Anyone go from gas to electric, then back to gas?
- Thread starter Hay Dude
- Start date
- Views: 24015
Alan46
Veteran Member
Drew Loker
New member
- Joined
- Aug 15, 2021
- Messages
- 12
- Tractor
- BX23s
Good thread! Gas management vs battery management.
I have been using rechargeable batteries for a really long time…Nicd, Nimh (particularly fond of Eneloop), lots of SLAs (but not by choice…mostly battery backups, etc.) and of course Lithium. I have a lot of older NiCD and NiMh consumer tools…even 20v lithium weed wackers. Soso…like others…used for the right job, not as powerful. But totally appreciate the comment about battery management. My electric golf cart is annoying for sure. They need water checked routinely. Boat and RV battery…same. AA and AAA Eneloops…have to carefully monitor the charge they took. Lithium does not like to be run down all the way. Etc. etc.
Point is, last year, I invested in Ryobi 40v trimmer and Chainsaw…necessary to replace frustrating Husqvarna gas models of both. These two lithium tools are very powerful. Package deal came with 4ah and 5ah…got 6ah at a Pawnshop for cheap!! On the 6ah, I can trim for an hour...about same as the Husq did before it started to loose compression due to heat…and old age. The chainsaw, with the 5ah, cuts down tallow and sweet gum trees longer than I can work.
My favorite thing about both lithium cs and ww is the stop and go. I am not as young as I used to be, and in this heat, I can trim for a few minutes and then go stand in some shade much easier with the electric. The vibration and sound is less…especially less constant. With the cs, I can make a cut and put the saw down much easier. The ww has a carbon fiber shaft (a new gas unit would as well) which was a nice improvement. But as I walk around several acres of trimming here and there, the lighter trimmer, even with 6ah battery, is less than the gas.
I get that gas may be more powerful. But managing gas, the acoustics, smell, vibration, weight, ease of stop and go, etc.…I am ok with the trade off.
In fact, this topic caught my eye because I am trying to change to a Lithium/Solar Power Generator to phase out reliance on a gas generator. I did just get a new Duel Fuel electric start generator…but more to recharge solar generator if cloudy. I just phased out a gas only generator because I was terrible at managing the gas…it didn’t help that it hurt my shoulder to start, even when new, which made me reluctant to start the 2005 generator on a regular basis.
But gas or battery, as mentioned, going to take work. I have about 8 x 5 gallon gas cans stored, plus diesel, that have to be rotated, lugged around, worried about, etc. On the other hand, I have literally hundreds of rechargeable batteries that do have to be managed…labeled, rotated and maintained.
Last edited:
Pecosbill7
Member
I decided to go electric when both Husqvarna gas chain saws crapped out. Repairman said they both weren’t worth fixing due to the damage done them by ethanol containing gas. Learned a lesson there to only use the ethanol free in the future. One was an older model 245 and the other was a 455 Rancher that was fairly new.
At the ranch I have a fence line that sustained a lot of damage from downed trees in a recent storm. It seemed like an electric chainsaw would be good for such work instead of constantly starting and stopping a gas model. I investigated saws and decided on the Husqvarna 350i that comes with a 7amph battery and charger. Went to work on the fence line and I must say the saw performed beautifully. Used it all day without running out of juice. I decided to add to the collection a Husqvarna electric weed eater which used the same battery pack. Used it last week to weed eat the 28 peach trees in the orchard and it performed flawlessly, much better than I expected. Much quieter than gas, so no need for hearing protection which is nicer in this 100+ degree heat. I will still have my old Echo gas trimmer and will still find occasion to use it I’m sure but the electrics will be my go-to’s going forward. The latest technology is quite good.
At the ranch I have a fence line that sustained a lot of damage from downed trees in a recent storm. It seemed like an electric chainsaw would be good for such work instead of constantly starting and stopping a gas model. I investigated saws and decided on the Husqvarna 350i that comes with a 7amph battery and charger. Went to work on the fence line and I must say the saw performed beautifully. Used it all day without running out of juice. I decided to add to the collection a Husqvarna electric weed eater which used the same battery pack. Used it last week to weed eat the 28 peach trees in the orchard and it performed flawlessly, much better than I expected. Much quieter than gas, so no need for hearing protection which is nicer in this 100+ degree heat. I will still have my old Echo gas trimmer and will still find occasion to use it I’m sure but the electrics will be my go-to’s going forward. The latest technology is quite good.
Thinking that electric was the future bought 80v Greenworks chainsaw as 80v was the strongest battery out there. Severly disappointed as after cutting down and sawing up half that tree motor died. They sent a replacement chainsaw, same thing. I now am on my third replacement saw and basically will use it only for trimming. The battery seems oversized for the motor, the chain drive is misaligned,all in all a very shoddy piece of engineering. Until real chainsaw manufacturers come up with battery powered saws as far as I'm concerned, they're for quick jobs only.
Cheaper, yes, better, no.
boutym
Silver Member
I've tried electric and I've never had anything that compares to gas. The batteries are expensive. I've never done the math to compare the cost of batteries vs. the cost of gas, but that aside, I'll take the cost of gas over the cost of batteries even if the gas turned out more expensive. My gas stuff will run rings around anything electric. The only electric stuff I use now is corded and that's pretty much limited to saws. In fact, I'm just now heading out to buy a gas hedge trimmer because I'm tired of having to manage the cord of the electric I have.
If I break a gas power tool I can usually fix it for not a lot of money. I have a couple chainsaws that are 30 years old and have never needed anything beyond routine maintenance. I'd bet you'd be hard pressed to find a battery powered tool that will outlast gas.
And from an environmental perspective, I'd bet the net result of any environmental damage is less with gas.
If I break a gas power tool I can usually fix it for not a lot of money. I have a couple chainsaws that are 30 years old and have never needed anything beyond routine maintenance. I'd bet you'd be hard pressed to find a battery powered tool that will outlast gas.
And from an environmental perspective, I'd bet the net result of any environmental damage is less with gas.
Same here. Figure it is just as bad or worse with an automobile, or even worse with farm machinery!
I think this is a good theory. I have Ego outdoor tools (string trimmer, chainsaw, blower, push mower) and DeWalt 20V hand tools, and am happy with both as a moderate-heavy use homeowner. The 18" chainsaw will do a solid cut but is a bit slower than a good gas saw. Since I am not breaking down big trees for hours at a time on the regular, I don't mind. Everywhere else it wins big. Battery life is good on everything except the mower, which does eat them up. I have 3 sets of batteries so as long as I charge them I am not going to run out in the middle of anything.
If I was starting over today I would shop the different systems. Ego was the right mid-point for me 2 years ago but not sure if they are still the best "prosumer" line today. It is definitely a "system" purchase because you want to be able to share batteries.
