Can You Use Mulching Blades With a Bagger?

Some lawn mowers have mulching blades that can shred grass into small pieces. Doing this will expel grass particles and spread them over your lawn. But can you use mulching blades with a bagger?

You can technically use mulching blades with a bagger, but it’s not the best idea. Mulching blades are engineered to keep grass clippings under the mower deck, in order to further cut up grass.

Standard (or regular) mowing blades are simply made to cut grass and discharge the clippings. This helps prevent clogging of the blades, as grass clippings will shoot out far from the mower.

What is Mulching?

Mulch is a layer of organic or inorganic material that goes on top of soil. There are many benefits of mulch including weed reduction, moisture retention, and improving soil health.

Most people think of mulch as buying a bunch of wood chips and spreading them in their garden. And while this practice can help your landscaping look better, there’s also another kind of mulching – that involves your lawn mower.

Some lawn mowers come with a special setting, that allows you to mulch grass. Most people wouldn’t be able to tell the difference, but this type of mulching shreds up grass pieces and leaves into fine particles.

These tiny grass clippings sit on your lawn and eventually decompose on the surface. And they provide many of the same benefits other types of mulch can. The only difference is that you won’t have to buy bags of product, because mulching with a lawn mower comes with no cost.

Mulching Blades vs Regular Blades

Standard blades are designed to be aerodynamic so they can discharge grass clippings from under the mower deck. They provide enough airflow to shoot them out far from the mower, or into a bag attachment.

Mulching blades on the other hand are made to cut grass several times, before dropping them down onto your lawn. However, these blades don’t have as much power to discharge the grass clippings.

That’s why it’s important to use the correct blades for the job. Mulching can be a great way to reuse grass clippings, because it works like a natural fertilizer. Plus, it’s also environmentally friendly – as opposed to throwing away lawn waste.

Are Mulching Blades Sharp?

You might be wondering if mulching blades are still sharp, because they have a different shape. But the fact remains, mulching blades are just as sharp as regular blades.

It’s essential for the blades to be sharp so grass can be cut efficiently. Dull mower blades (no matter what the type) will result in a sloppy looking lawn.

It’s time to replace your blades when you start to notice uneven grass height after mowing. You might also find that your machine takes a lot more force to push, or if cutting the grass takes longer.

What Happens if You Use Mulching Blades With a Bagger?

Even though it’s possible to use mulching blades with a bagger, I want to talk about why you shouldn’t do it. At the end of the day, it all comes down to efficiency – because this combination will produce sloppy results.

If you want to remove excess grass clippings from your lawn, a bag attachment can certainly help. But when you pair it with mulching blades, the amount of clippings entering the bag will be limited.

Mulching blades are built to keep grass under the mower deck. As the blades spin, clippings will get chopped up into fine grass particles. This will turn into useful fertilizer that will benefit your soil.

That’s why the unique design of mulching blades makes bagging inefficient. The blades won’t produce enough power for excess clippings to discharge into the bag. Even though some amount will go into the bagger, a majority of the grass will land back on your lawn.

Can I Use Mulching Blades with a Side Discharge?

Yes, you can use mulching blades with a side discharge attachment. However, don’t expect grass clippings to shoot out from your mower very far. As you know by know, mulching blades are designed to chop up grass into very small pieces.

This can only get accomplished when grass stays under the mower deck for a longer period of time. That’s where mulching blades can help. They are much less aerodynamic than standard blades.

But that also means they have less airflow. As a result, there won’t be as many grass clippings coming out from the side discharge chute, because most of the grass will land (and stay) underneath your mower.

Can You Put Mulching Blades on Any Mower?

You can install mulching blades on any mower, as long as the blades are the same size as your factory ones. The only difference that separates mulching blades from regular blades is their unique shape.

Assuming the connection points are also similar, the blades will install like normal. One way to look at this part is to compare it with a tire. Tires come in a range of different shapes and sizes.

But a tire’s tread pattern will not matter, as long as they are the same size. To check your lawn mower blades, begin by removing the spark plug and lifting up the machine.

You can then measure the length of the cutting blade (from cutting edge to cutting edge). You will also need to measure the diameter of the center connection point and the blade thickness from the center.

Final Thoughts

This article started with a simple question: can you use mulching blades with bagger? Even though these are two different lawn care practices, you should avoid doing them together.

And while you can bag grass clippings with mulching blades, it won’t be as efficient. Regular blades are designed to discharge grass out from a side shoot, or into a bag.

But mulching blades are designed to keep grass underneath the mower deck. This allows the blades to shred up grass numerous times. In other words, you won’t get as much discharge and grass going into the bag.

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