Moving Lawn Tools to Battery Power.

[UncleDave]

We'll at least the hand held ones anyway.

I'm lucky enough that Mrs Uncle Dave likes to do yardwork, but she's getting tired of smelling like 2 stroke mix, and hot start problems.
(Im a total gear head so its a bit like perfume to me but I can never sell that)

The old man here will stick to his Stihl chain saw and trimmer.

We're big fans of the Makita 18 volt line of products and have a grip of 18 volt tools and an existing battery structure, so the 36 volt line of yard gear made a lot of sense.

Going with the 36V -

Blower
String Trimmer
Pole Saw
Articulating hedge trimmer
xtra pole extension

Blower, saw, and extension made it home tonight - the rest " coming any time"

The blower came with 4 5AH batts and a dual battery charger so it provides a nice base of power to run all these.

Eager to hear what my "expert" has to say about these.

Ive loved all my Makita gear since my first battery powered drill in 1983.

 

[RazorsEdge]

Battery powered in my garage --

Makita 1/2 inch impact
Worx grass trimmer
Worx blower
Worx chainsaw
Greenworks 40v Twinforce mower

Coming home soon for winter preparation will be a Ego battery powered 2-stage snowblower

The only lawn equipment that is gas powered is a small Craftsman 17.5hp tractor

 

[joekingcorvette]

I have upgraded to a Dewalt 60 volt blower. 60 volt string trimmer. 20 volt hedge trimmer and 20 volt chain saw all Dewalt products. I also have the Dewalt 20 volt power polisher/buffer. I love the Dewalt products and have many other hand tools that are 20 volt as well. One of my favorites is the Dewalt multi tool. I also have a striker master electric ice fishing auger which is awesome too. I just got to the point where it is so much easier and cleaner using the electric cordless tools. I still have a gasoline riding mower and a gasoline power washer which are 4 strokes. I do not own any two stroke engines any longer.

 

[joekingcorvette]

I updated my yard tool collection too. 60 volt string trimmer and leaf blower. 20 volt hedge trimmer and 20 volt chain saw all are the DeWalt brand. I also have a 20 volt DeWalt power buffer/polisher. I like the cordless tools and they are really clean and easy to use. It's nice not having to worry about a drop or two of two stroke oil getting spilled on my clothes doing an easy lawn job. I do not own any 2 stroke engines and longer. I also have an electric ice auger. The electric tools are amazing.

 

[clinebarger]

Recently purchased a 18v Milwaukee string trimmer cause that's what I already have far as batteries....It'll run through a 8.0Ah battery way faster than a tank of fuel in my 13 year old Echo string trimmer will. I have a 131R Stihl Combi with a string trimmer attachment but it's too heavy for anybody but me & I'm not to keen on lugging it around either.

With real/light 2 strokes going away & the heft of "4-Mix" engines.....Battery power is the future! But am I going to get 13 years out of a battery powered trimmer?

 

[UncleDave]

Recently purchased a 18v Milwaukee string trimmer cause that's what I already have far as batteries....It'll run through a 8.0Ah battery way faster than a tank of fuel in my 13 year old Echo string trimmer will. I have a 131R Stihl Combi with a string trimmer attachment but it's too heavy for anybody but me & I'm not to keen on lugging it around either.

With real/light 2 strokes going away & the heft of "4-Mix" engines.....Battery power is the future! But am I going to get 13 years out of a battery powered trimmer?

Good question on life, we'll see.
My use profile is rural homeowner so definitely more than a city guy.

Im at 25 years out my 9.6 Volt Makita drill, and its built so so much stuff I cant even list.
People ask me why I still have it and the best answer is that it still works fine so I see no reason to get rid of it.

 

[clinebarger]

I'm a city guy with 4 continuous lots that's well over an acre with many structures (2 houses, 2 shops, 3 driveways, 3 storage buildings, A lot of concrete flat work, 2 stone patios & over 1000 feet of fence line) It takes me & my hired lawn guy a full 8 hour day to fully mow & trim the property.

I had a 9.6V Makita that served me well, But I abused the hell out of it. My fairly new Milwaukee 12v drill will shut down if I try to abuse it at all. For those real rough jobs.....I have a CP Air Drill.

 

[UncleDave]

I'm a city guy with 4 continuous lots that's well over an acre with many structures (2 houses, 2 shops, 3 driveways, 3 storage buildings, A lot of concrete flat work, 2 stone patios & over 1000 feet of fence line) It takes me & my hired lawn guy a full 8 hour day to fully mow & trim the property.

I had a 9.6V Makita that served me well, But I abused the hell out of it. My fairly new Milwaukee 12v drill will shut down if I try to abuse it at all. For those real rough jobs.....I have a CP Air Drill.

Thats a lot of lawn brother.

 

[oldhp]

My Poulan 2 stroke won't die. I'll run her until she croaks and then go battery. I think it's 10-11 years old.

 

[Skippy722]

I’ve got 2 acres to mow and trim, gas only for the bulk, at least until someone makes an electric zero turn/tractor that will last over 2 acres. However, I’m considering an electric mower for the hill, it would be nice not having to buy gas!

Quick look at lowes is showing $279 as the cheapest electric mower…. Ouch!

 

[Astro14]

Recently purchased a 18v Milwaukee string trimmer cause that's what I already have far as batteries....It'll run through a 8.0Ah battery way faster than a tank of fuel in my 13 year old Echo string trimmer will. I have a 131R Stihl Combi with a string trimmer attachment but it's too heavy for anybody but me & I'm not to keen on lugging it around either.

With real/light 2 strokes going away & the heft of "4-Mix" engines.....Battery power is the future! But am I going to get 13 years out of a battery powered trimmer?

As my first Makita cordless drill approaches 30 years old, I think the question should be: “Am I going to get 30 maintenance free years out of anything with an engine?”.

I’ve got the Makita 18v system.

For OPE, I have:

36v blower. Works great. Pick it up, pull the trigger. Does everything the old one did.

18v string trimmer. Same thing. Works great. Does our whole yard twice on a charge if you’ve got a 5ah battery.

18v recip saw. Normally, I would characterize this as carpentry, but with a pruning blade, it’s great. Lightweight, powerful, and fast when cutting limbs and pruning. Far safer than a chainsaw.

In addition to the OPE, there’s the following 18v Makita tools, 1/2” Impact, 1/2” drill, 3/8” drill, a driver, an oscillating multi tool, a work light, and a flashlight. The Makita 18v system is great.

 

[4WD]

40v blower, 20v string trimmer, and 20v hedge trimmer (mainly trim ground cover) share batteries …
*Cordless saws use 18v same as drills - one 20v drill …
what I have really learned to love is my 120v chainsaw since I have 20 amp GFCI outlets in many places. I think my Stihl gasser loves it too
*tough job the classic Milwaukee Sawzall still gets the call
(angle grinder on deck) …

 

[zzyzzx]

I threw out the cordless electric tools as the batteries go bad and am now exclusively using corded stuff. Never have to worry about if a battery is charged and no constant replacing batteries (practically a constant maintenance item to go cordless).

 

[JC1]

Recently purchased a 18v Milwaukee string trimmer cause that's what I already have far as batteries....It'll run through a 8.0Ah battery way faster than a tank of fuel in my 13 year old Echo string trimmer will. I have a 131R Stihl Combi with a string trimmer attachment but it's too heavy for anybody but me & I'm not to keen on lugging it around either.

With real/light 2 strokes going away & the heft of "4-Mix" engines.....Battery power is the future! But am I going to get 13 years out of a battery powered trimmer?

Cline,

How long do your Milwaukee batteries last? I've got DeWalt 20v batteries as old as 2011 and they work fine. Mind you I don't use all the batteries every week, but I do rotate them when using. For my DeWalt trimmer I use a 4ah or 5am.

You may get 13 years out of a battery unless you use if every day since you are a mechanic.

 

[WylieCoyote]

I'm considering this as well. My Ryobi blower is great. No gas, no cord. My new neighbor is all electric...mower, trimmer, blower, and it seems to be working fine for them. The more my 9-year-old gas trimmer acts up, the more inclined I am to lay it near the curb in front of my house (where all things disappear magically), and get on Amazon to look for an electric everything. I just have to find an appropriate place in the house to create a charging station. Ahh, first world problems....

 

[JC1]

I've got a lot of DeWalt 20v tools. I also have the DeWalt 20v trimmer and blower.

I see they have lawnmowers now that use 2 batteries at once. If my Ariens lawnmower ever dies, then I'll look to go battery powered. Less noise so I could cut grass earlier and not bother my neighbors.

I'm guessing that they don't have battery powered two stage snowblowers out yet for heavy duty applications. Single stage snowblowers won't cut it at my place.

 

[UncleDave]

I threw out the cordless electric tools as the batteries go bad and am now exclusively using corded stuff. Never have to worry about if a battery is charged and no constant replacing batteries (practically a constant maintenance item to go cordless).

If thats how it works for you then Id probably do the same- thats not my personal or shop experience though.

It took 15 years before I truly lost 1 makita stick battery.

I replace a cord from fatigue before I replaced batteries.

NO loud gennie at the work site just a honda 2K running chargers.

 

[CharlesInCharge]

I think this is an application where battery powered electric type implements really really shine. Every season, fighting with the weed trimmer and mowers that won't start, along with the noise they make, is a real hassle. I've watched neighbors using electric versions that are almost silent and effortless...

Side note, I've seen kids on EV type 2 wheel devices and playing with drones and really fast small race cars and such.

EV is not mature enough for cars IMO, but really great for small devices including yard tools.

 

[zzyzzx]

If thats how it works for you then Id probably do the same- thats not my personal or shop experience though.

It took 15 years before I truly lost 1 makita stick battery.

I replace a cord from fatigue before I replaced batteries.

NO loud gennie at the work site just a honda 2K running chargers.

I even rebuilt a couple of battery packs with Tenergy Nicads. They worked great (way better then new) for one season in a weed whacker. After that, not so much.

 

[UncleDave]

I even rebuilt a couple of battery packs with Tenergy Nicads. They worked great (way better then new) for one season in a weed whacker. After that, not so much.

What ecosystem were you using?