Off Grid Living / Camping > Utilities
Cordless String Trimmer
ChrisOlson:
My wife don't like our MTD gas string trimmer because she can never get it started. I can't get it started either, 90% of the time. I have to take the recoil off it and spin the engine with a drill with a socket chucked in it to get it started. Then put it back together and it will start with the recoil starter but it has to be run with the choke fully on for the first five minutes to keep it running. It's been a hard starter since it was new and the carb is non-adjustable. It runs too lean, I suppose to meet EPA standards.
Well, my wife was at Farm & Fleet the other day and came home with a cordless string trimmer. I had never even looked at one because I figured a cordless trimmer would be a toy and not have much power. Wrong. I used it today, for the first time, to trim some long grass around the shop and wood pile. I was surprised to find out it has as much (or more) power as the gas one. I used it for 30 minutes or so and it never did show any signs of the battery going dead or getting discharged.
The only downside is that it's kind of heavy compared to the gas trimmer. But it's ergonomically well designed so it's fairly easy to handle. It's got a 12ah SLA battery in it that looks identical to the ones in a computer UPS. The motor is a VERY powerful permanent neo magnet unit. It's got a little charger that comes with it that puts out 14.5 volts and 400 mA. When I unpacked it, it took about 1 hour to get the light to go green on the charger. After using it for 30 minutes today it's been charging for 7 hours and the light is still red. According to my calculations, 7 hours is 2.8ah. So if the battery is down to 50% SOC it might take 15 hours or so to fully recharge it.
It says in the instructions to not leave it on the charger all the time. If the light turns green you're supposed to unplug it and don't charge it again until after it is used some. It also says to charge it once every 2-3 months in the off-season and do not store it in below freezing temperature.
It has a 2 year warranty on it, which includes the battery. It's made by Toro.
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Chris
Wolvenar:
I have nearly that exact trimmer!!
It was just another one of those things someone gave me because they were going to trash it. I replaced the battery and its been going strong for the last couple years. The guy left it off charge in an unheated shed for the winter, the battery was split wide open.
ChrisOlson:
I think she got it for only $49.95. I guess I was pleasantly surprised to learn that it has decent power and that the battery don't go dead in only 5 ;minutes of use. And being that it's Toro (Bloomington, MN) - a company that's been around since 1914 and prides themselves on keeping 50 year old equipment in working order - you can get parts for it. The main thing that goes to hell on string trimmers is the bump feed spool.
I also like it because now our string trimmer runs on renewable power :)
My wife would also like to get one of these Swedish made Husqvarna AutoMowers:
http://www.husqvarna.com/us/products/robotic-mowers/husqvarna-robotic-mowers-for-homeowners/
We have seen those AutoMowers in action in Sweden. I think very few people in the US have them. The trouble is, it would take two of them for our yard (by size of the yard), and they cost $3,000 US each.
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Chris
tomw:
--- Quote from: ChrisOlson on May 06, 2012, 08:10:35 am ---
My wife would also like to get one of these Swedish made Husqvarna AutoMowers:
http://www.husqvarna.com/us/products/robotic-mowers/husqvarna-robotic-mowers-for-homeowners/
We have seen those AutoMowers in action in Sweden. I think very few people in the US have them. The trouble is, it would take two of them for our yard (by size of the yard), and they cost $3,000 US each.
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Chris
--- End quote ---
Chris;
Just curious how they navigate? Does it shred that lazy cat sleeping under the tree?
Did not see that on the websight.
If it works it is a pretty good idea. And at a mere 3 grand for the top shelf unit it is a bargain if you despise mowing.
Tom
ChrisOlson:
There's some wires you have to bury or staple around the perimeter of where you want it to mow.
It has some sort of ultrasound sensors in it for the lazy cat. One we saw mowing the lawn at the offices of Svenska Kullagerfabriken AB in Göteborg was demonstrated to us by a guy stepping in front of it with no shoes on and his toes towards the mower. The blades are well under the deck and protected by a big perimeter around it. The blades are only 8" but the length is about 2 1/2 foot long by 2 feet wide. If it tips over or is lifted by even a inch, the sensors on the wheels sense it and it stops within milliseconds.
He just stood there and when the sensors "saw" his foot it backed up a ways and took off in a new direction. The ultrasound sensors in it will make it stop if it encounters anything taller than 6". Otherwise it has a bumper sensor on it that it uses to navigate around trees and so on to "learn" where the obstructions are.
It navigates by means of radio signal from its base station with a guide wire and perimeter wires. If you have flower beds or something that you don't want mowed down you have to put the perimeter wire around them. The thing runs around and mows for about an hour, then returns to its charging station to get charged back up. The high priced one has a solar panel built into the top of the mower and if the sun is shining it will mow continuously for how many hours a day you want it to mow. Rain doesn't bother it - it goes out in the rain too. It can handle standing water up to 3 inches deep. But if it encounters water deeper than 3" it back out of it and goes someplace else. The expensive one can handle grades up to 35%. But if you have any holes deeper than 3" in your lawn, it can get stuck.
They are very high quality units, as with most anything made in Sweden. There are three brands of robotic lawnmowers on the market - all made overseas. The Huskie is made in Sweden, the RoboMow is made in Israel, and the LawnBott is made in Italy by Zucchetti. Huskie has a video on them on YouTube:
//www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pj_12iOAgpQ
They also have one on what's required to install it:
//www.youtube.com/watch?v=3MFzSq2qJ3g
My wife does the lawn mowing and trimming, and she'd definitely like to get one.
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Chris
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