#if i can find a mower for less than the $75 i would have had to pay the lawn guy i can do it

[thenixkat]

I need to go to walmart and pick up pads (i have no fucking idea if I’m menstruating or not i keep fucking bleeding for weeks on end and i don’t have money to see a doctor), milk, cereal, bread and eggs b/c I’m just kinda out and with more morning shifts i need breakfast stuff

#nix meows #i also have no real idea about what i'm gonna do about the lawn #my landlord told me to call the lawn guy but the lawn guy hung up on me and didn't pick up when i called again #which is reasonable given the whole pandemic thing #but i still have 2 more payments to make with the gas people other bills to pay and still rent #if i can find a mower for less than the $75 i would have had to pay the lawn guy i can do it #when i find the time

[wendyimmiller]

Random Horticultural Things I’m Either Loving or Loathing, and a Few I Haven’t Quite Decided On

For whatever they are worth, here are some stray observations that have rattled around in my noggin lately when I’ve had too much time to think.

Let’s start positive! Why not? Here’s something I’ve been loving—the Fashionably Early series of Phlox. They’re some kind of hybrid. I don’t know the parentage. I wish I did, but it’s probably one of those things where one could “know too much.” I’m thinking that if I were to find out, someone would have to kill me. Possibly Hans Hansen, who bred them, but maybe not. I would think it’s way more important for Walter’s to keep him in the field and away from the rough stuff, so it makes more sense that there would be another among them who makes the call to the “guy who knows guys” that would set my offing in motion.

Phlox ‘Fashionably Early Flamingo’ at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden.

I actually met Hans last year at MANTS Show in Baltimore, and, as my good luck would have it, wound up considerably less than socially distanced from him on the packed train all the way back to the airport. This was way back in January of 2020 when it was still okay for people to be within shouting distance of each other. An avowed opportunist, I, of course, peppered the poor guys with question after question the entire journey. He had absolutely no means of escape, and yet, I must say, he was surprisingly gracious.

Phlox ‘Fashionably Early Crystal,’ also at the CZBG.

In fact, I feel like we even connected a little, but that doesn’t really matter. What does is this. These are great new Phlox that more or less look and act like Phlox paniculata in the garden, just shorter, earlier blooming, longer blooming, and possibly a little quicker to become wider clumps. No mildew. Four varieties, ‘Crystal’ (white), ‘Flamingo,’ ‘Princess’ (pink), and ‘Lavender.’

And now, finally, to something I’m loathing. I hate weather forecasters who cheerfully crow about our beautiful, sunny, 5-day forecast when we’re on day whatever of a drought. This kind of behavior is truly clueless and insensitive to all gardeners, farmers, and, I don’t know, maybe some other people, and I often hope and pray that terrible harm comes to them. I think you should too.

For something I’m trying to decide on, I’ll mention the new Stihl gasolines for two and four cycle machines that are now available through licensed dealers. Regular gas station gas is problematic for gardeners. As if they’re waiting to see if the good old days of leaded gas will return, small engine manufacturers apparently haven’t really re-engineered for the higher alcohol levels in gas these days. On top of that, gas goes bad surprisingly fast, and, when it does, it gums up small engine carburetors. You can buy additives. You can buy miracle 2-cycle oil. But in the end the hapless, power tool wielding gardener winds up endlessly agonizing over things like when they might use the tool again, whether to burn out all the remaining gas when the work is done, what to do with leftover gas at the end of the season, who to blame when the engine stalls in the middle of a job and won’t restart, and, most of all, who to kill when your mower, blower, and string trimmer are all DOA come Spring.

A carburetor rebuild costs plenty, between $75 to $125, and it’s aggravating to pay it again and again, but worse is the downtown. The repair takes anywhere from three days (when you don’t really need the tool) to at least a hundred weeks (when you urgently do).

So, now, here comes Stihl with fancy new high tech, high octane, two and four cycle gasolines, which, for me at least, has solved all of those above problems. Haven’t had a machine fail to start since I switched to them. (Knocking on wood. Lord, look at me. I’m knocking on wood!) Of course, I’m admittedly stringing long chains of curses together in my head as I’m paying for the stuff. Thirty freakin’ dollars!. For a gallon of (somewhat classical) gas! Welcome to our Mad Max dystopian future of horticultural hordes hording unaffordable gas for string trimmers and chainsaws courtesy of the Andrea Stihl AG & Company of Waiblingen, Germany. But, on the other hand, how much is less stress worth? Is it worth $30 every time you pull the cord during a season? That’s a tough one.

Similar cans you won’t want to get confused about!

One loathsome side note. Check out the similarity of the cans for 2-cycle and 4-cycle. Years ago, I accidentally used 4-cycle gas in a 2-cycle machine. Only takes about a minute to destroy a $350 tool forever, and the sounds I heard will torment me forever! This winter, I bought the 4-cycle Stihl gas by mistake. Didn’t even know they made two types. I had filled the tank on my (2-cycle) chainsaw with it when I noticed the can had a red cap for some reason and wondered why. Took a closer look. Then I went and got my glasses, came back, and looked again. 4-cycle gas! I avoided calamity by that much!

Thinking I could potentially save woeful future heartache for other old people just a bit less capable than me, I recounted this whole story to the teenager at the checkout counter at the Ace Hardware when I went there to buy another gallon of budget-busting Stihl gas I had saved up for by raiding car ash trays of loose change in the parking lot. I told him that that he and all the other clerks should point out to each customer which gas–the 2-cycle or the four–that they are buying as a courtesy. Especially to anyone who looks over fifty years old! I told him that this should, in fact, be the Ace Hardware Company’s corporate policy!

Now I have to tell you. If you had asked me to describe myself just before I entered that store that day, I would have told you that I was a reasonably bright, good-natured, sometimes humorous, fairly well-adjusted, high functioning alcoholic. But after the look that teenager gave me in there, even though it only lasted seconds, my self-image became something else completely. Walking out, I was from that moment on a bitter, old codger who watches too much cable news, forgets why he enters a room every single time, rages at strangers about nothing they care about, and who smell like nothing else on the planet. Like there’s not even really anything to compare it to.

Let’s add that kid to the things I loathe.

‘Fashionably Early Flamingo’ again, with one of those spiderworts Irvin hates.

Probably a good time to swing back to a something I love. Callisia rosea ‘Morning Grace,’ (syn. Tradescantia rosea). A certain friend of mine called Irvin Etienne recently expressed on Facebook, unsolicited and unprovoked, that he hates spiderworts. There is nothing sadder than when a previously loved and respected member of the gardening community soils himself like this so publicly. In that one comment, Irvin was shifted from “a thing I love” to “something I’m deciding on.” Just kidding. I love Irvin. Everybody does. But he’s been under a lot of stress lately. Issues with chickens mainly. Like the class act that I am, I am choosing to give him the benefit of the doubt. And I’m going to assume that he had not yet seen ‘Morning Grace’ before he uttered those terrible words. Thus, his ignorance has absolved him, and ‘Morning Grace’ is simply the most beautiful plant ever. It is a lovely, diminutive, demure, elegant, adorable, sweet, little gem of a plant, and also undeniable evidence of God’s radiant love for each and every one of us! At least for every one of us who grows it. And it requires no special effort to grow. Irvin really should try it. And I think Irvin needs cards and letters from everyone urging him to rethink his opinion on spiderworts. You can send those to Newfields, 4000 N. Michigan Road, Indianapolis, IN. Include a one-gallon pot of ‘Morning Grace’ if you can afford it.

Callisia rosea ‘Morning Grace.’

For loathing, again, I submit, my old, 1990s, Sear’s metal garden shed. It was such a nightmare to assemble that I had become a berserk, raging, cussing, wild-eyed, madman by the time it was finished. I remember that distinctly. So does my family. And the neighborhood. And, I’m told, the tale has been passed down now for over 25 years at the Hamilton County Justice Center! A continuous oral history passed from current convicts to new ones.

Fact is, after all that suffering during the assembly process, the damn thing was never any good. The sliding doors stopped sliding almost immediately. I had to duck to get in and out. It was always baking hot and dark and infested with spiders, mice, and wasps, and there was never any good way to organize it. Over the years, it has become a dilapidated, rusty eyesore. On our side, it is generally hidden by shrubs. But it has lately developed the bad habit of showing up rather startlingly in the background of way too many otherwise passable garden shots. So it’s been decided that it must go. I know already that this chore will be awful, possibly even worse than assembly ever was! I’m living in dread.

I could go on and on, especially about things I loathe, which indeed does give me special joy. Garden tour garden descriptions and garden speaker biographies are great topics. Right now annual weeds are an almost daily bane of my existence. Oh, and hoses. I’ll save that one for a special time in the future, but I will say for now that we as a society simply won’t be civilized until someone figures out a way to transport water from spigot to plant without resorting to hoses.

But I’ll finish with one more thing that I like. It’s a battery powered Stihl hedger that I recently bought. As a certified landscaper, arborist, public garden professional, and an award-winning but somewhat troubled garden writer, I am sworn to strictly honor the tenet that one should never shear anything ever. But I do. (Lord, the truth can be liberating!) Fact is, that beyond being all those things, I’m also a busy, stressed out dude who never has enough time. So I shear. A lot. And this thing makes it easy. It’s light, the battery lasts forever, and I regularly turn it loose on our boxwoods and Kerria, and I do so, lately, with no sense of guilt. My plants. Free country. Sometimes I also deadhead with it, shave off the occasional weed, and, once, even tried trimming my toenails. Not suggested.

Should mention here that despite two mentions of Stihl products in this blog that I am not a paid celebrity spokesperson for the Andreas AG Stihl KG company of Waiblingen, Germany, and I’ll prove it by inserting here a mean-spirited and entirely unnecessary bit of snark. As a battery powered machine, this bypasses an engineering accomplishment that has eluded Stihl for forever and day—designing a gas cap that works. Can’t begin to tell you how many tanks of that expensive Stihl gas their worthless caps have allowed to spill to the ground, and, man, that felt good. So there. Boom. Achtung, baby! You couldn’t see it, but I just dropped the mic.

            Random Horticultural Things I’m Either Loving or Loathing, and a Few I Haven’t Quite Decided On originally appeared on GardenRant on June 17, 2020.

The post Random Horticultural Things I’m Either Loving or Loathing, and a Few I Haven’t Quite Decided On appeared first on GardenRant.

from Gardening https://www.gardenrant.com/2020/06/random-horticultural-things-im-either-loving-or-loathing-and-a-few-i-havent-quite-decided-on.html via http://www.rssmix.com/

[turfandlawncare]

Random Horticultural Things I’m Either Loving or Loathing, and a Few I Haven’t Quite Decided On

For whatever they are worth, here are some stray observations that have rattled around in my noggin lately when I’ve had too much time to think.

Let’s start positive! Why not? Here’s something I’ve been loving—the Fashionably Early series of Phlox. They’re some kind of hybrid. I don’t know the parentage. I wish I did, but it’s probably one of those things where one could “know too much.” I’m thinking that if I were to find out, someone would have to kill me. Possibly Hans Hansen, who bred them, but maybe not. I would think it’s way more important for Walter’s to keep him in the field and away from the rough stuff, so it makes more sense that there would be another among them who makes the call to the “guy who knows guys” that would set my offing in motion.

Phlox ‘Fashionably Early Flamingo’ at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden.

I actually met Hans last year at MANTS Show in Baltimore, and, as my good luck would have it, wound up considerably less than socially distanced from him on the packed train all the way back to the airport. This was way back in January of 2020 when it was still okay for people to be within shouting distance of each other. An avowed opportunist, I, of course, peppered the poor guys with question after question the entire journey. He had absolutely no means of escape, and yet, I must say, he was surprisingly gracious.

Phlox ‘Fashionably Early Crystal,’ also at the CZBG.

In fact, I feel like we even connected a little, but that doesn’t really matter. What does is this. These are great new Phlox that more or less look and act like Phlox paniculata in the garden, just shorter, earlier blooming, longer blooming, and possibly a little quicker to become wider clumps. No mildew. Four varieties, ‘Crystal’ (white), ‘Flamingo,’ ‘Princess’ (pink), and ‘Lavender.’

And now, finally, to something I’m loathing. I hate weather forecasters who cheerfully crow about our beautiful, sunny, 5-day forecast when we’re on day whatever of a drought. This kind of behavior is truly clueless and insensitive to all gardeners, farmers, and, I don’t know, maybe some other people, and I often hope and pray that terrible harm comes to them. I think you should too.

For something I’m trying to decide on, I’ll mention the new Stihl gasolines for two and four cycle machines that are now available through licensed dealers. Regular gas station gas is problematic for gardeners. As if they’re waiting to see if the good old days of leaded gas will return, small engine manufacturers apparently haven’t really re-engineered for the higher alcohol levels in gas these days. On top of that, gas goes bad surprisingly fast, and, when it does, it gums up small engine carburetors. You can buy additives. You can buy miracle 2-cycle oil. But in the end the hapless, power tool wielding gardener winds up endlessly agonizing over things like when they might use the tool again, whether to burn out all the remaining gas when the work is done, what to do with leftover gas at the end of the season, who to blame when the engine stalls in the middle of a job and won’t restart, and, most of all, who to kill when your mower, blower, and string trimmer are all DOA come Spring.

A carburetor rebuild costs plenty, between $75 to $125, and it’s aggravating to pay it again and again, but worse is the downtown. The repair takes anywhere from three days (when you don’t really need the tool) to at least a hundred weeks (when you urgently do).

So, now, here comes Stihl with fancy new high tech, high octane, two and four cycle gasolines, which, for me at least, has solved all of those above problems. Haven’t had a machine fail to start since I switched to them. (Knocking on wood. Lord, look at me. I’m knocking on wood!) Of course, I’m admittedly stringing long chains of curses together in my head as I’m paying for the stuff. Thirty freakin’ dollars!. For a gallon of (somewhat classical) gas! Welcome to our Mad Max dystopian future of horticultural hordes hording unaffordable gas for string trimmers and chainsaws courtesy of the Andrea Stihl AG & Company of Waiblingen, Germany. But, on the other hand, how much is less stress worth? Is it worth $30 every time you pull the cord during a season? That’s a tough one.

Similar cans you won’t want to get confused about!

One loathsome side note. Check out the similarity of the cans for 2-cycle and 4-cycle. Years ago, I accidentally used 4-cycle gas in a 2-cycle machine. Only takes about a minute to destroy a $350 tool forever, and the sounds I heard will torment me forever! This winter, I bought the 4-cycle Stihl gas by mistake. Didn’t even know they made two types. I had filled the tank on my (2-cycle) chainsaw with it when I noticed the can had a red cap for some reason and wondered why. Took a closer look. Then I went and got my glasses, came back, and looked again. 4-cycle gas! I avoided calamity by that much!

Thinking I could potentially save woeful future heartache for other old people just a bit less capable than me, I recounted this whole story to the teenager at the checkout counter at the Ace Hardware when I went there to buy another gallon of budget-busting Stihl gas I had saved up for by raiding car ash trays of loose change in the parking lot. I told him that that he and all the other clerks should point out to each customer which gas–the 2-cycle or the four–that they are buying as a courtesy. Especially to anyone who looks over fifty years old! I told him that this should, in fact, be the Ace Hardware Company’s corporate policy!

Now I have to tell you. If you had asked me to describe myself just before I entered that store that day, I would have told you that I was a reasonably bright, good-natured, sometimes humorous, fairly well-adjusted, high functioning alcoholic. But after the look that teenager gave me in there, even though it only lasted seconds, my self-image became something else completely. Walking out, I was from that moment on a bitter, old codger who watches too much cable news, forgets why he enters a room every single time, rages at strangers about nothing they care about, and who smell like nothing else on the planet. Like there’s not even really anything to compare it to.

Let’s add that kid to the things I loathe.

‘Fashionably Early Flamingo’ again, with one of those spiderworts Irvin hates.

Probably a good time to swing back to a something I love. Callisia rosea ‘Morning Grace,’ (syn. Tradescantia rosea). A certain friend of mine called Irvin Etienne recently expressed on Facebook, unsolicited and unprovoked, that he hates spiderworts. There is nothing sadder than when a previously loved and respected member of the gardening community soils himself like this so publicly. In that one comment, Irvin was shifted from “a thing I love” to “something I’m deciding on.” Just kidding. I love Irvin. Everybody does. But he’s been under a lot of stress lately. Issues with chickens mainly. Like the class act that I am, I am choosing to give him the benefit of the doubt. And I’m going to assume that he had not yet seen ‘Morning Grace’ before he uttered those terrible words. Thus, his ignorance has absolved him, and ‘Morning Grace’ is simply the most beautiful plant ever. It is a lovely, diminutive, demure, elegant, adorable, sweet, little gem of a plant, and also undeniable evidence of God’s radiant love for each and every one of us! At least for every one of us who grows it. And it requires no special effort to grow. Irvin really should try it. And I think Irvin needs cards and letters from everyone urging him to rethink his opinion on spiderworts. You can send those to Newfields, 4000 N. Michigan Road, Indianapolis, IN. Include a one-gallon pot of ‘Morning Grace’ if you can afford it.

Callisia rosea ‘Morning Grace.’

For loathing, again, I submit, my old, 1990s, Sear’s metal garden shed. It was such a nightmare to assemble that I had become a berserk, raging, cussing, wild-eyed, madman by the time it was finished. I remember that distinctly. So does my family. And the neighborhood. And, I’m told, the tale has been passed down now for over 25 years at the Hamilton County Justice Center! A continuous oral history passed from current convicts to new ones.

Fact is, after all that suffering during the assembly process, the damn thing was never any good. The sliding doors stopped sliding almost immediately. I had to duck to get in and out. It was always baking hot and dark and infested with spiders, mice, and wasps, and there was never any good way to organize it. Over the years, it has become a dilapidated, rusty eyesore. On our side, it is generally hidden by shrubs. But it has lately developed the bad habit of showing up rather startlingly in the background of way too many otherwise passable garden shots. So it’s been decided that it must go. I know already that this chore will be awful, possibly even worse than assembly ever was! I’m living in dread.

I could go on and on, especially about things I loathe, which indeed does give me special joy. Garden tour garden descriptions and garden speaker biographies are great topics. Right now annual weeds are an almost daily bane of my existence. Oh, and hoses. I’ll save that one for a special time in the future, but I will say for now that we as a society simply won’t be civilized until someone figures out a way to transport water from spigot to plant without resorting to hoses.

But I’ll finish with one more thing that I like. It’s a battery powered Stihl hedger that I recently bought. As a certified landscaper, arborist, public garden professional, and an award-winning but somewhat troubled garden writer, I am sworn to strictly honor the tenet that one should never shear anything ever. But I do. (Lord, the truth can be liberating!) Fact is, that beyond being all those things, I’m also a busy, stressed out dude who never has enough time. So I shear. A lot. And this thing makes it easy. It’s light, the battery lasts forever, and I regularly turn it loose on our boxwoods and Kerria, and I do so, lately, with no sense of guilt. My plants. Free country. Sometimes I also deadhead with it, shave off the occasional weed, and, once, even tried trimming my toenails. Not suggested.

Should mention here that despite two mentions of Stihl products in this blog that I am not a paid celebrity spokesperson for the Andreas AG Stihl KG company of Waiblingen, Germany, and I’ll prove it by inserting here a mean-spirited and entirely unnecessary bit of snark. As a battery powered machine, this bypasses an engineering accomplishment that has eluded Stihl for forever and day—designing a gas cap that works. Can’t begin to tell you how many tanks of that expensive Stihl gas their worthless caps have allowed to spill to the ground, and, man, that felt good. So there. Boom. Achtung, baby! You couldn’t see it, but I just dropped the mic.

            Random Horticultural Things I’m Either Loving or Loathing, and a Few I Haven’t Quite Decided On originally appeared on GardenRant on June 17, 2020.

The post Random Horticultural Things I’m Either Loving or Loathing, and a Few I Haven’t Quite Decided On appeared first on GardenRant.

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#GardenRant

[yardmasterz1]

Top 5 Cordless Leaf Blowers for 2020

Comparing The Best Battery Powered Leaf Blowers

Having a lightweight battery powered leaf blower for your house or even an apartment is a great tool for quick cleanup of smaller areas with leaves grass clippings and other debris. Benefits to having a battery powered leaf blower is that they’re very easy to use, they’re very lightweight, and generally not that expensive. Another nice thing, depending on the model you buy, is the batteries will most likely interchange with your current battery powered tool systems such as cordless drills and saws.

Not having a cord attached to the blower gives you the freedom to do jobs all around your property in a much quicker time and much easier then with a corded leaf blower. It’s also nice not having to buy gas and fuel mixture, because as long as you have a battery charged you’re ready to blow.

These are my picks for the 5 cordless leaf blowers that you can easily pick up on Amazon.com and lots of other websites.

  #1 DeWalt DCBL720 P1 20V MAX 5.0

First off I’m a big fan of all DeWalt products. Nearly all of the tools in my shop are DeWalt with the exception of maybe one or two. Their current 20 volt battery system is definitely one of the best on the market. With that said, I was very excited to try out this DeWalt cordless leaf blower and see how performed against other brands in its class. My first impression of the DeWalt dcbl720 P1 was how much power it had when you first pull the trigger. The axial fan design definitely maximizes the air output, as well as the run time.

The brushless motor is also great because it will extend the life of the motor. I really like the Speed Lock feature that will keep the variable speed trigger. You can set it exactly where you want it so you don’t have to hold the trigger down the entire time you’re using the blower.

This DeWalt is very lightweight even with the battery inserted. It’s so light at 7lbs even my kids can use it, which is nice because they couldn’t use my old gas powered leaf blower. So now I can put them to work in the backyard.  I got about 25 minutes of constant blowing time with this DeWalt which is pretty good in my mind and will let me clean up just about any jobs I have in the backyard without having to change batteries.

The noise level with this blower is not unreasonable.   With my old gas blower I always felt bad for the neighbors because it was so loud. However this DeWalt blower is relatively quiet by comparison.  This DeWalt model is definitely one of my top picks and one you should put on your short list to consider. Read the full DeWalt dcbl720 P1 blower review here.

Top Features

Highly efficient brushless motor

Axial fan design for maximum air output

400 CFM and 90 mph performance

Variable trigger Speed Lock

20 volt lithium ion battery and charger included

Needs Improvement

Only 25 minutes of battery life at full speed

  #2 Milwaukee 2728-2 1 HD M18V Li-Ion

To be honest I haven’t owned a lot of Milwaukee products in the past.   I’ve always been a DeWalt and Porter Cable Guy.  But I have to say I’m definitely impressed with this Milwaukee 18 volt cordless leaf blower. The first thing I noticed is that it’s extremely quiet.  Probably a bit quieter than the DeWalt actually. It’s rated at 63db, which is about 30% less than most gas leaf blowers.

You can tell when you pick it up at the construction is very solid. It’s a little bit heavier than the DeWalt, but not by much. The M18 fuel blower has enough power to blow leaves and debris from almost 15 feet. If you’re used to a gas powered leaf blower like a Stihl or Echo, you’re not going to be disappointed with the volume of air that this Milwaukee produces. With the big 18 volt battery, you can get 40 to 45 minutes of continuous run time.  For me this is plenty to clean up after any lawn mowing or yard work job.

One nice feature that I really liked is the ambidextrous speed control which allows the blower to be set at a fixed power so you can relax your operating hand. I found that running the Milwaukee blower at about 80% power produced the best results. At full power this leaf blower scatters leaves and debris everywhere. I recommend keeping it about 75 to 80% for better control.

The Milwaukee is definitely more of an industrial/commercial style blower. However it’s still perfect for residential use and while it’s a little more expensive then some of the other blowers and its class you will definitely notice the difference in construction quality and power. Read my full review on the Milwaukee 2728-21HD blower.

Top Features

30% less noise than gas blowers

Only 63 decibel noise rating

Comes with blower, 18v battery and charger

45 minutes of continuous run time

Professional grade

Needs Improvement

Higher price point

Heavier than other models

Replacement batteries are a bit pricey

  #3 Greenworks GBL80300 2400102

So on to our next leaf blower we have the Greenworks gbl80300 cordless leaf blower. I’ve tested some of the Greenworks products here on YardMasterz.com. Most recently one of their battery-powered lawn mowers. I have to say I was extremely impressed with the quality and performance of that mower so I was looking forward to testing out this cordless leaf blower to see if it lived up to the quality of their other products.

First, I really like the sleek-looking design of this Greenworks blower. It just looks pleasing to the eye before you even use it. This model also has a brushless motor which extends the life of the product and delivers performance close to a 32cc gas engine. The blowing power is about 500 CFM at 125 mph. You can blow dry grass and leaves as well as wet debris with absolutely no problem at all. The push button start on this model is somewhat unique. haven’t seen this feature in any of the other blowers I tested.

I managed to get about one hour of run time of continuous use using the fully charged 2ah battery that comes with  this blower package. Like the other blowers I tested, the Greenworks was very quiet. I wouldn’t hesitate to use this leaf blower in the morning as I doubt the neighbors would even hear it if their doors and windows are closed. Another nice feature is that this battery system works with over 20 other Greenworks products. So if you own several, you only need one battery system for all of them.

With the cost of the batteries,  it’s nice to know you only need to have a couple on hand for all of your tools. Just because Greenworks is a relatively new kid on the block for yard and power tools, don’t let that fool you into thinking they can’t compete with the old players. They’re making high quality products that are equally good for residential and professional use.All of this at a price point that won’t break the bank for most homeowners. Add the Greenworks gbl80300 to your shortlist of battery powered leaf blowers to consider.  Read my full review of the Greenworks GBL80300 here.

Top Features

70 minutes of battery life

Quiet at 60 DB rating

Tons of power at 500 CFM

Highly efficient brushless motor

Comes with 80 volt battery and charger

4.5 Star Amazon customer rating

Top rated cordless leaf blower

Needs Improvement

Not quite as durable as the Milwaukee blower

Some users have reported batteries not holding charge

  #4 Powersmith PBL140JH 40V Max Leaf Jet

So prior to putting together this review I hadn’t heard of the Powersmith brand for battery-powered lawn care equipment. However, after looking at some of the products they have on Amazon and their customer reviews I was pleasantly surprised and decided to add this particular battery powered leaf blower to my top 5 list.

When the Powersmith blower arrived and I got to try it out for the first time the feel of it was very similar to the DeWalt blower. In fact the look is also very similar to the DeWalt blower. Immediately, I like the power output of this blower. This model is rated at 120 mph/450 CFM, and it definitely generates a good amount of wind with a fully charged battery. Again, like the other models, this unit has a brushless motor for a longer run time more power and more torque than brushed motors. In the end this just means less wear and tear on the blower and you’ll get more life out of it.

After using the Powersmith a few times I started to realize how much lighter it actually is than the other blowers I tested. This is a great blower for older folks and even senior citizens who just want to blow off driveways and patios with some quick use. But even if you are a homeowner who needs to do some serious leaf or lawn clippings blowing, there’s no reason the Powersmith can’t handle the job with it’s large CFM output.

The one downside with this leaf blower is that I only got about 20 minutes of trigger time. So I would definitely suggest ordering a second battery if you decide to purchase this particular blower. It does come with a single  40 V battery and charger but a backup battery is recommended.

Top Features

High efficiency brushless motor

120 mph/450 CFM power rating

Extremely lightweight

Comes with 40 volt battery and charger

Cruise control

Relatively inexpensive

Needs Improvement

Longer run time would be nice

Not professional grade

  #5 EGO 56 Volt Lithium Ion Cordless Blower

Last but certainly not least on my list of the top 5 cordless leaf blowers for 2019 is the EGO 168 mph variable speed blower. this new EGO blower is one of the most powerful handheld blowers on the market delivering up to 580 CFM with its unique turbine fan brushless motor. The design of this blower is very sleek and lightweight. One of the best features is the tapered nozzle attachments which make clearing debris super easy. You’re probably not going to find this particular EGO model in most of the big box stores. This high-powered model I’ve only been able to find online. When I tested this blower for the first time the battery was only partially charged yet I was still able to clear away my back patio of leaves in just a couple of minutes.

The power this model produces is really unbelievable. And if that wasn’t enough it has a “boost”  button to give you an even bigger blast of air. Now I haven’t tested this personally, but according to the manufacturer you can get up to 3 hours of runtime on this blower when you use the efficiency mode. The batteries do take a while to charge. Up to 90 minutes for the larger battery, but while the battery is charging there’s a fan that kicks on to keep the battery from overheating which is a great feature.

Yes the price tag is a little higher than some of the other EGO models, but you definitely get more bang for your buck with this unit. I’m guessing that even some professional gas powered blowers don’t have as much power as this 56-volt EGO blower does.  If you don’t believe me just check out the reviews on Amazon as well. Everyone who’s purchase this particular blower has been shocked with the amount of power it has. Get this EGO and your neighbors are going to have blower envy..big time!

Top Features

Most blowing power in its class

168 mph/580 CFM rating

Brushless turbine fan engineering

Variable speed control

Up to 3 hours battery life

Comes with 56 volt battery and charger kit

Needs Improvement

Expensive price tag

Long battery charging time

Cordless Leaf Blower Buyer’s Guide

Choosing the right cordless leaf blower for your particular needs shouldn’t be a complicated decision.  yes there are quite a few makes and models on the market with varying price tags,  but in the end nearly all of them have similar features. Here are just a few things you should consider before making your lower purchase. You’ll probably want to do is figure out how much you want to spend and next decide how much blowing you’re actually going to do. Personally, I have about a 1 acre yard with lots of trees, bushes, planters and obviously lawn.For my situation, a leaf blower with about 40 minutes of continuous run time is what I need to complete the jobs around my property. But if you just have a small patio and a driveway that you want to keep clean you can definitely choose a model with a little less power and a little shorter battery life. This will lower the cost and save you a few bucks.

Power/Speed

When looking at the performance of a battery leaf blower you definitely want to keep an eye out on the mph and CFM numbers. Both of these determine the volume and speed of air exiting the blower tube. Mph means miles per hour and CFM means cubic feet per minute. The higher the numbers on the particular model you’re looking at the more air the motor won’t push through the tube. Obviously you can blow heavier debris  with a blower that has more power.

Sound rating

If you live in an area with an h o a, there may be regulations on how much noise your yard equipment is allowed to produce.With the association before purchasing a leaf blower just to make sure you’re within HOA rules. With cordless leaf blowers being considerably more quiet than gas-powered blowers, I highly doubt you’ll have any complaints from your neighbors while blowing off your back patio. most of these blowers are rated around the 60 decibel range.Anything under 80 decibels is definitely a neighbor friendly blower. This is definitely worth looking at on the model you’re considering purchasing.

Battery Voltage

The blower models I tested here had battery voltage ranging from 18 volts up to 80 volts. Generally speaking, the higher the battery voltage the longer the charge and blower run time will be. You will definitely pay more for an 80 volt battery blower versus a 20 volt battery blower. Depending on your needs you may just want to find a cordless leaf blower with a battery voltage somewhere in the middle. another thing to consider when it comes to batteries is your existing power tools. If you can purchase a blower that runs on the same battery system as your cordless drill and saws, he will likely already have some backup batteries at your disposal.

Weight

One of the biggest advantages to purchasing a battery powered leaf blower is the low weight. Traditional  handheld gas-powered blowers and gas backpack blowers are extremely heavy and not always suited for Homeowner/residential use. A cordless leaf blower is perfect for small jobs around the house and is especially Suited  for  older people or individuals who are not strong enough to use a heavy gas powered blower. Most battery power blowers will weigh less than 10 lbs. Be sure to check the weight on the model you’re looking at and make sure it fits your needs.

from YardMasterz https://www.yardmasterz.com/yard-care/best-cordless-leaf-blowers/

[topicprinter]

I started a lawn care company (The Lawn Squad) in 2017 while a college student pursuing my degree IU in Bloomington, indiana. 2017 was slow and I didn't take it very seriously but I had a website and a GMB location and a lot of my competitors didn't. I got a little bit more serious in 2018 but still stopped answering the phone and chasing new leads half way through the year because I got overloaded with school work.2017: $11,638 in revenue and $4,629 in expenses for a profit of $7,009 on a commitment of only about 165 hours throughout the year ($42 per hour)2018: $39,253 in revenue and $6,310 in expenses for $32,942 in profit on a commitment of about 800 hours ($41 per hour). I ended 2018 with 30 recurring customers.Initial InvestmentEarly on I used the family truck and mower to do some jobs. I put the majority of the profits back into the business in both 2017 and 2018 and grew slowly while purchasing used equipment. Here is the overview of what I acquired - all in cash with no debt.Equipment overview:2009 Ford F-150 – 7/1/18 – 95,000 miles – $8,000 + $3,000 transmission in July 2019 – $11,000 total36″ 2016 Gravely Pro-Stance Mower – $5,00060″ 2016 Gravely Pro-Turn 260 – $8,00012′ open trailer – $2,000Toro Self Propelled Residential mower – $250Used 100 Gallon Dual Tank Sprayer – $400 + $100 in repairsStihl Weed Eaters, Blowers, Misc – $1,000Total Investment – $27,7502019 customer numbers and financialsI ended 2019 with 55 lawn care clients and 20 weed control and fertilization clients in Bloomington for a total of 75 customers. I got the weed control applicators permit in March of this year and it was a great decision.I sent out 320 job quotes and 36% accepted my proposals. I worked 1,940 hours over 32 weeks for 54 hours per week (5 admin, 2 quoting, 47 on the truck).Total Revenue: $106,200Expenses:Labor: $9,000 / 28% of total expenses (hired part time employee who worked 22 hours a week for most of the season)Landscaping supplies: $5,980 / 18%Repairs / Maintenance: $4,250 / 13%Weed Control Supplies: $3,860 / 12%Fuel: $2,990 / 9%Wear and Tear / Depreciation: $2,100 / 6%Jobber Software: $1,548 / 5%Insurance (WC, GL, Auto): $1,200 / 4%Equipment Rentals: $600 / 2%Dumping (leaves, brush): $377 / 1%Clothing: $450 / 1%Total expenses: $32,355Total Profit: $73,645Hours worked by owner: 1,940 (54/wk for 32 weeks)Profit per hour worked: $37.96If I hired a competent crew leader for $16/hr the total payroll liability after workers compensation and payroll taxes would be about $20/hr.Assuming the employee is 20% slower than me at doing the work the total hours worked by that employee would have been 2,328 (1,940 x 1.2). Multiply that by the $20 / hr liability and the expense would have been $46,560.If you add that expense to the profit and loss statement my profit goes from $73,645 to $27,085.But this is what I plan to do next year so I can focus on high value work like bidding jobs and doing larger landscaping projects and finding weed control customers. This is a good exercise to know if I'm charging enough to build a scalable business. I plan to raise my prices on most of my customers this next season.Strategy and MarketingFrom day 1 I haven't paid for marketing and I've gotten the majority of this customers from my Google My Business location in Bloomington. Sales and marketing have been my weakest link since day 1 but I have never needed to do those things to grow my business.I got a few early clients to leave 5 star reviews and that has helped me rank. Bloomington has a population of less than 100,000 so it wasn’t extremely competitive. My GMB location has brought me 90% of my customers and referrals and word of mouth have brought 10%.My biggest advantage is that I turn quotes around quickly using Jobber and can look at Google Maps and measure the property so I don’t have to drive around looking at places to quote them. I've found that every hour I let pass before sending a quote the odds decrease drastically of securing the job.Plans for 2020FIRE THE BAD CUSTOMERS. 20% of my customers cause me all my headaches.I have to recruit and hire a good employee. I also need to learn spanish.I need to purchase another truck and trailer so I plan to shop in the 5-10 year old range and try to get a reliable truck under $10,000.Marketing, sales and SEO will take a priority spot because right now I'm reliant on the Google My Business location too much. I plan to do some customer appreciation by sending thank you notes out to my clients before Christmas.Hope this helps somebody out there! BTW my brother is Nick (u/sweatystartup) and I hang out over in r/sweatystartup. I'm a fan of that place.

#/r/entrepreneur #reddit

[biofunmy]

Would You Like to Spend Forever in This Tree?

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. — Death comes for all of us, but Silicon Valley has, until recently, not come for death.

Who can blame them for the hesitation? The death services industry is heavily regulated and fraught with religious and health considerations. The handling of dead bodies doesn’t seem ripe for venture-backed disruption. The gravestone doesn’t seem an obvious target for innovation.

But in a forest south of Silicon Valley, a new start-up is hoping to change that. The company is called Better Place Forests. It’s trying to make a better graveyard.

“Cemeteries are really expensive and really terrible, and basically I just knew there had to be something better,” said Sandy Gibson, the chief executive of Better Place. “We’re trying to redesign the entire end-of-life experience.”

And so Mr. Gibson’s company is buying forests, arranging conservation easements intended to prevent the land from ever being developed, and then selling people the right to have their cremated remains mixed with fertilizer and fed to a particular tree.

The Better Place team is this month opening a forest in Point Arena, a bit south of Mendocino; preselling trees at a second California location, in Santa Cruz; and developing four more spots around the country. They have a few dozen remains in the soil already, and Mr. Gibson says they have sold thousands of trees to the future dead. Most of the customers are “pre-need” — middle-aged and healthy, possibly decades ahead of finding themselves in the roots.

Better Place Forests has raised $12 million in venture capital funding. And other than the topic of dead bodies coming up fairly often, the office is a normal San Francisco start-up, with around 45 people bustling around and frequenting the roof deck with a view of the water.

There is a certain risk to being buried in a start-up forest. When the tree dies, Better Place says it will plant a new one at that same spot. But a redwood can live 700 years, and almost all start-ups in Silicon Valley fail, so it requires a certain amount of faith that someone will be there to install a new sapling.

Still, Mr. Gibson said most customers, especially those based in the Bay Area, like the idea of being part of a start-up even after life. The first few people to buy trees were called founders.

“You’re part of this forest, but you’re also part of creating this forest,” said Mr. Gibson, a tall man who speaks slowly and carefully, as though he is giving bad news gently. “People love that.”

Bring Your Dog, Forever

Customers come to claim a tree for perpetuity. This now costs between $3,000 (for those who want to be mixed into the earth at the base of a small young tree or a less desirable species of tree) and upward of $30,000 (for those who wish to reside forever by an old redwood). For those who don’t mind spending eternity with strangers, there is also an entry-level price of $970 to enter the soil of a community tree. (Cremation is not included.)

A steward then installs a small round plaque in the earth like a gravestone.

When the ashes come, the team at Better Place digs a three-foot by two-foot trench at the roots of the tree. Then, at a long table, the team mixes the person’s cremated remains with soil and water, sometimes adding other elements to offset the naturally highly alkaline and sodium-rich qualities of bone ash. It’s important the soil stay moist; bacteria will be what breaks down the remains.

Because the forest is not a cemetery, rules are much looser. For example: pets are allowed. Often customers want their ashes to be mixed with their pets’ ashes, Mr. Gibson said.

“Pets are a huge thing,” Mr. Gibson said. “It’s where everyone in your family can be spread. This is your tree.”

“Spreading” is what they call the ash deposit. The trench is a “space,” the watering can is a “vessel,” the on-site sales staff are “forest stewards.” When it comes to both death and start-ups, euphemisms abound.

It’s all pretty low-tech: mix ashes in with dirt and put a little placard in the soil. But there is a tech element: For an extra fee, customers can have a digital memorial video made. Walking through the forest, visitors will be able to scan a placard and watch a 12-minute digital portrait of the deceased talking straight to camera about his or her life. Some will allow their videos to be viewed by anyone walking through the forest, others will opt only for family members. Privacy settings will be decided before death.

Death Is a Growth Industry

As cities are running out of room to bury the dead, the cost of funerals and caskets has increased more than twice as fast as prices for all commodities. In the Bay Area, a traditional funeral and plot burial often costs $15,000 to $20,000. The majority of Americans are now choosing to be cremated.

“The death services market is very big — $20 billion a year — and customer approval is low,” said Jon Callaghan, a partner at True Ventures, an investor in Better Places. “The product is broken.”

The firm’s other investments include Blue Bottle, Peloton and Fitbit, and Mr. Callaghan sees consumers of those products as ones who would be interested also in Better Place trees.

“Every industry seems to have its time when things get wild,” said Nancy Pfund, the founder and a managing partner at DBL Partners, which led early funding. “It’s been mobile apps, it’s been cars, it’s been fake meat, and now it is death care,” she said.

“But we have to come up with a better name than ‘death care.’ Maybe it’s legacy care,” she added. “Maybe it’s eternity management.”

Around 75 million Americans will reach the life expectancy age of 78 between 2024 and 2042, Better Place suggests. The company’s pitch is that tree burial is good for the environment, the location is more beautiful than a traditional graveyard — and it’s cheaper as well.

Ms. Pfund also sees these forests as a way to monetize conservation. Actively managing a forest is expensive, so much so that financially strained state park systems are having to turn down gifts of land. Conservation easements, an agreement between an organization and the government to preserve land, have become more popular as a solution.

“No one has really made a big business monetizing conservation, nothing that could scale,” Ms. Pfund said. “So a bell went off when we heard this pitch.”

Where’s Grandma?

Those tracking the death services industry are more skeptical about how disruptive it will be.

John O’Conner, who runs Menlo Park Funerals, said more than 90 percent of his clients opt for cremation.

“Most of my people scatter on their own,” Mr. O’Conner said. “They just go at night, scatter grandma, have a cup of champagne, and every day they drive by that park they know grandma is there. Why would they pay $20,000 to go to a memorial grove when they can scatter at any little park they want to for free?”

That act is, technically, illegal.

“Don’t ask, don’t tell,” Mr. O’Conner said. He said he knew of a few golf courses in the region that had to put up signs imploring people not to scatter guest remains there.

Ben Deci, a spokesman for California’s Cemetery and Funeral Bureau, said Better Place Forests’ activities do not fall under the bureau’s purview.

“It looks to me like they’ve just purchased large tracts for forest land and are allowing people to disperse their ashes, and they say here ‘This’ll be your tree or whatever,’” Mr. Deci said. “You don’t need our approval to do that.”

Mr. Gibson does have a permit from the state verifying him as a cremated remains disposer. “But that’s not quite the right way to think about it,” he said.

How to Choose the Right Forever Tree

One recent day, Mr. Gibson walked through his 80 acres of Santa Cruz forest where about 6,000 trees are available, many wrapped in different colored ribbons, waiting to be chosen.

“The last major innovation in cemeteries was the lawn cemetery in the ’50s and ’60s, basically so they could get a lawn mower through easier,” Mr. Gibson said.

To claim a tree, customers walk through the forest and find one that speaks to them. The Better Place brochure also guides them: Coastal redwoods are “soaring and ancient,” tan oaks are “quirky and giving,” while a Douglas fir is “stately and reverent.”

“Some people want a tree that is totally isolated, and some people really want to be around people and be part of a fairy ring,” Mr. Gibson said. “Some people will come in and they’ll fall in love with a stump.”

“People love stumps,” he said, pointing out a few trees people bought just for the nearby stumps. “They’ve got a lot of personality.”

Younger people often choose younger trees because they like the idea of growth.

Debra Lee, a retired administrative assistant in San Jose, felt immediate kinship with the madrone tree she chose.

“She’s about 60 years old, and I’m 63,” Ms. Lee said of the mature evergreen with dark red bark. “Looking at her growth pattern you can see things have been hard at times because she’s kind of curved, but she made it to the top to get to the sunlight.”

When a customer chooses her tree, as Ms. Lee did, she cuts the ribbon off in what Better Place calls the ribbon ceremony.

As Mr. Gibson hiked across the Santa Cruz forest in a sweater and work boots, he noticed a rhododendron, his mother’s favorite flower, growing out of a stump.

Both his parents died when he was young, and, at 12, Mr. Gibson was adopted by his half brother. He is now 36, and, since then, he has spent many afternoons in Toronto at his parent’s grave site, set on a noisy corner, with a shiny black headstone that reflects traffic.

“You remember them dying, you remember the memorial service, and you remember the image of their final resting place,” Mr. Gibson said. He was haunted by that badly designed grave site. “It’s comically bad.”

Visiting their grave in 2015, he decided to quit his job running a marketing automation company. He would make a better graveyard.

“A lot of investors laughed at us when I first pitched this,” Mr. Gibson said. “People don’t really like thinking about this.”

Sahred From Source link Technology

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[greenworkslawnmowers-blog]

GreenWorks mo12b00 Review

GreenWorks mo12b00 Review I'm updating this to 5 stars because even given the issues below, I would buy this GreenWorks mo12b00 again over any competitors I could find in this product category of lawn mowers. I've used this for 4 years now and it still works the same as it did new. I remarked below on poor cut quality in some scenarios where blade speed can fall too low which is still a problem, but this really only occurs when mulching. Cutting thick or tall grass with the discharge open improves the pace and cut quality in this scenario but there are limitations, mowing fields is still going to produce a crappy cut no matter what you use. Let's get a few things out of the way, these do not impact the product score, as they are common to all products in this category: 1. This is a corded lawn mower. Dealing with the cord is sometimes a pain. If you have a lot of trees or obstacles you may want to consider something else. 2. Maximum power is limited to a 120V outlet and what can safely make it out an extension cord (about 1650W, for reference 1HP is ~745W). 3. With no batteries to wear out or engines to refuel/re oil, this is very cheap to operate. Running this GreenWorks mo12b00 lawn mower at peak output generally costs 8-25c/hour. You also hit an advantage in purchase price as gas or cordless lawn mowers with the same features generally cost 50-100% more. 4. Short of hitting something, bogging down an electric motor generally allows it to produce more power and speed back up again (unlike a gasoline engine). So, what's good about this GreenWorks mo12b00? Well: 1. 21" Steel deck. The actual blade is 19.5" leaving you a little less than an inch on either side of the deck that won't be cut. You can get a much closer cut with this than the B&D plastic models that have a very thick plastic housing. It's also going to survive rocks/sticks much better than the plastic ones. Both the discharge cover and bag seem to attach easily and solidly. It also makes it look more like a lawn mower and less like a big kid's toy. 2. Light (<55lbs). Since you're not carrying your power source onboard it will be lighter than any other GreenWorks lawn mower in this size class (compare to 75-90lb for gas or battery electric). Larger rear wheels give easy maneuverability. Single lever height adjust works well and is spring loaded so you can raise or lower it with one hand. 3. 3 in one operation - A lot of electric lawn mowers whether they're cordless or corded are limited on power, most get around this by using more efficient blade designs that generate less lift but mulching can be slower. With a reasonably well manicured lawn it doesn't matter much, but cut quality and performance drop off a lot if mulching tall or really thick grass. Since this GreenWorks mo12b00 has a side discharge that remains an option for thick grass and improves cut speed significantly without wasting your clippings, quite a few electrics don't have a discharge option. The bad? 1. Wheels/axles could be shielded a little bit so the cord doesn't tend to wrap around it and go under. 2. Mulching anything thick is slow, mowing through thick grass can take quite a bit of time (and tends to clump the output.) I think this is more related to the blade design, when you move fast through thick patches it will cut but leave a few standing, if it had more lift I think it would draw these up (and also help propel the discharge better). Unfortunately the blade seems to have proprietary mounting holes so that's hard to do. Now, into the nitty-gritty: This GreenWorks mo12b00 lawn mower is powered by a brushed DC electric motor (Globe 7080). Brushed DC motors are lighter and cheaper than AC synchronous motors or induction motors. However they're generally less durable or efficient. The Globe 7080 has a peak efficiency (their spec) of 68%. Peak efficiency at 3500RPM (590W output at 7.3A), Peak power at 2245RPM (860W output at 13A). Here's why that's a problem: Lawn mowers are generally limited (by agreement) to a maximum blade tip speed of 19000 feet per minute (for safety of items that may be thrown from the GreenWorks mo12b00). Higher blade speeds give more lift helping the grass get lifted into the cutting path and making cleaner cuts. At max efficiency RPM the blade is moving about 17,800FPM on this lawn mower. If you start cutting too fast you'll bog it down. Because it's electric it picks up torque so it will keep spinning but you don't hit peak power until about 11,600FPM. This is far too slow and you'll start seeing missed cuts and ragged lines (I noticed this in actual usage). So since you can't really cut that slow, maximum usable power is closer to 600-650W, or less than 1HP. By comparison, a Honda GCV160 engine at 3600RPM (a common governor setting for push mowers) outputs about 3425W, falling to around 2800W at 3000RPM. Obviously there are electrical supply limitations to a lawn mower like the GreenWorks mo12b00. It's perfectly serviceable but nothing amazing, if they ran a brushless motor in here it would undoubtedly cost more but the efficiency could be much higher (>85%) and could be designed for peak power much closer to the ideal blade speed.

Rating 5/5

#greenworks #lawn mower #review

[translatorplanet]

five Locations To maintain With String Trimmers

The Earthwise CST00012 is really a cordless string trimmer. Some basic questions for root issues in troy bilt weed eater attachments. You could find it for a median price of $75. Continue reading to master about a number of the functions that it offers.

Along with your recently planted tree will not forget about to maintain watering it for your first number of several years mainly because it receives established. Depending on the climate along with your space, it is going to need to have weekly watering until eventually the roots are recognized. To form deep roots, water deeply. A long, sluggish trickle of water will drinking water far more deeply than a brief sprinkling. Bear in mind, deep roots help your tree to generally be resist droughts and winds. Allow the ground dry out, no less than considerably, in between watering.

I had been happy to find out the Homelite weed eater was highly effective and lightweight. Additionally, it was straightforward to adjust the tackle so that you can make it comfortable to utilize. The trimmer had a good amount of electric power, but I quickly found out that it had been not intended for trimming of thick weeds and ground. The motor could cope with it, the challenge was, the top would come spinning off if it absolutely was achieved with an excessive amount resistance. I promptly modified to this and only made use of it for usual trimming and edging and it labored fine.

The large dilemma would appear to become which product of Gas Powered string trimmer income to acquire – 2 or four cycle motor, which shaft structure, what pounds is greatest, gas economy and many others. You will find some essential information that apply to most all units, and these should help slender the choices considerably. 2 cycle motors are usually a gasoline and oil mixture, 4 cycle motors commonly use straight gasoline for fuel. two cycle motors weigh a lot less than 4 cycle motors, therefore if you do have a large amount of trimming, the 2 cycle may be best. Nevertheless, the four cycle motor can reduce emissions by nearly 75% because they do not burn off oil for a gasoline additive. The four cycle motor will be the most popular preferred of numerous, as it seems to run quieter and using a minor significantly less hand vibration.

Gas Powered Weed Whacker: Gasoline powered weed eaters are already typically useful for pulling out the invasive plant growth.These types of string trimmers use oil or gasoline or occasionally both to work.They’re the facility horses within the trimmer local community.The gasoline weed eaters have much more energy and may keep far more string than their electrical counterparts.The gasoline weed eaters also have a broader scope of procedure since they usually are not restricted by a wire and might get to in the considerably reaches from the property.The sole downside to this gear is the fact may be very heavy and not as effortlessly maneuvered as can be carried out while using the electric kinds.

Vacuum-er-cise necessitates all home furnishings be moved along with a strategy of action (the place plugs are) before you begin for the reason that you might be going to hoover all the floors in half-hour, utilizing extensive, intense movements.

Winterizing your gas-powered equipment will increase their life and promise hassle-free spring start-up. The most important winterizing step is usually to drain or stabilize the gasoline. Gasoline still left inside the fuel method about the winter season will degrade leaving gum deposits and polish build-up that can plug up the gas technique — the #1 cause mowers, string trimmers, leaf blowers, and chain saws is not going to start within the spring.

Finally and probably the biggest concern that people have with cordless weed wackers may be the truth that just are usually not as potent as fuel weed wackers. Gasoline weed wackers can manage some fairly tricky weeds and also you seriously need to study what types of weeds you have got inside your garden that should be wacked, and evaluate the electrical battery operated weed wackers which you may well plan on obtaining just to guantee that prospects haven’t complained on their own over-all electrical power.

The post five Locations To maintain With String Trimmers appeared first on Translator Planet.

from Translator Planet http://ift.tt/2rQkron

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[kristaduerrface-blog1]

Everything you wanted to know about an electric lawn mower but were afraid to ask

If you're the type of person who wants a beautiful lawn but also want to keep the planet beautiful then an electric lawn mower may be something for you to consider. 

Now granted, if you have a large lawn then this style may not be for you, but they are perfect for smaller lawns with soft-bladed grass. An obvious benefit of an electric mower is they are not nasty pollutants like their gas counterparts. 

Now when I say pollution I'm not just talking smog, anyone who's ever owned a gas mower or had a neighbor who owned one knows about the noise pollution that fills the air when they're running.

Electric mowers, however, are 75% quieter. This is something that your neighbors will definitely appreciate when they're sipping ice tea on their lawn come Sunday. They are also cheaper. 

Home owners on a budget usually opt for an electric mower because it costs about 56% less at retail than gas mowers. 

Electric mowers are also cheaper to operate and maintain. They literally cost only pennies to use. 

In a given year, the typical electric lawn mower only costs about $3 in electricity. 

Another added benefit is how easy they are to use.

Other than the occasional sharpening, electric mowers are easier to maintain than gas mowers. 

You simply plug in and go.

You dont have to deal with messy oil changes, you dont have to tune them and you if dont want to deal with all the yanking it takes to get your lawn mower started simply choose the push-button mower. 

They are also a much safer choice, because as a parent or pet owner the last thing you want is for your kids or pet to get near the gas.

Electric Lawn Mowers - Pros and Cons

Electric lawn mowers seem to have everyone interested, yet not everyone is convinced they are a great choice. 

We have decided to put together a list of the electric lawn mowers pros and cons to help you in determining if an electric mower is for you.

Keep in mind, some of the cons on this list are only cons for some individuals, and not for everyone. 

Weigh the pros and cons before you jump in and buy an electric mower. 

It is important that you make a purchase like this, only after you have done your research and determined it is the best choice for you and your lawn.

Pros

Environmentally friendly

Mulching/bagging options

Effortless start

On average can mow up to an acre of land

Lightweight

Quiet

Reasonably priced

Easy to maneuver

Performance is similar to gas powered

No paying for gas and or oil for the mower

No need for expensive maintenance

Variation in voltage to meet more needs

Deck sizes vary just like gas mowers

Cons

Cord limitations on corded mowers

Battery life varies with grass type/conditionMight need backup battery for larger lawns

Can only mow about an acre without recharging

Obstacles can limit mowing area due to cord

Less horsepower than a gas mower

As you can see, electric mowers have a lot more pros than they do cons.

The only real con that we could find that would cause an individual to avoid buying an electric mower is if they had a larger area than an acre to mow.

For people with more than about an acre and a half, an electric mower seems to be more of an inconvenience to use than they are worth. 

Especially if you will be buying additional backup batteries in order to mow a larger yard in one day. 

This will add up quickly in a very short amount of time. 

For one to two extra batteries, you can expect to spend anywhere from $150-$400 and up.

Of those that are owners of an electric lawnmower, they would all agree, ownership has helped them to make a difference without going without. 

Performance is always a concern for those still looking to buy an electric mower. 

However, once they do their research, understand the electric lawn mowers pros and cons, and even talk to people that do have an electric mower, they soon realize this is a purchase that they will not regret.

#elelctric lawn mower guide #electric lawn mowers #everything you ever wanted to know about electric lawn mowers but were afraid to ask