Moving Lawn Tools to Battery Power.
- Thread starter UncleDave
- Start date
The offending weed whacker was an old 18V Worx weed whacker. Really weak too (considered light duty according to the documentation). My $35 corded weed whacker is considered medium duty by comparison and really does a much better job, and is almost 20 years old. I threw out a few drills because of failing batteries as well. All the stuff was old and from an estate. I added enough outdoor outlets to make it convenient enough to use the corded tools.
Yes, Nicad batteries! For what they cost not worth even replacing with NiMH, since the tools in question were not worth spending that kind of money on. Assuming that I would be OK using a Nicad charger on NiMH batteries (I do that on my toothbrush, but I'm not using the type of current draw like a weed whacker).
After a lifetime with Makita and not knowing a single contractor that relies on Worx I never even considered them as an option.
I like the makita x2 setup, they give you a wide choice of running a more powerful 18V x 2 setup or a lighter but equal quality single battery 18 Volt setup.
A cord could never work on my property, both fence sides, over terrain, and an acre and half, but if you can reach on yours then I guess thats ok. I way prefer the freedom gas or batt provide.
I like the makita x2 setup, they give you a wide choice of running a more powerful 18V x 2 setup or a lighter but equal quality single battery 18 Volt setup.
A cord could never work on my property, both fence sides, over terrain, and an acre and half, but if you can reach on yours then I guess thats ok. I way prefer the freedom gas or batt provide.
Does anyone think that the higher voltage batteries are better than say a Milwaukee M18 battery? I have several M18 handheld lawn tools and they have lots of power.
One can make an argument that the higher voltage the better, but what is enough, and what is overkill is highly dependent on who you are and what you do.
does a bigger heavier battery buy you anything or just a more unwieldy tool?
In working with my arms over my head all day Id rather have a lighter tool than a heavier one with only more run time as a tradeoff.
For a saw that sits on a table, the bigger battery and longer run time is a plus.
Last edited:
Makita is great but its kind of overpriced, IMO. Id personally go Ryobi or Craftsman. I love electric yard tools but I prefer corded over cordless because its much less expensive.
IMO, even as good as modern cordless tools are, they still cant match the power of corded. 18 volts vs 120 volts.
Ive got a Ryobi 13" mower, Greenworks trimmer and Craftsman leaf blower.
My ryobi products are part of the reason Im at a battery solution for the yard.
My ryobi gas trimmer/ pole saw/ blower doenst like to start when its hot and is of marginal build quality compared to other gas motors like my Stihl products in terms of engine vibration and quality fo the controls and surfaces.
the thing reeks of cheap.
I see ryobi as leading with price vs value.
As for Makita being expensive I dont really think of it that way as I divide the tool into its useable life which has historically been something North of 20 years for me, I also look at the ability to repair the product and my local mom and pop can get parts going back decades. Like a honda or yamaha gensets command a premium.
I haven't been able to get consistent quality from anything craftsman in years but maybe I should look?
I know other brands also have excellent quality - Bosch, Metabo/ Hitachi, I know lots of guys swear by dewalt and Milwaukee and Id go for them vs craftsman, but I'm open to being schooled on what I dont know which is tons.
I've moved on to the EGO 56V platform and don't miss gas. The mower and blower are less powerful but still get the job done. As far as battery replacement, I plan to replace the bad cells in the pack as they start giving me problems. I'm on my 3rd year and they still have the same capacity.
I cant see a battery operated snow blower getting done with heavy wet snow.
Real snow removal requires a dual stage do this even exist that are battery driven?
Yes, higher voltage is always going to be better. More like a lot better. Off the top of my head, I am thinking that at the very least they should generate less heat, and individual cell failures are going to degrade the whole system less.
Im going to disagree on this and use some real life examples.
In the case of hammer drill, multi tool, and grinder, and brad nailer - these tools operate absolutely beautifully on 18 volts and with very small 2AH batteries.
Who wants a heavier hand tool if you dont have a power or run time problem today?
Mrs. Uncle Dave actually prefers the lighter 2AH packs to the heavier 5AH pack and will always use the lighter one when operating these tools regardless of what else is available, and laughed when looking at the much heavier higher voltage tools.
A bench tool or wheeled device- sure- agreed, but a hand tool?
Bigger isn't always better for hand tools - 18V is a great balance of power vs weight.
Recently, When walking my dog at night, My dog started limping,stopped abruptly, looked up at me and rolled over on her back, showing me her paw.
I turned on my headlamp and saw there was fresh broken glass all around, and one piece in her paw pad, that I was thankfully able to extract. I picked her up and carried her off from the glass strewn area with a tick tick on each step, a piece of glass embedded in my sandal.
This is someplace I walk no less than 6 times a day, about 250 yards from my door. There was lots of glass, some of it crushed to dust under a tire, no sweeping this up.
Heck, I wish I had a battery operated vacuum!
But wait a minute, I have an 800 watt MSW inverter and a 4.5 amp 115vac corded buckethead shopvac, and an 18 amp hour AGM battery.
I attached inverter to battery put my inline wattmeter inbetween, plugged in the vacuum and 32 amps of draw. The battery was able to maintain 11+ volts.
I put the inverter and battery in a backpack and carried the shopvac up there and sucked up all the glass, and then hit my vehicles floor mats and still the low voltage alarm on the inverter never chirped.
This battery and inverter can run my new ryobi 40$ leaf blower too, but only on low speed. and it is a 38 amp draw @ 11 volts DC.
I use this 11 Lb 18 Ah agm battery to directly power an early 2000 era craftsman 9.6v drill through ~ 8 feet of 12 awg wire.
High speed torque for days, but the cord is annoying. IT however can drive 3.5 inch deck screws faster, and for a heck of a lot longer, than my 18v makita impact driver ever could, a lot quieter too. I despise 115vac drills for driving screws, and not because of the cord.
I have 2 12v AGM batteries, the other 22AH and newer. I put them in series, to run some B&D 24v hedge clippers that somebody tossed out as the nicad battery was toast.
It works great!
While still in series for 24v I used 18awg test clips to an old 19.2v porter cable drill, whose niMH battery was just more than worthless.
Holey torque batman! Feeding that drill 25v via 12awg would be a high speed torque monster. wonder how long the motor would last.
I have a lot of use on the 9.6v drill getting 12v+.
I do need a new drill/impact driver kit as my 18v makita batteries are just about worthless.
I'll have to see how they like 24vdc, well 25.5v+. Perhaps they are OK at 12.8v too.
Nothing like a high voltage lightweight lithium power tool with a healthy battery..
Cant argue that.
I however, feel the need to make use of the old cordless tools, whose batteries are long gone, even if I have to carry 25 Lbs of lead acid batteries to the job, and have an annoying cord in the way.
A higher wattage inverter is likely in my future.
The 18Ah 12v AGM is s 35 dollar battery, and I can charge it properly, fully, and fast charge them too, at least to 85% charged, that last 15% takes hours no matter what..
I turned on my headlamp and saw there was fresh broken glass all around, and one piece in her paw pad, that I was thankfully able to extract. I picked her up and carried her off from the glass strewn area with a tick tick on each step, a piece of glass embedded in my sandal.
This is someplace I walk no less than 6 times a day, about 250 yards from my door. There was lots of glass, some of it crushed to dust under a tire, no sweeping this up.
Heck, I wish I had a battery operated vacuum!
But wait a minute, I have an 800 watt MSW inverter and a 4.5 amp 115vac corded buckethead shopvac, and an 18 amp hour AGM battery.
I attached inverter to battery put my inline wattmeter inbetween, plugged in the vacuum and 32 amps of draw. The battery was able to maintain 11+ volts.
I put the inverter and battery in a backpack and carried the shopvac up there and sucked up all the glass, and then hit my vehicles floor mats and still the low voltage alarm on the inverter never chirped.
This battery and inverter can run my new ryobi 40$ leaf blower too, but only on low speed. and it is a 38 amp draw @ 11 volts DC.
I use this 11 Lb 18 Ah agm battery to directly power an early 2000 era craftsman 9.6v drill through ~ 8 feet of 12 awg wire.
High speed torque for days, but the cord is annoying. IT however can drive 3.5 inch deck screws faster, and for a heck of a lot longer, than my 18v makita impact driver ever could, a lot quieter too. I despise 115vac drills for driving screws, and not because of the cord.
I have 2 12v AGM batteries, the other 22AH and newer. I put them in series, to run some B&D 24v hedge clippers that somebody tossed out as the nicad battery was toast.
It works great!
While still in series for 24v I used 18awg test clips to an old 19.2v porter cable drill, whose niMH battery was just more than worthless.
Holey torque batman! Feeding that drill 25v via 12awg would be a high speed torque monster. wonder how long the motor would last.
I have a lot of use on the 9.6v drill getting 12v+.
I do need a new drill/impact driver kit as my 18v makita batteries are just about worthless.
I'll have to see how they like 24vdc, well 25.5v+. Perhaps they are OK at 12.8v too.
Nothing like a high voltage lightweight lithium power tool with a healthy battery..
Cant argue that.
I however, feel the need to make use of the old cordless tools, whose batteries are long gone, even if I have to carry 25 Lbs of lead acid batteries to the job, and have an annoying cord in the way.
A higher wattage inverter is likely in my future.
The 18Ah 12v AGM is s 35 dollar battery, and I can charge it properly, fully, and fast charge them too, at least to 85% charged, that last 15% takes hours no matter what..
Yeah, if you want gas, Id look at Stihl and only Stihl.
When you speak of Makita and it lasting 20 years and all that, one thing you need to remember with cordless is that you are probably only going to get 3-5 years out of the battery before it will need to be replaced. The tool may well last 20 years but its very possible that they will discontinue that battery line and come out with something new. They all do it.
Thats actually one area where Ryobi is really great because theyve used the exact same battery design for the past 20 years. Ryobi tools as a whole are just not great though.
With Craftman, one thing to remember is that Craftsman of today has nothing in common with Craftsman of the past. They now are pretty much DeWalt tools with red and black plastic instead of black and yellow. Ive got several newer Craftsman tools and theyre awesome.
Another brand to consider is Greenworks. They arent quite in the professional realm that some of the others are but for a homeowner, they are great tools.
If you have a Menards nearby, Yardworks is another one. They are very similar to Greenworks, in that they are geared more towards homeowners and are very affordable.
Stihl also has a really great line of electric power equipment. They are a bit more expensive but they are, for the most part, pro tools that are geared towards lawn care professionals and priced accordingly.
Toro is another good one. They have some great cordless offerings.
Just yesterday, I picked up an Earthwise 10" corded trimmer. I bought it because I like that it has a dual string head and is bump feed. Im not a fan of single string heads or auto feed. I also picked up a Worx blower. I use a blower strictly for blowing off sidewalks and driveways and dont need something stupid powerful. Id had a Craftsman corded blower but it was so stupid powerful that if often just blew debris up into the air. The Worx is only like 160 cfm, so its perfect for hard surfaces but isnt too powerful. Worx overall is also a greally good brand to consider.
No complaints with our Kobalt 80v mower and Black and Decker trimmer. Sometimes I mow just because I can and cost pennies, or have my boys do because they need to something to do. The trimmer was inherited from my grandma, needed a new battery but it's like 7 years old. No ecosystem in our household, have Dewalt, Worx and Kobalt.
Last edited:
Got my Kobalt 80V trimmer over the weekend. Haven't quite decided what I'm going to do with the trusty, but aging TroyBilt .27. It runs great, as long as you're not too gentle with the throttle. Just off idle, if you don't keep squeezing, it dies. If you squeeze past that one point in the throttle, it does fine. I Dremeled grooves in the mixture screws and have been up and down the scale with the high-speed screw, but the part-throttle stall won't go away. Not sure what the problem is, but am looking forward to not troubleshooting that anymore. I guess I'll empty the tank and leave it by the curb, as I don't want to deal with trying to sell something that doesn't run 100%.
Thinking about pulling the trigger on the Kobalt 80V mower now. Anyone here have one? Would love some word-of-mouth, positive or negative.
Thinking about pulling the trigger on the Kobalt 80V mower now. Anyone here have one? Would love some word-of-mouth, positive or negative.
Made a typo on my post our Kobalt is a 80v. Love ours and no complaints. The blade is pretty soft metal so I'd recommend blade sharpening every couple months.
Have you priced gas push mowers lately? The days of the $99 Briggs powered push mower have long passed.
