Mowing in the rain

[JLC]

I think this is my last resort. I don't know about you all, but I've got lawns scheduled for yesterday and each day (except Sunday) the rest of the week. The forcast is for rain the rest of the week. I see no choice but cut in the rain. How do you guys approach this? Is there any specific things you tell a customer if he complains? Any tips on mowing in rain/keeping decks clean and the biggest, how do you blow the clipping off the wet cement?

Any input/discussion would be great

Ben Johnson
Johnson Lawn Care

[JB1]

RAIN, just be happy your somewhere thats getting rain.

[JLC]

Don't get me wrong this is good, but I'm just wondering how others handle the situation.

[awm]

just tellim in a buisiness way its not ideal but to keep
things under control its necessary. now your job is to mow them without tearing them up.not easy. you might tell them that as long as you are not leaving thick clumps of grass
not much danger of damaging lawn.most homeowners are told specificaly not to mow wet, so you need to adress that in a way that works.
luck and send the rain on over here.

[mdb landscaping]

its a good problem to have. the lawns here without irrigation are already burning. need rain bad.

[Eric ELM]

We work in the rain if we have to, but not if it's lightning. I saw a period about 12 years ago where it rained every day at least some, for a 2 week period in the spring. This is when I first tried double blades. :)

The best thing to do is cut it at least 1/2" higher than normal and then hope it is dry the next week so you can bring it down to the normal length or just leave it higher for the summer dry months. Cutting it higher makes less clippings to deal with which helps out a lot.

I had a few customers complain at first, but once they found out I can make a law look good cutting it in the rain, they never complained about this again. I tell them just because it's raining, I can't skip a week to cut it. What if it's raining the next time it is due to be cut? What a mess that will be. They will understand usually. :)

[rider1000]

Two weeks ago, we were cutting when it was sleeting and light snow flurries. It had rained the previous week on the same day. The third week I turned the route around and cut my normal first people last and last people first just so it would look better on the third cut. One thing I have found to be very effective is to use the blower to spread the clippings out, this works good on wet grass and also thick lawns. I always do this on ones I have to do a double cut on which I've had many of those lately due to late customers signing on.

[Bassman]

I would be very happy to cut in the...what's that called? Oh yea, RAIN. We desperately need some in south Florida.

I would not get to far behind if it's not a heavy rain. With my ZTR, (Exmark Lazer), I can cut fine with wet grass. You know when the wet grass is building up by the sound, (pitch), of the engine. Then pick a far corner of the property and disengauge blades while at high rpm and the buildup will sluff off. Then pedal to the metal and repeat as necessary. Go back over the wet piles of down-sluffed grass to finish.
Thank the good LORD you have such a problem. Very dry still in many parts of the country.
As to blowing off wet grass from cement, any hand held blower is absolutely useless for that. Just not enough velocity. Try a high end back pack blower like Shindaiwa EB630.
Good luck this season!


[Edited by Bassman on 05-02-2001 at 09:29 PM]

[JLC]

I don't know what the deal is lately, but were getting swamped. Check the central Iowa forcast...rain every day. Eric, this has got to be headed your way, heads up.

[Eric ELM]

JLC, we have plenty of room for some rain. :)

It has been in the mid to upper 80's here lately and very windy which has dried things out big time. We are ready for it.

This is just what the people along the Mississippi River need. More rain with record level floods. :mad:

[sgreanbean]

JLC,ERIC
I live in Bettendorf,Ia right on the miss. Ihave accounts below the hill and above so in have mixed emotions! the flood will make the grass grow nice and green but on top of the hill its the same as chi-town! so i wish it would rain, just not below the hill! the flood waters are receding now!what a mess, my old house was right on the river( was on MSNBC!) It was 2 feet in the 2nd floor! glad i dont live there any more!

[OBRYANMAINT]

keep blades sharp,scrape deck often,double cut.....i will do almost any thing to not skip it a week , it would be a nightmare the next.been dry here lately so i am not comlpaining usually it rains a lot in the spring

[MOW ED]

If they ask why I explain to them that I have commercial equipment that allows me to cut in the rain because I have to. Homeowners are used to lawnmowing on Saturday or Sunday afternoon before they break out the barbeque and the beer because they CAN. They don't mow in the rain.
As long as you dont mow in a swamped out lawn where the WB will do damage to the yard you should be all right. Just follow the tips in the other posts and most important of all is Erics - NO mowing in a thunderstorm.

Smile because rain=pennies ($DOLLARS$) from Heaven.
I dont see many LCO's on this board from Phoenix.;)

[rixtag]

Ben, This is what I do if it rains. I don't mow if it will look worse when it's done than when I started. I have never(knock on wood) had anyone complain about the lawn not being mowed because it was raining.
I don't mow in the rain. It doesn't do me or my machines any good. Consider it a day off and think about how it will look after the rain and when you finally get to work your magic they will be amazed. For me there is nothing more impressive than a lawn that has been N bombed for a couple of days and then a brand new fresh, clean cut and some striping action placed upon it. I am just a psycho I
guess but that is why we are in the biz, because we all love it.
Of course, if all else fails, ask them if they would mow in the rain.
I realize that I am only a part-timer but rain is rain and I think, generally that people understand. You could tell em that sugar melts in water and you don't want to take any chances. LOL

Rick

[JLC]

Well I got caught up today...until tomorrow. Grass was wet all day with intermitent showers, but it didn't seem to affect cut quality unless I tried to run 10 mph. Went a little slower, but it was worth my piece of mind knowing I wouldn't be even more swamped later. On a side note the deck actually seemed to stay cleaner than normal. Maybe it was a powerwashing effect.

[lawnman_scott]

Be sure the mower is greased, blowing is hard, takes forever, and well you cant control the weather can you.

[Fine Lines Lawn]

Posted by Rider1000:
Two weeks ago, we were cutting when it was sleeting and light snow flurries

I remember that Rider... that sucked. We got off the lawn shortly after that started.

We'll mow in a light rain, depending on the lawn, but not in a thunderstorm, and not on an upscale lawn. If the weather causes us to get behind, we'll do whatever necessary to get caught up. My crew understands that if we have too many rain days, we may work the weekend to get caught up. Typically, we mow five days a week, so we have a little flex time if needed.

Right now, I'll take any rain I can get no matter when it is.

[Mowingman]

JLC,
I have found that mowing in the rain actually works better than mowing after a rain. With Bermuda and St. Augastine grass, all the water in the grass during a rain storm keep the grass washed out from under the deck. It also helps spreda the clippings so you don't get clumps. After a rain when the grass is wet, but not saturated is when I get a big mess. I have never had a customer conplain as long as the lawn looks good when I finish. When I was a part-timer and had to finish everything on weekends,I often mowed in heavy downpours.But, like Eric, when the lightning starts,the mowing ends. :)

[VLM]

Another one of my pet peeves. Last yr it seemed to rain every other day. It never stops me. If it did I would lose my customers. Sure, they all would prefer to have me cut when its sunny and 65 degrees but that is just not realistic. There was only one day last yr when it rained so hard I had to take a break. I just waited in the truck a while and then went back to it. If you just explain to your customers how your business has to operate they will understand. If they don't, they can go somewhere else. Like others said, keep the blades sharp it really helps stop clumping.

famous quote: Everything that needs saying has already been said, just not everyone has said it yet! HEHE.