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View Full Version : hey guys, new here and wanted to share pics



Grassman177
13-01-2011, 05:12 AM
wanted to show you guys what we got going on here in the dead center of the good ol USA.

if you guys care!!

I will give a short history of our company here.........

It is a father and son operation, since 1981. 30 yrs this year. we have three full maintenance crews, including mine. each crew is like a little business in that it manages 99% of the services for each property on their routes.

we offer mowing, fert and weed, landscape maint/install, irrigation maint and install, shrub and tree spraying, etc.

i enjoy culture very much and thought it would be great to share with you guys and reciprocal likewise! see what you are doing and what we are doing for lawn care and the differences and simlarities.

i will post a bunch of pics 0ver the next several days of our operation, shop, equipment and some work done.

hope you enjoy and look forward to getting to know many of you so far away.

Grassman177
13-01-2011, 05:19 AM
these are pics from last winter and many things have changed. we have a large irrigatio supply shelving row over on the wall where you see the shop furnace up by the ceiling in the corner of the 4th pic.

also, we dont have as many standers, only two now, and went with three new toro grandstands.

our shop is drive thru, and in those pics you can see one outer door by the blade grinder, also gone and a new really sweet one is there now.

this is looking at one side of the shop, pics to follow will show behind the view shown now.

also, you can see in the second pic, a garage door open. this is access to the heated and cooled workshop. in there we have workbenches, lifts, tools, and supplies like oil, filters etc. it is where we do all maintenance. the other half of that side of the building is offices and bathroom. all together the shop measures about 13 x 20 meters.

side to side is the 20 meters, front to back is the 13 meters. split down near the middle front to back.

Grassman177
13-01-2011, 05:27 AM
this is the other side of the shop, behind the views in the other 4 pics.

here is where we usually store the standers and hang up the trimmers, and the shelve holds baggers etc.

all these pictures are in the winter while we were off and there is junk sitting around, never mind that. we were in the process of reorganizing and cleaning.

Grassman177
13-01-2011, 05:30 AM
now here is inside the workshop, i did not get a 360 view, so behind me is the workbenches and shelves with maint supplies like oil and filters.

the upper area above the offices and accessable by ladder in the pics is used for storage of bulk supplies for mowers and trimmers etc.

Grassman177
13-01-2011, 05:32 AM
:flush and finally, the office, ahhaha

Back to Basics
13-01-2011, 06:46 AM
Grassman looks like a well organised and busy operation. One day I may have the same!

Grassman177
13-01-2011, 08:07 AM
are there some pretty large operations in the big cities for lawn care?

i know there is Jims mowing which is a franchise or chain. i have read about it a few times. Does anyone carry long trailers? i mean, here an 18ft trailer is most common, and we have three of those(one enclosed) and mine is a 22ft. that is not common here.

however i like to be able to carry everything i need.

i have even been able to pack on there a kubota l2950 with aerator, a vertislicer, ride on spreader/sprayer, seed, fertilizer, and one or twowalk behind plugger aerators. it is tight, but i have found the way to pack it on there. next year, i will be able to put my seed and fert in the back of our F-350 dually while it can pull that trailer(that truck also has a v10.) with all the same equipment, but more room .

here, we are still considered a small lawn care company, but are getting close to pass the financial mark that would classify us as a medium size lawn care company.

TassieXJ
13-01-2011, 08:41 AM
Nice setup there, lm dreaming of being that size.

I dont know about the mainland, but lm down in tassie, where there is a few business that use car trailer size (around 12foot, i think), with flat bed trucks. But they just look after oval and schools (no cathcher stuff) and big irrigation jobs. i do have some picture of these setups somewhere.

For the smaller work, as far as l know. I have the longest rig in my area. Car Trailer, modifyed to carry two walker mower and a 6 wheel dual cab. Still nowhere your size.

Grassman177
13-01-2011, 09:12 AM
the tazmania, what a kool place> nice to hear from you.

i saw those 6 wheel trucks, crazy. nothing like those here. not powerful enough either.

what is a gallon or 4 liters of gas there right now?

ian
13-01-2011, 11:23 AM
hi grassman and welcome Australia is certainly different to where you are ,with that equipment i would say you would be one of the larger companies around here most of the residential mowing in Australia is done with 19"or 21" push/self propelled mowers with very few people using anything else most ride on work is commercial/industrial

gas/petrol is about $1.22 p/lt due to go up to about $1.35 in the next day or so
note it will go up to $1.35 then drop over the next week then go up again crazy i know but if you time it right it works well

Andy B
13-01-2011, 01:03 PM
Awesome looking set up Grassman! Wow we always say americans do it bigger! What are those two machines with the pale yellow fuel tanks?

BTW, great sense of humor we, a lot of people say their best ideas come from that sort of office. :pop worm

63impala
13-01-2011, 01:31 PM
Wow we always say americans do it bigger! So the girls say lol lol







Awesome looking set up Grassman! Wow we always say americans do it bigger! What are those two machines with the pale yellow fuel tanks?

BTW, great sense of humor we, a lot of people say their best ideas come from that sort of office. :pop worm

Grassman177
13-01-2011, 01:58 PM
hi grassman and welcome Australia is certainly different to where you are ,with that equipment i would say you would be one of the larger companies around here most of the residential mowing in Australia is done with 19"or 21" push/self propelled mowers with very few people using anything else most ride on work is commercial/industrial

gas/petrol is about $1.22 p/lt due to go up to about $1.35 in the next day or so
note it will go up to $1.35 then drop over the next week then go up again crazy i know but if you time it right it works well

thanks, this is awesome.

we manage alot of larger lawns, push mowers are obsolete except where other mowers cant go, which is pretty much never used.

we have one though, a commercial honda.

Grassman177
13-01-2011, 02:01 PM
Awesome looking set up Grassman! Wow we always say americans do it bigger! What are those two machines with the pale yellow fuel tanks?

BTW, great sense of humor we, a lot of people say their best ideas come from that sort of office. :pop worm

i was waiting for someone to ask.

they are ride on sprayer/spreader. awesome machines for volume lawn apps. made of stainless steel, they have boom nozzles, and the yellow tanks are actually the chemical tanks. i will get more pics for you guys.

do any of aussies use ride on application machines other than farmers?

lawns are pretty big in my area, we are the "midwest" and have lots of space to destroy yet with houses:dean:

Grassman177
13-01-2011, 02:09 PM
here are some really crappy photos of the machines.

we have three sizes. the jr, the intermediate, and the max

jr will fit in 36in gates, the intermediate will go through 46in gates and the max is 54 in gates i think.

the booms fold to get through the gates.

each of the two smaller machines with three tanks spray 8ft and spread infinite variable from like 8 ft to 30ft.

you can spread and spray at the same time if you want.

all tanks are separate of each other so you can have different products with you
here is a link to the website for these machines. i mean, i tell you these are built awesome and are very productive.http://www.z-spray.com/

Grassman177
13-01-2011, 02:20 PM
oh, the larger machine has two tanks and sprays 10ft swath

graeme
13-01-2011, 09:52 PM
Hi Grassman, wonderful set up you have there, very professional, I am one of the few here, I think, that rarely uses a walk behind mower, but I live in a country area where a small block is 1/2 acre, most are 2 1/2 to 10, plus I do a fair bit of commercial work, a park, church, cemetary, some schools plus a bit for the local council. I run a 52" Toro ZTR & a 72" Kubota front deck a 18" push & 21" SP Honda.

Graeme

Grassman177
14-01-2011, 03:54 AM
nice machines Graeme(how do you pronounce that by the way?)

we have two toro G3 zmaster mowers, 27hp kawi. these are the ones with the unitized transmission rather than pumps and motors for the drive.

very smooth machine, also very comfy. the cut is amazing.

kubota mowers are tough, suprised you have a front mount but i am sure it is for trim reasons, getting under stuff.

ian
14-01-2011, 06:28 AM
nice machines Graeme(how do you pronounce that by the way?)

we have two toro G3 zmaster mowers, 27hp kawi. these are the ones with the unitized transmission rather than pumps and motors for the drive.

very smooth machine, also very comfy. the cut is amazing.

kubota mowers are tough, suprised you have a front mount but i am sure it is for trim reasons, getting under stuff.

it's another way of spelling Graham [grey am ]

Grassman177
14-01-2011, 08:59 AM
i thought so, but never seen it before. sweet

jas
14-01-2011, 09:22 AM
Great pics! Grassman

You have a great business set up there.

Its always great to see how other countries around the world operate.

I guess most of us contractors down here are owner operators, and have small set ups, which are 1 or 2 man operations.

jas

Grassman177
14-01-2011, 10:38 AM
is that true? mostly small contractors?

here it is common too of course, but businesses like ours are common as well.

in fact, in the large cities, there are very large multi million dollar lawn care businesses with uppwards of 30 mowing crews, 10 or 15 landscape crews and a few irrigtion crews all at the same company.

what about your bug cities, larger mowing operations with bigger mowers on residentials, or only commercials?

SouthCoast Walker
14-01-2011, 04:42 PM
nice machines Graeme(how do you pronounce that by the way?)

we have two toro G3 zmaster mowers, 27hp kawi. these are the ones with the unitized transmission rather than pumps and motors for the drive.

very smooth machine, also very comfy. the cut is amazing.

kubota mowers are tough, suprised you have a front mount but i am sure it is for trim reasons, getting under stuff.

Hey Grassman, Some nice gear you have there, Australia is quiet different as the other guys have already pointed out.
we seem to have heaps and heaps of little 2 or 3 men lawn businesses instead of these massive ones you guys have.

Aussies like their leisure time so I think most of us are happy to make a decent living and keep the stress of a big business and all that goes along with that out of the way.

Can I ask what your experience has been like with the Toro G3's? Had any drama's, problems, things breaking that shouldn't etc? You seem happy with the cut quality.
I am considering trading into one of these at the moment, The aussie version is a bit different to the one you get there, Aussie one has bigger/stronger spindles and a few other small things.

Thanks John.

Andy B
14-01-2011, 05:08 PM
is that true? mostly small contractors?

here it is common too of course, but businesses like ours are common as well.

in fact, in the large cities, there are very large multi million dollar lawn care businesses with uppwards of 30 mowing crews, 10 or 15 landscape crews and a few irrigtion crews all at the same company.

what about your bug cities, larger mowing operations with bigger mowers on residentials, or only commercials?

Personally I don't know any as large as 30 crews but back in Qld, Mark Vinton was getting pretty big before we left there, had loads of equipment from cranes to water tankers all started out as a family tree lopping business I think. There is one garden maintenance company I know of that is national, they target shopping centre management companies and others that are represented nationally.

Grassman177
14-01-2011, 05:54 PM
Hey Grassman, Some nice gear you have there, Australia is quiet different as the other guys have already pointed out.
we seem to have heaps and heaps of little 2 or 3 men lawn businesses instead of these massive ones you guys have.

Aussies like their leisure time so I think most of us are happy to make a decent living and keep the stress of a big business and all that goes along with that out of the way.

Can I ask what your experience has been like with the Toro G3's? Had any drama's, problems, things breaking that shouldn't etc? You seem happy with the cut quality.
I am considering trading into one of these at the moment, The aussie version is a bit different to the one you get there, Aussie one has bigger/stronger spindles and a few other small things.

Thanks John.

with 300hrs or so on them, only thing to go wrong was really workmanship, as in the idler deck pulley and pulley arem on teh rear of the deck cam loose and shot directly up into and pucturing the gas tank!!

there is nothing under the gas tank to prevent this from happening( i think a mild design flaw there, but so it is the same with many brands). this is it though.

everything has been great.

Grassman177
14-01-2011, 05:56 PM
Personally I don't know any as large as 30 crews but back in Qld, Mark Vinton was getting pretty big before we left there, had loads of equipment from cranes to water tankers all started out as a family tree lopping business I think. There is one garden maintenance company I know of that is national, they target shopping centre management companies and others that are represented nationally.

yup, interstesting.

there are many very large companies that are national here in the USA . they also go for large commmercial accounts and branch out from there.

we are the largest here, and the original for our city.

SouthCoast Walker
14-01-2011, 06:19 PM
with 300hrs or so on them, only thing to go wrong was really workmanship, as in the idler deck pulley and pulley arem on teh rear of the deck cam loose and shot directly up into and pucturing the gas tank!!

there is nothing under the gas tank to prevent this from happening( i think a mild design flaw there, but so it is the same with many brands). this is it though.

everything has been great.

Thanks for that, looking at trading my Hustler Z on either the G3 or another Hustler, G3 has a nice warranty at 5 years/1200 hr

VJinTownsville
14-01-2011, 08:18 PM
Just be honest grassman....

YOU WANT TO MOVE TO AUSTRALIA DONT YOU!!

Grassman177
14-01-2011, 08:23 PM
Thanks for that, looking at trading my Hustler Z on either the G3 or another Hustler, G3 has a nice warranty at 5 years/1200 hr

one of the huge reasons we also went with it, as we will sell them before warranty is even up, so definately covered for the life of the machine to us.

we keep machines around for no longer than 1200hrs unless it was repowered recently, but still no longer than about 1400hrs.

Grassman177
14-01-2011, 08:27 PM
:D
Just be honest grassman....

YOU WANT TO MOVE TO AUSTRALIA DONT YOU!!

i kinda sure do man.

but there is other places too!!!!!!

i have this whole notion of where i want to own property if and when i make it very rich:rolleyes:

a few other countries as well.

cant remember if it was this thread i mentioned it, but when i was young, and in the care of my mother, we almost moved to brisbane.

in the end, the big reason it never happened was she was denied visa to obtain a citizenship. dont remember why

Grassman177
14-01-2011, 08:29 PM
how come so many of you dont personalize you avatars?

i find it much more appealing. just for kicks, my avatar is my front lawn. i treated it this year with a year long one app fertilizer. worked totally awesome too

SouthCoast Walker
14-01-2011, 08:37 PM
one of the huge reasons we also went with it, as we will sell them before warranty is even up, so definately covered for the life of the machine to us.

we keep machines around for no longer than 1200hrs unless it was repowered recently, but still no longer than about 1400hrs.

Yeah the warranty is a big selling point for me, how is the 27hp Kohler I would imagine a bit underpowered? I am looking at 29hp or 34hp Kwaka or maybe a diesel kubota.

ian
14-01-2011, 10:24 PM
:D

i kinda sure do man.

but there is other places too!!!!!!

i have this whole notion of where i want to own property if and when i make it very rich:rolleyes:

a few other countries as well.

cant remember if it was this thread i mentioned it, but when i was young, and in the care of my mother, we almost moved to brisbane.

in the end, the big reason it never happened was she was denied visa to obtain a citizenship. dont remember why
was she white and employed this seems to be a good reason not to allow people in :laughing:

Cranbourne Lawnmowing
14-01-2011, 11:04 PM
Gday Grassman. I spend a bit of time on the forum over there and it just blows my mind the size of most operations over there. Huge compared to what we do here. I think the majority of houses here are to small and access is too restricted to use a lot of the machinery you guys have. Personally I would love to get hold of a 32 inch scag but wouldn't be able to get it into most backyards, the access is just too narrow unless they have a garage with a rear roller door.

Grassman177
15-01-2011, 12:05 AM
Yeah the warranty is a big selling point for me, how is the 27hp Kohler I would imagine a bit underpowered? I am looking at 29hp or 34hp Kwaka or maybe a diesel kubota.

not underpowered at all, and it is a 27hp kawi FX series.
remember, it is only a 52 in deck. our 54 in everride warriors(previous mowers these replaced) had the 25 kawi FH series and was not underpowered.

i tell you what underpowered is, that was the wright standers we sold to get the grandstand toros. the wright standers were 48in 17hp kawi. they would work extra hard during peak growth. our new grandstands are 48in, 24hp kawi. huge improvement!

Grassman177
15-01-2011, 12:06 AM
was she white and employed this seems to be a good reason not to allow people in :laughing:

sure was:dance

Grassman177
15-01-2011, 12:14 AM
Gday Grassman. I spend a bit of time on the forum over there and it just blows my mind the size of most operations over there. Huge compared to what we do here. I think the majority of houses here are to small and access is too restricted to use a lot of the machinery you guys have. Personally I would love to get hold of a 32 inch scag but wouldn't be able to get it into most backyards, the access is just too narrow unless they have a garage with a rear roller door.

that sucks man, but, then again, your properties are not all that big, so i guess it works out kinda.

surely not all lawns are that way? i mean, what would you say the average homeowner in the average Australian city has as far as lot size, or lawn size?

the older homes here have much smaller lawns, depending on when they were built. when times were tough, they built more smaller houses on smaller lots. most of those are not our customers, as they have been passed down to the poorest folk. but, there are some where yes, our mowers do not fit. and we dont do those lawns cause folks dont want to pay for the time involved compared to using our bigger mowers.

it of course depends on where you live.

in California for example, everything is postal stamp size, small and tight. there, push mowers or reel mowers( i think you call them cylinder mowers) are used much more frequently.

here in the Midwest though where i am, most lawns are open and there is ample space still between you and your neighbors!

Cranbourne Lawnmowing
15-01-2011, 12:26 AM
The area I work majority of lawns are less than 850 metre blocks. So take out the house size and garden beds and it doesn't leave much. A lot of houses are butted up against one another as well.

Just to give you an idea of size, my front yard ( which I would charge $25 for,) edging and mowing, takes 12 min.

Most of us for domestic mowing use rotary mowers. For bigger properties ride on mowers start to come into play.

Different areas call for different equipment. Just like over there but tight little blocks seem to becoming the in thing these days

Grassman177
15-01-2011, 12:36 AM
i can see of course the reaso to use the tools you do.

the right too for the job is important. there is nothing wrong with doing it that way either, dont want anyone to get the wrong idea bout me!

you can make out well doing it anyway you do it aslong as you know how to run a business!

i admire your guys indiviuality

SouthCoast Walker
15-01-2011, 06:41 PM
not underpowered at all, and it is a 27hp kawi FX series.
remember, it is only a 52 in deck. our 54 in everride warriors(previous mowers these replaced) had the 25 kawi FH series and was not underpowered.

i tell you what underpowered is, that was the wright standers we sold to get the grandstand toros. the wright standers were 48in 17hp kawi. they would work extra hard during peak growth. our new grandstands are 48in, 24hp kawi. huge improvement!

Thats interesting, the 27hp version here is a kohler and 60", the 54" deck has a 25hp Kohler. I will probably go a 60" with either the 29 or 34hp (I want the 34hp but the price rises substantially) but I need some grunt, I hate underpowered mowers, cars, bikes etc. Also toying with the idea of a 72" deck

Grassman177
16-01-2011, 05:34 AM
i hate underpowered equipment also.

here, our G3 toro zmazsters are 52inch, do you really have a 54inch deck offered there. toro as far as i know does not make such a size.

i would love a fleet of 72 inch mowers when we replace our kubota 326 60in diesels. i only use them on large places now and it makes sense if that is the only place to get the biggest mowers i can to increase productivity. only thing is , the cost is substantailly higher for them over the 60in.

i am sure the newer kohler engines are pretty good, but we had some back in the day that were horrible and since then we go out of our way to get kawi or honda.

are the toros you guys have assembled there, or are the shipped from here? i ask as i wonder if they put kohler on them to help support american comapnies. just a radam thought i had.

SouthCoast Walker
16-01-2011, 08:09 AM
Sorry I did mean 52" was getting confused with my hustler 54".

They are assembled over there and shipped in already built, there is $1000 price difference between 60" and 72"

Over here we have what is called the Toro G3 performance which is the same spec machine as you guys get except with the Kohler 27hp then there is the G3 high performance which has bigger spindles, different seat, z stand and 29 or 34hp Kwaka and is $4000 more expensive for the 29hp and a further $2500 more for the 34hp.

Grassman177
16-01-2011, 08:29 AM
wow, huge difference man. that makes a mower with the more hp way more $$$. what does a toro g3 high performance with the 29hp engine run on average there?

SouthCoast Walker
16-01-2011, 02:12 PM
wow, huge difference man. that makes a mower with the more hp way more $$$. what does a toro g3 high performance with the 29hp engine run on average there?

The high performance 29hp Kwaka 60" is $16,995 list price, 34hp is $19,495, 25hp kubota diesel is $22,995

Grassman177
16-01-2011, 04:14 PM
you can get a kubota engine on a toro G3? if so, i need a pic of that. i would love that. dream mower almost.

SouthCoast Walker
16-01-2011, 05:49 PM
you can get a kubota engine on a toro G3? if so, i need a pic of that. i would love that. dream mower almost.

Its called the Z Master Z580-D its a 25hp kubota, http://www.toro.com/professional/lce/zmaster/z593/74267.html
You can also get a 28hp and 35hp Kubota on the groundsmaster 7200/7210

Grassman177
16-01-2011, 06:47 PM
oh, ok, yeah, it is not a G3. that is why i was confused. it is a regular zmaster. those are great machines, though for you rediculously overpriced.

hech, i can get our kubota 326 ztrs for less than 12 grand

so cool.

Grassman177
22-01-2011, 09:28 AM
we finally got the magna matic station all set up.

we built a blade shelving unit for each type of mower, and incorporated the vacuum into the shelf(it is a wall mount type and is mounted in there).

also, the light, sharpener and vacuum are all plugged into an industrial power strip and then can be all turned on at the flip of one switch!

i have been going nuts too trying to organize even more than we are by labeling eveything. here is our shop tool box and i reoqrganized all the tools and then labeled the drawers so ther eis not any searching or wondering where to put it back!

Grassman177
22-01-2011, 09:31 AM
also, here is pic of our power barrow. it is a honda powered wheel barrow, with dump. very handy.

a pic of one of our toro g3 mowers

and all the irrigation stock all reorganized on new shelves.makes it more easy to find what you need when you dont have to dig thru anything

danz
22-01-2011, 11:17 PM
G'day Grassman great pictures, most residential lawns in Australia would not be able to fit any of your machines in there yard alot of people have a front fence to there front yard then another fence into a backyard most times with a little annoying gate oh and gardens,rocks,trees,all that stuff etc plus the terrian can be quite rough here but in saying that some of the bigger flatter lawns i do i would love to own one of them machines... Hey just wondering are you on the whiz you type alot "jokes"... What mowers do you like the best? do you have a favourite one?....

Grassman177
23-01-2011, 02:15 AM
sorry, i dont understand the jokes and whiz comment. i do however type alot. i guess i have alot to say!! always have!

mowers i like the best was my wright standers, but switching over to the toro grandstands. they have a better cut and more comfy.

Mrs HMS
03-07-2011, 01:47 PM
Hey Grassman, my friend in Iowa just sent me pics of the Missouri River threatening to swallow her town. Leavenworth is on the Missouri isn't it? Are you experiencing any flooding at the moment.

We've had our fair share here in Australia this year but OMG, there is just so much water there at the moment it's amazing.

http://www.hamburgreporter.com/newsnow/x1722636878/Photo-gallery-Missouri-River-flooding-2011-Aerial-photos-added?foto=0&page=0

AJD Mowing
03-07-2011, 02:57 PM
Hi Grassman your business is very impresive I have never seen a set up like that thanks for sharing.. You would have to have a full time service worker in your work shop would you not? or do you all your crews take half a day each week to service your gear?

Grassman177
04-07-2011, 11:25 PM
Hey Grassman, my friend in Iowa just sent me pics of the Missouri River threatening to swallow her town. Leavenworth is on the Missouri isn't it? Are you experiencing any flooding at the moment.

We've had our fair share here in Australia this year but OMG, there is just so much water there at the moment it's amazing.

http://www.hamburgreporter.com/newsnow/x1722636878/Photo-gallery-Missouri-River-flooding-2011-Aerial-photos-added?foto=0&page=0

yes, we are on the river and it is swelling and and flooding. all of our riverfront park areas are under feet of water, and the levees for the farm feilds are about to be breached! crazy thing is, we have had a very dry year here and the rain that is causing all this flooding is from up north of us in the country.

thanks for you concerns! if i was not so lazy, i might get some pics for you guys to see since i am off work for the 4th of july celebrations!

Grassman177
04-07-2011, 11:27 PM
Hi Grassman your business is very impresive I have never seen a set up like that thanks for sharing.. You would have to have a full time service worker in your work shop would you not? or do you all your crews take half a day each week to service your gear?

thanks man, appreciate the kind words.

service to equipment is perfomed by the crew leaders of each crew(myself included). most times it is done before of after the crew workers come in or go home, or on rain days. not too bad to do that way, but it is a lot of equipment. we are adding an other crew next season, this season we have a part time guy going out and doing jobs too other than mowing and fertilizing.