During the busy season, downtime is lost revenue, so it’s important to keep up on the basic maintenance needs of your mowers. From increased productivity and efficiency to maximized reliability and long-term durability, the benefits of properly maintaining your mowers are many.
It’s important to consult your mower owner’s manual for specific maintenance guidelines and timelines. For most commercial mowers however, the following list includes the most important and impactful maintenance items.
1. Sharpen Cutting Blades
Keep mower blades sharp and balanced to ensure they deliver maximum quality of cut. Dull blades rip and tear blades of grass in a jagged manner instead of making a clean cut. This can cause browning at the tips, adversely affecting the visual appeal of your lawn, as well as the health of the grass itself. 
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2. Change Oil and Filters
Verify engine and hydro transmission oil changes are being performed at the proper intervals and perform the service if necessary. Oil is the lifeblood of your mower’s engine, and failure to perform oil changes at the recommended intervals reduces its performance, lifespan and resale value.
3. Use Grease with Caution
Check the operator’s manual to see which parts of the mower should be greased. Keeping the right parts greased is an important step in extending the life of your mower. Be sure to wipe away excess grease with a rag so it doesn’t attract more dirt to the parts you just greased.
4. Clean or Replace Air and Fuel Filters
Check the air filter (inner and outer) and change it if necessary. Never use compressed air to clean a dirty air filter. The powerful air stream can compromise its ability to effectively filter air coming into the engine. By keeping your air filter clean, you’ll get increased performance and longer engine life from your mower. Also, consider changing the fuel filter. Consult your owner’s manual for the recommended replacement interval for the fuel filter of your machines and replace them if necessary.
5. Check and Replace Spark Plugs
Check spark plugs and replace any plugs that are dirty or malfunctioning. Properly functioning spark plugs are absolutely essential to the performance and reliability of your mower engines, so if there’s any question about the viability of a spark plug, go ahead and replace it. 
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6. Check and Replace Belts
Many commercial mowers use serpentine belts to drive the cutting deck and/or ground drive systems. Check all deck and ground drive belts for wear or cracking and replace as needed. An ounce of prevention is priceless, as a broken belt in the field can take a mower out of service for the day, reducing crew productivity.
7. Clean with Compressed Air
Minimize the use of water when cleaning your mower to avoid moisture-related corrosion problems. Instead, use compressed air to blow debris off the machine:
- Remove the belt deck belt shields and blow out any foreign material that has accumulated.
- Blow debris from the areas around the pumps and wheel motors, as foreign material can lead to overheated hydro oil, which in-turn can compromise component life.
- Blow compressed air through the openings in and around the console. You may need to remove the console mounting screws to completely remove the debris from this area.
- On mowers with air-cooled engines, use compressed air to blow out any debris that may have collected in the engine’s blower housing, or between the cooling fins.
8. Check Fasteners, Hardware, Wires and Hoses
Use a torque wrench to verify torque on wheel motor castle nut and tire mounting lug nuts is sufficient. Consult your owner’s manual for proper torque specifications.
Check for loose hardware, wires or hoses and secure as necessary. If you have any questions about the safety or security of your mower, visit your local dealer and let them help you make sure everything is in order.
9. Inflate Tires to Proper Pressure
The safety and performance of your mowers depend on tires being inflated to the proper pressure. Check the inflation pressure of each tire with a gauge and add air to any underinflated tires. Pay attention to tire pressure balance from side-to-side, as mower tracking and handling can be affected by a pressure imbalance.
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Tips for Pros Maintaining Mower Fleets
Contractors can gain efficiencies in employee training by standardizing the equipment they use. Each brand does things slightly differently with respect to design philosophy, including placement and operation of controls, parking brakes and other mechanical components. Going with one brand makes it easier to train new employees, as there are fewer variables between machines, and more consistencies in machine controls, operation and maintenance needs.
On the service side, contractors can reduce the number of spare parts they need to stock by standardizing their machines with respect to deck sizes and powerplant options. This also makes it easier for technicians to service the machines, as there are fewer variances in service routines and intervals.
There’s nothing worse than getting to a job and realizing a mower is out of commission. It’s time and money lost, which is why a focus on proper mower maintenance is so important. By taking the time to maintain your mowers, you can ensure your season is productive, efficient and most importantly, profitable.
