTO I would think the spinning blades should do the cleaning. Might try it first before adding the extra pump. One thing to keep in mind those blades will not turn submerged in water - so you want to limit the water.

i have the deck washer attachments on my mowers, they work ok. best way i found is to get the side of the deck in a mudpuddle and run the deck. i think water volume is more important than pressure as the blades sling the water all around the deck. i use to have a old sheet of plywood that i ran a hose under with a 90 degree elbow so it shoots the water up, and just drive the mower on the wood and let the deck run.

I bet there's places on your mower deck where there is no paint or powder coat. By spraying it with water it will rust, which will cause more peeling and rusting. After 5-6 years your mower deck will be junk and you can buy a new one! Good plan.

We have a taller trailer with ramps. I drive mower up ramps then have good access under mower for cleaning or changing blades.

Joe

(quoted from post at 07:29:27 04/28/17) I bet there's places on your mower deck where there is no paint or powder coat. By spraying it with water it will rust, which will cause more peeling and rusting. After 5-6 years your mower deck will be junk and you can buy a new one! Good plan.

Click to expand...

If you buy a brand new mower, and never use it, it will never rust out.

Just mow dry leaves in the fall. Really cleans the underside of a deck.

I share your your frustration, and have considered what you are proposing. A few things have held me back. One consideration is the regular application of water to the deck spindles / bearings and the possibility of rusting them out. If you have hi-lift blades, there is a possibility you could "suck-up" any thing under the deck unless it was firmly anchored to the ground. I have tried under deck coatings, but they don't last very long, and not worth the time and trouble to re-apply. Lets us know your results.

I always wash out my brush hog mower and my yard mower after each use. The tractor mower is well over twenty and has very little rust. The yard mower has no rust at all after 15 years. I built a small crane using a boat trailer winch to raise the front of my mower nearly straight up by the front axle to douche it out an it is also handy to change blades. TDF

Some answers.

I have a Husq. 46 with 2 blades and a stamped deck (nice rolling smooth contour, no sharp turns) with a 4" frontal height where the grass sweeps out. That combination which is now at least 12 years old, getting used at least once per week most of the Texas growing season (my pond bank marvel) is not rusted out and seldom do I have to clean it even from spring grasses.

Then there is a DR 52 with 3 blades and a fabricated deck which I bought in '05. It is very easy to clog in the corners and being about 3" tall with the blade some half inch or so up from the bottom edge and the 3 blade volume and the sharp corners it was a pest. Winter before last, I did a number on it and restored the finish on the interior. Cutting and clogging was much improved but still required cleanout which as stated was much easier with the smooth painted steel.

I have been working my equipment over for the past several years looking for a smooth ride and finally decided to get a 61" Ferris IS700Z primarily due to it's suspension. Along with that came new paint, a 4+" deck height, blades near the bottom of the deck for max area, very high tip velocity, excellent flow control baffles and a huge outlet chute. It is a marvel, but after mowing several acres of spring rye grass, dry ground, just water laden crop, I still get clogging.

On the ramp thing, I got 2 cinder blocks per front wheel and some 2x10" purlins about 4' long and run it up on that. I also have a 2400 Branson with FEL and I have raised it with that. Then there is the engine hoist...like when you want to pull the engine from your '56 Chevy, and I have used that.

On the ramp, I have to get down on my hands and knees to see and squirt. Gotta be a better way. Thought about building an elevated ramp but decided against having 1100# overhead on some kind of home brew scaffolding.

So I thought it out and came up with the PVC idea which I know will work, just how well. 100# more pressure surely would help if doable. I thought about rigging something up with my little puke 1300 psi $99 electric portable but that would be a lot more involved with plumbing supplies and obtaining them.

Hope I answered the questions, thanks for the suggestions.

Mark

I have hooked a generic centrifugal pump up in series off our sprinkler pump, sprinkler pump puts out 50 psi, second pump boosts it to about 90, and increases volume.

Thanks for the tip. Do you have any purchasing info on that pump sir?

Thanks,
Mark

I've dropped the old Snapper rider in an unexpected hole and popped the deck in a mud puddle while it was running. Let me tell you, that will clean it quick. Having more water for the blades to throw around is more important than water pressure from what I have found.

We have a lot of sink holes in this black clay. Sometimes they have water in them long after a rain...when you are back to cutting grass. I have deliberately driven into them and just sat there for hygiene as you speak.

I believe deck plugging is more of a issue with the decks air flow design which is magnified when mowing high moisture grass.
We had a mower some years ago that was bad about plugging the deck, we have a lot of clover in the grass we mow and it retains moisture more than most standard lawn grasses.
After talking to the folks from Meg-Mo Systems about the plugging issues we where having, although leery of being taken, we purchased their blade kit which is a wheel with four disc mower blades for each spindle.
After we converted to Meg-Mo blades the deck never plugged again and hardly ever needed cleaning. When mowing the grass came out with more force than with standard or high lift blades.
A friend purchased a set for his commercial mower that didn't have plugging issues, said he couldn't tell any difference in the way it mowed but he didn't have to sharpen blades as often.
Our present mower doesn't have plugging issues and still has the standard blades, otherwise we'd put a set go Meg-Mo blades on it as well.
Although pricey they where cheaper than trading mowers which was my second option, listening to the wife complain about the plugging issue, cleaning the deck and picking up the clumps of grass that fell out whenever the deck was shut off got old real fast.

I don't remember the brand but one brand I surveyed did come with 4 blade spindles as I recall. I passed on it due to the suspension not
being what I wanted.

No I don't, the pump is at our cabin, and I am home. It was a surplus pump that I was given at work, it was used for circulating an acid solution through our vacuum pumps to remove lime. It is a basic centrifugal pump without a jet, so it will pump 50 psi but very little suction, but pump about 20gpm.