Electric lawn mowers

[Gardenarian]

I'm looking for one. Does anyone have experience with these / can recommend a reliable brand?
I'll get used if possible - or is it worth getting new??

Thanks for your help!

[razz]

Thanks for this thread as I am looking for one as well. I have a riding lawn mower for the larger areas but need a smaller electric for the small strips of lawn.

[Packy]

How large is your lot? I live in Zurra, the We Mow State. Around here, nobody bothers with one o' them little electrics. What those are, is for some girl that lives in a tiny house, like a mobile, with a little teeny tiny strip of grass, along a sidewalk, just because she thinks she'll end up like Arnold from starting a gas mower. The extension cord needed to do anything bigger will aggravate you. But, it's one of those necessary living skills, being able to use a pull-start on a REAL mower. Of course, the REAL gung-ho mow-o-holic people here invest in a $3000+ rider that is overkill, with the twin joysticks and electric start. But see--you're really better off with a gas-powered, self-propelled, mulching push mower--- that you don't have to push. Figure about $300. Another very viable alternative is an aluminum-deck non-self-propelled. Also, $300. The light weight is a major advantage. Also, you can buy some pretty lightweight, small steel deck ez-starting gas mowers very economically-- $129 or even less. They just take longer to get er done, especially in tall grass. Just have the dealer get it started for you, the first time. Mulching mowers are pretty much a must, simply because only OCD weenies rake up and bag grass clippings. Hope that helps you some. I must go-and-mow, now. Thankk Mee.

[bae]

Electrical impulses traveling down your nervous system activate your muscles, so this is my favorite electric mower:

http://www.permaculture.co.uk/sites/default/files/images/festival.standard%20460x345.jpg

Good relaxing exercise, no noise, no smell, easy to maintain, quite fast once you get the hang of it.

[goldensmom]

I had a 3rd hand used Black and Decker years ago to mow a 65' x 145' lot and it worked fine when I got the routine of using the electrical cord. It was still working fine when we sold it at an auction sale. If I had a small lot I'd considerate another electric mower, probably used.

[gimmethesimplelife]

I have an electric lawn mower - I bought it at Salvation Army in really good shape for $50 and have already gotten several years of use out of it. It is a Black and Decker and I couldn't say more good things about it. Personally I'd much rather use and electric mover than mess with gasoline. Rob

[lessisbest]

We've owned two Neuton battery-powered mowers, if that counts as "electric". http://www.neutonpower.com/ You recharge the batteries using electricity, or we can also use solar, and you don't have to contend with an electric cord.

We purchased a small one first, with a trimmer attachment, and it did a great job. Then they came out with a larger model several years later and we purchased it. We've been using them for 8-years, and no problems. You just need to sharpen the blade and clean the mower after each use.

I use the small one when I mow, and hubby uses the larger one. We have a "postage stamp" size yard that takes about 20-25 minutes to mow. The only grass is the front yard and the 10-foot easement at the back of the property. The rest is Xeriscape landscaping (mostly river rock), garden, and walkways all around our home.

[SteveinMN]

I have had an electric Black & Decker (wonder if there's any other kind??) which I bought used and have used myself for the past 4 years or so. It's the corded model; the battery-powered ones either don't have enough juice for our entire yard or are never charged when I want to use them or weigh a ton because you're carting around this big battery.

The cord does take some getting used to, but a moment or two of logistical thought and it's fine. It helps that the mower handle can flip over to the other side so you're not turning the entire mower at the end of each pass. It's got plenty enough power and I love being able to plug it in without wondering about or checking gas or oil levels. I just keep it brushed off after mowing and sharpen the blade once or twice a year. I wish I could find an electric snowblower that had enough oomph; I'd buy one of those, too.

As for old versus new, short of maybe paying for a blade sharpening and, eventually, inspection and possible replacement of the motor brushes, I see no downside to buying used. Used + cost of possible repair is still likely less than new.

[Gardenarian]

Funny that everyone has a Black and Decker. I've been looking on Amazon for ratings of mowers and B&D are pretty high. Greenworks is another brand that has many offerings and good ratings. I'm not seeing any for sale used right now, but it sounds like there aren't any issues - I'll keep my eye on Craigslist.

[goldensmom]

Funny that everyone has a Black and Decker.

Mine was a Black and Decker because it started out with my parents in the 60/70's and I don't know how many other manufacturers were making electric back then. The last I heard it's still mowing.

[razz]

I have seen Greenworks and B&D so will buy one shortly as my grass needs attention very soon in the areas that my riding mower cannot go. Info given has been very helpful.

[CathyA]

DH uses an electric one with a grass-catcher in the back yard, since I didn't want him to use a gas one near my watergardens. Since my arthritis is so bad, I have bought a number of light-weight cordless things. I see that they offer some big-battery cordless ones. But I bought this 20 volt one for just around my water gardens and raised stock tank veggie gardens, and around some of my bushes. It's a funny concept, but it works. It's a detachable weed eater that you can put on wheels. You work it back and forth like a vacuum cleaner. So far, so good. I got mine through Amazon during a "deal of the day" and got a really good price for it.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/BLACK-DECKER-12-in-20-Volt-Max-Lithium-Ion-Electric-Cordless-3-in-1-Trimmer-and-Edger-and-Mower-MTC220/204989204?cm_mmc=Shopping|Base&gclid=CjwKEAjwmfKpBRC8tb3Mh5rs23ASJACWy1QP10DzfdnI ITcICkRXuvWmFAaQIz2IFMTUSyompuGpnRoCmeXw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

[creaker]

My front lawn is not much bigger than my living room :) I got this for it, it gets the job done.

http://www.amazon.com/Joe-MJ401E-14-Inch-Electric-Catcher/dp/B0029TLUOA

[SteveinMN]

Funny that everyone has a Black and Decker.
I think that's because B&D has decades of name recognition and a wide distribution and parts network. Some of the others don't come so close on any count.

[Gardenarian]

I think that's because B&D has decades of name recognition and a wide distribution and parts network. Some of the others don't come so close on any count.

Yep, B&D are everywhere.
I found a Craftsman mower on Craiglist and I'm going to take a look at it tomorrow. I know that the Craftsman power tools don't have the reputation of the old hand tools, but I'm hoping this will be a good one. The price is right, and my yard really needs it!

[Rogar]

I have a B+D cordless and generally like it. Although it doesn't quite have the power of my old gas mower the trade off for no gas and much quieter are worth it. If you are looking at cordless you might be aware that the battery can wear down to where it won't hold a good charge and replacement batteries are pricey. I think this takes several years, but it happened with my neighbor after about five years of use. He has a Greenworks and likes it other than the battery wearing down.

[Float On]

I was just watching some neighbors down the hill mow their yard with an electric mower. The wife didn't look too happy about having to help with the cord. He seemed frustrated around trees and bushes and yanking the cord from her to get more room while she wasn't paying attention.

I'm ok with sending the DH out with a gas mower for our 1/2 acre tree, bush, rock, pond yard.
I could see using an electric on a flat, small, no objects in the way yard.
We have an electric weed-eater that needs to be thrown away - so sick of fighting the falling out power cord or the cutting plastic cord that tangles.

[JaneV2.0]

I have plastic blades for my electric trimmer. I haven't found them for a battery-operated model, however. They're much more effective/less annoying than the "string" that never seems to feed properly.

[SteveinMN]

The wife didn't look too happy about having to help with the cord. He seemed frustrated around trees and bushes and yanking the cord from her to get more room while she wasn't paying attention.
My experience is that a little planning forestalls the problem. Mow out from the starting point instead of back to it and the cord is a minimal problem. I also sometimes hold a loop of the cord in one hand both as strain relief and also to keep it out of the path of the wheels. It also helps that I have a 100' extension cord for a 50' yard. :)


I'm ok with sending the DH out with a gas mower for our 1/2 acre tree, bush, rock, pond yard.
One house we lived in had a half-acre lot. I would not have thought of doing that with an electric mower. We had the regular ol' gas mower. But I really wanted one of those golf-course mowers -- the ones with the 48" cut. But $$$ and the difficulty of storing it stopped that.


We have an electric weed-eater that needs to be thrown away - so sick of fighting the falling out power cord or the cutting plastic cord that tangles.
My neighbor has had gas trimmers and he's always contending with them not running properly. I had been buying used electric trimmers at thrift stores/garage sales/estate sales and, after having the second one in a summer just fail irreparably, I gave up and bought a long-handled grass shear. I can stand and clip to my heart's content and not worry about cords or gas/oil mixtures. A little more precise, too, though it definitely is more wearing to do a lot of trimming.

[razz]

Well, I bought a simple little B&D mower on sale to do the small areas of my yard. I will keep my riding mower to haul mulch and plants to the back as well as mow the bigger areas which I could do with the electric mower when the time comes.
How did you make out with the resale, Gardenarian?

[Gardenarian]

I got the Craftsman - it's a lot heavier than I anticipated, and pretty unwieldy with the cord - but it works great. I haven't figured out how to raise the blades yet; I'm sure there is a manual online. It sure is a lot quicker than using the weed whacker. It's got more power than I expected too - last year's oak leaves just got ground to nothing and the front yard looks so much better.

Our back yard still has knee-high grass so I'm going to have to do some more whacking before I take the mower to that. Once I get landscaping we'll have a lot less lawn.

I do see how people get kind of addicted to mowing. It's like vacuuming; it is sort of meditative but at the same time you feel like you are actually accomplishing something.

Anyhow, $25 well spent.

I had to laugh about the guy with the scissors - I was using scissors to cut around the irises we have bordering the lawn.

[ToomuchStuff]

Over the years had a couple of neighbors that had/used the older, orange and tan B&D corded mowers. I think I would prefer one of them to the expensive cordless things they sell now, with my experience with several power tool batteries. I went another direction and as a backup for the gas mower and for exercise (need to do it more often, or use gas), I picked up a reel mower. After a sharpening (my sister bought it at a garage sale and used it for the baby weight, then I ended up with it when it was dull), it mows great. Taller then it and the scythe would be the next tool, but you wouldn't want that in any area, that uses codes enforcement about grass (verses other types of plants).
Gardenarian, if it doesn't have height adjusters, it is probably just the old style, move the bolts to another hole through the deck.

[Gardenarian]

TooMuchStuff - it turned out to be a simple lever that lifts the mower - nice and easy!

Funny what you said about the cord...we've gone through so many cordless drills that I'm going to pick up a corded one on Craigslist. More power, and no dead batteries to dispose of.