Frequently Asked Questions

The best way to identify the GrassFlap® brand chute blocker you need for your mower is to use our GrassFlap® Lookup tool.  Enter your mower information and it will direct you to the correct unit.  If you do not see your mower listed, email us at Support@GrassFlap.com and we will help you find the correct unit.

We accept various payment methods, including credit/debit cards, PayPal, and other secure online payment gateways. You can choose your preferred payment option during the checkout process.

You can easily contact our customer support team by visiting our Contact page. Our dedicated customer support team is available to assist you with any questions or concerns.

Every item that is a part of a GrassFlap® brand chute blocker can be purchased as an individual item, if needed. Refer to the first page of the installation guide to help you determine what part you need. Spare parts may be purchased on the Spare Parts section of our website.

You can choose your preferred shipping option during the checkout process. We offer various shipping options to cater to your needs. For specific shipping requirements, kindly contact our customer support team.

Installation videos, including full installs and installation overviews may be found on our YouTube Channel. If you don’t see your exact mower, chances are a different installation video would have similar steps you can reference. If you are having any issues with assembly or operation, please contact us at 502-594-3546 or support@grassflap.com.

The deflector angle should be positioned between the plastic blocker plate and the hinge plate with the red tape against the hinge plate. The tape will not stick to the plastic blocker plate.

The deflector angle should travel with the chute blocker to prevent clippings from blowing straight up as the GrassFlap® begins to open. As it first begins to open, there is not enough angle to deflect the clippings down, so they end up blowing around, up and down. Without the angle, grass clippings will go straight up and onto the operator. Mounting the angle to the deck only provides a good seal when the chute blocker is fully closed.

The chute blocker can be opened and closed with the same push and release motion. The proper operation is to push the pedal down until the flap approaches the half open position, then the pedal should be released, allowing it to rise as the chute blocker passes the halfway point. If you watch the video and continue to have issues, please contact GrassFlap® at 502-594-3546 or Support@GrassFlap.com

Foot Pedal Video
Hand Lever Video

The chute blocker is designed to open halfway with the pedal in the fully-down position. Pushing harder will not cause the chute blocker to move. The proper operation is to push the pedal down until the chute blocker approaches the half open position, then the pedal should be released, allowing it to rise as the tension spring takes over as the blocker plate passes the halfway point.  This video shows how to Operate the GrassFlap® Foot Pedal

Foot Pedal:
Yes, the chute blocker can be held in a partial-open position using the foot pedal. Simply rest your foot on the pedal in the desired position which we call "feathering". One of the nice features of the GrassFlap® brand chute blocker is its pedal operation, allowing the chute blocker to open and close without the need to push on a separate pedal. It’s easy to push and release the pedal in one smooth motion to open the chute blocker, and the same for flipping it back to the closed position. 

Hand Lever:
Yes, the GrassFlap® hand lever has a partial open position. Simply raise the hand lever and slide it into the slot to set the partial open position. The GrassFlap® can be fully opened or fully closed from the partial open position with a simple flick of the wrist.

Short answer, no. The GrassFlap® brand chute blocker is designed to be a temporary discharge chute blocker, not a mulch plate. 

This leads to a conversation about mulching versus temporarily blocking the discharge opening. 

Mulching involves cutting the clippings multiple times until they are small enough to drop into the lawn and not clump. Mulching requires baffles to hold the clippings around the blades and special blades to recirculate the clippings. The blades lift at the tip and push the clippings down in the center. Successful mulching is limited by how thick and tall the grass is.

Compare this to traditional side discharge mowers with high lift blades. The blades are designed to move a lot of air for lifting the uncut grass, while a deck includes baffles designed to move air smoothly toward the discharge opening where it is expelled. This air flow is what carries away the clippings. If you want proof of how well it works, just stop next to some tall grass or debris on the trim side of the deck, and watch it get sucked under the deck. 

So, what happens when you close the discharge opening? The air continues to be pulled in but must find a new way to escape. The clippings continue to travel toward the discharge opening where they pile up. Simply closing the discharge does not force the clippings to stay around the blades. It does not matter what is used to block off the opening, the grass will collect and the air will find a way out. 

Often these clippings will escape with the air. There are certain conditions that exaggerate the problem of clippings escaping with the air. When the grass is dry it tends to escape more, as well as when the lawn is thin. Thick lawns tend to filter the clippings. 

The GrassFlap® brand chute blocker is like any new tool, you have to learn how to use it. 

Fully close the flap only for short periods, or when you are discharging into uncut grass that you will mow later. You can partially close the chute blocker anytime to control how far the clippings fly and keep them from collecting behind the chute blocker. The advantage of the GrassFlap® brand foot pedal is the ability it provides to change how far open or closed it is while the mower is moving.

Given enough pressure, it will push open. It is held closed with the spring; the same spring holds the chute blocker in the open  position. By the time the chute blocker is pushed open, there typically is enough grass caught behind that you are likely no longer making a good cut.

First a little background info. Mowing decks are designed to move air from under the deck toward the discharge opening. The air flow lifts the grass before cutting and then once cut, moves the clippings out from under the deck to make room for more incoming grass. All side-discharge decks create a tunnel in the front right corner for the grass to be transported. This happens by setting the right blade back a small amount. This tunnel carries the bulk of the clippings to the discharge opening. There also is a baffle at the rear of the discharge to help push out any clippings above the blade that didn’t exit at the front of the discharge opening. This system is designed to expel as many clippings as possible on the first pass. 

When the discharge opening is blocked, the air must escape somewhere, or cut quality will suffer. Blocking the opening is a trade-off between blowing grass into unwanted areas and quality of cut. True mulching systems (not temporary chute blockers) are designed with extra baffles that encircle each blade to hold the clippings at the blade until they are chopped finely enough to fall back into the grass. 

Without the mulching baffles, air escapes from under the deck wherever possible if the discharge is blocked. The collection point is typically the front right corner, so naturally that is where most air and clippings will escape. Additionally, when you first begin to open the chute blocker, clippings will hit the plate and go all directions—up, down, and all around. Once the chute blocker is opened to a sufficient angle, the clippings will be deflected down and out. The quantity of clippings blowing up can be redirected with a deflector angle to prevent them from blowing on to the operator. In most cases, deflected clippings end up on the mower deck, so blowing off the deck on a daily basis is beneficial. 

All that said, there are a few things you can do to improve the performance of temporary chute blockers.

1.  Only close fully when needed and don’t leave closed for long periods.

2.  Close partially to allow clippings to be deflected down slightly, allowing clippings to escape and not pile-up behind the chute blocker.

3.  Mow your first pass on the second row in, discharge closed and pointed out. Then, open discharge and mow the first and third rows with discharge pointed in.

4.  Open chute blocker while turning to distribute clippings that have collected behind the chute blocker.

We offer a hassle-free return policy within 30 days from the date of delivery. If you are unsatisfied with your purchase, you can initiate a return or exchange following the guidelines outlined on our Returns page.

GrassFlap® will only accept returns with prior approval.  If you wish to return a product, please send an email to Support@GrassFlap.com explaining the reason for the return request.  You will receive a confirmation email with return policy and return shipping label.  A $35.00 restocking fee will apply, see return policy for additional fees that may apply.

DO NOT REMOVE cable conduit from the mower.

ATTEMPT TO DETERMINE THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE.

1.      REVIEW THE CABLE INSTALLATION USING THE CABLE INSTALLATION CHECKLIST, look at each item on the checklist from the original installation and confirm the cable is still installed properly. If you find the set-up has changed, then most likely this is the cause of the failure.

IF YOU ARE NOT ABLE TO DETERMINE THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE AND WOULD LIKE HELP DETERMINING IT, PROCEED AS FOLLOWS:

2.      TAKE PICTURES of cable conduit as it is routed on the mower with broken cable wire alongside the conduit, just as if the wire were run in the conduit. Picture must show both the cable and the conduit in the same image. Pictures are required for a warranty claim.

3.      CIRCLE BROKEN END OF WIRE in picture from step 2 (edit photo on your smartphone)

4.      EMAIL ITEMS LISTED BELOW TO Support@GrassFlap.com

a.    Pictures of broken cable, (from step 2 above)

b.     Picture of Completed "Cable Installation Checklist", (from step 1 above)

c.      Approximate purchase date of current cable.

d.      Location where cable was purchased and name of purchaser.

e.      Subject line "BROKEN CABLE"

If you need a replacement cable right away, we suggest you purchase one online, so it will be headed your way while we review the above information.