homemade leaf vac question

graygander · Nov 29, 2011

Hello, I"m trying to build a leaf vac that will suck up leaves and blow them into a box built on a small farm wagon so I can haul them to the back of the property and dump em . Came across a 8 horse briggs hooked to a blower off one of those pull behind leaf vacs, I can get it cheap and there is a bunch of hose with it to boot. what I need to know is this thing powerful enough to suck up a pile of leaves without being connected to the deck on a riding mower. I don"t want to waste my time and effort on this project if it won"t work Thanks.....

joe csuti · Nov 29, 2011

When you say you want to pickup leaves with vac-do you mean from a raked pile? IF this is what you plan to do most vacs have a 6"-8" hose on intake,it can be done this way but it is a somewhat slow process,depending on weather leaves wet/dry you have to meter amount of leaves being sucked into hose as hose tends to plug up if fed to fast with wet/damp leaves also any small twigs sucked into hose tend to cause a plugged hose & same has to be disconnected to clean out,I was going thru this for yrs,finally got smart & got a shredder & towed behind tractor then blew leaves into cart,made an adapter for intake hose from rect to round right angle heating duct fitting from home depot & connected to mower deck.

Phil in MI · Nov 30, 2011

I do that very thing with mine, works good for me, I use a broom rake to feed them into the suction hose, works faster and easier than any other way I have tried. Here is a picture of my rig.
Phil

bo · Nov 30, 2011

I have a similar one as Phil has. It'll suck the fillings out of your teeth if you open your mouth. Yes, should be no problem.

Phil....I have a dumped cart and I find that it's easier to pull the leaves out with a pitchfork. Your cart seems to have the axle way back. Does this allow you to dump better than if the axle was in the middle? Also,, how do you dump with all the weight forward. Also, do you have a screen for air moving out of the cart? Also, what is that stick at a 45 degree angle on the side of the cart.
Also, if you could post a couple of pictures how the top is made for it.

Traditional Farmer · Nov 30, 2011

It'll suck up the leaves but works better if the
the mower deck has ground them up first.I have a
'leaf vac' that has a 12" intake that was used originally to suck gravel,dirt and sticks out of road culverts has a 4 cylinder diesel that runs it,now that will realy suck up a pile of leaves.

Phil in MI · Nov 30, 2011

Hi bo, that is the reason for the axle set backis th get the greater dump angle. The hydraulic is strong enough to dump a full load of wet grass clippings. That trailer has 8" side boards that replace the box and it will dump a full load of dirt. the box has a full top screen under the metal top with the air discharge out the back. That helps to get the dust away from the operator. The PVC pipe you see on the side is to hold a broom rake or fork. when doing the hand work around the bushes I pull the suction hose off the mower and rake the leavesto the hose. Thanks for asking.
Phil

El Toro · Nov 30, 2011

The town I live in has a truck mounted blower with a separate engine for vacuuming leaves off the street. The residents need to pile their leaves on the street. It has a hose at least 12 inches in diameter and even sucks up wet leaves.
I compost some into the garden. The town takes them to the county landfill and they make compost out of leaves and grass clippings. I can buy a pickup load for 10 dollars and they load it. Tree limbs are shedded into mulch at the same landfill. Hal

bo · Dec 1, 2011

You have outdone yourself. I like the hydraulics. I think I need to rethink my trailer set up. Pulling out leaves with a pitchfork is getting old. Thank you for posting the pics.

homemade leaf vac question

graygander

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joe csuti

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Phil in MI

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bo

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Traditional Farmer

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Phil in MI

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El Toro

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bo

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