Battery powered yard tools.

RSKY · May 19, 2017

I am seriously considering buying a battery powered leaf blower and chainsaw. My wife cannot crank the Echo leaf blower. We have the Craftsman 19.2 volt blower and it just does not do the job. What I want to know is which brand and what size to get. The blower would be used once a week to clear off porches and patios. I will keep the gas powered one for heavy jobs. The chainsaw once every month or so to cut up a fallen limb. If they work out well I might purchase a hedge trimmer. I want all to use the same battery. But it does not have to use the same battery as my power tools, drill, saw, etc..

Anybody have any experience? Would rather hear bad stories than good so I know what brands/sizes to avoid.

Thanks in advance.

RSKY

Mendonsy · May 19, 2017

I have a Ryobi string trimmer and pole saw that I bought from Home Depot. Both work OK and use the same 18 volt battery.

Jim Nelson · May 20, 2017

My health finally got to the point that I can't handle the gas stuff any more and after reading a thread that Bird started a while back I started looking at E GO battery powered stuff. So far I have a lawn mower, blower,and chain saw which all work very well. We also have a De Walt 20 volt string trimmer that we both really like. These aren't cheap but from my experience work very well. I did find a guy on Craig's List who bought lots of different out dated or returned equipment from different major sellers and he had a great deal on the lawn mower which helped a lot.I would certainly recommend them.

tomplum · May 21, 2017

I picked up the EGO chainsaw a month or so back for the misses. She likes it. First saw she ever used. I like it because I can drop the tree and she can do lots of the clean up. She does all the grass trimming around the house with a Toro battery one. likes that too. I run the big one only when I have to. I always recommend battery string trimmers to people that would otherwise pick up a basic 100-150$ something that they can start for season one only. Then they have to decide to toss it or pay its purchase price in parts and labor to get it running again. The only battery blower I have is a Milwaukee one which is great for cleaning up a job site, but not good if there is a big area to do. I've had Toro electric for years which isn't a slouch.

RSKY · May 21, 2017

Has anyone tried the Kobalt Lowes branded stuff. Looks good but a little less expensive? And I was wondering the difference between the 20-40-60 volt stuff.

RSKY

Gary Fowler · May 21, 2017

If you have a really small area to blow off or string trim, battery works ok but not very powerful. I have a 20v string trimmer that was given to me. I use the battery from it to power my 20v drills but the trimmer itself is so underpowered that it takes forever to trim my sidewalks and at least 2 batteries.
I leave the battery powered stuff to drills only which work Ok for that. If you have a city type lot, then battery power would work OK but nothing beats gas power for larger country sized lots.

tomplum · May 21, 2017

I see the Depot has the blower $50 off EGO 11 mph 53 CFM Variable-Speed Turbo 56-Volt Lithium-ion Cordless Electric Blower-LB532 - The Home Depot The saw was recently too.

Xfaxman · May 21, 2017

RSKY said:
Has anyone tried the Kobalt Lowes branded stuff. Looks good but a little less expensive? And I was wondering the difference between the 20-40-60 volt stuff.

RSKY

I have a Kobalt 40 volt Li-ion battery powered mower that I bought last year, for mowing where my 6' front deck can't fit between the trees. The 40 volt batteries come in different amp hour ratings, mine is 5 ah.

Still impressed with it's performance. :thumbsup:

Another battery leaf blower thread: http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/rural-living/348443-another-leaf-blower-thread-battery.html

jmc · May 21, 2017

tomplum said:
I see the Depot has the blower $50 off EGO 11 mph 53 CFM Variable-Speed Turbo 56-Volt Lithium-ion Cordless Electric Blower-LB532 - The Home Depot The saw was recently too.

At 11MPH, you could use it inside the house too!

Bird · May 21, 2017

I see a couple of zeros were left off.

That's 110 mph, 530 cfm and that's the one I have. You might notice the switch? in front of the handle. You can turn down the speed, if you wish although I almost never do. That would make the battery last longer. That other green button on top is the "turbo" switch for max power, which I also almost never use.

One thing I don't understand is why anyone would pay Home Depot for a 2 year protection plan when the Ego products come with a 5 year warranty; 3 years on the batteries.