How to prevent mower theft on farm?

powernoodle

powernoodle

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Hey guys. My elderly parents (73 and 80 years old) bought a spendy Skag Zero Turn riding mower. They plan to keep it on an uninhabited farm out in the middle of nowhere. I am concerned about theft.

Are there any secrets for securing this thing in a barn? Something like planting a steel post in concrete and chaining it to the post? What about theft-resistent chains, locks, etc? The barn itself is not secure, and cannot reasonably be secured.

Whats going to be the best bet slow down some dimwit who wants to take off with this thing?

thanks
 
Chaining to a post will slow a thief down, but out in the middle of nowhere, a thief has time.
 
Yeah, thats the real prob.

Maybe concealment would work. Place a big box over it, and write on it "no expensive mower in here".
 
Don't they own any dogs?

Dogs are usually a pretty good theft deterent.
 
Well, no one lives on the farm, and they only visit it every 2-4 weeks to mow it and whatnot. No one is there to take care of dogs.
 
There is very little that can be done.
I could steal any mower from a hidden place given enough time.

Even If you took out the battery, solinoid, plugs, wires, all the switches etc. And used twenty chains bolted to anything, You could still torch the chains, and push or pull the mower onto a trailer or bed. Even if it was in gear.

Sorry man:(
 
I think the best thing for them to do would be to either

1.) Build a new building that could be well secured (and if possible camouflaged).

2.) Carry it back and forth on a trailer; therefore keeping it at home.
 
They should keep it at their son's house and every 2-4 weeks he could haul it to the farm and do the mowing for Mom and Pop. :D
 
Get a big ghillie suit/netting and weave some straw thru it . Somehow make it look like a big pile of straw. Or camo netting and shrubbery.

Dirt floor? Dig a pit with ramp and cover with plywood/doors and cover with dirt.

Make a frame/box with cinder blocks and a locking gate/door and cover with crappy rusty junk. Make it look like a junk pile.

I would guess you're best defense is to hide it in plain sight. Make it look like something useless. Any chains/locks would just make the bad guy come back with the right tool.
 
Thomason said:
They should keep it at their son's house and every 2-4 weeks he could haul it to the farm and do the mowing for Mom and Pop. :D
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Though there are plenty of groovy suggestions, thats honestly the best one. Even though their farm is about an hour from my secret underground bunker. I'll give that a shot, but really I think my parents are too feisty and self-reliant to go for it. But I will try. If that fails, I'll go for the hide-in-plain-sight plus chain plus disable approach.

Not only did Brother Thomason give me a free Douk Douk not that long ago, but he also hands out good advice.
 
My cousin used to hide valuables in a sweaty looking athletic sock that he put in plain view on the floor. Maybe you could find a size XXXXXL sweaty looking athletic sock.

If it stays on the property, there's not much you can do other than chain it off and hope for the best. Removing the battery and plugs is not a bad idea, but you'd only be buying a little time.
 
The best solution, I think, is not to invest in any sort of solution at the farm property because anything you can come up with that will be at all economical is just going to slow down the determined thief and, in a very rural situation, that won't deter them much. Your best security purchase will be, I'm sorry to have to say be a trailer that the mower can go onto and off of quickly and easily and then just don't leave the mower at the site.
 
As was stated previously,there really isn't much that can be done to secure it and if you chain it fast or otherwise disable it,most people that would steal a mower would probably trash it if they can't steal it.Is the place right along a road or does it sit back aways?
 
Gollnick speaks the truth.

I may have my parents convinced to do the transport thing, and I offered to haul it myself. I'm running into a little bit of Powdered Butt Syndrome. Once someone has powered your butt as a baby, they are thereafter reluctant to take advice from you.

But just transporting the dang thing is really the most safe bet. Everything else is a wish and a prayer.

Is the place right along a road or does it sit back aways?
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Its in plain view of a little-traveled 2 lane country road.
 
If ya gotta leave it there, chain it down as best you can, and point a game cam at it.

If somethin happens, at least you'll have a clue or two.

Talk to the closest neighbor about leavin it with them, and let em use it once in awhile.
 
otis williams said:
disengage the safety sensor under the seat. mower won't start.
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That was just one of the switches I was refering to. Only thing is if you know much about them all you have to do is bend a cotter pin and stick it into the harness bypassing the switch. (I used to be a mechanic)
Or just plug it back in, but thats one way to test to see if the switch is bad or not.

I agree with Gollnick, Gotta take it with you if you can no reason to let some one steal a 6k? mower.
 
Those zero turns are very nice. If they are leaving it, chain and lock it and put an old tarp over it. Lastly, insure it.
 
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