Ego zero steer mower review

[WinterDeere]

One size does not fit all.

Definitely. If you're only doing 15 hours per year, you just need the cheapest mower made, no matter what it costs per hour to run it. There is not enough usage to ever save on hourly operating cost.

But I'm surprised your hours are that low. I put about 100 hours per year on my ZTR mowing what's probably 3 acres of actual grass on a 4 acre lot. About 65 - 80 hours of that is actually mowing, the remainder being pushing a blower buggy around for blowing leaves.

We need to mow every 4 days here in April and May, often shorted to every 3rd day if rain is predicted on day 4, then weekly in early summer and fall. Those of us without weeds can go 2-3 weeks with no mowing in July into early August, when the grass usually stops growing, but we're generally mowing from April 1 thru at least Thanksgiving.

We've had a few bizarrely warm years (e.g. 2019), where we mow right up to Christmas. But as soon as I go thinking that's the new "normal", we get a year with hard frosts starting mid-October or snow by Halloween. Highly variable, but I've never had a year with less than 65 hours on the ZTR, or more than 110 hours.

 

[CloverKnollFarms]

Fuel, oil and filter run me about $165/yr. I've never done anything else to the machine in the past 250 hours. The bonus is that I can mow 3 acres in one go, and it only takes 2 hours.

Too bad the highest rated aftermarket batteries on Amazon were garbage.

And the Ego batteries are like $150 each for a 2.5ah. The 5ah is $250.
One battery is more than my annual fuel expenditure

 

[Torvy]

There are definitely things I prefer to have a gas or diesel engine. Other things are better with a battery.

We have a small Greenworks mower my wife bought when we had a 2nd home in Longview (she was working remotely for a year). It does the job if you have a small lot. For me, the gas savings isn't the benefit. It's the lack of an engine and the maintenance and fickle nature. My Honda is a much better mower, but spends a lot more time being tuned, repaired or sworn at.

Fortunately, we longer have a real lawn. I could just use a weed wacker. The light mower is easier on my back at cuts weeds as well as grass. It's really only for bits I cannot maneuver the flail

 

[Runner]

Do yourself a favor and start writing birthdates on your batteries with a paint marker or engraver, if they're not already marked as such. You're going to want to keep track, as the OEM batteries age over a presumed 3 - 5 year lifespan.

I have been doing that with the 19.2V replacement batteries I have been buying for my old Craftsman tools. I guess it's interesting information to have, but it just makes me mad to see the replacements are only lasting for a year or so before biting the dust.

I guess I'm going to have to bite the bullet and invest in a whole new set of cordless stuff pretty soon....

 

[shooterdon]

To address some questions.

The hour meter says 58.8 hours. Maybe it is not working properly…

Unless we get a lot of rain, grass does not grow much. I have gone over two weeks in July and August between mowings.

I do not fertilize or water. I have no neighbors to impress.

I did not buy a $5000+ ZT to save money. I hate cutting grass. My old 48” rider took two hours and the ZT takes half the time. There was nothing wrong with the rider and sold it to my neighbor for $1000. Call it $4500 wasted to have a mower that will last my lifetime and saves me 15-20 hours a year of drudgery.

BTW, cut the grass last Thursday…first time this year. I will cut it again on Saturday.

 

[ArlyA]

To address some questions.

The hour meter says 58.8 hours. Maybe it is not working properly…

Unless we get a lot of rain, grass does not grow much. I have gone over two weeks in July and August between mowings.

I do not fertilize or water. I have no neighbors to impress.

I did not buy a $5000+ ZT to save money. I hate cutting grass. My old 48” rider took two hours and the ZT takes half the time. There was nothing wrong with the rider and sold it to my neighbor for $1000. Call it $4500 wasted to have a mower that will last my lifetime and saves me 15-20 hours a year of drudgery.

BTW, cut the grass last Thursday…first time this year. I will cut it again on Saturday.

Time for a new thread?

 

[shooterdon]

Sorry ArlyA. I will shut up…lol

 

[jjeff]

I'd try jumping the dead battery with a jumper wire from a good battery of some sort. It only needs small bump for it to register on your chargers, If it's like my cordless tool batteries that occasionally won't take a charge if it's completely dead due to the charger not registering any voltage whatsoever. Saved a few batteries, relatively easy and the googler might show you how to do it or use a multimeter to figure which prongs of battery to focus on.

 

[dodge man]

I also date my batteries.

 

[Grumpycat]

I have been doing that with the 19.2V replacement batteries I have been buying for my old Craftsman tools. I guess it's interesting information to have, but it just makes me mad to see the replacements are only lasting for a year or so before biting the dust.

Bookmark 18650 Battery Store - Trusted Supplier of Lithium Ion Batteries and consider rebuilding dead battery packs. I believe that site sells better cells than you will find in aftermarket assemblies.