BAttery Powered Push Mowers

[SageDesignLM]

Guys, I am considering offering some zero impact mowing service for some customers. This means buying a few battery powered push mowers. At this point there are no commerical grade options available so I am looking at them as replacement items as very few repairs would be worth doing because of the low cost of the mower initially. Anyway, I have researched mowers by Neutron, Black & Decker, Worx, and GreenWorks (these all have swapable 36volt batteries) but still can not determine which may be the best option. So the question is; has anyone out there gone down this road and evaluated/acutally use this mowers and if so which manufacture would you recommend based on quality of the mower, durability, runtime, quality of cut, ease of use, etc. Any feedback you may have would be appreciated. Thanks

[Liberty Landscaping LLC]

Lawn care business tips

Before you even travel down that road you have a few things to find out. A:How long the charge lasts B: How many lawns you will be able to cut on one charge C: MOST Important how are you going to recharge them traveling from one job to the next and if that's even long enough to charge it enough to mow the next lawn. Let us know the outcome.

__________________
Liberty Landscaping LLC
www.libertylndscpng.com
Woodbridge, NJ

[Hedgemaster]

It's an interesting idea.
There are some postage stamp sized lawns in urban areas where "noise" can be a factor, or like in the case of "lawn" I went to look at yesterday, it could be located in an area dominated by "eco-conscious" types who think that you are saving the earth by mowing THEIR lawn with a rechargeable mower.

I'm actually considering using my cordless line trimmer on that property since it's so small. Not to save the earth, but because I have to park on the street, and maybe several houses away - the cordless trimmer is light enough to carry while pushing my mower up the street. (and with the price of fuel these days, why not?)
That said, I'm not buying a cordless mower.

[jasonw]

I have seen some at Lowes and been tempted to grab one but unfortunately it would just sit. I did a job Sunday that had my equipment running for just under 8 hours non stop and no way could anything battery powered keep up with that. Unfortunately in my area there is just nothing to use something like that on.

[CHEESE2009]

Don't do it.







We've have had this topic before which was probably 100 pages long.


Pictured Above: topic from a long time ago



We figured that battery powered equipment is more harmful to the environment, and that the equipment is inferior to gas powered equipment and will cause you nothing but painnnnnn.

///////////////////////////////////////////

Also, it's common to go with "what works" as opposed to being different.
Let the world ponder on this some more before you make the attempt and suddenly realize you aren't able to pull it off.



If you really want to be "green" you'll need to use scissors or a "reel mower" Also, instead of banging out a lawn in 15-20 mins you can expect to spend an entire day at each individual property.



Gas is expensive at times, but it will always be worth what you spend.

Next topic = diesel

[Steve]

I am considering offering some zero impact mowing service for some customers. This means buying a few battery powered push mowers.

Can you give us some insight as to why you are looking into this and only for a few customers?

Would you consider propane powered mowers ?

[SageDesignLM]

Thanks for the input guys it definitely gives me something to think about. To answer a few questions I am looking into this because I believe there are enough small lawns in this area to support another landscape maintenance business who will do the "small" job, and if you are not familar with Charlottesville, Va it has become one of the most environmentally focused large town/small cities in the country. This being the case, there appears to be a reasonable population here who will pay more of a premium to have a near zero impact mowing option. This will be coupled with other eco-friendly offerings (organic lawn care options, sustainable design, etc) if the client desires it.

As far as recharging the batteries during the day, solar panels on the truck with spare batteries always charging and available.

I know it will take longer to complete a job but I am banking on clientele who will pay for the fact that they have an earth-friendly landscape company serviceing them. They may not actually care about it deep down, but it is great conversation for them at the "club".

We will see, I am not investing too much up front and this will only account for approx. have of my business income as long as design and garden maintenance keep doing well.

Thanks again for your input. More comments and/or suggestions appreciated.

[element009]

Hi Sage,

I am totally with you on this. This is where I want to take my company in the future. I want to offer an all around eco friendly option. I'm surprised there has been no major commercial release of eco-friendly mowers. I'm sure they could produce something decent. Of course there's no chance it can compete with the power and efficiency of gas-powered machines. But there is doubtless a growing demand for eco friendly products/services. I'm 26 and I know most people in my age group are much more environmentally conscious than our parent's generation. And you have to think about it this way: people in my generation are now starting families and buying houses. I think this eco trend will only grow in the years to come. I'd like to see where this conversation will be 10 years from now. Hopefully I'll be counting money stacks.

[SuperiorPower]

Look at this thread and this thread.

Let me say, I don't think its a great idea. People think there is "zero impact". Perhaps, but I don't think so. Lets look at the Toyota Prius. The Prius gets good fuel mileage but people never consider the cost of manufacturing the car. The Prius factory is the "dirtiest" car factory there is (from my understanding). The battery construction is not clean. Then consider the clean up or disposal of said batteries. What about the electric needed to charge the batteries? How is that made? Again, read the threads mentioned above.

Good luck

[element009]

Yea but it's simple supply and demand. If our clients demand a zero-impact service, we must provide it. Therefore, we must in turn demand that our suppliers (SCAG, TORO, Exmark, etc.) produce zero impact machines. If the technology is not there yet, they have to invest in R & D and make it a clean and efficient production process. If they don't do it, another company will. That's the beauty of capitalism.

No matter how much we want to resist, the market is driving these changes across the board. It's just the way of things. Those who embrace the changing demand will find a market to serve.