Cleaning a Mower Deck

[bill18163]

Does anyone know of a really good process for cleaning the underside of a mower deck? Is there any special chemical or fluid designed to do this? I just cleaned my deck and it was a terrible job to clean it down to bare metal so I could paint the exposed metal. I used a very strong solution of tri-sodium phosphate after I scraped off the heavy stuff. It works but what a job!

 

[Von]

Bill, I had the same problem last season. I used a product called Purple Power and a Pressure washer to get mine clean. (see photo) I then repainted with orange paint and then used a graphite paint called Slip plate. The grass clippings don't stick to the graphite much, so its alot better than it was. The build-up in the photos is after two cuttings, so you can see I had quite a problem with it.

 

[bill18163]

Von,
Where did you buy the products you mentioned?

 

[Thomas]

I use a wire brush on a hand held grinder than soap and water,than good spray paint.
I try WD40 couple of time but it made a mess.

 

[bigpete]

The Slip Plate is available at at most ag supply retailers and is (was) always in stock at the TSC/Quality Farm and Country stores. There are two grades. One aerosol, one brush-on. The brush on contains more graphite than the aerosol but its not the easiest to work with. It is better applied over primer or a de-glossed paint surface and not new, shiny paint. The dirt and flying debris will sand-blast the graphite paint off over a mowing season in high flow areas of the deck, but the crud in the nooks and crannies just falls out. No matter how good you prep a deck, it will always be easier if you perform the "chore" /w3tcompact/icons/frown.gif every two or three mowing sessions.

 

[Mike_S]

Bill--I also use a powerwasher for cleaning and Slip Plate to coat the underside. Caution, however, about spraying the full force of the power washer around the spindles to avoid forcing water into the spindle bearings. Another place where power washing can cause extra wear is the wheel bearings/bushings. I still powerwash them directly, but also use a waterproof grease for the gauge wheel bearings since they frequently get wet while mowing, anyway. Mike_S

 

[BobinCols]

Last fall I scraped and power washed under the deck after mowing for the season. Then I sprayed Amsoil's Heavy Duty Metal Protector on the underside. Will see if the Amsoil protector helps any this mowing season.

 

[Egon]

Bill:

Last summer I used a sandblaster to clean the bottom of the mower deck and spray painted it twice. It seemed to work well and didn't take all that long. I did pick a real hot day for the paint spraying.

Egon

 

[frank_f15]

BILL: IN MHO, I WOULD JUST SCAPE IT CLEAN ONCE OR TWICE A YEAR. don't care what u put on it , by it's nature wet grass is going to stick and build up, the most important thing(in my thinking) is to clean it before u store it for the winter.

 

[jinman]

Bill, I have two 48" mower decks from large riding mowers and they both have failed (rusted out) from the top rather than the bottom (both failed before I bought them). Both of them had pulley cover plates on top and the grass would collect in these and the previous owners missed finding this and cleaning it out. I had to weld sheet metal on both of them to repair the decks. I only mention this because it's easy to concentrate on the bottom of the deck and miss the fact that there might be "pockets" on the top of the deck collecting moisture and trimmings. Now, I leave the top covers off and I've not had any more trouble.

 

[beenthere]

I agree 100% with Jinman. I leave the top belt covers off (risk tossing a belt off once in awhile when a stick flips in there) and keep this area clean and dry. Grass and debris gets under there with the covers on, and holds moisture (rain or water when washing the tractor) for rust to begin.
For under the deck, avoid if possible, mowing when the grass is wet. Also, I clean after mowing with water hose. As well, I mow up the sticks in the lawn to let them help keep the underside of the deck clean. Fall mowing and collection of dry leaves usually gives the underside of the deck a good shine if not caked with wet grass.

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Helps if you park your tractor inside too. The grass will dry off and is less likely to cause rusting it stays wet longer when you park on dirt

Old Wanker