while mowing ?????

[Earthworm75]

do u bag the clippings or just let them discharge on the lawn... i have seen diff companies and the same companies doing both~ if u bag do u charge more and with that said if u do bag dont u eventually run out of storage on trailer and bed of truck full of lawn clippings? lol may seem like a dumb ? but i have seen both methods done and by the same companies.. ur insight and suggestions are greatly appreciated ~

[Daddy Joes Lawn Service]

WE bag yes we do charge more because of the extra time it takes. No we don't run out of room we use 4 65 gallon garbage cans.

[creeper]

We did both. Leaving clippings on lawn , good for lawn.

Bagging only on people who demanded it.

Charged more, but still a pain.

Luckily most people saw the light after I properly informed them.

Used 60 gallon green barrels from yard to yard. Leave it in the street and push it between the wheels to the next yard. Then dump it in the mason dump or the rack body.

[davis45]

I usually run the lawn and discharge the clippings with my ZTR. If there are noticable clumps of grass and the customer approves i will go over the bad spots with my standard mower with the bagger, and charge a few extra.

[TheChiefsLawnCare]

when aquiring a new customer I will ask if they want it bagged or mulched and explain the difference to them if they ask. i will charge 5-10 dollars extra depending on how many bags i think i will use (40 gal bags) and also for the extra time that it takes. I live in louisiana, i dont know if they lawns are different staes, but all the lawns guys in their area, the sub-burbs of New Orleans, we bag and then leave the bag of clipping by the curb and let the garbage men pick it up. i never discharge clippings unless the yard is about 3 weeks tall or longer. if they want it mulched then i dont charge any extra.

[Sweet Tater]

I do both, but bagging is extra $$

[StBalor]

bOTH, BAGGING IS EXTRA. I just leave the bags at the curb.

[Clear-Cut]

i mulch everything

[ballstar]

I discharge, and adjust my fertilization to apply 1lb N less over the course of the year.

[capetan]

i normally charge double to bag, its twice the work example: $35 no bag $70 with bag ......

[lawnpro724]

We used to bag all the time in the 90s but now its just mulch and side discharge. We will still bag if customer request it but for an additional charge.

[Earthworm75]

so u dont tell the customer u jus cut the way you please until they say something then you advise them to the benifiet of leaving the clippings and if after that they want it bagged u explain the price difference...is this the way 2 go bout it ?

[TheChiefsLawnCare]

nooooo... you just ask the customer when aquiring the yard, you ask them, do you want your yard to be bagged to mulched and explain the difference if they dont know. and then tell them the difference in price if they ask. jus make sure that you charge extra accordin to how many bags you think you will need and also how much extra time it will take. member, time is money in the lawn care business. if u cut it biweekly make sure you cahrge more to bag than you would if it was a weekly cut since the grass is longer and you have a better chance of the mower cloggin and costing you costly time. basically, ask, and charge extra for baggin

[ccondie]

I mulch only, bagging is to much work and ppl dont want to pay for it around here.

[SpruceLandscape]

I'm not saying that this is the way you should do it, but this is the way that I do it in MY area and so far have had very good feedback from my customers. First you need to understand that I run all Walker equipment, so everything gets bagged. I have one property where it gets bagged and then dumped onto a compost pile on their property, but everything else gets taken away.
Most residential properties in MY area are around 1/4 acre. That being said... with a 9.5 bushel hopper on the mower I can bag usually 2 yards before having to dump unless we have had an enormous amount of rain or they are a new customer who hasn't cut recently (in which case the first cut is a double charge for the extra grass). I several properties that are between 1 and 1.5 acres that are also bagged and removed and neither one fills the hopper more than 1.5 times. Yes... it is a little bit of extra work this way, but to tell the truth... usually the guy trimming and edging has a little extra time to handle tossing a bag or two of clippings into the back of the truck.
IMO the only way to do this kind of operation is to work out of a dump bed or dump insert though... not worth it if you don't have at least that.
Also, I have a nursery less than 3 miles away that accepts compost materials, so its no trouble at all to get rid of clippings every day. It costs $15-$25 to dump depending on the size of the truck, but its all built into costs of doing business at the end of the month anyways. MY starting price is $25 including sales tax and my average RESIDENTIAL is usually in the $35-$45 dollar range for up to an acre (depending on the amount of trimming it could very well be more).
I realize that their are faster mowers, and that the cost of dumping adds up, and that mulching can be considered better for the lawn... ETC, ETC, ... but you can't argue with a customer that is happy they have one of the nicest looking lawns in the neighborhood because these machines do such a good job!
And THAT is why they stay on year after year and THAT is why I pick up more jobs from referrals than any other form of advertising.:clapping:
For those of you who are "pro-mulch" or "pro-discharge"... I'm not knocking you or disagreeing with your mowing practices etc., just letting everyone know that you can have a competitive price, bag everything, and still make good money IF the demographics allow it.:)

[SpruceLandscape]

DANG... I gotta know when to quite typing...
Sorry for the long post everyone... lol

[Jusmowin]

I bag durring the spring and fall and mulch during the summer. I dont charge any different as all of my yards are year round payment.

[GroundForce007]

so far no one wants me to bag