Furfanus Postumus

What with the strict new ground-cleaning regulations to prevent wildfires, I wonder if it is possible to buy in PT cheap / used ride-on lawn mowers suitable for this purpose? I know that cars are horribly expensive to buy in PT, is it the same for ride-on mowers? Is it easy to hire a contractor to clean one's ground? Thanks.

liveaboard

What you need is called a brush cutter; a sort of beefed up lawn mower. I believe in Portuguese it's "corta mata".
They're quite common, I use one for my lawn as well as fields and forest.
It gets a bit beat up in the forest.

They mount on agricultural tractors, and yes, you can hire them [with operator of course].
They don't like stumps or big rocks. Acacia and cane disappear.

There are no cheap riding mowers in Portugal [unless they're scrap, and even then they aren't cheap].

Furfanus Postumus

Thanks for that suggestion. That requires a tractor, probably quite pricey. Hiring a contractor might be the best option, but to retain some independent capability, would it be legal and a good idea to bring a ride-on lawnmower to Portugal in one's removals lorry?

mfesharne

Yes

liveaboard

Mowers are for mowing; yes, much cheaper in the UK.
If you need a brush cutter, they're also much cheaper in the UK.
Tractors have number plates and the extra hassle of matriculation probably nullifies any advantage of importing one.

I bought a big old tractor here in Portugal; for most people, hiring a local farmer to do your tractoring will be far more sensible.
Going rate is 35 to 50 per hour including fuel and driver, and they don't charge for transport [to and from your property].
This is so cheap, I refuse to take on tractoring work for my neighbors. After expenses there's hardly any profit at all.
In other words, don't buy a tractor unless you just like them.

Someone asked me; "What do you need a tractor for?"
Answer; "I don't need a tractor, I WANT a tractor."

Get your land plowed, harrowed, graded, and rolled. After the initial work is done, you can just cut the grass and shoots with your riding mower.
BUT; choice of machinery is dependent on how much land you have and what you want to do. For instance, my 3 acres of mowed area would take 6 to 8 hours to mow with a small riding mower. It takes a couple of hours with my tractor with a 2.7 meter double axle cutting deck.
If I were to choose a machine only for mowing, and I had the money, it would be a big ZTM [zero turn mower]. They mow like crazy but can't do anything else. Even second hand they cost 5,000 +

The tractor can do a huge number of tasks; mowing, cutting, pulling, lifting, digging, plowing, and more. There are small tractors that are barely larger than mowers but built far more tough.

Land is lovely but it's a lot of work; don't underestimate that.
You don't own land, it owns you.

Furfanus Postumus

Thanks, Liveaboard, that's a nice rig you've got there, and some nice flat land. My proposed property does have quite a lot of land, mainly pasture, bordering on a eucalyptus forest, which I'm a bit nervous about, as it's upwind of the strong prevailing wind, but quite a long distance from the house. Thus I need to keep the grass cut and mulched, which would probably be best for a contractor, but for 50 m around the house, the legal clearance limit, I think a ride on mower would do the job and keep me busy. I agree, zero-turn mowers are the best. Have seen a good new one here in UK for £4 K. Can I import it legally in my removals lorry? Or do I have to pay import duty?

mfesharne

There's nothing illegal about buying a ride on mower in the UK, transporting it here in a truck & using it on your own land but I note your comment about 50m around your house & you might like to take a look at portugalwildfires.com to find out what is mandatory & what is advisable etc.

liveaboard

You can bring the ZTM from the UK without any duties or fees.
Make sure you're getting one that's not too clapped out though, check the reputation of that particular model and be sure you can still get parts and such.
[edit] sorry, I now realized you said a new one. That's a low price for a ztm, make sure it's suitable for your task.

"mytractorforum" ,com has a section for ztm's, you could search there and/ or ask specifically.

Consider a compact utility tractor [CUT] or garden tractor [GT], You can get good low hour used ones from UK home owners. 50M around your house will be 2 or 3 acres.

Furfanus Postumus

mfesharne, thanks for that clarification. Yes, I have studied that excellent website in great detail, as fire has been one of my main worries throughout my property search. Liveaboard thanks too, I think I'll go for a new zero-turn, and if I have to upgrade, hopefully I will get a good trade-in / resale price.