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Electric lawn mowers - Do they make the cut?

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diablos991

Can’t stump the diablos
Electric mowers are garbage for decent sized lawns. Even normal lawns that are thick make them perform like shit.
 
I actually bought the same mower in the OP and I'm extremely pleased with it. I agree, never let anyone tell you electric doesn't compare to oil and gas
 

Brokun

Member
If you have a gigantic lawn I wouldn't recommend a battery powered mower. For everyone else it's the only choice. Bonus points for getting one with a whole line of yard work power tools that use the same battery.
 

Flo_Evans

Member
Gas for life. My old 2 stroke was going on 20 years when it got stolen.

Got a new Honda and I expect to be buried with it unless it gets stolen again.
 
My family has been using an electric lawnmower since I was born. Just make sure to have a long enough extension cable, and that it can be adjusted for levels. Otherwise, they do the job just fine.

Now, if you can get a scarifier...

Edit: Oh wait, cordless?

That was my first thought too.
 

Matticers

Member
Technically, the mower posted in the OP isn't considered electric. It's battery operated so I think there's a little confusion in the topic. Electric mowers that you have to plug in aren't very good for anything other than small areas. The battery operated ones like the Ego mower are pretty solid if you can finish your lawn in 30-40 minutes. They're far from shit but they're really only good in certain situations like that.
 
Electric mowers are garbage for decent sized lawns. Even normal lawns that are thick make them perform like shit.

Incorrect. I've chopped down an acres worth of 8+inch grass with mine and it performed like a champ.

With battery it weighs less than 50lbs so it's like pushing a broom.

You are likely years out of date in your experience with them.
 

kswiston

Member
My lawnmower broke, and because I'm cheap I found one of these for free at a garage sale:

PxXHXlz.jpg


It weighs a ton, but it builds muscles at least.

My lot is a half acre. It would take you 6 hours to cut with that.

I have a self-propelled gas lawnmower, and it takes me about 1.5 hours to cut my back and front yard. If I was staying at this house long term, I might invest in a tractor, but we are relocating to edmonton in about 3 months, and I will no doubt have a much smaller yard.

Electric does seem like the way to go for regular suburb sized lawns though.
 

Dazza

Member
I got a 48v mower. Id say the power is comparable to my old 3.5hp but but costs $200 more. You can get a fancy push start self propelled 6hp mower for that much..

But I would still go electric. I always had trouble starting up motors after winter. My electric one has been hassle free so far and came with 2 batteries.

You're suppose to run the tank dry or put a gas stabiliser/conditioner to stop the petroleum from building deposits.

If you really want to be Eco friendly consider ditching the lawn altogether. There are plenty of low maintenance, no mowing lawn alternatives around if you still want greenery
 
Incorrect. I've chopped down an acres worth of 8+inch grass with mine and it performed like a champ.

With battery it weighs less than 50lbs so it's like pushing a broom.

You are likely years out of date in your experience with them.

I am in Texas where people think eco-friendly is a Chinese conspiracy. I was in line at home depot and I would hear people talk about it as they passed. But I had 2 people in the store tell me how good the EGO mower was, a couple in Plumbing and another guy at customer service (he was picking up his EGO weed eater).

I splurged and got the self propelled model but it is very light. Plus it has headlights so you don't have to hurry up and finish as dusk hits. You won't notice them at all in the daytime though.
 

Zoe

Member
I just trimmed and edged my front yard using a Ryobi trimmer in about 30 minutes. It actually went a lot easier than I thought it would, and there was still juice in the battery when I was done.

Not sure I can really justify an actual lawn mower.
 
The main issue with robo mowers is the fact that they mostly follow a random pattern. By mowing for a few hours every day, chances are it'll eventually have covered like 99% of the lawn area.
They aren't that well suited for larger lawns or lawns with a big amount of 'sub-sections', connected by narrow paths or something, because the mower might just never make it there.
That sounds so dumb yet easy to fix. There's got to be some sort of electronics in there to get the robo mower to do it's thing, why not put in a Pi Zero-equivalent board and program it to track where it's been?

I just trimmed and edged my front yard using a Ryobi trimmer in about 30 minutes. It actually went a lot easier than I thought it would, and there was still juice in the battery when I was done.

Not sure I can really justify an actual lawn mower.
Sounds like you already have something, but a couple of weeks ago I noticed Home Depot had this Black & Decker thing that sounds ideal for your application, an electric weeder/edger with a set of wheels you can attach to it to make it a mini mower.
 

Regiruler

Member
It's a Bosch Indego 800, was on special at the local Garden Centre place a few years ago. Instead of me reluctantly mowing the lawn for 30 minutes every Saturday morning this just wanders around on schedule microcutting the grass so I don't need to pick up cuttings either.
How do you set barriers? It'd probably end up on someone else's lawn really easily.
 

DBT85

Member
Used to use electric wired and apart from moving the bloody wire, had no issue with it.

Now with the amount of grass I have to do I use petrol only and it's much nicer. Also the rear wheels are powered which makes life a bit easier.

Really need to get my father in laws ride on fixed though.
 
I am in Texas where people think eco-friendly is a Chinese conspiracy. I was in line at home depot and I would hear people talk about it as they passed. But I had 2 people in the store tell me how good the EGO mower was, a couple in Plumbing and another guy at customer service (he was picking up his EGO weed eater).

I splurged and got the self propelled model but it is very light. Plus it has headlights so you don't have to hurry up and finish as dusk hits. You won't notice them at all in the daytime though.

Brofist. You got the same mower I did, also on the recommendation of the Home Depot people.

Are you me?
 

mackattk

Member
I use the Ego brand. Works really, really well. Super convenient and if you invest in the tools then you never run out of battery. Just getting the lawnmower/weedeater would mean that if the big 4amp lawnmower battery dies then you can set that to charge while you use the weedeater battery.

Extremely happy with it.. Got it last year and this is the second season I am using it. One of the things I liked about it is I can wait until late in the evening to mow my yard and if it starts to get a little dark I can use the headlights on the lawnmower. I have some hills in my yard but it isn't too bad. I have the push mower and not the self-propelled.. Still really light and easy to use. One of the best things about it is how little space it uses in my garage when I fold it up.

Also, if you do go with the Ego.. BUY IT FROM HOME DEPOT. Don't buy it from amazon or anywhere else. Ego will ONLY warranty its products if you buy it from Home Depot.
 

otapnam

Member
I got a black and Decker plug in mower + trimmer combo 4 years ago at home Depot that's still going strong.

I have maybe..... 800-1000 sq ft of grass combined front and back. Probably the best 200$ ive spent.

I see that they have 20 volt cordless versions - pretty easy decision if you have other b&d equipment or plan to buy some in the future. Actually just used a buddies electric chain saw for a downed tree and was surprised how well it worked for a 10in battery powered chainsaw!
 
Electric mowers are great especially newer high capacity lithium mowers

But you have to match the investment you make to the size of the lawn

Other than that simple calculation there are lots of benefits to owning electric over gas
 
whatever you do, don't get anything worx brand imo. my friend's mom bought a worx weed eater and it wouldn't get through 10 seconds of normal edging. my dad gave me his 15 year old, gas powered Echo weed eater and it still works like a charm. also watched a guy try to cut his yard with a corded worx push mower and it looked like a struggle test.

i wouldn't mind trying an electric push mower if i had a small yard, but until then, a gas powered riding mower is what i'll stick with
 
It's just really annoying having to manage a cord while mowing.

My grandmother bought one in the mid-90s with the idea that she'd use it to cut grass because it was lighter than the regular lawn mower... Well, I ended up being the one doing it and I didn't use it a lot because of how limited it was , needing a cord and managing it could be a pain in the ass, couldn't cut the whole yard (which is pretty good size in the back and front and a decent amount of area on the side) with it either do to not having a long enough cord and a lack of outside outlets. Went through a couple cords too because of them getting ran over. Don't remember what she ended up doing with it, also bought an electric leaf blower which was pretty shit as well, maybe the guy who sold her this stuff she found good looking or something, she made more than a few poor financial decisions on that criteria.

Might be fine for a really small yard but beyond that, nope.
 

captive

Joe Six-Pack: posting for the common man
i dont have the mower but i do have the EGO hedge trimmer and weed wacker (string trimmer)

They are both fantastic, both have plenty of power. IIRC that lawn mower uses 2 of the batteries where the hedge trimmer uses one. I would imagine it has enough power to do what you need.

It will definitely be easier to maintain than a gas mower, as there's simply less moving parts.


Wish i could try one out, but we just bought a Kubota 48" zero turn mower for our property.
 

Batjag

Member
I used a Black & Decker cordless mower for years when I had a fairly large suburban yard and it worked great. Had to buy a new battery every few years, but no maintenance otherwise.

The other bonus was that we didn't have a shed, but we were able to store it in the mud room inside the house because there was no gas/oil smell or danger. Would definitely recommend for OP's situation.
 

acevans2

Member
I bought a corded mower for my home. 1/4 acre lot. It was annoying to whip the cord around to not cross over it at first, but I just loop it around my body and mow in a pattern that makes it unlikely the cord will ever snake into my path now.

It definitely does the job- can't speak for the cordless ones though. I imagine it's the same (works to cut your grass) but life the of the battery is another factor to deal with.
 

Sapiens

Member
I have a thirty year old gas mower than still works. Ultimately, it is better for the environment to keep this one going rather than replace it will a new one or get an electric mower than will create more issues in terms of eventual end of life issues (battery stuff).

If you're in the market for a mower, I'd find a used gas mower in good shape that doesn't require too much maintenance.

Can we now talk about how nice a freshly mowed lawn smells?
 

mackattk

Member
I got the Ego mower about 2 weeks ago. It is fantastic. I plan to buy the trimmer next.

Yeah we are pretty heavily invested in the Ego line. It is great when you can get in on the Home Depot deals like getting a free battery with the purchase of equipment.

I have the lawnmower, hedge trimmer, leafblower and the string trimmer.. along with (1) 4ah battery and (5) 2ah batteries. I will probably never use all the batteries but they are there if I need any for backup.
 
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