I still use a gas mower, but that is the only gas-powered lawn tool I have, and don't see myself going back.
Lawn Care Thread
I still use a gas mower, but that is the only gas-powered lawn tool I have, and don't see myself going back.
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I really don't.
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I used to have the 18v black and decker stuff too. I have a bunch of the craftsman tools that use the same battery, but I'm underwhelmed by their battery blowers.
Ego is expensive, but to me, absolutely worth it.
Not familiar with Craftsman, but I can attest that battery tech in the outdoor power equipment sector has come a long way. Cost is the main hesitation, but you have lots of good options. I've also used a Greenworks pressure washer, and have been happy with it. Ego and Greenworks were tops in my list, but I got a good deal on Ego so I went that route. Should be deals to be had now and into the winter months.
Well it’s FL grass so its only going to look so good. Took a while but I actually have some lines in it. Even my kids are loving the grass up north after being up there this summer. The area in the woods is going to be something. Maybe a pitch/chip area to a practice green? Too shady for grass so artificial would be there. And yes I do it all myself. 
If you want to futureproof your purchase, go electric. Remember Question 2 on the November ballot?
I predict this will be used as a justification to ban all equipment powered by small gasoline engines, as California did.
This summer I bought a Makita 18V grass clipper and blower combo set. I bought it for the grass clipper and it is very, very good, but the blower is outstanding.
My neighbor has one, and it is nice. Good power overall, and nice you can use the batteries from other Makita power tools.
my grass isn’t quite up to par with some of yours but for the last mow of the year in
We have about 2.5ish acres to mow, so I use a SCAG zero turn. I bought a gas powered push mower and really like it. I had considered an electric push mower but changed my mind.
Love to ride the mower & then have a
Love to ride the mower & then have a
FatChance
Well-known member
I don't have to worry about the gas vs electric mower issue, thank goodness. Here in Arizona, our "lawn" is 2 inches of crushed granite over a thick black plastic underlayer. I can't remember the last time I had to water, mow, de-thatch, fertilize, trim it or prep it for "winter". Life is just too short for that stuff... 
This past spring I was shopping for a new lawn mower and was deciding between gas and electric. I borrowed a neighbors battery operated 60volt Toro and used it to cut a slightly damp and deep lawn. Even with fully charged batteries, the mower ran out of juice before my 1/4 acre yard was finished. I just don’t think that the battery technology has improved enough yet to totally replace gas equipment. Once the next generation of rechargeable becomes available, gas equipment will be obsolete. I’d have preferred to buy electric this time, but I stuck with gas for now.
I don't have to worry about the gas vs electric mower issue, thank goodness. Here in Arizona, our "lawn" is 2 inches of crushed granite over a thick black plastic underlayer. I can't remember the last time I had to water, mow, de-thatch, fertilize, trim it or prep it for "winter". Life is just too short for that stuff...
Some say too short, but some of us love it.
I wouldn't trade my beautiful grass for crushed granite any day of the week.
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I’m with you there. Our four legged furry child agrees too.
Leaf season has been a little delayed here because of the nice weather (leaves still hanging in the trees). I have a bunch of trees that trap my yard with tons of leaves. Luckily the municipality that I live in collects them if you get them to the street area (4 collections over a month and a half). My grass is the greenest and most lush I’ve seen this time of year so it is extra motivation to get the leaves off of my lawn (Get off of my lawn!).
Same here! Loving this mild fall so far.
I have no trees on my yard, but my neighbors blow into my yard, so I have just been bagging them, but if it gets bad, I am glad that they will come pick them up if I put them on the curb.
TLuke
Well-known member
Just my opinion, but if you have <10K sf of lawn, battery powered is the way to go. I’d leave professional lawn mowing/landscaping companies alone for now. Wouldn’t surprise me that California goes after high nitrogen fertilizers sold to homeowners. My county in Florida is looking at this to lessen the yearly red tide.
I don't disagree RE: Battery Powered.
I have swapped everything but my mower to the Ego ecosystem (Blower, Weedeater, Edger).
Once they make a Striping Kit for the Ego Mower, I might switch from my Honda too, but until then, I am going to enjoy the beautiful stripes made possible by TTTF.
bulls9999
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Well, here in Oklahoma I have a lawncare company that comes out and treats my yard quarterly, sometimes more, but I've been considering dropping them. Somewhat incompetent. 2 years in a row, I put down $100 of fescue grass seed in my thin, shadey areas (Bermuda grass doesn't grow well in shade). My back yard is lined with trees so the rectangular back yard has an 8-foot wide perimiter of fescue and the interior of the rectangle is Bermuda. And I didn't know they were coming the next day to put down pre-emergence that kills seeds from germinating. I complained, you'd have to be blind not to see all the grass seed laying around all over the place, so now I call them up when I think I'm going to put down seed to make sure they are not coming until after it grows up.
Then we got 'army worms' this past July and they ate up my fescue in 1 day. Amazing how fast those suckers can eat up a lawn. Went golfing with a guy who complained about that, said his plush lawn went from green to brown overnight. Then he showed me one of the yards bordering the golf course that was being eaten up by army worms, and by the time I got home, and went to Lowe's to buy some insecticide, they already ate up my lawn. So why didn't my lawn care company come and do that when the 'notice from the local agricultural university was saying 'army worms are bad and they are here' (this was the first I learned about them....next year I'll get insecticide down in anticipation). But the army worms at up the fescue and left the weeds and Bermuda grass. Evidently, they didn't like either of them but really made me notice the weeds....so in addition to insecticide, I bought a bag of Scotts Turf Builder Weed-and-Feed. This is the 2nd year I used it (also last year when I was miffed about my weeds that the Lawn Care company wasn't getting)...and that stuff really works. Takes about 3-4 weeks, but the weeds disappear, poof, gone!!
So I reseeded and now my fescue is nice and green again!!
Then we got 'army worms' this past July and they ate up my fescue in 1 day. Amazing how fast those suckers can eat up a lawn. Went golfing with a guy who complained about that, said his plush lawn went from green to brown overnight. Then he showed me one of the yards bordering the golf course that was being eaten up by army worms, and by the time I got home, and went to Lowe's to buy some insecticide, they already ate up my lawn. So why didn't my lawn care company come and do that when the 'notice from the local agricultural university was saying 'army worms are bad and they are here' (this was the first I learned about them....next year I'll get insecticide down in anticipation). But the army worms at up the fescue and left the weeds and Bermuda grass. Evidently, they didn't like either of them but really made me notice the weeds....so in addition to insecticide, I bought a bag of Scotts Turf Builder Weed-and-Feed. This is the 2nd year I used it (also last year when I was miffed about my weeds that the Lawn Care company wasn't getting)...and that stuff really works. Takes about 3-4 weeks, but the weeds disappear, poof, gone!!
So I reseeded and now my fescue is nice and green again!!
bulls9999
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Yep, I have the Lowe's brand, Kobalt, battery operated (80-volt):
1) chain saw
2) weed whacker
3) edger
4) leaf blower (I might throw this in the golf cart to blow off the greens during fall
)
I got deals where I would buy the unit with battery/charger and get another battery for free; now I have 2 chargers and 4 batteries (all are the 80-volt units). I always have one charging while using another. The one that really impressed me was the chainsaw.... I would never have thought battery power could cut through the 6-8 inch branches and I have had a ton of broken trees/branches after freezing rain storms, wind storms, etc. I don't think I ever needed more than 1 replaced battery to finish a load of chain saw cutting.
Now I'm wondering about the lawn mower? (I also have a Honda mower, that I consider is the Rolls-Royce of mowers... couldn't believe I had 5 consecutive Craftsman before getting the Honda).... hmm, I notice when I golf 1 yard always has a robotic battery operated 'turtle' mower going around his yard.
1) chain saw
2) weed whacker
3) edger
4) leaf blower (I might throw this in the golf cart to blow off the greens during fall
)I got deals where I would buy the unit with battery/charger and get another battery for free; now I have 2 chargers and 4 batteries (all are the 80-volt units). I always have one charging while using another. The one that really impressed me was the chainsaw.... I would never have thought battery power could cut through the 6-8 inch branches and I have had a ton of broken trees/branches after freezing rain storms, wind storms, etc. I don't think I ever needed more than 1 replaced battery to finish a load of chain saw cutting.
Now I'm wondering about the lawn mower? (I also have a Honda mower, that I consider is the Rolls-Royce of mowers... couldn't believe I had 5 consecutive Craftsman before getting the Honda).... hmm, I notice when I golf 1 yard always has a robotic battery operated 'turtle' mower going around his yard.
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Yep, I have the Lowe's brand, Kobalt, battery operated (80-volt):
1) chain saw
2) weed whacker
3) edger
4) leaf blower (I might throw this in the golf cart to blow off the greens during fall
I got deals where I would buy the unit with battery/charger and get another battery for free; now I have 2 chargers and 4 batteries (all are the 80-volt units). I always have one charging while using another. The one that really impressed me was the chainsaw.... I would never have thought battery power could cut through the 6-8 inch branches and I have had a ton of broken trees/branches after freezing rain storms, wind storms, etc. I don't think I ever needed more than 1 more battery to finish a load of chain saw cutting.
Now I'm wondering about the lawn mower?
I am sure the Lawn Mower is great! Again, if they made a Striping Kit for the Ego, I would 100% replace my Honda (At least in time, my Honda is virtually new).
But, until then, I am going to keep rocking the gas powered.
bulls9999
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HHaha... my son moved 2 years ago to California (about 1 hour east of LA), and was a new house but lawn not yet put down...front yard was all stones and plants that thrive without much water (desert-scaping?) and had some kind of drip sprinkler system....so he inquired about 'astro turf' for the small back yard and 2 sides....they came in with an estimate of $40,000, lol. He told them you would have given me a ball park figure and I could have saved you the trouble...No Way! So he put in pebble/gravel on each side of the house (doesn't get much sun with the fenced sides, and put in sod grass in the small rectangular back yard with sprinkler system for the back for the dog. Said he got his first good rain last week in 2 years :-O .
I don't have to worry about the gas vs electric mower issue, thank goodness. Here in Arizona, our "lawn" is 2 inches of crushed granite over a thick black plastic underlayer. I can't remember the last time I had to water, mow, de-thatch, fertilize, trim it or prep it for "winter". Life is just too short for that stuff...