Leaf blower recommendation

kathy50 · Sep 13, 2018

I hate leaf blowers. I hate the idea, the hate the noise, I don't like them. That said, however, we and our neighbors have lots of deciduous trees and the leaves are already starting to fall. It's nearly impossible to rake them with a layer of mulch underneath and so a leaf blower has been recommended. I like the idea of a battery operated one but they don't seem to get very good reviews. The thought of dragging around a 100 foot cord for an electric one or keeping the gas mixture around for a gas powered one doesn't thrill me.

Any recommendations on what has worked best for you?

Thanks for any input!

ZTMAN · Sep 13, 2018

Depends on how big of an area you are talking about.

Personally, I have been purchasing the Husqvarna 125B for years. Good all around gas blower. If you use ethanol free fuel, the blower will last along time.
Main use for the blower is driveway and walk ways.

I use the ZT mower to wrangle leaves in the yard. Blow them into a pile with the mower, rake them onto a tarp and dump.

In the mulch beds, I use a steel tine leaf rake. If you use a blower frequently in the mulch beds you have to watch you don't blow all the mulch away. Rake is much quicker for me than a blower.

With that said , if I had a lot of area to do, I would get a back pack blower. Depending on your budget, the Redmax seems to be the go to for the pros.

JohnBuffaloMN · Sep 13, 2018

I've learned that CFM is the useful measurement on a blower and 120 foot cords suck to manage. I got a Poulan Pro gasoline model from big box store and it's been great.

lightninboy · Sep 17, 2018

Yeah, good advice, blowing leaves is something to get done as fast as possible, a Stihl might be competitive.

4570Man · Sep 17, 2018

I have a Stihl BR-400. Stihl BR-600 and a Redmax 8500. Forget about hand blowers for heavy work. My Stihl 600 blower is a more refined product that’s more comfortable to wear but is a far cry from the power of the 8500. I’ve used a dewalt 80 volt blower and a snapper cordless blower and they’re about the same power as my 400 blower. I bought the Stihl 400 for $75 and I use it to blow grass off driveways. I didn’t want to risk loosing a $500 blower to criminals when it wasn’t needed.

BigBlue1 · Sep 17, 2018

I have a Stihl BR-600 that works really well. We get quite a lot of leaves in the fall from all our huge maple and oak trees. That said, it is fairly heavy. Not the most fun to load it onto your back and I wouldn't want to walk around with it for hours at a time. I have taken it up on the roof and used it to blow the leaves off the roof and out of the gutters and I'm comfortable with that.

I also have a blower attachment for my JD modular string trimmer. That works decently too, but now that I have the Stihl I don't use it much. Different class of capability.

Rob

AchingBack · Sep 17, 2018

I believe you can't beat the EGO brand of products. I'm very satisfied with mine. Power+ 53 CFM Blower

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4570Man · Sep 17, 2018

BigBlue1 said:
I have a Stihl BR-600 that works really well. We get quite a lot of leaves in the fall from all our huge maple and oak trees. That said, it is fairly heavy. Not the most fun to load it onto your back and I wouldn't want to walk around with it for hours at a time. I have taken it up on the roof and used it to blow the leaves off the roof and out of the gutters and I'm comfortable with that.

I also have a blower attachment for my JD modular string trimmer. That works decently too, but now that I have the Stihl I don't use it much. Different class of capability.

Rob

I wouldn’t want to use mine for several hours at time either but an hour job for a big backpack blower would probably take 4 hours with a cordless blower.

CADplans · Sep 17, 2018

4570Man said:
I wouldn稚 want to use mine for several hours at time either but an hour job for a big backpack blower would probably take 4 hours with a cordless blower.

The Stihl BR600 is my third blower from years of trying to move leaves.
In actuality, the lesser blowers simply can not do jobs the BR600 can do,,
the BR600 is the first blower that I have ever seen that can move matted-wet leaves from in front of my garage.

Prior to the BR600,, the leaves had to be moved with a garden tractor and snow blade,,,

4570Man · Sep 17, 2018

CADplans said:
The Stihl BR600 is my third blower from years of trying to move leaves.
In actuality, the lesser blowers simply can not do jobs the BR600 can do,,
the BR600 is the first blower that I have ever seen that can move matted-wet leaves from in front of my garage.

Prior to the BR600,, the leaves had to be moved with a garden tractor and snow blade,,,

Yes, a good blower is a lifesaver. And my Redmax 8500 out blows my BR-600 by a lot.

TMGT · Sep 17, 2018

I really like my Echo 770, I used a handheld for years but after 1 year of living at my current house in the woods and taking care of the yard for a neighbor I couldn't do the handheld anymore.

Not sure how much area you have but the large backpack saves me a lot of hrs every year just on leaves, I still have a handheld for quick smaller jobs but the backpack is my go to.

TractorNH · Sep 17, 2018

I went from an old handheld gas Homelite one to a Husqvarna 150BT backpack blower and getting rid of leaves isn't as bad anymore. They run $300 at Lowes and I'm very happy with it. I can't see spending upwards of $500 for a commercial model when I only clear leaves off two lawns.

Thomas · Sep 17, 2018

I have ECHO 500T back pack blower all you got to do is pace yourself and good ear plugs,you'll be surprise quick task done.

BigBlue1 · Sep 17, 2018

4570Man said:
I wouldn稚 want to use mine for several hours at time either but an hour job for a big backpack blower would probably take 4 hours with a cordless blower.

Very true. The volume a good backpack blower has is an immense help in moving large quantities of leaves. Last fall I spent an hour or so blowing leaves from about a 40yd by 50yd area over to my septic system's mound in hope of insulating it for winter. Leaves were 2-3' deep at times as I rolled them together and funneled them to the mound. Finally got them distributed into about 1 to 1.5 foot deep layer.

In the next week or so the wind blew like crazy and all the leaves I worked so hard to pile up blew away. I was naive. I learned.

Rob

Wagtail · Sep 17, 2018

4570Man said:
I wouldn稚 want to use mine for several hours at time either but an hour job for a big backpack blower would probably take 4 hours with a cordless blower.

Agreed, especially if it's a hand-held model (as mine is, 2-stroke).

For me, it's the vibration of the device... even for a short half-hour job. I've tried to mitigate the circumstances by wrapping the blower handle with foam neoprene 'pipe insulation' and wearing foam neoprene diver (wet suit) gloves. That helps. Extended use and my hand(s) are in agony for days after.

oosik · Dec 26, 2020

I don't have leaves - I've got pine needles. Really long ones from my Ponderosa pines. My JD 570 riding mower will still blow these needles into long rows. Then rake up the rows - into my wheelbarrow - onto my scrap pile.

TMGT · Dec 26, 2020

I see this thread has been resurected, since I last posted I have added an Echo pb8010 and a Kobalt 40v battery blower to the mix.
The 8010 is a beast, really cuts down on blowing time and can move some serious material around!
As for the battery powered handheld, its nice to grab when you just need to blow something off real quick instead of firing up the gas blower, warming it up, then shutting it right back off. Also great to blow out the shop/back of the truck (have a cap so its an enclosed area).

As for the Stihl 86, my dad has one, its been a good blower but check the bolts regularly for tightness. He's lost a number of bolts that have vibrated out and even had one back out behind the flywheel and lock the engine! Luckily it was a somewhat easy fix and the blower is still going strong.

Personally, I have pretty much all Echo equipment for my handheld stuff with the exception of 2 Dolmar/Makita saws.