Small Sit On Lawn Mowers

[scbk]

You can get robotic mowers that can cut an area up to 75,000 square metres totally by itself with no human input, running at set times and charging when it needs it.

Obviously anything electric costs money to run, but it's cheaper than petrol. For a while I was using a mower that went though about 40l of petrol per day, and last year that was £2/litre!

What's your budget, a quick look on ebay shows used stigas at £1-3k, diesel ones aswell if you want lower running costs


With collecting mowers, the basic ones will dump the grass cuttings just on the ground when you empty the box, so you will often have to go back and shovel the grass into a pile or compost bin by hand, unless you've a bank you can tip it off.

 

[lostinthelight]

Anyone needing to cut rough steep ground would be hard pressed to find much better than a Countax fitted with a high grass mulching deck, leave a nice finish on shorter grass too

 

[Hysteresis]

Anyone needing to cut rough steep ground would be hard pressed to find much better than a Countax fitted with a high grass mulching deck, leave a nice finish on shorter grass too

I am not a fan of Mulching. My experience is that the grass cuttings rots down and feed the lawn, but inevitably the lawn end up heavily choked with thatch which on a large lawn is a nightmare and damn hard work even with an electric scarifier to get rid of. Also mulching re-seeds all of the lawn weed seeds so a heavily weed lawn is the result. This can be controlled with lawn weed and feed but again an expensive solution. I have had more success recycling the grass cuttings when collecting them in the cutting process.
Maybe I am doing it all wrong.!!!!!!!

 

[Hysteresis]

I have a mountfield 827H compact ride on and mow a lawn that is of a similar size to yours. Its been totally reliable and is easy to drive.

Make sure you have a way of emptying the grass collector though. Its designed to be tipped out whilst your still on the mower if you a suitable area to dump your cuttings, or you can lift it off and tip the cuttings into a bin. However, the collector is large (which makes cutting the lawn so much faster) and its quite heavy and unwieldy.

Hi Lower,
Its been 4 months since I posted for advice on Lawn Mowers. After you reply, I purchased a New Mountfield 827H from a local agricultural Equipment Dealer. Demonstrated on delivery and all good. I used it for 15 minutes and stopped to empty the collector. The Mower would not start after that and only the Solenoid pulling in but no Starter motor rotation. Low battery I thought, so recharged. after 24 hrs restarted twice then the same failure to start. The story is a long one with which I will not bore you, the result after 4 months of trying to get an acceptable repair the damn thing is going back to the supplier for Full Refund. The point of my mail is to ask you how many starts you get from a full battery charge and have you had any problems of perceived starter motor seizure as that is what the dealer had diagnosed. The second Starter motor failed in an identical manner so I am certain the problem is NOT the starter motor. Another symptom is that if I fully recharge the battery the only response from the mower is the starter solenoid energises but no response from the starter motor even on a fully charged battery. Then with no other load being placed on the battery, after 24 hours I get no response from even the solenoid. There is something fundamentally wrong with the mower electrical system, maybe a drain on the battery with everything switched Off.
I suspect these symptoms are not what you are experiencing ?? Also, how many starts do you get from a fully charged battery? Mountfield tell me that users only charge their batteries once every 3-4 months but clearly this is not my experience.
I am now considering a Husqvarna Robot Mower, but reading the details their are some serious operation issues to consider. I therefore am considering a Stga Sit On or even a Mountfield 13 series mower as these charge the battery when operation similar to a car..
Can you or anyone else who maybe reads this posting give me any advice to help on Sit On or Robotic Mower selections

 

[Lower]

Hi Lower,
Its been 4 months since I posted for advice on Lawn Mowers. After you reply, I purchased a New Mountfield 827H from a local agricultural Equipment Dealer. Demonstrated on delivery and all good. I used it for 15 minutes and stopped to empty the collector. The Mower would not start after that and only the Solenoid pulling in but no Starter motor rotation. Low battery I thought, so recharged. after 24 hrs restarted twice then the same failure to start. The story is a long one with which I will not bore you, the result after 4 months of trying to get an acceptable repair the damn thing is going back to the supplier for Full Refund. The point of my mail is to ask you how many starts you get from a full battery charge and have you had any problems of perceived starter motor seizure as that is what the dealer had diagnosed. The second Starter motor failed in an identical manner so I am certain the problem is NOT the starter motor. Another symptom is that if I fully recharge the battery the only response from the mower is the starter solenoid energises but no response from the starter motor even on a fully charged battery. Then with no other load being placed on the battery, after 24 hours I get no response from even the solenoid. There is something fundamentally wrong with the mower electrical system, maybe a drain on the battery with everything switched Off.
I suspect these symptoms are not what you are experiencing ?? Also, how many starts do you get from a fully charged battery? Mountfield tell me that users only charge their batteries once every 3-4 months but clearly this is not my experience.
I am now considering a Husqvarna Robot Mower, but reading the details their are some serious operation issues to consider. I therefore am considering a Stga Sit On or even a Mountfield 13 series mower as these charge the battery when operation similar to a car..
Can you or anyone else who maybe reads this posting give me any advice to help on Sit On or Robotic Mower selections

It’s interesting that you’ve posted this, because I’ve replaced my battery twice, thinking that I’ve overcharged it and killed it. After a few starts my mower will sometimes struggle to turn over and start. Leaving it for a few seconds and then trying again normally results in it starting and then it runs perfectly.

I probably get 10-15 starts from the battery before I have to recharge it. Thinking about it now, it may well be the starter motor seizing, or starting to.

 

[Hysteresis]

It’s interesting that you’ve posted this, because I’ve replaced my battery twice, thinking that I’ve overcharged it and killed it. After a few starts my mower will sometimes struggle to turn over and start. Leaving it for a few seconds and then trying again normally results in it starting and then it runs perfectly.

I probably get 10-15 starts from the battery before I have to recharge it. Thinking about it now, it may well be the starter motor seizing, or starting to.

WOW, that is a very interesting reply. I personally dont think the Starter Motor is the issue with my machine, after all, a Starter motor has only a couple of bearing to seize and certainly, two New Starter Motors will not seize in an identical manner. My thoughts are that if it is starter motor related, then maybe the mechanism that engages the starter motor to the engine starter gear ring could be sticking. The reason I think that is that it may be the issue is that if the starter motor drive mechanism was stuck into the engine starter Gear ring then the motor would not have the rotational inertia to rotate the engine when attempting a start, the result would be an effective Short Circuit through the starter motor Armature commutator which would undoubtably drain the battery. After saying that, my latest experience is that even with the starter sequence not being used, after a full charge the solenoid will not even energise. I therefore conclude I have a machine with a fundamental electrical System and combined Starter gear fault. I was considering getting a Stiga as a replacement machine, but Stiga and Mountfield are the same company.
Completely confused as what to do. I have thought of an Husqvarna Robot thingy, but there are issues with such devices regarding lawn debrid such as tree branches/Twigs/Acorns that are always appearing on my lawn and Robot mowers can't cope with them and also you have to use a conventional mower at the start of the mowing season and always have a conventional mower available to trim the lawn edges and a strimmer to trim the lawn edges all of which defeats the object of a Robot Mower.
Why is Life so Complicated?????

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

I probably get 10-15 starts from the battery before I have to recharge it. Thinking about it now, it may well be the starter motor seizing, or starting to.

There is something very wrong there. You should not need to recharge it as a matter of course. Once you start the engine, the alternator should be recharging the battery. Check the voltage with the engine running, it should be higher than 14v. Less than 13v and it is not being recharged.

Mine obviously only gets used in the summer, during the winter it just sits there and I do nothing special. Come the spring, I crank it over and it starts every time, as it has done for years.

 

[Lower]

There is something very wrong there. You should not need to recharge it as a matter of course. Once you start the engine, the alternator should be recharging the battery. Check the voltage with the engine running, it should be higher than 14v. Less than 13v and it is not being recharged.

Mine obviously only gets used in the summer, during the winter it just sits there and I do nothing special. Come the spring, I crank it over and it starts every time, as it has done for years.

On small ride on mowers like these, there is no alternator. The battery provides the power for the spark.

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

On small ride on mowers like these, there is no alternator. The battery provides the power for the spark.

Ok, but seems a bit odd for there not to be a way to recharge the battery. Even the smallest of mopeds, include some means to charge the battery.

 

[Hysteresis]

Ok, but seems a bit odd for there not to be a way to recharge the battery. Even the smallest of mopeds, include some means to charge the battery.

Yes, It's called a Battery Charger, Supplied complete with the Mountfield 827H Lawn Mower.
As Hany Boomfied Said, The 827H has no Alternator !!!!!

 

[lostinthelight]

Temperarly bypass all other wiring and interlocks by momentarily jumping a wire between battery positive and solenoid switch terminal.... make sure nothing us engaged first.

 

[Burnerman]

I don't get this....are you absolutely certain this machine doesn't have battery charging coils beneath the flywheel of the engine?
There should be a small yellow charging LED somewhere which glows when the battery is charging.
The battery charger is an optional extra when new - unless as part of the deal of course.
John

 

[Hysteresis]

Temperarly bypass all other wiring and interlocks by momentarily jumping a wire between battery positive and solenoid switch terminal.... make sure nothing us engaged first.

Can't see the point in that test, There is power getting to the solenoid as it is pulling in with a Battery fully charged. The symptoms are that the battery seems to be discharging without any load being demanded from it, hence my suggestion of an unidentified battery drain with all systems isolated.
If I start messing around with the wiring and such, I will be in danger of invalidating the warranty.

 

[Hysteresis]

I don't get this....are you absolutely certain this machine doesn't have battery charging coils beneath the flywheel of the engine?
There should be a small yellow charging LED somewhere which glows when the battery is charging.
The battery charger is an optional extra when new - unless as part of the deal of course.
John

Absolutely certain the machine does NOT have an alternator for recharging the battery, hence the requirement for a battery charge using and external battery charger, which is supplied with the machine. As 'Lower' has pointed out, he gets about 15 starts from a single battery charge. This is usually sufficient for a couple of lawn cuts. Not a good design admittedly, but it gets the manufacturing costs down. An unacceptable design in my experience, but my experience is the machine is unusable due to an inability to start even from a full battery charge and is being returned for a full refund.
Potential purchasers of the Mountfield 827H, Beware.

 

[Burnerman]

OK I can't comment for certain but all ride on machines I've ever come across have a charging system. I can't find a full spec sheet either.
All Mountfields do come with a battery charging point though, a two pin non reversible socket which has a round and flat locator to prevent incorrect connection.
John