50 acres

[bababooie]

how long would it take to cut 50 acres (flat ) with a dixie chopper or scag cub or comparable?

[lawnkid]

What place are you mowing in Cleveland? Where you from? It would take a long time. I'd say at least 6-7 hrs.

[Lawn-Scapes]

I say 10 hours with a 72" Dixie.. maybe?

[khouse]

i don't know of any 50 acre area that is completely flat and without trees ect. I would say considering everything with a ztr - 72 inch cut is 2.5 days. let me know what you do it in.

[bababooie]

i just had a call tonite i didnt call him back yet,so im trying to figure out a price.

[TLS]

Weekly cuts.

72" mower.

No hills.

Little to no trimming.

12-13 hrs/cut.

At LEAST $1K/cut

Sure would be nice with a big bat wing mower 12-16'cut!!!

[lawnkid]

Would it be weekly? I would charge about $50 per acre. Overalll would be about $2500 a week or whenever you cut it. Will you only be using a single mower? What's your company name? maybe i've seen you before.

[Brickman]

I know you would need what Turf mag calls a WAM. Wide Area Mower. I have no idea how long it would take you. Depends on several things, how many employees runing how many mowers of what width.
If you are by your self I would think that this would be your ONE customer, and you would work it just like a 8 to 5 job. Just my thoughts.

[TLS]

There's a big spread there. $1000 to $2500 per cut.

The bigger the property, the less you make.

I would personally put two 72" ZTR's on it.

The cost of the two of these $27K max.

The cost of a big TORO, Jake, etc bat wing..... 30-50K and that will be about the only property that you use one on.

[Lawn-Scapes]

I'd do it for $900 :D

If I had a 72" Dixie and it could be done in 15 hours or less

[cantoo]

Some of you guys need to get our more. I have a 72" Ransomes that works perfectly and I paid Can $3500 for it. 1100 hours on it, I can buy as many as I want at that price or just a little more. They come from the City. Use it then throw it away and buy another.

[David Haggerty]

Is it like the Scotts Turf Farm, or a cow pasture?
Is it a lawn cut, or will you be wading thru 10 days growth?
This sounds like a rush quote to me.

If it were smooth as a bowling alley, and wide open I'd mow it for $875 per cut taking off 1 inch of growth or less. But I'd double that figure if it was bumpy with trimming needed.

I'd guess it'd take 18 hours with a 72" mower. But you wouldn't be able to walk at the end of the day. This job really could use a bigger mower.

Dave

[bababooie]

thanks fellas,the guy said it was just seeded,so i am assuming its pretty level,the scag web site said its 52" mower cuts 23acres at 6 mph, so i'm guessing 2.5 days.

[Krimick]

Unless your looking for a full-time job this is the kind of work you want with a 52" mower.

To do this in a time efficient way, you wouldn't want to put anything less then a gang / batwing style mower on the property.....unless ofcourse you have a crew with four or five 72" ztr's.

[ADMowing]

Takes us 1 hour for us to cut 5 acres in Florida with 61" Bunton Twister ZTR and 34" Encore. House, trailer and small orange orchard involved. But no weedeating.

$100/hour (two mowers/two people) (10 hours of straight mowing) = $1000/mow. You could cut a small break at $900/mow like TSG said. It would be a fun property to do! We love mow and go properties! You could do it in one day -- but it would be a long day. Get a contract 'cause if you do it, you may find yourself needing additional equipment (think of wear and tear and gas etc....) It would be good income and in a year or so, you could afford to upgrade to a wider mower -- batwings like everyone is suggesting. If you DO get that type of equipment, you MUST have a committment from the customer. I'd go for a three year contract (at least). Then, you can market yourself out to other larger properties as well and you will be spending less time at this property.

This contract can buy your new equipment and you can gear your business towards the larger properties after that making nothing but profit (excluding normal expenses such as license, insurance, taxes, maintenance and gas etc.).

Important note though: Get the contracts with a stipulation that if they drop you prior to 3 years, they pay a lump sum to get out of the contract. This will help you out until you get another comparible job. With an account this big, you are investing a lot of time and equipment. It is a large slot in your work week and you need to CYA where it is concerned.

I don't know all your circumstances, but this is just my opinion based on what you've told us and what others are saying.

[Hawkeye5]

Bababooie: You assume it's level?? I guess you assume it's also 50 acres. Not to be picking at you, but as a friendly suggestion I think you need to go take a look. Walk and measure this property because you know what is said about assuming!! I have yet to figure out how to bid a job (make that a profitable job) without taking a look. There are too many variables that can (and will) eat your lunch. This prospective job is too big and will take too much of your resourses not to be exact with your pricing. You really need to know what you're getting into. I didn't mean to be too blunt (only one of my many faults), don't take my comments the wrong way, I am just trying to help. JD

[geogunn]

Originally posted by TSG
I'd do it for $900 :D

If I had a 72" Dixie and it could be done in 15 hours or less

tom I can't tell if you are serious because of the grinny face.

your bid has you running that dixie flat out for $60 an hour.

as for me, no way am I even gonna run my old lesco for that kind of money because I can beat that rate anywhere I mow.

my point is that there is very little profit at that bid.

GEO

[gaunlet13]

Does the owner want the property shredded or finish mowed?
YOU ABSOLUTELY HAVE TO WALK THE PROPERTY TO DETERMINE WHAT THE DAMAGE POTENTIAL TO YOUR EQUIPMENT IS.
I have a 50ac pasture that I mow with a 65hp tractor and a 15' batwing. It takes me about 18 hrs. Some of it is rough, some not. Going rate for
this kind of equipment in Dallas/Ft Worth is ~$35 per hour.
Greg

[TLS]

Gauntlet,

$35 per hour? Are you missing a digit there? Shouldn't that be $135/hr?

I mean come on! A 65hp Tractor is at least $35 - $40K and a tow behind 15' is at least $10K more if its retractable/hydraulic. Thats over 50 grand in machine! You need to get at least $100-$150/hr for a machine like that! I can stay home in bed and loose money, I'll be damned if I'm gonna work and loose money!


bababooie,

If all your considering using is a 52" mower on a property like this, you mind as well be pushing a rope! By the time you get done.....its time to start over again! I suggest you let this go till your ready and equipped for this size property.


The reason I'm against the big batwings is the overhead. I could buy 4 72" ZTR's for the price of a TORO 580, and if one breaks, I got 3 more that can still work. If that 580 breaks down, your up that creek pretty darn far! Not many yards that a 580 will work in! While a 72" can be used in many different places.

[GSJ]

I would go insane mowing 50 acres with a 52" walkbehind.
Don't rely on a manufacturers estimates for productivity. Their
going to stretch it to make their machine look really productive.
As far as WAM's are concerned your not looking at the real costs
when you say you can buy three or even four of whatever
machine for the cost of one WAM. The real savings with a WAM
is the fact that you have one operater as opposed to two or
three. Eliminate even one employee over the course of 4 years
and well you do the math. It's about the cost of a new WAM or
more. As long as you have the right sites for it their hard to beat
and much more dependable than Z's or WB's. If you have a good
dealer they will have a demo available when it needs to be
repaired. Unfortunately when an employee calls in sick, goes on
vacation or an all night bender they don't supply a demo employee. Another plus is my 4000D doesn't draw unemployment
all winter or ask for benefits.

[awm]

u said weekly cut. 45 dollars an hr., and id take it..u also indicate u havnt actually seen it . i think u better take a look first.been wanting to try the super z anyway,and this job would make the payments and more.super z might cost more per hr.
good luck.

[Turf Dancer]

If I could cut 50 acres I would but a new 72" Exmark ZTR and go for it all by myself. I have done a the math and the Exmark Productivity chart is by far the closest to actual times. Use the 80% chart and you will be right on, or at least real close .

If I were to do this 50 acres, it would be with a 72" ZTR. I would bid it as follows.

No trimming, Discharging, and no blowing. $ 1450 per week

If trimming I would add at $50 per hour to the above rate.

I would die for this deal. I would also get this deal on a 2 year minimum contract and after the first year If I liked it I would be pushing to get the contract extended 3 year extension ?

Contracts are a pain in the butt sometimes but they make your business worth alot more in the end. I might want a full contraact on this deal If I were you. You know Fertilizer etc .
$$$$$$$ !

If this were me I would take this on and only do the others I have now and not even advertise anymore.

Good Luck !

[chrisk]

I just bought a brand new Kioti tractor last month here in Kentucky for not much more than a 72' ztr.
It's a 2002 dk50 (50 horsepower) 4 wheel drive with a 6foot front loader (bucker) and a 8 foot bush hog.
I paid $18000 tax and everything.
The tractor alone was $15,500
I don't know how much a bat wing is but at say $1000 per week you could pay it off in less than 6 months

[scottb]

Like some of the advice from above go look at it . To me it sounds like somthing you would to cut while riding a tractor and a 10' or larger mower. Besides you need to be creative with the stripes on 50 acres, tha same stripe is liable to hypontize ya cutting that much.

[Hawkeye5]

Just my opinion, but what private individual is going to pay $50K+ annually for mowing other than a sports, movie or music star? Even those with more money than brains are not going to for long. This may look like an opportunity, but watch out. JD

[Grass_Slayer]

i agree with hawkeye5. no individual is going to pay that much to have his yard mowed unless he is richer than 4 feet up a bulls butt!!!!!!

if i was that individual, i would buy two of my own 72" zts and do a little of my yard at a time

i live on a 43 acre field that used to be just stuff growing on it (now farmland) it took an international 1066 TURBO with a 12 foot bushog 3 days to cut it all down. and that is 7 acres less than ur prop!!!!

[longviewlawncare]

bat wing will cost close to 35,000. that is some of the prices i have gotten. go with a 72" cut Ztr and do it. good money for a lot of sitten.

[Lawn-Scapes]

GEO..

I was/am serious. $60 per hour would be decent here. I think I could find a profit in there somewhere...

[FrankenScagMachines]

Another thing to consider - Will you need a larger trailer to haul this larger mower (WAM)??? We have a couple parks around here and the way they mow is one has a batwing finish mower behind a Massey Ferguson tractor and a couple two or three Groundsmaster 60" or 72" mowers (to get in between trees and stuff at campsites). This place owns them (company owned park for employees and some allied companies) and they have their own maintenance crew. The other park hires a crew to come and mow for them with 2 big Groundsmasters (about 7' and a 12' batwing or so maybe..) I'm not sure about the size of these parks or the mowers but I'm saying that the obvious key to productivity is wide area mowers. Unless you are running several guys or are making good money with ZTR (s), it's not worth your bother, in my humble opinion. But do whatever you like.
Eric

[geogunn]

Originally posted by TSG
GEO..

I was/am serious. $60 per hour would be decent here. I think I could find a profit in there somewhere...

thanks tsg--the advice I'd give you then is to go with a full tractor and turf tires with a three point hitch, 72 inch finishing mower.

there is a guy here that we help each other with jobs too big and on vacations and emergencys.

if I got that job I'd be calling him right away! LOL!

good luck and keep us informed.

GEO

[David Gretzmier]

this property sounds just like one I heard of an irrigation contractor was doing twice monthly- he'd do all 50 acres by himself, got around 4000 per month and paid off his tractor/batwing the first year. the next year he cleared 32000 extra dollars by working 16 saturdays riding in an a/c cab for 8 hours. he got a raise the next year, and made around 40000, again for 16 saturdays. he lost it the middle of next year, and sold the guy who got it the tractor and mower for 35000. he sharpened , mowed and went home in 8 hours and made 2000 bucks. that's good money any way you slice it. Dave g

[P&J Lawncare]

I have 2 properties that are over 50 acres and we use 3 zero turns (61) and each one takes less than 8 hours to do and that includes trimming and blowing off. I get alot more than a thousand per cut for these but I can see where you could make a good profit off a 50 acre account for under a thousand if it is a mow and go account. Lets say you had two 61 mowers and they cut eight acres per hour (together) that would take a little over 6 hours to mow so your payroll for the job (1 employee) would be $60 and your gas would be $20 so you would have $80 into the job and $920 for yourself. Now I know that the $920 isn't profit (insurance,mowers,taxes) but I can gurantee you that $500 of that would be your profit so for 6 hours work $500 is a great rate.

[Grasshog]

You dont have the right euipment to take on work of this size.
You would be better off passing this work up. Even if its flat land I'm sure it isnt smooth enough to run any ztr mower falt out for 9.5 hours. It will kill your back, knees and kidneys. Look for work somewhere else for now.

I cut large propety (parks) Its tuff on the old a__. Its real tuff on the euipment.

[Grasshog]

Do you know what it cost too run your mower per hour?????

[J&M Lawncare]

Got this formula for figuring productivity from a consultant co.

Ground speed x deck size / 120. This supposedly allows for 80 productivity, allowing turns, overlaping, and terrain differences.


I find it to be accurate with 1 acre pending trees, ect...

ie: my husky is 10mph * 61" cut /120= 5 acres

They say it's 6.9, i find it to be 4-4.5/ hr

I'd go for it, get a buddy or your wife to help and get two new riders 61" or bigger. Also the contract is excellent idea. I find all but one of my customers like it. Give them a garrentee of service as well, leaves no doubt as to what is to be done, how often and when billing and payments are due.

just my nickles worth.

[Fivestar]

I would do it if there was little trimming and not to difficult grade for a cool G note. Not bad for 12-15hrs. 66 bucks per hr. hmmm.

[bababooie]

I FIGURED A52" RIDER ABOUT 3DAYS WORTH

[Sammy]

Originally posted by Grass_Slayer
i live on a 43 acre field that used to be just stuff growing on it (now farmland) it took an international 1066 TURBO with a 12 foot bushog 3 days to cut it all down. and that is 7 acres less than ur prop!!!!

You better put that 1066 in High Range !
I can cut 42 acres with a 1066 and 9 foot mower in about 10.5 hours. :D