With the
winter season upon us, it’s important to keep golf course machinery up to
scratch and capable of dealing with the challenges colder weather brings.
With
Royal Norwich Golf Club’s new course in its first winter, estates manager Peter
Todd, with 30 years of experience in the industry, explains why winter
maintenance is so important.
“Golf is
now very much a sport which is played 365 days a year,” he says. “It used to be
that winter would signal a break in the level of activity, but more and more
golfers want to enjoy golfing throughout the year and make the most of their
membership. And their expectations of the course don’t change just because the
weather has.
“In order
to keep standards high, you have to keep your machinery in top notch condition
and paying attention to parts maintenance is your first point of call in order
to do that.”
It’s well
known that the winter season provides many challenges for greenkeepers. For
one, cutting turf in wet conditions makes it more difficult to get a perfect
finish. So, sharpening cutting unit blades in winter is essential, says
Peter.
“With wet
grass and the increase in earthworm castings in the autumn and winter, it
becomes more difficult to keep blades sharp,” he says. “Although you need to
make sure your blades are sharp throughout the year to keep quality consistent,
the winter season brings that more into focus. Plus, not cutting cleanly will
increase the risk and spread of disease in your turf – so that’s an added
reason to ensure the proper maintenance of your machinery parts in the
winter.”
With a
blade for all seasons, choosing Toro guarantees not only a perfect fit but one
carefully crafted to suit specific turf needs. For example, the ‘Atomic’ blades
are what’s best later in winter, perfect for mulching up leaves or for use with
a recycling deck to mulch the grass.
The cold
weather can also have an effect on machinery starting systems, says Peter.
“Engines will take longer to start up in the cold and checking batteries and
electrics, changing the oil and cleaning blocked air filters will save you time
in the long run. Switching to new tyres to ensure you have improved grip in the
face of unforgiving ground conditions as well as keeping a stock of replacement
parts will ensure productivity remains high.”
However,
just as preparing the turf for winter is a year-round endeavour similarly so is
machinery maintenance says Peter. “There is a tendency to push the majority of
machinery maintenance into the off season when there are fewer jobs to do
around the course and cutting frequency has decreased, and while it does
provide the time to do the machine’s ‘MOT’ if you like and a full service and
deep clean, you’ll never regret paying attention to your machinery and parts
maintenance throughout the year.”
Peter
concludes: “Keeping on top of general
maintenance ensures your machines are in the best possible condition. It can be
tempting to cut corners when it comes to preventative service work, but
breakdowns and downtime are more expensive and well-maintained kit tends to be
trouble-free. In an ideal world maintenance should always be done as per
the machinery manufacturer’s instructions in order to keep standards
high.”
To stock
up on Toro Parts or for winter machinery maintenance advice, customers can get
in touch with their local genuine Toro parts dealer or service centre or
contact Reesink via reesinkturfcare.co.uk
