Are They Good For My Yard
Before buying a lawn mower, check to see if your yard is perfectly flat and has smooth grass with no overhanging tree branches. Grass that is uneven will make it tough for the mower to move and maneuver.
If you have a yard that is filled with hills and bumps, or a lot of grass thats very tall, you might want to consider a gas mower instead. Theyre more stable, dont need to be recharged every time you mow, and will make it easier to pull the mower back into the garage after use.
If you do have a lawn that is full of lumpy grass, consider investing in a push mower. Theyre lighter than gas mowers and are much easier to push. Theyll make it much easier to push mower over the lumpy terrain.
How To Choose The Best Cordless Mower For You
What size mower do I need for my garden?
The most crucial thing is to get the size right. If youve only got a small oblong of grass to cut, you can get away with the smallest mowers and theyll be easier to store and use. If you have large areas of lawn, however, then youll need a bigger mower to get the job done. The key thing is the cutting width, determined by the size of the mower deck and the size of the blade. Mowers with a cutting width of 32cm or less are really only good for smaller lawns. Most of the cutting width of 33cm to 38cm should cover a lawn roughly the size of a tennis court, and often a bit larger. If youve got a bigger area than that to mow, then youll need a mower with a cutting width of 40 cm or more. You might also want to think about a self-propelled lawn mower, which will move around under its own steam without you having to actively push it along.
What about the mowers battery life?
Of course, with a cordless mower battery life also comes into play. Some mowers come with only a single battery with a relatively low capacity, and youre going to have to stop and recharge long before you finish cutting the grass particularly if you have to tackle both the front and back lawns. That said, you can often buy higher-capacity batteries or a second battery to keep your mower in juice for longer.
What else should I look out for?
Myth #: If Healthy Grass Is Your Goal It Doesnt Matter What Kind Of Mower You Use
Its a rule of thumb: The better the cut, the healthier the grass. The latest gas-powered mowers offer improved cut quality, thanks in part to the blade design. In an effort to maximize battery life, though, some battery-powered models alter the blades length and lift, which can impact the cut quality.
Another consideration: Gas mowers lose little to no power when slicing through long, thick grass or damp grass, whereas cutting tougher turf on a battery-powered mower can cause performance to suffer.
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Cordless Mowers Offer Tangle
While battery-powered mowers would seem to be the obvious solution they too come with limitations. Most notably, a limited mow time. Granted, lithium batteries are getting better and advertised run times are impressive.
But we cant go strictly by a manufacturers estimation. Those estimates often deal with ideal circumstances that you may never encounter in the real world. At best, we can probably count on around 80% of the manufacturers Up to ___ hours of runtime marketing.
And lithium batteries do degrade over time. It will be a few years most likely but eventually, they will fail to charge and run as long as they originally did. So at some point, you will be looking at a replacement cost.
When factored against the cost of gas, oil, and small engine repairs, a replacement battery investment seems trivial. But it is a consideration.
And remember, depending on the size of your yard, you may need more than one battery. So factor that into your decision making.
Corded Vs Cordless Electric Lawn Mowers
Corded Electric mowers need to be connected to a power source to run. They are generally more powerful and will run as long as you need them. It may, however, limit your movements and the cords may get tangled while mowing. The plus side is these mowers may cost less than the cordless ones.
Cordless lawn mowers are battery-operated this means they have a limited time to run. The run time will generally last long enough to complete the task at hand. However, they are a bit heavier than electric corded mowers and are more expensive.
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Battery Mowers Come Into Their Own
Battery mowers are a good choice for lawns of less than 12 acre, which now make up the bulk of newly developed residential properties. Because theyre electric, battery mowers also are more eco-friendly than gas machines. And Consumer Reports tests show theyre quieter.
Battery self-propelled models draw energy from the motor to power the wheels, which makes them easier to maneuver on a larger or sloped lot. Battery push mowers are generally less expensive, with fewer features than self-propelled typesideal if you have less than 14 acre of grass to cut.
Performance-wise, both types are making gains. In Consumer Reports lawn mower ratings, the top battery self-propelled mower, made by Greenworks, scores just a couple of points lower than the top-rated gas model, a Honda statistically, theyre even. Several other self-propelled battery mowers just below the Greenworks mower in the ratings perform comparably to their highly rated, self-propelled gas counterparts.
And two battery push mowersfrom Ego and Ryobireceive significantly higher overall scores than the top-rated gas push mower, also a Honda.
The 3 Best Cordless Lawn Mowers Of 2022
We did firsthand comparative testing of 7 of the best cordless lawn mowers on the market so that you can easily find the optimal machine for your needs and budget. As consumers ourselves, we understand that there are dozens of cordless lawn mowers to choose from and that the manufacturers’ marketing claims are often inconsistent and confusing. To remedy this problem, we bought the most promising machines and subjected them to a rigorous direct comparison analysis. We hope that this review will simplify the market for you, making the selection of a cordless mower a breeze.
Keeping up with the yard requires a range of tools for maintenance. That’s why our expansive list of reviews cover basics like top-ranked garden hoses and shovels to cordless tools like the best cordless leaf blowers and the best cordless string trimmers, our favorite chainsaws, and of course, our select picks of the best tools. And if you need help knowing when you’ll get that ideal mowing window, we have also tested weather stations and rain gauges.
Editor’s Note: This review was updated on July 8, 2022 to remove a few discontinued products and confirm that we still stand by our award winners.
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Con: They Are Not As Powerful
When shopping for a mower, one thing to consider is its torque rating. Torque is the driving force behind a blade’s rotational movement. Electric lawn mowers generate substantially less torque on average than a gas mower does. It means a gas mower will be a much better choice to tackle challenging terrains like hills and dips.
Overall, the lawn mower market continues to expand with diverse offerings. For homeowners with larger yards, gas-powered mowers will still be the best fit, as they have the durability and power to tackle large projects with ease.
Meanwhile, if you want to reduce your carbon footprint, then an electric lawn mower is the wise way to go. Either route you take can help you gain a healthy-looking lawn that boosts the curb appeal and value of your home.
In the meantime, here are some other tips to keep your yard looking great:
Read more:
Snapper Xd 82v Max Cordless Electric 19 Push Lawn Mower Includes Kit Of 2 20 Batteries And Rapid Charger
Features :
- Up to 90-minutes run time with Briggs & Stratton 82V Lithium ion 2.0 Batteries Kit comes with 2.0 Lithium ion batteries and rapid charger
- 19 inch steel mowing deck with 3 in 1 design mulch, bag or side discharge grass clippings easily.
- Smart, efficient load sensing technology power adjusts to meet the demands of the cutting blades
- Push button start and a single lever, 7 position height of cut adjustment
- Compact vertical storage capability saves room in a garage or shred
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Mytol 40v Cordless Lawn Mower 16” Lawn Mower With 40ah Batteries And Charger Brushless Motor 6 Mowing Heights & 119 Gal Grass Box Lightweight Electric Lawn Mower For Garden And Yard
Features :
- Brushless Powerful MotorIncluding a brushless motor, the MYTOL lawn mower works more efficiently and cuts more smoothly at a speed of 3300 RPM. In contrast to a brush motor, the brushless motor has a longer service life and low-cost maintenance, maximizing motor performance.
- High-performance BatteriesThe electric lawn mower provides 45+ mins run time fully charged with 2*20V 4.0Ah batteries and charger, so you do not worry about running out of power. Compared with cord and gas lawn mowers, the cordless lawn mower has no pull cords, gas, oil, and emissions.
- Tidy and Precise CuttingThe lawn mowers cuts a crisp 16” wide path in a single pass with an advanced manganese steel blade. The cordless lawnmower has a 6-position height adjustment range from 0.98” to 3”, so you can set it by a single lever according to the season or your preference.
- Easy to Use and StorageWith 20lbs lightweight, foam grip, and 6-position height adjustments, using the brushless Lawn Mower make you feel comfortable. You can fold the handles of the lawn mower in seconds and store the lawn mower in a compact space.
- Triple Safety ProtectionDesigned with a safety button, start lever start, and a safety key, MYTOL lawn mower is more safety and easier to control. The triple safety protection can effectively prevent the machine from accidental start-up and reduce the chance of accidents.
How To Choose An Electric Lawn Mower
Electric lawn mowers are eco-friendly, convenient , relatively quiet compared to traditional models and simple to store vertically, saving you precious storage space. Simply charge the battery or batteries , which, in our testing, ranged from two 18-volt batteries to one 80-volt battery, taking about 30 minutes to two hours, and youre in business.
The models we tested either arrived ready to go out of the box or needed just a bit of assembly to put together, no tools required. All included grass bag catchers, and most of those needed to be assembled, but again with no tools necessary. This makes convenience one of the electric mowers best features. They cut grass as well as their gas counterparts, but feature high-efficiency, long-lasting brushless motors which are quieter and, because theres no gas or oil to worry about, can be stored upright.
All the models we tested featured standard 21-inch decks , mulch, bag and side discharge and adjustable cutting heights and required at least one brand-specific rechargeable lithium-ion battery. These can be quite pricey: A 56-volt Ego battery is $229 at Lowes, but many mowers include them in their price and, if you are loyal to a certain brand, the batteries are often interchangeable with the lines other cordless tools.
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Buyers Be Careful Buying This Mower
Bought the RMA 460 V, AK 30 battery and AL 101 charger today, I was very excited after what the Stihl supplier told me it can do.Took it home assembled it, waited for the battery to charge, push mowed and it mowed not even a 200m* area, it struggled in some parts of the lawn, went to charge the battery again and it was too hot for about 30mins, took around 3 hours to charge.Extremely disappointed with this set up.I will be returning it on Monday and will be asking for a full refund.I have a 810m* block and I am not keen to buy 4 batteries …
Purchasedin at Central highlands outdoor power equipmentfor $973.
Best Electric Lawn Mower Of 2022
Electric lawn mowers are vital for efficient lawn care. Our experts tested the best electric lawn mowers to find the perfect option to keep your lawn healthy.
Brian Bennett
Senior writer
Brian Bennett is a senior writer for the home and outdoor section at CNET. He reviews a wide range of household and smart-home products. These include everything from cordless and robot vacuum cleaners to fire pits, grills and coffee makers. An NYC native, Brian now resides in bucolic Louisville, Kentucky where he rides longboards downhill in his free time.
If you’re not a fan of the smell of gas or you want a cleaner alternative to gas-powered lawn mowers, you have an excellent option. Electric lawn mowers are available in both battery-powered and corded models, but we’re going to focus exclusively on those that are battery-powered. Mowers that run on a battery are more powerful than ever before, while also managing to be more convenient than a long cord and better for the environment than gas. And now is the perfect time to look for a new electric lawn mower. You can find holiday deals going on now.
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Gardena Handymower P4a: The Best Space
Price: £164 , £235 | Buy now from Tooled-Up.com
While its just not big or powerful enough to tackle any lawn bigger than twenty to thirty square metres, you wont find another cordless mower as compact as the Gardena HandyMower P4A. Its roughly the size of a manual cylinder mower and the handle divides in two for easy storage. Whats more, at just 4.2kg you can easily push it around one-handed. Yet it does a fine job of cutting the grass down to size, though it tends to choke on grass thats too long or too tough. Still, with a choice of 30, 40 and 50mm cutting heights, you can cut high and then return for a second run..
Actually cutting your lawn could take some time, and with a 22cm cutting width theres only so much you can do in the 25 minutes before the 2.5Ah battery runs out. Whats more, the mowers safety feature, which cuts the motor when the handle is too upright or too low, can get tiresome if youre mowing on uneven ground. Yet we cant say enough good things about how easy this mower is to store and manoeuvre, how incredibly quiet it is or how neatly it turns grass into a fine mulch. If you dont have much lawn to mow, itll work a treat.
Key specs Size: 125 x 38 x 35cm Weight: 4.2kg Height of cut: 2-5cm Grass box capacity: N/A Power: 18V 2.5A li-ion battery, charge time: 1hr Width of cut: 22cm
Price: £300 |
Price: £240 |
Price: £216 |
Price: From £220 |
Price: £357 |
Price: £207 |
Price: £626 | Buy now from Garden Machinery Direct
Price: £330 |
Can I Save Money Using A Battery Powered Mower
Overall I think you can or at least break even with the money you spend on an electric mower. You know it only costs about $5 dollars a year of electricity to run a battery powered mower. This included the recharging of the batteries. Charge time can be anywhere from 30 minutes for fast chargers to several hours depending on the size of the battery
If you pay someone to tune up your gas powered mower or mowers in my case you will definitely save some cash buying an electric mower. Battery life depends on how you take care of the battery. If you follow the recommendations of the manufacturer, the battery can last 3 to 5 years or even longer. Battery life is definitely something you need to consider when purchasing a battery powered lawn mower.
A new battery could cost several hundred dollars depending on the model of mower you choose. The smaller the battery the smaller the cost of a replacement. If you spend several hundreds of dollars on gas, oil changes, air/gas filters, and spark plugs over that 3 to 5 year period you should come out ahead or at least break even from buying and using battery powered mower.
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Electric Lawn Mowers Are Best Suited To Small Yards
Whether you are considering a plug-in mower or battery powered, you will be best served to tend a small yard with an electric mower. Although they continue to increase in power and runtime, electric mowers are not designed or intended for large areas.
How big is too big? For battery-powered mowers, Consumer Reports found that most electric mowers managed 1/3 acre at best without needing to be recharged . Unless you plan to have a stockpile of charged batteries on hand, you are best served to stick with a smaller yard.
Why Is Battery Power Better Than Gas Powered Lawn Equipment
- Lightning-paced improvement in lithium-ion battery technology
- Environmental Friendly Some people refuse to use Carbon emitting Gas Power and prefer to use Cleaner Energy.
- Greater Performance Many cordless tools can match Gas Performance
- Cost Battery Powered tools have become very affordable
- Maintenance Plug and Go battery system vs. Gas, Oil, & Spark Plugs.
- Convenience Again Plug and Go!
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