Are 18V mowers really that bad?

[KevinMalone]

I have a 1500 sqft lawn and a bunch of Ryobi 18V tools and batteries (two of which are 4 Ah but non-HP). I figured a Ryobi 18V mower would be adequate for my usage, but upon looking at reviews, they just seem terrible?

Eg: P1190VNM - $370 CAD, 16" deck, not self-propelled and 2x 4 Ah non-HP batteries. Based on a lot of reviews, it seems that you would be lucky to get 5 minutes of run time from each 4 battery?! In the following video, each 4 Ah battery seems to overheat after 3-4 minutes with 50% life left. In the end, he is able to cover ~2000 sqft after letting both batteries cool off:



How representative is his test? He's got the mower at the lowest height with a ton of leaves and dirt, but there isn't much stuff in the bag. Maybe it's mulching the leaves, which would draw more power?

I assume I could finish my lawn in one go if I use all four of my 4 Ah batteries, but that seems a bit ridiculous. I understand that the HP batteries are better, but I don't really want to buy additional batteries just for the mower.

The ideal solution would be something that utilizes my existing 18V batteries, but am I setting myself up for failure with an 18V mower? Do I really need a 40V mower for my dinky lawn if I mow regularly and bag?

 

[bullwinkle]

I have a Makita 18V mower-it’s not self propelled, but it’s TWO batteries are just enough to cut my entire yard (not huge, ~1/4 acre minus house, garage, & driveway.

 

[Astro14]

My Makita (twin 18V) has been great. Whoever you’re talking to, doesn’t sound like they’ve used a quality one.

You can search my posts on the subject, but I’ve gone all electric for outdoor power equipment.

And I heartily recommend it.

 

[JohnnyJohnson]

Wonder how many of these are going to last 20 plus years like my gas mowers have?

 

[SHOZ]

4ah isn't much, especially with lower voltage.

 

[Astro14]

I think the title should be “Are Ryobi 18v mowers really that bad?”

 

[hemioiler]

I have a 1500 sqft lawn and a bunch of Ryobi 18V tools and batteries (two of which are 4 Ah but non-HP). I figured a Ryobi 18V mower would be adequate for my usage, but upon looking at reviews, they just seem terrible?

Eg: P1190VNM - $370 CAD, 16" deck, not self-propelled and 2x 4 Ah non-HP batteries. Based on a lot of reviews, it seems that you would be lucky to get 5 minutes of run time from each 4 battery?! In the following video, each 4 Ah battery seems to overheat after 3-4 minutes with 50% life left. In the end, he is able to cover ~2000 sqft after letting both batteries cool off:



How representative is his test? He's got the mower at the lowest height with a ton of leaves and dirt, but there isn't much stuff in the bag. Maybe it's mulching the leaves, which would draw more power?

I assume I could finish my lawn in one go if I use all four of my 4 Ah batteries, but that seems a bit ridiculous. I understand that the HP batteries are better, but I don't really want to buy additional batteries just for the mower.

The ideal solution would be something that utilizes my existing 18V batteries, but am I setting myself up for failure with an 18V mower? Do I really need a 40V mower for my dinky lawn if I mow regularly and bag?

I have a bunch of the 18v ryobi power tools, but for the bigger stuff I'd definitely just go to 40v. Weed wackers, mowers, leaf blowers etc, they're all going to perform better on 40v so one option is just to commit to a second battery system for the bigger stuff and be done with it? It's not really the end of the world for me to have two systems if performance in one area or another is noticeably better.

 

[fantastic]

Bought an electric Dewalt weed eater 9 years ago & my biggest complaint was not enough power to finish the job. I bought extra batteries but still wasn't enough. These are excellent for very small yards. Think postage stamp city yard. You could try it & if you do please share what you learn since this has been a growing trend for years now.

 

[Rmay635703]

I think the title should be “Are Ryobi 18v mowers really that bad?”

Aren’t they toy sized, underpowered with a short run time.

I had an early 24v greenworks which was a real POS

 

[slacktide_bitog]

A 1500 sf lawn should be no problem for an 18V electric mower.

All Ryobi tools have a reputation for being cheap low quality, not just the lawn mower

So if you already have a good experience with other Ryobi products, you should be fine with the mower in question. However, there are less-expensive mowers on Amazon for less than that, batteries included.

It's easier to recharge a battery than it is to walk to the gas station, and it is so much quieter than a gas engine mower

 

[92saturnsl2]

Audio sounds like an AI voiceover.

 

[97prizm]

I have a Makita 18V mower-it’s not self propelled, but it’s TWO batteries are just enough to cut my entire yard (not huge, ~1/4 acre minus house, garage, & driveway.

My neighbor has I think a 36v ego mower? His first one caught fire and burned to the ground on its second summer. When he got his new ego mower three years ago he could mow his entire yard front and back yard on one charge with battery to spare. Now he gets his front yard and 1/3 of his back yard on a charge. This has pushed me away from buying an electric mower.

 

[cptbarkey]

They are expensive for what they are, gas is still king when it comes to regular lawn mowing.

 

[oil pan 4]

I have a 1500 sqft lawn and a bunch of Ryobi 18V tools and batteries (two of which are 4 Ah but non-HP). I figured a Ryobi 18V mower would be adequate for my usage, but upon looking at reviews, they just seem terrible?

Eg: P1190VNM - $370 CAD, 16" deck, not self-propelled and 2x 4 Ah non-HP batteries. Based on a lot of reviews, it seems that you would be lucky to get 5 minutes of run time from each 4 battery?! In the following video, each 4 Ah battery seems to overheat after 3-4 minutes with 50% life left. In the end, he is able to cover ~2000 sqft after letting both batteries cool off:



How representative is his test? He's got the mower at the lowest height with a ton of leaves and dirt, but there isn't much stuff in the bag. Maybe it's mulching the leaves, which would draw more power?

I assume I could finish my lawn in one go if I use all four of my 4 Ah batteries, but that seems a bit ridiculous. I understand that the HP batteries are better, but I don't really want to buy additional batteries just for the mower.

The ideal solution would be something that utilizes my existing 18V batteries, but am I setting myself up for failure with an 18V mower? Do I really need a 40V mower for my dinky lawn if I mow regularly and bag?

I think that's the one where if you hit a tree root, rock, dog chew toy, ect the mower is ruined.

 

[350Rocket]

Wonder how many of these are going to last 20 plus years like my gas mowers have?

Hopefully my neighbors across the road never move and I will get to see how long his Ryobi lawn tractor lasts. He uses it very similar to how I use my 2007 cub cadet 50" lawn tractor. I expect to get 25-30 out of mine and I suspect his will be gone before 10.

 

[JohnnyJohnson]

Hopefully my neighbors across the road never move and I will get to see how long his Ryobi lawn tractor lasts. He uses it very similar to how I use my 2007 cub cadet 50" lawn tractor. I expect to get 25-30 out of mine and I suspect his will be gone before 10.

My guess is he will dump it when the batteries die in 7 and the cost to replace the batteries is over half the cost of a new mower!

 

[Cherrybomb]

Our fearless leaders are slowly taking away our choices in how we power our lawn equipment.Lets hope the battery equipment keeps improving up to the level of my 16 year old Honda thats I'm not giving up any time soon

 

[nickaluch]

I'm in a pickle.My 15 year old craftsman mower Honda motor runs perfect zero issues but I'm afraid if I run her until it dies I won't be able to get a new gas mower. My neighbor has a battery mower loves it but I'm a gas man I really have no interest in battery

 

[SHOZ]

I'm in a pickle.My 15 year old craftsman mower Honda motor runs perfect zero issues but I'm afraid if I run her until it dies I won't be able to get a new gas mower. My neighbor has a battery mower loves it but I'm a gas man I really have no interest in battery

Pretty easy to replace the motors with aftermarket ones. It's the deck and rolling hardware you need to worry about.

 

[nickaluch]

Pretty easy to replace the motors with aftermarket ones. It's the deck and rolling hardware you need to worry about.

That's my concern the body of the mower is getting wobbly the engine is solid. Also Honda is getting out of the gas mower business that's another concern I'm not a big fan of Briggs