How Do you Do Leaf Cleanups?

[13yearoldcutter]

I know its early but I was wondering how you all do leaf cleanups and stuff like that. Thanx.

[andyslawns]

well i started out with a good rake, a 55 gallon barral,and a couple of rolls of trash bags. Now I use a echo blower/vacum, if you have a extra $600-1000you can buy a lawn vac. i also use my dads crapsman, it has a rear bagger it does pretty good. I found out when you are bidding leaf cleanups for the first time it usually takes you longer than you thought. hey just
my 2cents worth

[roscioli]

Hey, i was toying with the idea of mowing each lawn 2-3 times a week, for a huge price difference, because i will hardly have time this fall. I hate raking, so i was figuring mowing with the bagger twice a week might work, has anyone tried it?

[vipermanz]

lawnboys vacuum really good
there you go

[Remsen1]

I use a walk behind power sweeper, then I rake my windrows onto a big tarp. Best to do with two guys but it can be done with one. It is also better if the wind is cooperative. This also cleans up any matted clippings, garbage, sticks etcs that are too heavy for a blower. Also wet leaves are not a problem.

[grassyfras]

I have an Exmark Metro. I was wondering if I could buy one of there bags for the mower, I think there $150 im not sure though, Could I do clean ups with these? Would it do any good?

[Scag48]

I use my backpack blower and I borrow my grandpa's mower that bags because mine doesn't. This year, I'm gonna use my Groundsmaster, it should be a little more productive that a 21" when it comes to picking up leaves as it takes alot longer to pick up leaves than to just mow the lawn. That's my setup.

[Premo Services]

Originally posted by grassyfras
I have an Exmark Metro. I was wondering if I could buy one of there bags for the mower, I think there $150 im not sure though, Could I do clean ups with these? Would it do any good?

It would probaly be closer to 200.00 for the exmark bagger, but they work quite well. You would have to go over the lawn first, to mulch up the leaves. ;)

[Grapevine]

We use the backpacks to blow out the beds, 8 horse blowers if we can blow into the woods, 3 Walkers to pick up the leaves, enclose the 1 ton dump and use the truck Vac to suck up the leaves if we can't dump on site. Time is money and investing in labor saving devices is the way to make real money in this business.

[grassyfras]

Mowmoney,

Thanks for the reply. I think I'm going to go check them out and visit my dealer.

[Eric ELM]

We do a weekly lawn maintenance just like in the summer and mulch the leaves. If you do a search on Leaves, you should find several threads on this. Here is the results with 17 threads.
http://www.lawnsite.com/search.php?action=showresults&searchid=10528&sortby=lastpost&sortorder=descending

[13yearoldcutter]

thanx for the replies, spelled leaves wrong didnt have alot of threads.

[CLARKE]

Just hop on the old DIXIE CHOPPER shut the chute
have the doulble blades on one being mulchin blades
let the chopper do the work, thats part of the reason
they call it a dixie CHOPPER
:blob3: :blob1: :blob4:

[Comet]

I use this Vac in the final end. Giant Vac Truck Loader (http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=1698742&a=13047092&p=49227888 )

[awm]

i would think the metro would mulchum to nothing with gators on.

[97Stroker]

I agree With grapevine, time is money. We have 2 johndeere Z Trax with baggers. We blow out the beds, vac up the piles, then dump them out at the vac trailer. Suck it up, and then blow off the lawn, all done. So much easier then buckets, we don't believe in rakes, or busting our beans. =)

[ron]

Mulching is what I do then power sweep the rest into the ground..works very well......saves alot of time too,,,,,

[little green guy]

We use backpacks to blow the beds out, then use the 8hp giant vacs to blow the leaves into piles, when the piles get to big to blow we push them with the mower. we do one of 3 things with the leaves, in one of the towns that we work in we can putt the leaves at the curb and the town will pick them up, sometimes we can blow them into the woods or I have another company with a vac come pick them up. I think i'm going to get the ultra vac for the lazer this year so that we don't have to blow some of the yards. when where all done we cut the yard to give in a finished look.

Man i'm getting depressed already just thinking about leaves :( I HATE leaves :mad: At least as soon as where done with cleanups we gett to start plowing :) I LOVE snow :D

[guntruck]

We tried quite a few methods and i think the best is this( for us and our equipment) we take our chariot around and suck them up into the peco leaf vac. This mulches them and reduces the leaves greatly, they are dumped onto a tarp and disposed of onsite 90% of the time. This is very easy, fast and effective. Other than that we use doubles and mulch and mulch and mulch and mulch.

[BrandonGT]

13yearoldcutter,

I forgot to ask you.. what equipment are you currently using for your "accounts"? :D

[toroboy]

for now i use a toro 21" mower and bag it , but this fall im getting a exmarkmetro 36" mower , so im probably goignto mow it then bag it , so i will probaboyl be buying a bag o well thats what happens when u first start out u dont make much money th efirst couple of years cause u have to pay for equipoment , but once u have all of th eright equipment an its paid off the money is goignto be comeing in fast . I charge $40 an hour for landscapeing (leaf removal , bushes ect.) I think thta is the going rate now. Hope this helps. I hope for the best for u . GOOD LUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:cool: