Electric Lawn Mowers
He Hoo
ways to avoid the noise, pollution and maintenance required by the gas
mowers. I was considering reel mowers and electric mowers primarily, and my
concerns included whether the reel (manual) lawn mowers would require
herculean strength to mow my third of an acre, and whether or not an
electric mower could handle heavy lawn growth.
Well, I took the risk and went with a Black & Decker Lawn Hog and SWEET
GEORGIA BROWN, that did the trick. It is stronger than I expected and much
lighter than I expected. Managing the electric cord will require me to
develop a technique. It's not a big hassle, but you do have to make sure
that you don't mow the cord. I did my lawn this morning and am already
developing a pattern that will keep the cord out of the way. The mower is
very light and easy to handle. It is considerably quieter than a gas engine
mower, but is certainly NOT silent. I will have to wait and see what the
impact is on my electric bill. The next time I mow, I plan to read my
electric meter before and after to get an idea of what to expect.
Knowing that these electric mowers drawn some 12 amps of current, I invested
in a bright yellow, 100 foot, 15 amp extension cord. It is one of the
Yellow Jacket brand, made by Woods. They claim a higher level of abrasion
resistance than the standard extension cords. That is something that is
likely to be needed in this application. The cord will be pulled along
sidewalks and around trees, so abrasion resistance is needed. They are a
pricey investment at $50, but I don't expect to be replacing it any time
soon. We'll see how that works out.
I don't know what other brands of electric mowers are currently on the
market, but I highly recommend considering something in this category as an
alternative to gasoline-powered lawn mowers for those of us with less than a
half-acre of lawn and a dislike of the maintenance requirements and noise
and smell of gasoline mowers.
Ox
Patrick Timlin
> I will have to wait and see what the impact is on my electric bill.
> The next time I mow, I plan to read my electric meter before and after
> to get an idea of what to expect.
Hope you have good eyes because the impact on your electric bill will
be almost nothing. You can just calculate how much it will cost you to
run.
> Knowing that these electric mowers drawn some 12 amps of current,
If that is what your mower really uses (look at the manual and find
the electrical specs if you want to be sure to get the right
calculations)...
120V x 12A = 1.44 kilowatts (kW)
If you run the mower for a whole hour, then you have used...
1.4kW x 1h = 1.44kWh (kilowatt-hours) of energy. Now just look up your
rate you pay for electricity. Let's say you pay ten cents a
kilowatt-hour, so to run your mower for that hour will set you back a
whole 14 cents!
Curtis CCR
> I just got back into the lawn mower market this month and was considering
> ways to avoid the noise, pollution and maintenance required by the gas
> mowers. I was considering reel mowers and electric mowers primarily, and my
> concerns included whether the reel (manual) lawn mowers would require
> herculean strength to mow my third of an acre, and whether or not an
> electric mower could handle heavy lawn growth.
>
> Well, I took the risk and went with a Black & Decker Lawn Hog and SWEET
> GEORGIA BROWN, that did the trick. It is stronger than I expected and much
> lighter than I expected. Managing the electric cord will require me to
> develop a technique. It's not a big hassle, but you do have to make sure
> that you don't mow the cord. I did my lawn this morning and am already
> developing a pattern that will keep the cord out of the way. The mower is
> very light and easy to handle. It is considerably quieter than a gas engine
> mower, but is certainly NOT silent. I will have to wait and see what the
> impact is on my electric bill. The next time I mow, I plan to read my
> electric meter before and after to get an idea of what to expect.
You won't see much on the meter. Maybe 1 KWh.
> Knowing that these electric mowers drawn some 12 amps of current, I invested
> in a bright yellow, 100 foot, 15 amp extension cord. It is one of the
> Yellow Jacket brand, made by Woods. They claim a higher level of abrasion
> resistance than the standard extension cords. That is something that is
> likely to be needed in this application. The cord will be pulled along
> sidewalks and around trees, so abrasion resistance is needed. They are a
> pricey investment at $50, but I don't expect to be replacing it any time
> soon. We'll see how that works out.
That's about the going price for a quality, 10/12 awg, heavy duty
cord.
> I don't know what other brands of electric mowers are currently on the
> market, but I highly recommend considering something in this category as an
> alternative to gasoline-powered lawn mowers for those of us with less than a
> half-acre of lawn and a dislike of the maintenance requirements and noise
> and smell of gasoline mowers.
I switched to electric four years or so ago for similar reasons.
"Zero-emissions," and lighter weight. I only have about 700 sf of
lawn, but it's on an incline so weight was something I was considering
in addition to noise and exhaust.
The one thing you may find about B&D is their blades are pretty lousy.
Mine just don't seem to stay sharp. Other than that, the mower
itself has been trouble-free.
Of course you have to have electricity. I was using mine during the
infamous California energy crisis. I would often mow the lawn in the
evening when I got home from work - the time of day (peak hours) when
we were all told to curtail electricity usage. There were a couple of
times (just to make a funny point) that I fired up my 3.5KW gas genset
to power my "zero-emission" lawn mower.... to do my part at
preventing a stage III power emergency. :)
The Real Bev
>
> "He Hoo" <oxgourd...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
> >I just got back into the lawn mower market this month and was considering
> >ways to avoid the noise, pollution and maintenance required by the gas
> >mowers. I was considering reel mowers and electric mowers primarily, and my
> >concerns included whether the reel (manual) lawn mowers would require
> >herculean strength to mow my third of an acre, and whether or not an
> >electric mower could handle heavy lawn growth.
> >
> >Well, I took the risk and went with a Black & Decker Lawn Hog and SWEET
> >GEORGIA BROWN, that did the trick. It is stronger than I expected and much
> >lighter than I expected. Managing the electric cord will require me to
> >develop a technique. It's not a big hassle, but you do have to make sure
> >that you don't mow the cord. I did my lawn this morning and am already
> >developing a pattern that will keep the cord out of the way.
>
> instructions on which pattern to use to avoid mowing your cord. I have
> the same mower and it's the first thing I saw, when I read the
> instructions. The only reason electric mowers feature a handle that
> flips from side to side is to allow the mower to reverse direction
> without turning around and getting the cord under the blades.
Cool. Mine (an elderly Black & Decker 18") doesn't, so I just back up
and go over the same strip again. The area I need to mow is only about
15' x 35' with a tree and a sidewalk in the middle, so it's not really a
big pain even if the blade does need to be sharpened. I've only run
over the cord once (so far; knock wood) and it didn't blow a house
fuse, just stopped.
> >I don't know what other brands of electric mowers are currently on the
> >market, but I highly recommend considering something in this category as an
> >alternative to gasoline-powered lawn mowers for those of us with less than a
> >half-acre of lawn and a dislike of the maintenance requirements and noise
> >and smell of gasoline mowers.
I mow no more often than every 2 weeks, generally not even that
frequently, leading to goo in the carburetor. I hated always having to
clean the carb when I had gas-powered lawn tools, so I'm perfectly happy
to put up with the gutlessness of my electric mower and weed-whacker.
> Consumer Reports has been reviewing electric mowers for years and
> they've always given high marks to B&D Lawn Hog. That's why I bought
> it and have been very happy with my purchase. One thing people have to
> be aware of is that these are not nearly as powerful as an average gas
> mower, so one cannot let the grass grow out of control. It simply
> can't handle tall grass...
Tilt it back on its rear wheels and slowly bring it down over the
clump. Move a foot forward and do it again. Nobody said it had to be
fun!
What I'd like is a totally reliable bump-feed mechanism for weed
whackers. I HATE having to take the head apart and manually feed
another 6" of line out the little hole every 10 minutes or so.
--
Cheers,
Bev
--------------------------------------------
There is no such thing as a foolproof device
because fools are so ingenious.
He Hoo
news:9nm3801v031ds7281...@4ax.com...
> Or you could simply read the manual that has in big bold print the
> instructions on which pattern to use to avoid mowing your cord. I have
> the same mower and it's the first thing I saw, when I read the
> instructions.
Dang. A simple little topic and you've just GOT to use it as an opportunity
to be a jerk. I read the instructions and saw their pattern. It didn't
work as well as my own.
>The only reason electric mowers feature a handle that
> flips from side to side is to allow the mower to reverse direction
> without turning around and getting the cord under the blades.
...and you seize opportunity #2 to be a jerk. Consider the possibility that
I did not get the model that has the flipping handle. Now, you are dealing
with reality.
Ox
Curtis CCR
> ... That's about the going price for a quality, 10/12 awg, heavy duty
> cord.
Before I am corrected by a nit picker. I was not referring to a 10
gauge, 12 conductor cord. I meant 10 to 12 gauge....
A typical three conductor extention cord may be labled "10/3" (10 awg
/ 3 conductor) or "12/3" (12 awg / 3 conductor).
Wouldn't want someone going to the hardware store looking for "10/12"
on a cord.
pros
sam gooris
rabbit
curt...@sbcglobal.net (Curtis CCR) wrote in message news:<c678797a.0404...@posting.google.com>...
pipo
snelle Eddy
buster
kaat
nicknamed
i hate lawning, so i ask Sam to do it
David
> testing for internet class mailb06
> i hate lawning, so i ask Sam to do it
I dont like it too, is there not some way you can get the lawn to cut
itself or just not grow and stay the same length all year round
Debbie the Overdogged
ds...@aol.com says...
Well, if you've got the bucks:
http://www.friendlyrobotics.com/
--
Debbie the Overdogged das at spamcop dot net
"Lying is such a harsh word . . . I prefer to say
we massaged reality" - Miss Grotkey in Recess