Battery powered lawnmower ? (vs old petrol self propelled)

[Ridgeway]

We bought a Husqvarna robotic mower when our Hayter needed replacing. Brilliant bit of kit and the lawn is much better than it ever was before.
We now never have to cut the grass ourselves and when you come back from a couple of weeks away the grass is still nice and short. we both work and have a reasonable size garden and if it was wet at the weekend trying to cut the grass the following weekend was a real pain, as the robotic mowers cut every day it doesn't matter if its wet. they are also quiet enough to have running at night.

We also have Husqvarna battery chainsaw, hedge trimmer and strimmer. I would never go back to petrol. I was very pleasantly surprised by the chainsaw, very powerful.

This reminds me to update:

After some more research and realising that we can cordon off the flowering bulbs in Spring we decided to go for a robot mower....

Ordered a Husqvarna 105 last week that should arrive in the next few days. Can't wait to get it installed and hopefully see some improvements in the lawn quality.

Cut the lawn yesterday and took 2 bags of cuttings to the tip, hopefully for the last time

 

[1ten]

This reminds me to update:

After some more research and realising that we can cordon off the flowering bulbs in Spring we decided to go for a robot mower....

Ordered a Husqvarna 105 last week that should arrive in the next few days. Can't wait to get it installed and hopefully see some improvements in the lawn quality.

Cut the lawn yesterday and took 2 bags of cuttings to the tip, hopefully for the last time

You wont regret it.
I bet you sit and watch it working though

 

[Vipar]

Get a fluffy toy dog to sit on top of the mower it will look like your dog is having a run around.

 

[CazPaul]

Of course for nature and the environment naturalists recommend not cutting grass at all in May and then very occasionally after, so that wild plants/flowers can establish and flourish which in turn attracts beneficial insects.

 

[Langtoftlad]

Ordered a Husqvarna 105 last week that should arrive in the next few days. Can't wait to get it installed and hopefully see some improvements in the lawn quality

Take some time to plan where you want the guide wire to go.
Leave plenty of loops so that adjustment of the wire is easy.
It should be fairly simple to alter the wire so that it covers the area once the bulbs are done - sort of like a seasonal branch line

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[Langtoftlad]

My Flymo, based on the Husqvarna 105... has improved my patch of grass immeasurably. The moss & weeds have gone. No grass clippings to collect.

 

[Tombola]

My Flymo, based on the Husqvarna 105... has improved my patch of grass immeasurably. The moss & weeds have gone. No grass clippings to collect.

Pardon my ignorance but how are there no clippings? does it collect ? and how has it improved the lawn/grass?
how does it get rid of weeds?

 

[Langtoftlad]

Pardon my ignorance but how are there no clippings? does it collect ? and how has it improved the lawn/grass?
how does it get rid of weeds?

Because it goes out frequently, it only cuts a millimetre or so, so it falls as mulch which improves the ground. No cuttings to collect.
No weeds, I presume because they don't get a chance to sprout.
It is brilliant.
But it doesn't do stripes
Nor will you get a bowling green.

 

[SpeedyDux]

Of course for nature and the environment naturalists recommend not cutting grass at all in May and then very occasionally after, so that wild plants/flowers can establish and flourish which in turn attracts beneficial insects.

Or, adjust the cutting height so you give the taller grass a light trim and the wild flowers are unaffected. That's my current plan.

Pardon my ignorance but how are there no clippings? does it collect ? and how has it improved the lawn/grass?
how does it get rid of weeds?

Like the mulching feature with my mower, I assume. Mulching only really works with dry grass and few weeds. The clippings are finely chopped and scattered, to break down and put nutrients back into the lawn. That's the theory. The downside is that you risk spreading weeds, and the level of the lawn will also rise over time. Therefore I am experimenting with this method during the spring and will collect the clippings in the usual way for most of the year. The jury is still out on this.

 

[Tombola]

Or, adjust the cutting height so you give the taller grass a light trim and the wild flowers are unaffected. That's my current plan.



Like the mulching feature with my mower, I assume. Mulching only really works with dry grass and few weeds. The clippings are finely chopped and scattered, to break down and put nutrients back into the lawn. That's the theory. The downside is that you risk spreading weeds, and the level of the lawn will also rise over time. Therefore I am experimenting with this method during the spring and will collect the clippings in the usual way for most of the year. The jury is still out on this.

Yeah, leaving clipping on the lawns is not good when long but if like you say these things cut tiny amount regularly then its ok.Id say gather them for the first few cuts when the grass is long and experiment as you say.
I think Ill give one of these a go, I didnt realise there was a wire to fit, but makes sense, Ill google a few vids and have a buthchers.

thanks

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[ukdw]

If going for a battery mower I would definitely consider the make carefully, especially availability of spare batteries - as we found that ours only did about 3/4 of the lawn and getting a spare battery (Argos Spear and Jackson) was very hard - ended up buying a 2nd hand one on ebay.

Standardising on batteries for other tools also a good idea as suggested. Ive recently ended up with quite a few Worx tools too and really like the fact that the batteries are all interchangeable. There is even a usb phone charger adaptor, mini vacuum, torch and cordless pressure washer which should be quite handy on the next camping trip.

Prior to discovering worx I bought a different cheap make of Strimmer and Hedge Trimmer (Qualtex) - thought I was being clever getting the same make for both, and what is really annoying is that even though the batteries look identical they are different voltages and so are not interchangeable. All the Worx batteries seem to be the same 20v - some just have different capacities.

Also tried a robot mower recently (Flymo) but I didn't work out for us - as after the initial novelty, found the random mowing for hours and hours every days quite annoying, and also it was quite a lot of effort installing and maintaining the boundary wire. Got quite a good price on ebay for it which was lucky. Would like to try another one again in the future - but ideally one that works more like robot vacuums, doing the mowing in a much more efficient line by line way, doesn't need a boundary wire, and ideally has the option to pick up and dump grass, leaves and small sticks in the autumn!

 

[Ridgeway]

Would like to try another one again in the future - but ideally one that works more like robot vacuums, doing the mowing in a much more efficient line by line way, doesn't need a boundary wire, and ideally has the option to pick up and dump grass, leaves and small sticks in the autumn!

i think that's called a gardener

 

[1ten]

If going for a battery mower I would definitely consider the make carefully, especially availability of spare batteries - as we found that ours only did about 3/4 of the lawn and getting a spare battery (Argos Spear and Jackson) was very hard - ended up buying a 2nd hand one on ebay.

Standardising on batteries for other tools also a good idea as suggested. Ive recently ended up with quite a few Worx tools too and really like the fact that the batteries are all interchangeable. There is even a usb phone charger adaptor, mini vacuum, torch and cordless pressure washer which should be quite handy on the next camping trip.

Prior to discovering worx I bought a different cheap make of Strimmer and Hedge Trimmer (Qualtex) - thought I was being clever getting the same make for both, and what is really annoying is that even though the batteries look identical they are different voltages and so are not interchangeable. All the Worx batteries seem to be the same 20v - some just have different capacities.

Also tried a robot mower recently (Flymo) but I didn't work out for us - as after the initial novelty, found the random mowing for hours and hours every days quite annoying, and also it was quite a lot of effort installing and maintaining the boundary wire. Got quite a good price on ebay for it which was lucky. Would like to try another one again in the future - but ideally one that works more like robot vacuums, doing the mowing in a much more efficient line by line way, doesn't need a boundary wire, and ideally has the option to pick up and dump grass, leaves and small sticks in the autumn!

We've never had a problem with the boundary wire even after moving it to change the layout of the garden. We decided the benefits outweigh the lack of stripes. The random nature doesn't bother us but we are at work during the day so don't see it, during the school holidays when we are at home more we have it cutting at night so its out the way. its quite strange looking out the window and seeing a couple of little headlights trundling round the garden!
We did a lot of research and went and saw some different makes operating in peoples gardens and defiantly thought Husqvarna the best option.

 

[knickam]

One thing to check if you are getting a robot is how it returns to the charging station.
Some makes simply follow the boundary wire back to a drive through charging station.
Over time this will leave tramlines around your lawn as it always takes the same route.

 

[Ridgeway]

Few months in now and can honestly say that the lawn never looked so good, OK the 25m of rain each day has probably helped, topped up with good summer temperatures but the constant cutting of small amounts and mulching back in these tiny clippings seems to have made a big difference. The mower now run on alternate days (actually 4 days on and 3 days off) and seems to cope well with the task.

Big thumbs up from me: less work and better results, finally a gadget that we needed

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[Chrisvh]

The big thing to consider with a battery anything is that you will then be invested in that range of products.

You may get a great deal on the lawn mower and initial battery, but if all the other tools in the range are expensive you may end up out of pocket.

I am all in on Ryobi tools and they have been fantastic value so far and I am really happy with them. The up front investment in the batteries and charger is a bit pricey, but the tools then become very cheap. Jim also went with Ryobi.

A professional tree surgeon I follow on youtube has gone all in on Husqvarna battery tools for his business and loves them. But the price difference between husqvarna and Ryobi would probably be prohibitive for the home gamer.

Do a search on Amazon for "Ryobi lawnmower" and you will see they do quite the range. The high end ones are brushless and require 2 batteries but are really powerful. But the range starts at the budget ones at £139. This is without batteries and has a brushed motor.

I can't recommend the Ryobi lawnmower from personal use as I am a fulltimer and don't have a lawn. However, I do have a big selection of ryobi tools and am seriously happy with them.

Here is the Husqvarna review.

I couldn’t say it better myself. Big Ryobi fan.

 

[TheMachMan]

Got a Stihl recently. Works well.

 

[Tombola]

I agree, its been 3 months since I cut the lawn and my little robot wabders round doing it every other day .
I just strim the edges now

 

[999RAR]

I also recommend EGO we have a lawnmower, strimmer and hedge trimmer. Very good quality

 

[Ridgeway]

I agree, its been 3 months since I cut the lawn and my little robot wabders round doing it every other day .
I just strim the edges now

yes and for that i just got a cordless strimmer, job done in under 5mins once a week

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[Geistguy]

I have a battery hedge cutter, chainsaw, hedge trimmer and leaf blower all various makes but all use the same battery system, this makes life so much easier than having to have different batteries and chargers.

Getting a mower as well into next year.

 

[Tombola]

I have a battery hedge cutter, chainsaw, hedge trimmer and leaf blower all various makes but all use the same battery system, this makes life so much easier than having to have different batteries and chargers.

Getting a mower as well into next year.

get a robot one...well recommended