Pond Boss Forums AQUATIC VEGETATION Controlling unwanted plants Turn Hedge Trimmer into a Pond Weed Mower

Hi all,
Just wanted to share my gadget. It's a pond weed mower that I made from a hedge trimmer. Basically I separated the motor from the transmission using a 4 foot 1 1/2 metal tube. Reconnected the motor to the transmission with an extended drive shaft. I then welded a C-clamp to the metal tube so I can clamp it to the side of a row boat. It also can slide up and down on the C-clamp for shallow or deeper water. Whalla! It cuts a 16 inch path. When the weeds are cut they float to the top of the water. I then have a 2 x 8 x 16 foot board with 8" spikes nailed into it that makes an excellent rake. You throw it into the water and push it around with the row boat. Eventually pushing all of the cut weeds to shore. What do all of you think? How could I improve it? Questions of me about it?


I love this forum.

Bob, I think I saw both you AND your gadget on the Red Green Show once.

Red Green and I go way back.

I love that show.

Bob,

Interesting! The only way to perfect it is to use it a lot. Any weaknesses will eventually be reveald. The 1st question that comes to mind is whether your transmission is water proof, or you just keep it packed with grease?

I've been thinking about something along those lines to be used from the shore. I was thinking about mounting a gas powered hedge trimmer to the bucket of my tractor's front loader. Just drive around the pond, and adjust the bucket as I go to get the right height.

Instead, I clamped an 8' piece of pipe to my bucket, and draped some old bath towels over it. I soak the towels in glyphosate, and wipe them over the weeds. That way, it kills the weeds and spares the grass. No worries about herbicide in the pond either.

Of course, when the weeds creep out pretty far into the pond, neither of my solutions will work. Keep us posted on how your submarine weed cutter works!

Hey Bob,

I like your idea. I've been making something very similar using a ice auger. The 2 cycle motor and reduction transmission are mounted to a plate bolted to the bottom of the trans.
A 5 foot piece of 2" galvanized pipe is welded to
the plate as a housing for the driveshaft that is connected to the output shaft on the trans.

A 6" piece of 2 1/2" pipe with the c-clamps welded to it has a 3/4" nut welded over a hole and a 3/4" T handle bolt is screwed into the nut. By loosing the bolt you can adjust the height or depth into the water you want to cut by moving the motor and housing up or down.

The bottom of the drive shaft is connected to a wobble box from a small walk behind sycle bar mower. We took a 5' section from a tow behind sycle bar mower to use as the cutter bar but figured it was too heavy so now have 4' section of cutter bar from a combine grain head.

The whole thing will mount on the front of one of the pontoon boats. Also been thinking of a way to catch and pick up the weeds as they pass by the back of the boat to save raking later. Wonder if you might have any ideas?

We really don't have much left to do on it but got sidetracked mounting a 48" 3 blade mower deck off the side of a 5' Brush Hog. A 8 H.P. motor will be mounted on top of the Brush Hog deck to drive the mower that will suspend out over the edge of the water to cut the strip of grass that the the Brush Hog leaves right along the waters edge.

Always something to do with the pond but wouldn't have it any other way.

Dan

Dan,
I to have ideas of going bigger. A 4-5 foot sycle bar would be ideal. Not sure where to find one of these. Maybe a tractor junkyard or a small engine repair shop. They usually have stuff laying around like that. No ofense to any small engine repair guys out there. Also, about the ability to catch and pick up the weeds as they are cut. Great idea! I was thinking along the lines of a conveyer belt system that has a screen for the belt. The conveyer belt is as wide as the cutters in front of it. As the weeds are cut the belt screen picks up the weed and allows the water to pass through as the weeds are lifted up at an angle. You've seen or possible used one of those screens on a pole that scoop up the bugs and leaves from swimming pools? Similar priciple. The weeds are lifted and rolled off the end of the conveyer system into a dumpster bin. This is still just an idea with no real prototype.
Have any ideas where I can find a sycle bar 4-5 foot long?

Screen for the belt.... I'll give that some thought. I got all 3 of my tow-behind sycle bar mowers from farmers who had them just laying around in the weeds. No cost, just had to haul them away. None would roll, 2 didn't have tires or wheels, but they had what I needed.

I cut one down and changed the frame to make it a 3- point instead of a tow behind that works great for mowing cattails near the waters edge out to 7 feet.

Keep working on your ideas, I'm sure you will come up with just what you need.

Dan