Exmark VIKING 408 - Page 17

Operation
•Donotoperatethemachinewhileill,tired,or
undertheinuenceofalcoholordrugs.
•Operatethemachineonlyingoodvisibilityand
appropriateweatherconditions.DoNotoperate
themachinewhenthereistheriskoflightning.
•Keepawayfromholes,ruts,bumps,rocks,and
otherhiddenhazards.Usecarewhenapproaching
blindcorners,shrubs,trees,tallgrassorother
objectsthatmayhideobstaclesorobscurevision.
Uneventerraincouldoverturnthemachineor
causetheoperatortolosetheirbalanceorfooting.
•Starttheenginewithyourfeetwellawayfrom
theblades.
•DoNotoperatethemachinewithoutallsafety
shields,guards,switches,andotherdevicesin
placeandinproperworkingcondition.
•Keepyourhandsandfeetawayfromthemoving
parts.Keepclearofthedischargeopening.
•DoNotmowwiththedischargedeector
raised,removed,oralteredunlessthereisa
grass-collectionsystemormulchkitinplaceand
workingproperly.
•Neverraisethedeckwithbladesrunning.
•Beawareofthemowerdischargepathanddirect
dischargeawayfromothers.Avoiddischarging
materialagainstawallorobstructionasthe
materialmayricochetbacktowardtheoperator.
Stoptheblades,slowdown,andusecaution
whencrossingsurfacesotherthangrassandwhen
transportingthemowertoandfromtheareato
bemowed.
•Bealert,slowdownandusecautionwhen
makingturns.DoNotmowinreverseunlessit
isabsolutelynecessary.Alwayslookdownand
behindyoubeforemovingthemachineinreverse.
•Parkthemachineonlevelground.Stopengine,
waitforallmovingpartstostop,andremovekey.
–Beforechecking,cleaningorworkingonthe
mower.
–Afterstrikingaforeignobjectorabnormal
vibrationoccurs(inspectthemowerfor
damageandmakerepairsbeforerestarting
andoperatingthemower).
–Beforeclearingblockages.
–Wheneveryouleavethemower.DoNotleave
arunningmachineunattended.
•Stopengine,waitforallmovingpartstostop:
–Beforerefueling.
–Beforedumpingthegrasscatcher.
–Beforemakingheightadjustments.
•Tragicaccidentscanoccuriftheoperatorisnot
alerttothepresenceofchildren.Childrenare
oftenattractedtothemachineandthemowing
activity.Neverassumethatchildrenwillremain
whereyoulastsawthem.
–Keepchildrenoutofthemowingareaand
underthewatchfulcareofanotherresponsible
adult,nottheoperator.
–Bealertandturnthemachineoffifchildren
enterthearea.
–Beforeandwhilebackingorchanging
direction,lookbehind,down,andside-to-side
forsmallchildren.
–Neverallowchildrentooperatethemachine.
–DoNotcarrychildren,evenwiththeblades
shutoff.Childrencouldfalloffandbe
seriouslyinjuredorinterferewiththesafe
operationofthemachine.Childrenthathave
beengivenridesinthepastcouldsuddenly
appearintheworkingareaforanotherrideand
berunoverorbackedoverbythemachine.
SlopeSafety
•Slopesareamajorfactorrelatedtolossofcontrol
androlloveraccidents,whichcanresultinsevere
injuryordeath.Theoperatorisresponsiblefor
safeslopeoperation.Operatingthemachineon
anysloperequiresextracaution.Beforeusingthe
machineonaslope,theoperatormust:
–Reviewandunderstandtheslopeinstructions
inthemanualandonthemachine.
–Evaluatethesiteconditionsofthedayto
determineiftheslopeissafeformachine
operation.Usecommonsenseandgood
judgmentwhenperformingthisevaluation.
Changesintheterrain,suchasmoisture,can
quicklyaffecttheoperationofthemachine
onaslope.
•Operateacrossslopes,neverupanddown.Avoid
operationonexcessivelysteeporwetslopes.Poor
footingcouldcauseaslipandfallaccident.
•Identifyhazardsatthebaseoftheslope.Do
Notoperatethemachineneardropoffs,ditches,
embankments,waterorotherhazards.The
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