MOWERS/POWER EQUIPMENT: Multipurpose Mower

Attachments can turn mowers into multiuse machines, but there are tradeoffs to consider.

A mower can be a significant investment for a landscape contractor. By the time contractors are finished stocking their trucks with enough mowers to keep everyone busy, their budgets may be stretched too thin for any more large purchases. Fortunately for contractors, mowers are becoming more versatile with attachments.

Contractors can blow debris, aerate or dethatch lawns and edge flower beds with one one piece of equipment. These attachments can save 75 percent on time and labor, according to Ruthanne Stucky, marketing director, The Grasshopper Co., Moundridge, Kan. Attachments are ideal for the landscape contractor who provides other added-value services that aren't worth the significant investment that a dedicated machine might require.

"With an attachment, you have expanded capability without a huge outlay of cost," says Peter Andonian, president Accelerator Industries, Bellevue, Wash. "The tradeoff is that when you get further away from the primary function of the mower, the less performance you will get. For instance, say you put a thatching attachment on a mower. A dedicated machine will probably do a better job than something you put on the front of a mower that's not powered."

Most attachments work best with riding mowers, but some walk-behind mowers can accommodate equipment like fertilizer spreaders. "As more people buy riding mowers, your options for attachments increase," Andonian says. "With riders you often have greater horsepower and space. You are also sitting higher up, so you have better attachment visibility."

AND THE WINNER IS...

    Landscape contractors are known for playing favorites. They have their preferred equipment brands, trucks and materials. When it comes to mower attachments, dethatchers seem to be the most popular choice for contractors, according to sales statistics provided by Walker Mfg. Co., Fort Collins, Colo.

    "The dethatcher is a simple, inexpensive attachment that does a lot of good," says company president Bob Walker, adding that dethatchers cost between $300 and $400. "In the springtime, the first work that should be done is to rake with a dethatcher that picks up matted-down grass or any dead debris. It's amazing what it will do to freshen up the lawn and get it going again."

    Snow blowers - "Some contractors say for snow removal, especially if they use a lot of salt, 'I'm not going to put my mower through that because the salt is too hard ton my equipment,' but others have found that the investment in their tractor is justified if they could put a snow thrower on and use it."

    Dozer blade and broom - "They're both primarily snow-removal items, but some contractors also use the brooms for sweeping."
    Aerator - "Aeration on a ride-on unit is relatively new in the market. Maneuvering a stand-along, walk-behind aerator can cause wear and tear on the body, but mounting an aerator on a ride-on unit means the operator is basically just sitting there running the controls on the machine just like they do when they mow. By riding, they are also able to cover bigger areas rather quickly."

CHANGE IS GOOD. The availability of so many attachments means that contractors today can perform most maintenance functions on one machine at less cost than is involved in buying dedicated equipment. For instance, a ride-on fertilizer spreader costs about $4,000, whereas a spreader attachment can cost about $400, says Mark Wyne, president, Combined Mfg., St. Louis, Mo.

In colder climates, rotary brooms, blowers and dozer blades are becoming popular additions for snow removal, says Bob Walker, president, Walker Mfg. Co., Fort Collins, Colo. The rotary broom costs about $2,200, the snow blower attachment sells for about $1,900 and the dozer blade can add $500 to the machine's cost, according to Walker. These costs don't include $800 for a power-lift hitch, which is necessary to raise and lower the implements, Walker advises.

This may seem like a significant upfront cost for an attachment, but mower engines may be more powerful, resulting in wider coverage areas and greater efficiency, says Time Cromley, marketing manager for Walker Mfg. For instance, the typical snow blower ranges from 5 to 8 horsepower compared with a snowblower attachment that may be powered by a 20-hp mower engine, Cromley notes.

Similarly, an aerator attachment can cost $3,700 but they can cover larger areas than dedicated aerators can, Cromley says. "For $3,700 you can have a 47-inch aerator that you ride behind and cover 60,000 square feet per hour," Cromley explains. For almost the same amount of money, maybe $3,000, you can walk behind a 28-inch aerator and cover about 20,000 square feet per hour."

Attachments, such as the aerator, also remove the cost of labor and maintaining an additional engine, Cromley says. "An aerator is a perfect example - you only use it for a few weeks in the spring and fall, but the maintenance of another engine for only a few weeks can be hard for some people to swallow," he says.

And because aerators are typically used seasonally, the machines could develop more serious maintenance issues than an engine that is regularly serviced, Stucky says. "There will be more maintenance with the attachment because you are operating it longer, but you don't have the investment that dedicated equipment that you also have to maintain," she says. "Also, the dedicated machine has been sitting for a while, so you might have to do more intense maintenance whereas with this universal machine, you've been operating it routinely and doing routine maintenance.

CATCH UP

    Customers with high-end properties usually expect neat lawns with little or no grass clippings within plain view. Despite a number of mulching mowers on the market, grass catchers continue to be popular with contractors who want to reduce cleanup time and keep lawns looking sharp.

    "The catcher still has its plae in certain markets," says Peter Andonian, president, Accelerator Industries, Bellevue, Wash. "It's popular with cool-season grasses, which sometimes have to be bagged to have a good appearance. Warm-season grasses are easier to mulch."

    Catchers range from $150 to $500 and vacuum systems can range from $1,500 to $3,500, according to Andonian. The advantage of vacuum systems is that they provide more power and are ideal for removing debris from wet grasses, but they are more costly and more complex to remove and reattach, Andonian Says. Steel catchers cost the lowest, ranging from $150 to $250, depending on size. Rustproof and lighter-weight aluminum catchers cost between $300 and $500, Andonian adds.

    When purchasing a bagging attachment, contractors should consider the capabilities of their crews and how far they'll have to carry the debris, Andonian says. To eliminate this problem, some mowers are now equipped with a $2,700 electric/hydraulic dumping system that can raise the grass catcher to a truck's bed or trailer, says Bob Walker, president, Walker Mfg. Co., Fort Collins, Colo.

    In addition to making grass collection less labor intensive catching systems work closer with a mower's natural functions than other attachments, Andonian says.

CONSIDER THIS. Although mower attachments are designed to improve efficiency, they can actually result in more downtime if contractors don't carefully examine their options. Contractors should test attachments before buying them to check how quickly they can be removed and reattached, Walker says.

"You're talking about versatility, being able to do more than one thing with your piece of equipment - that's the concept of the attachment to begin with - but the more difficult it is, the less versatile, in practice, it's going to be," Walker explains. "Let's just say it takes a day of work to change an attachment. They're going to get less use out of it because it's just too big of a job to change it back and forth."

Some mowers come equipped with "quick-change" features that utilize hitch pins so operators can remove or secure the attachment without toll or extensive labor, Walker says. Also, when shopping for an attachment, contractors should test whether the attachment reduces the mower's ability to maneuver up and down hills and around obstacles, such as trees, Walker says.

Wyne agrees, saying attachments could affect a mower's turning radius or deck movement. "It might keep you from going under trees, or there might be more physical constraints than anything else," he explains. "Is it going to offset the balance of the machines where the tires won't turn or spin or reduce its capability on hills?"

Contractors can check with dealers or manufacturers to determine how much weight their mowers can handle. This is particularly important with hydrostatic-driven mowers, Walker says. "You are going to need to look at what the recommendations are for ground engagement," he explains. "A heavy drum-type aerator can take a lot of power and you could be overloading the mower's transmission. These mowers weren't designed for that kind of work."

In addition to performance considerations, contractors also have the option of purchasing attachments from the mower manufacturer or buying the equipment aftermarket. Contractors may want to purchase attachments from the mower manufacturers because they usually know how their equipment works better than anyone else, Walker says. On he other hand, mower manufacturers may not be as focused on attachment capabilities because they're often more concerned with other major features that are more marketable, Andonian says.

If contractors are confused about which route to take, they can get some reassurance on the product's reliability by asking the sales representative for references. "I would encourage that the contractors ask for some referrals by the manufacturer or by the dealer so they can speak with some people who have used these attachments themselves - get them to give some first-hand experience with the use of that attachment on that particular piece of equipment," Walker says. "That would be a really good way to make sure you didn't buy something or make an investment just on talk."

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