Grass Cutting Equipment | Gardening Central

Grass Cutting Equipment: Basic Facts to Know

When you are doing your lawn maintenance and grass cutting, equipment choice can make a world of difference. There are many types of mowers available today, and the right choice of mower can make your task a lot easier.

Walk Behind Mowers are a lower cost type of grass cutting equipment, and they are easily transported and easy to maneuver in tight places. Some important considerations when looking for a walk behind mower include the following:

Self-propelled or push – Two types of drives are available in walk behind mowers. Push mowers are propelled by the force of the person physically moving the mower. Self-propelled mowers move under the force of the mower’s engine. Push mowers are less costly, but they require more physical labor to use than the self-propelled mowers. Self-propelled mowers can be difficult to maneuver in some cases, and they may not move at the rate the user desires. Some self-propelled mowers now, though, have an adjustable rate of speed that moves at the pace of the person.
Horsepower – The more horsepower a mower has, the more easily it will cut through thick or overgrown grass. If a mower does not have enough horsepower, it will not effectively cut the grass and may require a second cutting for missed blades.
Discharge – The type of discharge is a matter of personal preference. Some people prefer to mulch the grass and return it to the yard, where it will become fertilizer. Others prefer a bagging mower, although this requires you to dispose of the clippings. Side discharge mowers are the least expensive walk behind mower type, and the grass clippings are expelled through a chute on the side of the mower, and they will lie on top of the grass nearby.
Engine type – Walk behind mowers can have gas, electric, or no engine at all. Gas engines are the most powerful available, and they are the most popular type of engine. Electric mowers have gained in popularity in recent years due in part to skyrocketing gasoline prices. Electric mowers may either be corded or cordless. They are not as powerful as gas mowers, but they are silent and relatively inexpensive to run. Rotary mowers do not have an engine at all, and they use a cutting, rotating blade. These were the only option for many years, until the gasoline powered mower became popular, and they are seeing a reemergence today due to the low cost of upkeep and the green movement. They are more difficult to use when the blades become dull or when the grass is thick or stemmy.

Riding mowers are the best choice of grass cutting equipment for large yards. A variety of options are available for riding mowers as well:

Turning – Traditional turning and zero turning radius mowers are available. Zero turning radius mowers are most useful when you have a number of items to mow around in your yard. However, they are more expensive than the traditional turning mowers.

Transmission type – Mowers are available with a variety of transmission types. Like vehicles designed for the road, mowers come in automatic and 5-speed manual transmission types. Hydro-automatic transmissions are also available, in which the user does not need to shift between forward and reverse. Rather, a pedal is pushed to engage forward or reverse.
Cutting width – The larger the area you need to mow, the wider you will want your mower deck to be. A wider mower deck means that you will have to make less passes on the mower, and consequently, it will take you less time to mow your yard.

With all of the options available in grass cutting equipment today, it is easy to become confused as a consumer. With a little bit of knowledge about what you want and need, you can make the task of mowing your lawn much easier.