Mowed yard, now want a zero turn, too many trees and bushes (spouse, separate)

[TMSRetired]

I had a JD Z-425 and loved it. Made mowing so much easier due to the zero turn. No more wide turns and loops to get into stuff. It's really amazing how accurate you can get once you get the hang of it.

If you have 6 acres to mow then a zero turn will definitely cut down on your mowing time.

[Arktikos]

If you're loaded consider the commercial grade mowers from Skag or Hustler.

My inclination is for more grow and less mow in the future.

[Cabound1]

Gardener. $75/mo.

[ohio_peasant]

Zero-turns are not advisable on uneven terrain (rutted, hilly, ...) or ground that's stump-ridden. They entail regularly tending to the grass, lest the vegetation get too "wild" and too coarse. A "bush hog" is suggested for such circumstances, but those things are ungainly, and tend to require large tractors, which can't pass underneath the lower branches of mature trees.

In sum, this is actually an acute and thorny (pun intended) problem. I'm surprised that the market hasn't offered a credible solution. It would, I think, ideally be a small (<1500 pounds) but powerful (>30 hp) vehicle with 4WD (all four tires could be locked together), large-travel suspension, a full cage protecting the driver, and a front-mounted mowing implement that's robust to stumps, rocks, downed tree-trunks and the like. Cutting-swath need only be around 4'. The vehicle should be capable of decent top-speed (30 mph?), though top mowing-speed might only be 10 mph. The vehicle should have a winch for extracting itself from troublesome situations, and perhaps a lexan windshield and side-guards to protect the occupant from thorns, poison ivy, ticks and the like. So, basically a combination of a bulldozer and an ATV.

[StealthRabbit]

Originally Posted by Cabound1

Gardener. $75/mo.

6 acres = 4 hrs / week = 16.3 Hrs / month = $4.62 / hr + gas and depreciation.

Let's say a Zero saves 1 hr / week (likely)
$4200 for a Zero
7yr depreciation (mowing 6 month / yr = 513hrs mowing in 7 yrs @ 3hr / week) = $8.18 / hr for full depreciation of capital cost ONLY.

$8.18 machine depreciation only +fuel and maint and storage. - ~$12/ hr (approximation guess)

option...
If you have income property (or a business use for Zero (mowing ALL the neighborhood)).
Wait till the end-of-yr sales, and get a ZERO interest loan on a new Zero Turn, and take a section 179 accelerated depreciation deduction. (up to $1m). Great idea for a high tax yr. such as ...Severance pay, Roth roll, short term gains, inheritance, win BIG at casino...


Justification?
very possible (if you have also recently remodeled the Kitchen, bath, sewing room... Happy wife, happy life...)

Option... push mower ~ 20 hrs / week.

Cardiac improvement
or
Cardiac arrest.

The choice (? chance...) is not always clear when you first start.

(I would buy the Zero (and more Ice Cream) if I only knew my dod (Date of Demise))

If I croak early DW gets to add the Zero to the Estate sale! but..she will have to 'recapture' the depreciation.

[Dustyroad70]

Originally Posted by StealthRabbit

6 acres = 4 hrs / week = 16.3 Hrs / month = $4.62 / hr + gas and depreciation.

Let's say a Zero saves 1 hr / week (likely)
$4200 for a Zero
7yr depreciation (mowing 6 month / yr = 513hrs mowing in 7 yrs @ 3hr / week) = $8.18 / hr for full depreciation of capital cost ONLY.

$8.18 machine depreciation only +fuel and maint and storage. - ~$12/ hr (approximation guess)

option...
If you have income property (or a business use for Zero (mowing ALL the neighborhood)).
Wait till the end-of-yr sales, and get a ZERO interest loan on a new Zero Turn, and take a section 179 accelerated depreciation deduction. (up to $1m). Great idea for a high tax yr. such as ...Severance pay, Roth roll, short term gains, inheritance, win BIG at casino...


Justification?
very possible (if you have also recently remodeled the Kitchen, bath, sewing room... Happy wife, happy life...)

Option... push mower ~ 20 hrs / week.

Cardiac improvement
or
Cardiac arrest.

The choice (? chance...) is not always clear when you first start.

(I would buy the Zero (and more Ice Cream) if I only knew my dod (Date of Demise))

If I croak early DW gets to add the Zero to the Estate sale! but..she will have to 'recapture' the depreciation.

I am very impressed with your typing skills? or you have a lot of patience and free time? Anyway, very good entertainment and food for thought.

[rodentraiser]

Invite the neighborhood kids to drive their ATVs over it and make a racetrack. No mowing necessary. And then there's always goats. They'll fertilize, too. Or you could fence it out and rent it to someone with horses for a year.

But don't listen to me - I'm totally lazy. I plan to plant my own lot in stages and until I do, most of it is going to be meadow grass with wildflowers. Wagons ho!

[bobspez]

My gardening crew uses two zero turn mowers. They mow 1/3 of an acre in less than a half hour. Costs $40 every two weeks or about $500 for the summer. I'm 72 and stopped maintaining the yard by myself about 4 years ago. I also pay this crew to remove leaves and blow out the gutters in the fall and remove snow from the walk and driveway. Total cost is about $1,000 a year.

[ohio_peasant]

Originally Posted by rodentraiser

Invite the neighborhood kids to drive their ATVs over it and make a racetrack. No mowing necessary. And then there's always goats. They'll fertilize, too. Or you could fence it out and rent it to someone with horses for a year.

But don't listen to me - I'm totally lazy. I plan to plant my own lot in stages and until I do, most of it is going to be meadow grass with wildflowers. Wagons ho!

This is excellent advice, but there are implementation-costs... in particular, fencing. As with most things, it helps to have good rapport with neighbors. Then animals could graze freely across property lines, minimizing the cost/labor of fencing, and sharing the chores of upkeep.

The problem with ATVs is that even with the best of intentions, certain specific paths get chosen, leading to ruts, which render it all the more problematic to run a conventional mower.

[NewbieHere]

I’d get a cow. Might as well get the free milk with it.