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I am currently working out of a Ford F-250 and for the past two years been bagging everything. This sucks especially with fall cleanups, very time consuming. I am thinking of putting in sideboards and just loading leaves in loose. Will this save a lot of time? Will I be able to haul as many leaves(they are compressed in the bags)? Will a tarp work for fast unloads or is the load too great. I'm talking about one 10 hour day of leaves.
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Paul Avelli
Avelli & Sons Landscaping -
That will help with unloading and your local law enforment officer may issue you a summons for failure to secure a load.
I would see about sides and atleast tarping the top, or a full enclosure and a leaf loader which would save you a ton of time and the reduction of the leaf matter would allow you to haul a lot more at once.
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Without a proper leaf vac/hopper set-up, your best course of action is to grind the leaves to dust w/properly equipped mowers & then, if leaf dust is heavy, either bag up the remaider w/a properly equipped mower or disperse it w/a blower.Comment
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What is the definition of a properly equipped mower?=========================
Paul Avelli
Avelli & Sons LandscapingComment
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A walker! (just pickin at Jack D)Comment
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Here is what I had been thinking of doing.
Buy a Billy Goat lawn vac and material handling vac.
Put the material handling vac onto a trailer that has been covered with canvas or burlap.
When the billy goat is full, simply go over to the trailer and dump the leaves next to it, then when its all done, suck em up with the material vac into the trailer.
For unloading, rig up a special skid towards the front, and run a chain out the back.
When I get home, hook the chain to the tractor and pull off the leaves.Comment
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Excellent plan, except forget the Billgoat Vac. They're usless for everything except a small parking lot that's vacumned every day. Just blow to huge piles with large blowers, tarp the bulk to the vac truck, and pickup what's left with mowers. The best system is to have the guys ahead of the vac truck. The vac truck runs back and forth to the dump all day while the crew blows, tarps, and mows.Here is what I had been thinking of doing.
Buy a Billy Goat lawn vac and material handling vac.
Put the material handling vac onto a trailer that has been covered with canvas or burlap.
When the billy goat is full, simply go over to the trailer and dump the leaves next to it, then when its all done, suck em up with the material vac into the trailer.
For unloading, rig up a special skid towards the front, and run a chain out the back.
When I get home, hook the chain to the tractor and pull off the leaves.
This is how I've done it the past three years, but without the vac truck. Truck and trailer all day...gets old after a while, but it works.Comment
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I do about 12-15 lawns a day and end up with only a few bags of leaves. See Jack D's post. It's the best way in my book.Comment
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Once it gets too heavy i just tarp them loose into the back of my pickup.pack them down by walking over it several times.When full, i cover with a tarp, put some weights on the corners so it doesnt blow off and head to the dump.Not as good as a leaf loader but it sure beats bagging.Eastern Lawn Care LLCComment
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Mariner, what size properties are you doing? Most of my accounts are 60X100, pretty small stuff. Does Jack D's method work on small props?=========================
Paul Avelli
Avelli & Sons LandscapingComment
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why don't you just blow it to the curb and be done with it.
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Leaf loader kicks butt, really is the best way to remove a lot of leaves quickly.We have our 11.hp leaf loader on our dump on a swing arm, with an enclosed box, holds around 9 yds shredded leaves.Takes less than 5 minutes to dump and head back to the job. Saves time, energy, your back, and your help.
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I do it on properties ranging from 5000 sq ft to 20,000 sq ft. Its been working for me last and this season. I take almost nothing home with me.Originally posted by avelli2000Comment
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