Mowers blowers and guns. Is It Time To Ditch Your Old Gas Lawnmower? (& All Your Other Gas Tools)

Is It Time To Ditch Your Old Gas Lawnmower? ( All Your Other Gas Tools)

Many of us live in semi-urban, suburban, or rural areas in the east where a grass lawn is common. I never needed to water my lawn when I worked for NASA Goddard Space Flight Center and lived near Annapolis, Maryland. We moved there because I could practice my trick water ski competition sport on the nearby South River, a tributary to the Chesapeake Bay. When I retired we moved to the western desert in Lindon, Utah, only a few miles north of Provo, near our son, daughters, and 10 grandchildren. The house we chose still has a lawn that is watered with “grey water” using an underground sprinkler system.

We spend our summers on Laurel Lake in Three Lakes in northern Wisconsin, where our yard is mostly pine cones, dead leaves, and needles, and we don’t maintain a lawn at all. recently we spend part of our winters in our daughter’s home in the “ultra-desert” in St George in southwest Utah. Her yard is mostly desert landscaping with cactus and gravel, and only postage-sized grass areas which are maintained by the property association. With the US southwest in a 1000 year drought, it is clear that the lawns in the west that have been put in to remind owners of their previous homes in wetter climates need to be replaced with desert landscaping.

I am on my fourth electric car and have been driving electric for almost 8 years now. We have solar panels on the roof of our house in Utah now for 5 years now. My main hobby now is biking. I ride about 20 miles per day on city and off-road trails on a big full suspension electric mountain bike. It makes the old man feel like he is 20. So, I am doing at least some things to move towards a greener world.

My Son Still Mows My Lawn With A Gas Mower

At age 82, I’ve just stopped mowing my own lawn with a gas-powered lawn mower. A few years ago, when my Briggs Stratton-powered lawn mower died, I tried to convince my son that I should buy a battery-electric mower. Since he promised to do all the mowing, I relented and bought the new gas-powered model that he preferred (see top image). See below to see what I would do if I was shopping for a new mower now.

How About You? Are You Ready to Ditch Your Old Gas Lawnmower?

First stop, Home Depot: Home Depot had a whole line-up of 6 RYOBI battery-electric lawn mowers. 4 were 40V 21” self-propelled, ranging from 749 to 399 (See Fig. 2) and two were push (yourself) (See Fig. 3). They also carry a couple of other brands. The main difference was the size and number of the batteries. The most expensive comes with two 6 Ah batteries and 70 minutes of runtime. The least expensive comes with two 4 Ah batteries. For comparison, my big mountain e-bike has a 17.5 Ah battery. I think the 70-minute runtime for the most expensive comes from using both batteries. Bottom line: you can mow any size lawn, but you may need buy more batteries or take a break of at least a couple hours or overnight before you finish the job.
The push mowers (Fig. 3) ranged from 349 to 299. The least expensive is an 18V 16” model that comes with no batteries but uses the same 6 Ah batteries as RIOBI’s other power tools
Second stop, Walmart: It’s August now and Walmart only stocks seasonal products before and during each season. Walmart was out of electric lawnmowers and only had a few gas mowers left in boxes.
Third stop, Menards: Menards is a massive home products store like Home Depot and Lowes, but is mainly in the Midwest. Menards had a few electric lawnmowers, but they were all in boxes.

Figure 2: Four RIOBI self-propelled 21” battery-electric mowers from 749 to 399. Home Depot, Rhinelander Wisconsin. Photo by Fritz Hasler

Figure 3: RIOBI 16” 349 and 13” 299 battery-electric push mowers. Home Depot, Rhinelander, Wisconsin. Photo by Fritz Hasler

Figure 4: EGO cordless electric lawnmower (Lowes website)

Let’s look at a battery-electric lawnmower in action in Fig.4. The battery-powered electric lawnmower in Fig. 4 is self-propelled and costs 569. But there are models that cost as little as 149 for a 14” push mower. Since electric motors have great torque, this mower should make quick work of that tall grass like that shown above, which tends to stall a gas mower. With extra batteries that can be easily changed out, an electric lawnmower can handle any size lawn.

Like electric cars, your battery-electric lawnmower is going to cost more up front, but it will last a lifetime, you will save something on fuel, and won’t have to mess with going to the gas station and spilling the stinky gas that doesn’t make it into your mower.

Artificial Intelligence Robot Auto Lawnmowers

Everyone has heard about robot vacuum cleaners that will roam about your house cleaning the floor and carpet without intervention. It turns out that there are also robot lawnmowers that operate on the same principles.

Figure 5: Husqvarna robot lawnmower. Three Lakes Hardware, Three Lakes, Wisconsin. Photo by Fritz Hasler

On most days, you can see a robot lawnmower like this one (See Fig. 5) busy at work on a large level grass field across from Three Lakes Hardware in Northern Wisconsin. You can buy one for your lawn for only 2499 at the hardware store. It uses a random search pattern to cut the lawn, and when it is low on charge it automatically finds the charging station and gets a refill (See Fig 6). There is a buried wire around the perimeter of the field to keep it within bounds, but otherwise it keeps the lawn mowed perfectly without any supervision. You can see another Husqvarna robot mower in action in Fig. 7.

Figure 6: Charging station for Husqvarna robot lawnmower. Three Lakes, Wisconsin. Photo by Fritz Hasler

You probably won’t be surprised to know that the little hardware store and the adjacent field being mowed by the robot mower are owned by the owner of the Three Lakes Winery across the street. In the Winery parking lot are three Tesla 48A destination chargers and one generic 1772 L2 charger. You can charge your electric car there for free. It’s the only electric car charging station in Northern Wisconsin, but a new Tesla Supercharger is under construction in nearby Minocqua. The owner also owns a Model S Ludicrous Performance vehicle that he purchased in 2015.

Lawn Mower, Weed Eater, Leaf Blower for Kids | Yard Work Obstacle Course | Grass Cutting Playtime

Figure 7: Husqvarna Automower in action. (Husqvarna website)

All Your Home Garden Tools Should Now be Battery-Electric

Not just your lawnmower, but also your leaf blowers, trimmers, edgers, chain saws, etc., can be battery-electric now, and you can throw away your ear protectors.

All your portable home shop tools like drivers, jig saws, circular saws, Sawzall reciprocating saws, planers, nail guns, etc., can be battery-electric now. No professional home builder would be on the job nowadays without battery-electric power for any of his or her portable tools. If you buy the same brand, you can use the same batteries for all of these, including your lawnmower and chainsaw. You can keep one set of batteries charged and ready to go for any job you have on your schedule.

Beautiful Desert Landscaping

Who says you need grass to do beautiful landscaping in the desert?

Figure 8: Cactus buds and blooms, bikers, and Snow Canyon Parkway Bike Trail in Saint George, Utah. April, 26, 2021. Photos by Fritz Hasler

I don’t like paywalls. You don’t like paywalls. Who likes paywalls? Here at CleanTechnica, we implemented a limited paywall for a while, but it always felt wrong — and it was always tough to decide what we should put behind there. In theory, your most exclusive and best content goes behind a paywall. But then fewer people read it! We just don’t like paywalls, and so we’ve decided to ditch ours.Unfortunately, the media business is still a tough, cut-throat business with tiny margins. It’s a never-ending Olympic challenge to stay above water or even perhaps — gasp — grow. So.

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Former Tesla Battery Expert Leading Lyten Into New Lithium-Sulfur Battery Era:

Arthur Frederick (Fritz) Hasler, PhD, former leader of NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Scientific Visualization Analysis Laboratory (creator of this iconic image), and avid CleanTechnica reader. Also: Research Meteorologist (Emeritus) at NASA GSFC, Adjunct Professor at Viterbo University On-Line Studies, PSIA L2 Certified Alpine Ski Instructor at Brighton Utah Ski School.

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I’ve Been Mowing Lawns 30 Years, and the Ego Mower Is My All-Time Favorite

The 56-volt Ego Power Select Cut Mower LM2135SP is the best lawn mower I’ve ever used, and I’ve been mowing lawns my whole life.

I earned my first 20 shoving a rusted Craftsman up the hills of north Georgia when I was barely big enough to yank the cord to get the engine started.

I raced Toro TimeCutters across the parking lots of megachurches while working on a pro mowing crew.

Now I whip the Ego mower up and down a Los Angeles hillside so steep, it’s hardly safe to mow. And after mowing grass with every mainstream mulching machine of the past three decades, I’m sure that only the Ego mower could pull this one off.

But forget my personal mowing memoirs. This is about your mowing needs, and I’m telling you that this mower is satisfying even if the smell of a gas mower’s four-stroke is like noxious nostalgia in your nose.

The Ego mower is quiet. Maintenance is simple—there is no maintenance. No emissions. No noise. Your scowling neighbors will smile. Everything is better with the Ego mower.

The best lawn mower

This self-propelled machine easily mows down overgrown grass—and it spares you the noise, emissions, and maintenance of a typical gas mower. Its battery runs for about an hour.

Buying Options

At the time of publishing, the price was 699.

Robotic Lawn Mower Safety Testing and Certification

Safety testing, assessment and certification services to IEC 60335-2-107 for robotic lawn mowers.

Safety is one of the biggest concerns for robotic lawn mower end users. So, when trying to test your products against safety standards, it’s important to, work with a trusted partner and a leader Like UL Solutions. When your distributors, retailers and end users see the UL Mark, they’ll know your products comply with the latest safety and performance standards.

For robotic lawn mower end users, safety is one of the biggest concerns, so making it a priority to work with a partner who has been a leader in testing against safety standards and certification will offer them confidence. Your distributors, retailers and end users will recognize the UL Mark and know that your products have undergone rigorous assessments and comply with the latest safety and performance standards.

And it’s not just the physical safety of the mower, but the interoperability as well, including any GPS navigation, Bluetooth, wireless connectivity and software apps. Integrating software and connectivity into your products introduce new interoperability requirements. Furthermore, now that your robot mower has joined the Internet of Things (IoT), cybercriminals have another point of access to your end user’s network. UL Solutions will work with your development team to assess your products’ interoperability and cybersecurity features before your products are introduced on the market, helping avoid costly customer support and damaging your brand’s reputation.

UL Solutions offers services for robotic lawn mower manufacturers

Our customers rely on us to deliver the necessary knowledge, tools and training to get their innovations tested and certified to meet regulations around the world. UL Solutions is qualified to help you understand IEC 60335-2-107, Household and Similar Electrical Appliances – Safety – Part 2-107: Particular Requirements for Robotic Battery Powered Electrical Lawn mowers. 1 Our experienced engineers evaluate your robotic lawn mowers for compliance with this and other safety standards and regulations.

You may also call on our engineers for prototype reviews, product performance benchmarking and reliability testing to help you streamline your product development and certification cycle.

We stay by your side, giving you a single-source of dedicated support and expertise you can leverage whenever you need it. With a global footprint of laboratories, we can test your products at a convenient location, helping you facilitate faster access to major markets.

Software and component testing for robotic lawn mowers interoperability

Your robotic lawn mower probably has an associated software application that can connect wirelessly via smartphone. Leverage our expertise to validate that your product works as expected with other relevant devices and conforms to appropriate standards and technology platforms. We test to many IoT and wireless standards and requirements, such as those defined by Bluetooth SIG, Thread Group, Wireless and Zigbee Alliance.

Cybersecurity

A robotic mower may not seem to be a cyber attacker’s primary FOCUS, but because the mower connects to a network, an attacker may try to exploit it to access the overall system. Our experts can help you uncover potential software weaknesses, malware and known vulnerabilities and help address risk controls.

Battery testing

IEC 60335-2-107 covers additional battery operation and charging requirements. Specific requirements for the cells within battery packs are covered by IEC 62133 2. To comply with battery operation and charging requirements, the batteries must be tested under various normal and abnormal operating conditions, including abnormal discharge, short circuit, overcharging and others. We will assess the battery packs and battery management systems to safety standards to help minimize the potential risk of fire or explosion.

This Dude insulted my lawn mower!

Electromagnetic compatibility (EMC)

To avoid costly redesigns late in the development process, it’s important to understand EMC and wireless standards and how they may impact a product’s design and build. Our EMC and wireless tests assess how robotic mowers operate when subjected to conditions they may encounter while typically maintaining a lawn or recharging at a docking station.

Benefit from our extensive outdoor machine and power tool service portfolio

UL Solutions is an established global leader in the testing against safety standards and and certification of outdoor machines and power tools, including:

Lawn and garden machinery, e.g., gas combustion-powered and robotic mowers, leaf blowers and snow blowers.
Circular saws, table saws and chain saws.
Electric, motor-operated hand tools.
Electric or battery-operated drills and nail guns.

We are qualified to help you understand and comply with international industry standards and regulations, including UL safety Standards and International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) standards, such as the IEC 62841 series.

Safety testing and certification for North America access – We can evaluate your product for conformance to standards applicable to the North American market.
The UL Mark – Products that have been certified to meet scientific safety, quality or security standards can affix the UL Mark, which has global recognition and acceptance with code authorities.
Battery and charger testing – We conduct performance and safety standard testing for all types of power tool batteries and chargers.
CB report based on appropriate IECEE standard for worldwide access – UL Solutions is one of the most recognized issuers of IECEE CB Certificates.
Performance testing – We conduct performance testing throughout your power tool’s product development cycle.
Smart connected tools services – Our engineers will test your power tool products for conformance to privacy and cybersecurity standards.
Certification needs assessment – We’re here to assess which certifications you need and help you navigate the certification process.
Commitment to answer questions quickly – Our responsive, on-call staff can lend engineering expertise to your staff anytime, anywhere you do business.

1 ANSI/OPEI 60335-2-107 has adopted IEC 60335-2-107 as the North American standard.

2 IEC 62133, Secondary Cells And Batteries Containing Alkaline Or Other Non-Acid Electrolytes. Safety Requirements For Portable Sealed Secondary Cells, And For Batteries Made From Them, For Use In Portable Applications.

Standards

IEC and ANSI/OPEI 60335-2-107, Household and Similar Electrical Appliances – Safety – Part2-107: Particular Requirements for Robotic Battery Powered Electrical Lawn mowers.
IEC 62133, Secondary Cells And Batteries Containing Alkaline Or Other Non-Acid Electrolytes. Safety Requirements For Portable Sealed Secondary Cells, And For Batteries Made From Them, For Use In Portable Applications.

The Cub Cadet CC 600 Is a Walk-Behind Lawn Mower That Means Business

When you just need to get the mowing done so you can move on with your day, you need a mower like the Cub Cadet.

By Roy Berendsohn Published: Mar 5, 2019

As much as I love cutting grass, there are times when I just want the job done. If you feel the same way, have a look at Cub Cadet’s CC 600, a rear-drive mower with a 28-inch dual-blade deck. Homeowners who f ind that their standard 22-inch mower is a bit too small for their cutting surface, but don’t want a riding mower or tractor, may find the CC 600 a perfect fit.

Cub Cadet describes the machine as a wide-area walk mower—that’s landscaper jargon for a self-propelled walk mower with front caster wheels and engines as large as 14.5 HP. These mowers have cutting widths that range from about 34 inches all the way up to 52 inches. You’ve seen landscapers trotting behind them, particularly those who cut small, intricate yards.

Cub Cadet Cub Cadet 28 in. 195 cc 3-in-1 Rear Wheel Drive Gas Push Button Electric Start Walk Behind Self Propelled Lawn Mower

Cub Cadet’s machine isn’t commercial duty, but it packs plenty of mower for homeowner purposes. The 195-CC engine provides more than enough oomph for normal cutting conditions. The mower can be equipped with dedicated mulching blades or blades for bagging. Both provide a good cut quality. The bagging blades provide the necessary air flow to move grass clippings into the 2.25-bushel rear bag. We found the mower to be extremely effective at picking up leaves and clippings. (Note: the mower will fill the bag and pack it tight—and then fill the blower tube. It takes some experience to find the sweet spot when you need to empty the bag before the tube is plugged.)

The mower’s many clever attributes include a push-button start that was reliable in our tests, even in cold weather. The Cub Cadet’s battery is self charging, like your car’s, which means you don’t need to plug the battery into a wall charger. Control the ground speed by pushing forward on the pivoting drive bar (it’s similar to the mechanism pioneered by Toro on its Personal Pace mowers). With the bar full forward, you’re moving at a brisk walk.