I Made $100/Hr Mowing Grass...But Still Prefer Walmart Sunglasses! 

*_What sunglasses do you prefer?_*

Pro tip for the beginners watching this video. Never refuel on a lawn. Mistakes happen and fuel isn’t good for the lawn. Great content mike!

Thanks for the video Mike! Have a great Sunday 👍🏻

Really enjoying these videos, makes you feel so much more relatable and human to me. Seeing the jobs in real time with the numbers is great.

Mike I’d just like to say thanks man these videos are very informative and helpful.

Hey Mike Andes I use a Toro self propelled a Toro smaller push mower and I really like the way the run. The tires are easy to set and mulching is definitely cool and becomes quite as we place a block in the chute

Mike, as always a well put, and informed video. I have been mowing/landscaping for my self for 18 years now, I always had a full time job (routing shift work). You give great information, and insight on how to run a business, and I thank you for that. Until the next video, Thank You!!

Please keep doing these videos. It really helps me.

Great job and lots of great pointers! If they pay they pay! And that’s what matters! You know you’ve done your best! 👍

Back in the day, my company had over 300 accounts in one big neighborhood. It was the cash cow! It was worth it for us to appeal to new prospects by word of mouth, by having our current customers agree to alter their fences and gates to allow the 36 walk behind in the backyard. We paid for it, It was incredibly profitable! For some reason in that neighborhood, there was some kind of social status involved with your grass being striped. Everyone wanted it! I miss those days. I'd consider starting up a small company again, but in my area, the market is beyond super saturated. It would be so hard for me to do. I'm almost 40 now, and landscaping, seal coating, and line striping still were the best years of my life! I admire your success and business model!

Great stuff, I appreciate your content.

Shoutout to Augusta from Augusta, GA 🤘🏻 I wear pugz glasses from the gas station in a pinch but usually I get crossfires bc they’re affordable quality

Man the grass is different up north....good job man, love the videos....

thank you mike this is great content. i'm looking forward to watching your other videos!

Keep on doing what your doing 👍🏼💪🏼

Awesome Mike!! 👍

Incredible video, motivated more than ever to start my own landscaping business!

Mike I’ve heard you talk about not wanting to get trailers which is completely understandable. Have you ever seen the Isuzu flatbeds?My old job Perficut has all flatbeds for their mow crews. If you can fit up to three riding lawnmowers on it. Haul pallets of mulch and icemelt. That might be something to look into.

you answered a lot of my questions in this video as I am looking to start next season

I got a scag 30 the other day it's awesome

I like the way you pay your employees, it reminds me of how automotive mechanics get paid. It should take you this long so we'll pay you for that amount of time. Do a 30min job in 15 still get paid for 30min. So smart.

As someone who wears glasses, the cheaper the better. They end up all but sandblasted after a month or two with the sandier soil here in Southern Georgia. I buy my glasses from Zenni because $70 gets me a complete new set of glasses.

Great video man! I love that setup i have been thinking about it myself love the tips fantastic! I agree about cost in terms of just using a push mower 30 inches. Maybe have a 21 for when the yards are taller those 30s are not good in tall grass. A lot of those yards I would have just discharge or mulched and not bagged them all but that’s just me great video

I think these videos are great and help many with their business. Walmart/dollar store glasses ftw! $100/hr is great but let's analyze your overhead on the hour that you almost got to mentioning when you talked about the cost of your equipment.

The exact same mower in the Toro brand has a way easier way to adjust the front wheels.

if you work to the left of the property with the waker it give you more control of where the debree goes

I’ve gotten to the point of not looking at big zero turns. I feel like the best setup for ME, because our average yards are about twice the size of what I’m seeing there, would be a 48” walk behind, 36” walk behind, and a Honda push mower. Other than that each crew would have 3 line trimmers, 2 back pack blowers, and a hand held blower. Our yards are much bigger, so a 3 person crew (1 mowing, 2 trimming/blowing) seems to work best. In 2016 I was running a 60” Exmark x-series, a 52” vantage stand on, and a Honda push mower and it was just a lot to try to transport. At the most I might do a 52” stand on and 48” walk behind, but I’d still have a 21” or 30” self propelled push mower. Many of our fenced in back yards have a drive in gate for a car so I rarely have an issue fitting a mower in a gate, and only about 1/3 of our back yards have a fence at all. Out of 100+ yards i was doing back then I had 2 yards that I had to push mow the back yard, and they were super small back yards so with a 3 man crew we were still done in less than 30 or 40 minutes. Unfortunately because of the size of the yards here we do need slightly bigger equipment, but now that I’m going back into business I’m looking at what I NEED vs what is “nice to have”, and walk behind or stand on mowers just seem to be the optimal choice. I am in Tennessee, out side of Ft Campbell KY on the TN side of the boarder, and we have a LOT of retired military and big wigs in the business world, along with all the wealthy people normal cities have like doctors and lawyers, and being a military town the housing market here is BOOMING. New neighborhoods going up like crazy, big yards, fancy houses, many many HOA’s.... Clarksville TN is a money machine in the landscaping industry.

Great Video Brother!

I rest that front bar of the 30 on my leg to adjust the front wheels; that way, I'm not holding it up with my foot, or bending down so far.

Thank you so much for the notes. A tremendous help in getting the wheels turning.

I cant believe you cut all that grass without a bigger mower. I own a small lawn care company and one of the first things I learned was you should use at least a 48inch cut if possible.

your business tips are very good and if people follow your advice should be able to succeed in any labor based small business. Great channel keep it up

90% of this video is quality content I cant say that about the same percent of videos you have posted. This provided content. Entertainment. Facts. Expectation (could have maybe gone more in depth based on personal experience and recognized experience with you) but overall, this is truly one of your best videos. I wish you would come back to this. Dont speak as much about yourself as you do about your business, you've lost sight of that part a bit. But you are doing an amazing job, again, regardless of my criticism

Walmart sunglasses are pretty good what I started with lol but, but I use Stihl glasses because I get them from my local dealer for my equipment.

Gouging the customers as much as possible with that massive overhead you have how nice :)

Mike i use Oakley sutros especially when I weed whack and line up the grass.. it helps a lot

Hi Mike that's some good advice about 30inchs vs the zero turns. If cost wasn't an issue wouldn't a 48inch fit on the back of the truck? What about using an alloy tray and taking the tub off. I'm not sold on the racks or tub. There's a lot of options for under tray boxes and drawers. Or even side boxes that are only 300mm wide so you can fit mowes or greenwaste in the middle. I know that you're still left with the issue of a 48inch not fitting in a lot of places. 48 and 32 would be great I wonder how much time could be saved and energy running that set up and getting them both on the back of a truck without a trailer if money wasn't an issue? I also agree with you about the clothes and cheap sunnys and wet weather gear. It's worth keeping on top of clothing, things wear out and rip and need to be replaced. Nothing worse then a rain jacket you bought 3 years ago not sealing properly anymore.

You do a great job

1:50 😱 you hustling with the string trimmer

I know this is an older video but have you tried the Ballard Darwin Grip? I put one of my daily trimmer a couple months ago and have fallen in love with it. The other day I pulled out my heavy duty Stihl 130R (which doesn't have the darwin grip) for a bigger trimming job and I forgot just how uncomfortable and flatout awkward it is to use a standard loop handle. The first thing I did when I got home that night was order a 2nd darwin grip for my Stihl

What do you use to spray the weeds that are in between the rocks and interlock by the way love your video keep up the good work

That ground isn’t the old primary ground for older homes. It’s the telecommunications ground. They use it on areas where they cannot get one easily via a house ground point. Often driven in by hand with a sledge. Not the best grounds but divert electric strikes from lightning or back feeding.

i don't have a problem - with prices going up sometimes they are so rude in why this bad or good or there dropped off at the next block but nice video buddy i'm from pa state thank you

Nice work, nice video, enjoyed the points on growth and the highs and lows! I use the Nemesis safety glasses ( I think they are made by Condor), about $8 a pair👍😎

15:50 ALL homes have grounding rods newer homes can have 2

Smart man💯💪🏼

I'm glad u can charge those prices. That first yard is about a $25-$30 per cut in Florida, maybe less with a monthly service. I do like your truck and no trailer setup. Can't say i've ever seen that before.

Great video, sometimes you got to eat bologna sandwiches before you can get to the steak dinner. Thanks.

Another pro tip for you beginners. When moweing a lawn always outline the whole yard first. Then weedwhack. Never weedwack first.

Do more of this pricing please.

What software and office tools are you using to send pictures, book jobs, keep track of customers, etc?

Great job, what app are you using to calculate your hours 🙏🏽

You seem like a great boss to work for. I would greatly enjoy seeing more content.

What brand is that foldable (extendable?) ramp on the back of your truck? I'm really interested in one of those! Good content, bro!

What app do u use to keep notes and customers?

I just came across this video. As a small business owner… I love seeing my $/hr on a jobs. Sometimes. What about your time going between lawns, emptying clippings, etc?

Have been in the lawn and landscaping business for over 20 years. I have been big and small, from a couple guys to dozens. I definitely am happier and less stressed with just a couple guys. But my disappointments in this Industry are growing as I have gained experience. Is anyone one else struggling with workers? This has been the worst year yet!! Tons of work and I’m offering the highest pay ever. Plus the prices on these videos are a dream in my area of central Florida. Prices are so low I’m about done with this crazy game lol! $30 a cut or $100 per month for a average 1/4 acre yard. And the grass grows so fast in the summer you can literally watch it grow! Love the videos but would love to see the more realistic lawn mowing scenarios of real lawn care in the south. 15” of growth per week and rain every day by 2 o’clock. And 105 degrees 95% humidity 🥵💦

I’m 15 and looking to go full time for summer next year and is there anything you would recommend, been mowing for 3 years for people and would want to know should I get a trailer or no

Good stuff.

Mike have you ever considered using a 32” belt drive walk behind? A little more expensive than the 30” and it’s gear drive so u dont do any pushing or pulling it’s a lot less fatigue. Exmark scag toro bobcat all make one

I had one of those exmarks... I hated it.... went with the 32inch Toro Time Master💪👍

What do u do with all the grass clippings?

The point of using a stand on mower is to save you energy. I wouldn’t push mow all day long. I think if you have gated backyards at least a 32 inch would do it. It would take you seconds to remove it , fit the mower inside and put back on. Just my personal opinion

The only thing that I have that is very expensive is my truck but I got very lucky with this truck because I had a V-6 and it broke down on me because my trailer was too heavy for it so I had to get me a bigger truck I still go to the corner store by my glasses and do as much as I can to not spend money on things I don’t need

What program do you use for showing routes, job notes, and the time it should take?

Customer service is wat build's companies good workers don't leave wen they make good consistent money

One truck of the trade. Don't set your running equipment down on grass to rest or refuel. The exhaust or the exhaust cover will burn the grass as well as you risk spilling gas on the grass.

I buy the Pugz brand from Speedway gas station 🤣 they work great and are about $8 so and why pay more!

Speed is important to make money, but theres a fine line where quality and speed intersects. Fueling on the grass is a no no with our business, and cutting clean and even is important to most of the customers we had.

This man is like Usain Bolt with the string trimmer lol

pin in the mower rocks keeps dummies from braking that, last longer its anoying yes but in my opinion its worth the trade off

You are so much better than us

It’s amazing you can mow, trim, blow in 37 minutes

Great videos, any chance of a link to those equipment racks..? Thanks from New Zealand.

Lmao the way you semi jog while weedeating is hilarious cause it’s realistic. Time is money. I straight up run with it and manage to keep the cut crisp and level

Do you have a man/hr rate you shoot for for the whole day (that includes drive time)?

A drywall pocket kicker might do you some good instead of shoving your foot under their. 2:39

Hey mate, I just started my small business here in Melbourne Australia, which one is mower to used ?

Do you ever have problems with the stihl weed wack on small residential yards flingings up pebbles . I’ve found stihl to just be to strong on some of my small yards

How's it going Just curious Are you planning on showing some more of your rental houses Or real estate

What software do you use for your job notes Etc.

The weed guard on the weed whacker has a knife on it that limits the amount of line that comes out the main reason it's there is to keep your weed eater from operating with to much of a strain on the motor causing it to burn up the motor in other words weed eaters without the guards tend to burn up faster from what I am told!!

hey mike how ya doing , i know there’s a ton of comments but i would really like to have a one on one convo about business , me and my brother are currently starting up our business and so far we have 3 zero turns (2 commercial) and the other is a mix of commercial and home owner style , we have roughly 4-5 string trimmers , 2 hedge trimmers (1 big 1 small) and all the other small needs for the business , we have a huge trailer and at times seems inefficient but also at other times we have 5-6 yards in the same spot so it takes 2 mowers to get the job done in a good amount of time , what’s your advice about getting a setup similiar to yours but with a zero turn and push mower ? how would that work ? is it a good option , bad option .

Glad yall went to Hondas

So does your hourly rate change depending on how many people you have on the job?

The commercial Hondas handle wet grass way better. The exmark leave a nicer cut, so trade off.

We're you mulching for the 9:30 yard? Thanks in advance

You should blow the grass back onto the lawn it will help fertilize it

I'm an advocate for push mowers, or even strimmers for a lot of jobs (especially overgrown clearances)! I see videos on YT of people with large equipment in small gardens and I think a) That looks super awkward, and b) Why put hours on expensive ride ons, when a push mower will get the job done in a similar time. Save 'em for the big jobs! Just my opinion, lol, each to their own at the end of the day :-)

Trimming irked my ocd. I would’ve used a wright 36 stander but I feel like a walk behind would’ve been a better choice and leave more defined stripes for presentation

As soon you can get a stand on or sulky mower because that self propelled mower is going to get Old real quick specially in July and August with 90 plus and 100 percent humidity.

Is it possible to buy carhartt merch and brand it with your logo? While keeping cathart brand on the shirt?

Grounding rods are still and always will be a stake in the ground with a wire just for clarification, all homes have them, new and old. I'm an electrician.

Yeah but what if a customer comes out and wants something else done do you keep that in perspective

I love the Home Depot sunglasses. They are 4.99 ea.

Just curious how you price trimming shrubs and clean up?

What software are you using?

Never fill up machines with fuel ⛽️ on a customers lawn ..

so 100 per hour minus the truck to get there, fuel to get there and back, disposal of grass, mower cost, fuel for mower, insurance, advertising, bookkeeping on and on.

Oh wow .. the time not flack I'd give you is the fact you put your sunglasses upside down on the back of your head... The only thing more douche than that is white Oakley's and driving a lifted shitbox Chevy. 🤭🤫🤣😂 Just giving you a hard time man... I love your videos and I've learned a TON from you. Thank you for sharing your knowledge with us, I know personally, I have benefited tremendously. 🤟🏽👍🏼