Every year the weather forecasters seemingly predict the ‘coldest winter yet’. Whether it’s the coldest or not, you can never be over prepared for what the good old British weather will throw at us. And the advice from Toro is to not leave it too late to address winter servicing and maintenance.
Terry Redwood, workshop manager at Royal Mid Surrey Golf Club, agrees. “It’s good to be organised when it comes to maintenance. We keep a constant eye on things and clean the machines daily but when it comes to winter maintenance it’s time for a thorough steam clean and full service.
“Grass gets everywhere and if left will cause rust so it is really important to get it all off when there are longer periods between use,” he says. “Some workshops won’t do a full steam clean in the belief that it takes some of the goodness out of the grease points, but we find the positives outweigh the negatives.”
Such a thorough clean gives Terry, who has been at Royal Mid Surrey Golf Club for 30 years, absolute visibility to any potential problems and makes way to the machines’ “MOT”.
“When everything is spotless we can make a thorough inspection on the engine and hydraulics, tyres, filters and brakes,” he says. “We look for any oil leaks and assess if there’s anywhere needing a paint touch-up to prevent rusting. Doing this year in, year out and keeping on top of general maintenance ensures the machines are in the best possible condition. It can be expensive to make repairs and the age-old saying rings true that prevention is better than cure, especially when you’re trying to make sure maintenance costs stay within budget!”
A full post-clean grease-up for all the joints and moving points puts, says Terry, the “goodness back in” and an all-over blast of maintenance lubricant “acts like a film and brings the machinery up really nicely”, to help prevent any issues when the machines are being pushed hardest during difficult weather conditions.
Hard ground conditions can also mean replacement parts are more regularly needed. Terry says, “I keep a stock of Toro parts in the workshop but not loads, mainly filters, bedknives, and bearings, but there’s little need to take up valuable space when Lely is so good with service. Within a day or two I have what I need. I always use genuine Toro parts. I have in the past used ‘pattern’ parts but not anymore, it’s just not worth it.”
Keeping surfaces in play and/or adequately maintained throughout winter is tough enough, but good maintenance will ensure your machines are functioning to their full capabilities whatever the weather.
If you don’t have an in-house workshop manager like Terry to take care of your machines’ winter servicing needs, you can book a service with your local Toro dealer or service centre. For more information contact distributor Lely UK’s Toro servicing and parts department on 01480 226870 or email turfcare.parts.uk@lely.com
Read more stories about Golf Management Topics and latest list of Most-read stories