How to maintain a mower deck?

[vavet]

I have a cub cadet xt1 gt50 riding mower. Cub Cadet classifies it as a garden tractor, although I think the common belief is that is an exaggeration of its abilities. It’s about 5 years old.
I’ve taken the deck off for thorough cleanings throughout my ownership, but I was a bit neglectful last year. When I removed it in the spring to get ready for the mowing season, i discovered a fair amount of rust, mostly surface rust, but some rust was starting to pit and flake the metal. I cleaned it up pretty well, sprayed it with rustoleum primer and paint, and vowed to take better care of it this year...and I have. I bought a small electric pressure and I removed the deck after each mowing and cleaned it up well. I removed it and cleaned it like typical last weekend. Some of the paint has chipped and worn away over the season so I left it off. I started looking at it more thoroughly this morning. There are lot of tiny bits of grass still caught in some places. I’d like to paint it again and I don’t want to paint over dead grass but I also don’t want to spend hours on this getting it perfect.
To do a thorough job, it probably needs to be media blasted and repainted, but that seems a bit extreme.
So how good is good enough?

 

[lardy1]

The question for the ages. I've repainted mine and then asked myself why because the lion's share of the paint is gone after a half season or so.

I've stopped painting mine. I wire wheel it and get it as clean as I can and then spray on Fluid Film every fall. During season I just try to keep it as clean as I can without dedicating my life to it.

 

[nafterclifen]

I remove my deck at the beginning of every season and do a "deep clean." Remove the blades and spindles. Scrape all the big stuff off and then hit it with a pressure washer until clean. Leave it out in sun to try and then spray paint 3 coats. Reassemble and grease spindles. The paint does eventually come off but since spray paint is quick, easy and inexpensive, I do it. Some limited time protection is better than no protection. I also clean, sharpen and balance the blades

Regular maintenance includes scraping the deck after almost every mowing, especially if the grass was high. Because high grass = moisture = rust. Scraping it is annoying but it keeps the rust to a minimum.

 

[klassenl]

Regular maintenance includes scraping the deck after almost every mowing, especially if the grass was high. Because high grass = moisture = rust. Scraping it is annoying but it keeps the rust to a minimum.

After every mow? As a kid and teenager at home we mowed every week. Our deck got cleaned once a year at the beginning of the season. The last mower that I was at home to use was in our possession for almost 20 years and was still in good shape when my dad sold it.

 

[TNToy]

I blow mine off with a professional-grade leaf blower after each use. Blast it clean from there with a pressure washer if the grass was wet and therefore some is still clinging to the deck... and I have pretty good results from this. The key is to keep the deck exposed to the air so it can dry (remove all grass from above and below) while also keeping it somewhere covered and therefore out of the rain.

If I were to repaint mine, I’d do it using Majic farm & implement paint from tractor supply. Two coats of primer and two coats of gloss black took 5 days on the trailer I built because the stuff takes forever to cure, which also means I waited another week before hitching it up and towing with it. But the stuff is impressively durable.

 

[56Mark]

I have Ferris IS700Z zero turn that has 50+ hours on it and a lot of the paint is gone on the underside. It is a fabricated deck and grass builds up in the corners unless you mow when it is bone dry, which is impossible to do when it rains 2-3 times a week. If it dries in there, it is a stuck on mess, and that is what often pulls the paint off. I usually clean it each mowing, but sometimes it is dark, starts to rain, etc and it don't happen. I have tried coating the deck with all the suggested stuff, Fluid Film, silicone spray, WD40, and what works as good as anything is used motor oil in a spray bottle. I pull it up on ramps, spray it before I mow, and then hose it out with a nozzle on the water hose. Pressure washer if it gets bad and I let wet grass dry before cleaning, after scraping by hand with a paint scraper. Mowing high grass that is really wet, cakes up, but also has some cleaning to it to in the higher velocity areas of the deck, then hoses out easily. I will probably clean good after the last mowing and spray Fluid Film for winter storage. I will be watching to see what others do....always looking for better, easier.

 

[toolmiser]

My 20 year old gets washed in the fall, then I apply used motor oil to the underside. It has held up nice. Most of the paint is long gone.

 

[jollygreengiant]

My 20 year old gets washed in the fall, then I apply used motor oil to the underside. It has held up nice. Most of the paint is long gone.

This is what I do.

I can't believe some of you guys clean your deck after every use.

 

[Dogwater]

Don’t do like I did an hit a hidden tree stump with one of the blades an break the spindle. Repair was a bit more involved than repainting but the deck received a lot of maintenance with new everything.

 

[dbandel]

I have never cleaned my 35 year old John Deere 318's mower deck other than quick hose offs now and then. It's faded, but no rust. I think the grass sticking to it, once dried out actually protects the surface, lol.

 

[PelicanPines]

The question for the ages. I've repainted mine and then asked myself why because the lion's share of the paint is gone after a half season or so.

I've stopped painting mine. I wire wheel it and get it as clean as I can and then spray on Fluid Film every fall. During season I just try to keep it as clean as I can without dedicating my life to it.

This... I love the smell of fluid film in the morning.

 

[Wakefield]

Does Fluid Film if used before mowing help keep the grass from sticking as tight?

Recently fertilized grass is supposed to cause worse rusting.

 

[nafterclifen]

I think the grass sticking to it, once dried out actually protects the surface, lol.

The grass build up contains moisture which leads to fungus which leads to rust, even in a temperature controlled garage. I've personally seen it and dealt with it which is why I scrape the deck as much as possible. Conditions and results will obviously vary.

 

[bas157]

I put the front tires up on some ramps to give me more room under it then blow air with a 2 feet long air nozzle to blow off big chunks of grass and use a plastic paint scraper to get more off. Probably overkill but when I upgraded a Poulan Pro to a John Deere the deck was still in really nice shape underneath, except for the lack of paint. my push mower I just tilt and hit with the compressed air. My push mower decks have all outlasted the engines.

 

[MattDanger]

Best thing i have started doing is blowing it off really well with a leaf blower after every mow. I even open the hood and blow off the engine bay as well.

This is what is recommended by Messicks.

Imo spraying with water, especially with a pressure washer, is asking for trouble. Any grass that doesn’t come off with the hose is going to get pushed into crevices and retain moisture. And water contamination to the spindle bearings becomes a real concern.

I blow off most of my equipment after use, including my Kubota BX, weed wacker, hedge trimmers, push mower, etc. i even hit the golf cart if its been dusty.

Pretty much the only piece of equipment i dont blow off after use is well... the leaf blower.

 

[jives]

I have Ferris IS700Z zero turn that has 50+ hours on it and a lot of the paint is gone on the underside. It is a fabricated deck and grass builds up in the corners unless you mow when it is bone dry, which is impossible to do when it rains 2-3 times a week.

My SnapperPro 125x (made by Ferris) has the same 60" ICD deck. It builds up terribly if the grass is any bit wet or long. During the spring and fall mowing (~2 ac) it needs to be scraped after every mow. There are few bone dry days during these seasons. After only 100 hrs most of the paint on the underside is gone. The paint peeled off in big chunks.

Only 1 or 2 mows left in the season, after which the deck will come off and be completely cleaned. I'll think about POR15 or some such thing.

 

[American Locomotive]

There is no point in painting the deck. Wherever the paint came off, it's just going to come off again. Grass has a ton of abrasive silica on it, which just effectively constantly media-blasts the deck.

What I usually do is set up a hose nozzle spraying up at angle, and drive the mower next to water jet and let it spray up under the deck with it on. That tends to get everything pretty clean pretty quick.

 

[BrandoJames]

Every spring: replace the blades & belt. After mowing: hose down the deck to clear grass & debris from the pulleys. Change out pulleys as required.

 

[Bigblockyeti]

I make sure to clean mine every time it needs it.

 

[gungatim]

Does Fluid Film if used before mowing help keep the grass from sticking as tight?

Recently fertilized grass is supposed to cause worse rusting.

a lot of people on the gardenweb sites used to swear by spraying "Pam" on the deck, and NOT hosing/powerwashing it, just blow with a compressor.

 

[jollygreengiant]

Does Fluid Film if used before mowing help keep the grass from sticking as tight?

Recently fertilized grass is supposed to cause worse rusting.

100% true. Fertilizer will destroy anything metal that it comes in contact with. Do not mow recently fertilized grass, unless you need an excuse for a new mower.

 

[redmondjp]

Just for reference, two years ago I completely stripped both a Sears Craftsman deck and a John Deere deck down to the tightly-bonded rust, degreased and dried the surface, and applied two coats of POR-15 paint according to the instructions. It seems like it would be perfect for this application.

Now, this coating is flaking off, leaving the tightly-bonded rusty surface underneath.

All I can say, which hasn't been brought up yet, is that one important factor in how fast a deck rusts (or doesn't) is the type of metal that was used in the making of it. The John Deere deck is from 1990 and other than the light surface rust, is still completely solid. The early 1990s Sears Craftsman deck is essentially rusted out (I was turd-polishing it, trying to get a few more years out of it - didn't work as the top mounts rusted off). My early 1990s Honda 4514H decks are still like new.

It seems that the metal that was used by certain manufacturers (MTD, AYP, etc.) in the 1990s was **** recycled whatever, and that stuff seems to rust from the inside-out in layers. I've scrapped out more mowers and decks from this era than I care to recall.

 

[cjarvis]

I just blow mine off with a leaf blower and scrape under the deck IF it needs it when I sharpen/change the blades.

 

[seber]

Mine gets scraped and fluid filmed every time the blades are sharpened. That's about eight to ten hours of run time. It still looks good after twenty years. That is on a 54" John Deere deck. Here in East Texas we mow ten months a year and it is always wet.

 

[theoldwizard1]

I bought a small electric pressure and I removed the deck after each mowing and cleaned it up well.

Most mower desks are a pain to remove. My buddy has a commercial very turn. He just drives it up on ramps and uses a garden hose or pressure washer to clean off the built up grass.

I remove my deck at the beginning of every season and do a "deep clean."

It would be better if you did this at the end of the season !

There are lot of tiny bits of grass still caught in some places. I’d like to paint it again and I don’t want to paint over dead grass but I also don’t want to spend hours on this getting it perfect.

Spend some extra time with the pressure washer or, better yet, get a bigger pressure washer ! Maybe rent one.

Make sure it is thoroughly dry (hit it with your leaf blower and park it in the sun for several hours). Couple of coats of Rustoleum anti-rust and the couple coats of color.

Non-commercial mowers don't have many (any ?) grease fittings. Check your spindle bearing an pulleys often. Replace if worn.

 

[Slednut]

Bought this Honda mower in 1990, I do this every time I mow which most of the time is twice a week. There is no rust. Like said, if you leave grass dirt under a deck it will rust.

 

[Mr. Tool]

Just my $0.02 here....

With my ZT mower, after every cut, I always clean/blow off and wipe it down as well as thoroughly clean and scrape off the underside of the deck....blades, spindles, etc. completely.

Have been doing this since 1997 with my very first riding mower a Montgomery Wards Yard Machine up until 2015 when I purchased my very first ZT mower, a Hustler Raptor Flip-Up and continue to do so till this very day.

As others have already mentioned, if you leave wet grass and dirt clog's on the underside of a mower, it harden's up real good and slowly but surely over time it will eat away at the paint and metal and start to form rust when exposed to moisture and water, etc.