Most Worthless Yard Tool

Status
Not open for further replies.
Joined
Jun 3, 2005
Messages
104
Location
Indianoplace
I nominate my electric leaf blower/vacuum. Only got it for the sucking up part, not blowing. Bought about 2 years ago and said no more tedious leaf raking for me. Could be that I've got over 50 years of raking experience, but it took me twice as long as raking since it's basically like vacuuming your yard with a shop vac. But wait, I said. I live in a one level ranch with a very low pitch roof. Instead of using my used 3" paint brush and hand scooping the leaves out of the gutter, I'll just suck them up. Again it took longer (dragging the thing on the roof), the sucking tube was too wide to fit down in the gutter, and when I did maple seedlings this spring, it would chop up the leafy part but couldn't digest the seeds and they'd fall back into the gutter. But wait, I said. My pool area is completely fenced in with grass on 2 sides and a bunch of the wife's flowers, ground cover, and other obstacles. Well, anytime a leaf gets stuck in concrete cracks, or the ground, or a bush, this thing can't suck it up. Plus it was sucking up the ground cover and getting jammed-up. So next spring I think I'll be making a donation to good-will. Exit rant: I have about ten small trees, none over 12' tall. 90% of my leaves come from the neighbor's 100'+ trees on both sides of my property.
 
I have one of those leaf blower/vacuums. I never use the vacuum. Figured it had to be a gimmick.

Leaves are my worst enemy. I have alot of live oaks (ironic they're called live oaks) that dump leaves. Small, mean leaves. The kind that don't want to be mulched by the mower. I raked up 2 trashcans full just yesterday and that was on a 10 foot radius around 1 tree.

If I mowed with the bag on, I'd only make 1 pass down the yard before emptying it. My FIL raked his mother's yard. Over 50 black trashbags of leaves - in the FRONT yard alone!
 
Originally Posted By: beanoil
Me



crackmeup2.gif
 
I hate those leaf blowers. Everytime I drive on the road I see these guys just blowing the debris into the road. Have common sense folks, your just blowing the garbage elsewhere.

I also hate it when these fools blow the leaves and dirt towards my car when I drive by, Like I want dirt and [censored] entering my engine bay!

Douchebags!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
06.gif


Rake it and bag it you lazy bums!
 
Leaf blowers work well for certain things. I like to use mine to blow off my driveway, garage, sometimes the bed or inside of my truck (I'm not kidding), porch, and dirt off the patio. Occasionally, I'll use it to blow the eaves of the house clean of spider webs and dirt/dust, blow off the vehicles after mowing the grass, etc.
 
Years ago my wife bought me an electric snow shovel.It's heavier then a large snow shovel filled with snow, more awkward to move around and you have to drag a cord around to trip over in the snow. Oh yea, it would only move snow if it was 6 inches deep or less.,, By the way I still have it and it's for sale!!!
 
Originally Posted By: BigCahuna
Years ago my wife bought me an electric snow shovel.It's heavier then a large snow shovel filled with snow, more awkward to move around and you have to drag a cord around to trip over in the snow. Oh yea, it would only move snow if it was 6 inches deep or less.,, By the way I still have it and it's for sale!!!


I bought a 1983 gas powered Toro Power Shovel for $50.00 a few weeks ago. Best $50.00 I ever spent on snow removal equipment. It's the best thing going for getting heavy wet snow off of my deck. If I stay on top of it, I can keep the deck cleared so that deep snow doesn't accumulate. It's such a fun piece of equipment to use, I look forward to snow.

I agree. It's limited to how deep the snow is but I have other machines for deep snow.
 
In my mind a leaf blower is only as good as the vacuum on your lawn mower.

I just blow the leaves towards the center of the lawn and then mow as normal. I bought a very good mower so that I could be sure of never raking leaves again.

The bag on the mower is around 1 bushell and I don't have to empty it very many times to collect all the leaves in fall. I probably do this 3 times over 3 weeks in fall (the grass is no longer growing anyway) and my yard is spotless.
 
Where I live the fall is a very windy time of year so blowing all the leaves into a pile or into the street is basically a waste of time because they all just blow back or into my neighbors yard, while my other neighbor's leaves blow into my yard. I always get a chuckle out of watching the DPW workers out on the windiest days with leaf blowers screaming away creating clouds of leaves swirling around in the air. It's kind of pretty, but I just picture my tax dollars swirling around up there with the leaves...
 
Originally Posted By: bigmike
Leaf blowers work well for certain things. I like to use mine to blow off my driveway, garage, sometimes the bed or inside of my truck (I'm not kidding), porch, and dirt off the patio. Occasionally, I'll use it to blow the eaves of the house clean of spider webs and dirt/dust, blow off the vehicles after mowing the grass, etc.


Exactly. They're a great alternative to sweeping the garage and shed floor, awesome for (gently) blowing debris out of your flower beds and I LOVE them for cleaning off my outdoor power equipment. I pretty much use them for everything BUT leaf blowing! I have to crack up over homeowners struggling with leaves/leaf piles when all you have to do is mulch them! I'll mulch them when they're blanketing the ground 4-6" deep. It might take several passes, but it beats moving them around.

Joel
 
Edgers are pretty dumb. Why not get a string trimmer and cock it sideways? I can imagine a 25 year old one with six hours on the motor.

We inherited a leaf shredder that also, very slowly, mulches branches less than an inch in diameter. 3 hp motor. Haven't used it in years but wife won't get rid of it.
 
I had a walk behind combo vacuum/bagger with a branch chipper on the side. It would always clog with leaves and the chipper was useless for anything larger than twigs. Sold that POS.
 
Originally Posted By: JTK
Originally Posted By: bigmike
Leaf blowers work well for certain things. I like to use mine to blow off my driveway, garage, sometimes the bed or inside of my truck (I'm not kidding), porch, and dirt off the patio. Occasionally, I'll use it to blow the eaves of the house clean of spider webs and dirt/dust, blow off the vehicles after mowing the grass, etc.


Exactly. They're a great alternative to sweeping the garage and shed floor, awesome for (gently) blowing debris out of your flower beds and I LOVE them for cleaning off my outdoor power equipment. I pretty much use them for everything BUT leaf blowing! I have to crack up over homeowners struggling with leaves/leaf piles when all you have to do is mulch them! I'll mulch them when they're blanketing the ground 4-6" deep. It might take several passes, but it beats moving them around.

Joel


Do you do this with a rider or walk-behind? I can't imagine doing this in my yard with my self-propelled Toro. I'd be out there all day. One day, I'll break down and buy a rider!
 
Cheap spade with wooden handle (Big Lots or Cummin's Tool special) I've broken the handle on several of them -- while shoveling our clay. You'd think I'd learn.
 
Originally Posted By: greenaccord02
Those electric blower/vacs are trash. Gas is the only way to go. My little cheapie gas Poulan can really take care of business.


thumbsup2.gif


I have an electric Toro leaf blower. It's supposed to be the "most powerful lightweight blower".
smirk.gif

Yeah right.
I used to use the vacuum attachments to do my front porch and courtyard area. For some reason it works fine on the Oak and Japanese Maple leaves but it has a hard time picking up the smaller Cedar Elm leaves.

Afterwards, I would be covered in a fine black dust layer. You'd be suprised how much of that stuff gets into your ears. That can't be healthy.

I stopped trying that leaf vac nonsense awhile back. Just blow them in the yard and mulch them with the mower.

But I'm sick and tired of getting that stupid cord caught on things and then having to un-knot it and wind it back up again. I'm buying myself a Christmas present and it's going to be a gas powered blower.
 
My wife is worthless when it comes to yard work.

She keeps at me to rake the leaves but no way.....not two acres worth when there is still several million to fall yet!

The mower will get what's left next spring.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top Bottom