How wide should my mower deck be? I consider some factors before I can buy a riding lawn mower.
One important factor is the cutting deck size. What cutting deck size is required for your lawn?
The answer to this question is not just dependent on the amount of grass that you plan to mow.
Before making a decision on the riding mower you want to get, you need to make sure that you have an adequate storage space to contain a riding mower with the deck width you have chosen.
Other things to consider include:
Lawn Size:
A larger lawn will require a cutting deck size that has a wider cutting deck size. With this, you can easily make fewer passes across the lawn. This not only saves time but also energy.
Before getting a riding mower, you must consider the size of your lawn. If your lawn is small, consider getting a mower with a small cutting deck size.
For instance, a deck size of 40 inches would be ideal for a ½-acre lawn. For lawns that are about ½ to 2 acres, a cutting deck size that is 42-48 inches wide would be suitable.
A cutting deck size that is at least 50 inches wide would best fit a lawn that is 3 acres or more.
Time Factor
Time factor simply explains the amount of time taken to finish the job. With a cutting deck that mows a wider strip of grass, the time spent on mowing will be reduced drastically.
According to one mower manufacturer, a 52-inch deck mounted on a standard garden tractor has been estimated to mow about 1 acre of lawn in 1 hour.
With a 46-inch deck, you can greatly reduce the time spent in mowing that same lawn by 10%. A cutting deck size of 50 inches would reduce the time spent by about 17% making your job Busch faster and giving you time to drool over the new look of your lawn.
Smaller Deck Plus More Horsepower
Although a larger deck can greatly contribute to a reduction in the mowing time, this is not always the case. Using a wider deck in a small lawn or a lawn that has many obstacles such as trees and flowerbeds closely spaced can have you backing up the riding mower a lot to make tighter turns.
You should opt for a riding mower that has a smaller deck if your lawn has many landscape features. This will make it much easier for you to go through the obstacles even though you may not be able to cut a lot of grass in a single swath.
Despite this, you can still speed up the mowing process once you place the smaller deck with a larger horsepower engine. With more horsepower, you can get more ground speed and spend less time mowing.
Mower Type
While the deck width affects how fast you can mow your lawn, the type of riding mower that the deck has been mounted on also influences this.
With slopes greater than 10° on your lawn, slowing considerably will be required using a zero turn radius mower. A good amount of weight is on the rear wheels, which steer the style of the machine, and this can cause difficulties in controlling the mower when trying to move downhill.
Slowing the deck is very important regardless of whether or not your deck is narrow or wide. This provides safety and may lead to longer time spent in mowing.
Blade Tip Speed, Deck Depth, and Mower Blades Affect Quality of Cut
The quality of cut in a mower is affected by:
- blade tip speed,
- deck depth and
- lawn mower blades
The reason fabricated decks give a better cut than stamped decks is because the depth of the deck is deeper and this provides a better life of the grass.
High lift blades spinning at W speed of about 18,500 fpm alongside the depth produces the best results in cutting. The depth is f the deck creates a suction, which teams up with the high loft blades to stand the grass tall.
Afterwards, the mower blade passes to accurately cut the grass.
Zero-Turn Mower Dimensions
Similar to many riding lawn mowers, the dimensions of a zero-turn mower is about 4 feet in height, 6 feet in length, and 4 feet in width on average.
The major disparity is in the fact that some are produced with larger cutting decks. An example is the zero turn mower deck sizes ranging between 54-72 inches. A non-commercial riding lawn mower or lawn tractor with a deck size as large as this is impossible to find.
A good thing, however, is that they can be used in different types of yards since there is a big range of zero turn lawn mower deck sizes,
For instance, 36-54 inches zero turn lawn mowers can be used in yards of the same area as riding mowers. With lawns that are over 4 acres, a zero turn mower width ranging between 54-72 inches is simply ideal and highly recommended.
FAQs
How wide should my mower deck be?
The width of your mower deck can be determined by the size of your lawn. A small ⅓ acre lawn requires a suitable cutting deck size of 40 inches or lesser.
For a lawn that is about ½ to 2 acres, 42-49 inches would be appropriate. Larger lawns of about 3 acres and more should have a cutting deck size of at least 50 inches.
Do smaller mower decks cut better?
Smaller lawn mowers usually leave a more even cut as they make use of one blade rather than the multiple blades in larger mowers. On the engine, the horsepower will give about 3600 rpms.
Is the 54 inch deck too big?
The deck size needed for your lawn should be suitable for the size of your lawn. If you have a lawn of up to 5 acres, a 54-inch deck is quite appropriate.However, with a lawn of 2.5 to 3 acres, you can opt for a 48-inch mowing deck instead.
Finally, if you don’t have idea the model to buy, consult a professional who can decide if 54 inch deck is suitable or too big for your yard.