Battery Powered Weed Eaters

[wjmst]

For some reason I don't have much luck with 2 stroke weed eaters. They only seem to last for a few years then I am spending more time, effort, and money trying to fix them than it would be if I just bought a new (cheap) one each year.

Not only that they are crazy loud and my wife can never get it started without me, plus it is too heavy for her to operate for any length of time.

That being said, I am considering a battery powered weed eater. Has anyone used these and do they have a recommended brand or model?

Thanks.

 

[forgeblast]

My friend just bought a ryobi for his father, much much lighter. the problem was it was last years with the older style batter and charger. Many people left the lithium batterys on the charger and wore them out in no time. He had a month left on his warrenty and they replaced the battery and charger with no cost to him. He does like the unit over all.

 

[clemsonfor]

Unless it will last a lot longer than the battery blowers sold i would not buy one. My in laws have a blower and cant blow their 60ft drive off with it.

A corded one if you can deal with the cord would be better.

 

[WVBill]

I just read a review of battery powered weed eaters somewhere.
Consumer Reports, Popular Mechanix or Popular Science, I think.
I'll look in my magazine rack when I get home....

 

[HCJtractor]

I would be very skeptical of battery operated weed eaters. First of all, the batteries are expensive and usually short lived. I have a Ryobi handheld blower. After a year, one battery is dead, and the blower has broken twice. And I only used it for 5 minutes every week for blowing my office sidewalk.

I also think a battery powered weedeater would be very light duty and limited in usefulness. If you have had bad luck with gas powered ones, I would question which ones you had. If you bought a Sthil homeowner version, or even a more expensive professional model, it would last for years, with minimal care. They are simple to start. That's my opinion, having used the same Sthil regularly for over 10 years. No way a battery one will last that long, or have anywhere near the power.

 

[JD15302155870]

I agree. Buy the cheap 2cyl gas and you can throw them away on the way home. My Stihl works great and cranks on the first pull.

 

[troutsqueezer]

First, if you spend the extra money and get an Echo or a Stihl they last and last. I can speak from experience here as I do a lot of weedeating around the acreage.

But there is the wife, as you mention, so all criteria must be reconsidered. My wife cannot start anything gas powered, no matter how many times I show her. This is why Ryobi has been a Godsend at my house. I have about every Ryobi battery-powered piece of equipment ever made and even two of some models.

Recently I bought the Lithium version of the weedeater. It's light, it comes with the larger lithium battery and charger. You don't have to tap the head to get it to feed (my wife always had a hard time tapping the head on previous models --- it's a girl thing --- they don't have the control to tap only when necessary). It doesn't weigh much. The spool refills easily. The handle is nice and big and adjustable. It will cut fairly good-sized weeds but certainly not anything close to the Echo's capability. But those larger clumps of weeds are not the ones the wife usually targets. She hates those stray strands sticking up along the flower bed edge. For that, the Ryobi works perfectly. Get it.

 

[beppington]

I own many of the Ryobi battery powered tools, including the blower: It eats batteries fast.

It seems, & make sense, that the tools that require high speed motors eat batteries faster. i.e. The drills eat batteries slower than the blower or the circular saw (also fast spinning). And the drill set on Low speed lasts longer than when it's set on High High speed.

I wouldn't expect much from a battery powered weed eater.

- - - - -

One more thing: Stihl has it's new Easy2Start pull system. The effort to pull is reduced, as it "loads up" a spring that releases & cranks the motor. You can pull pretty slowly & the engine will turn over & start.

 

[anojones]

I have a black and decker one- 18V I think. It's light duty but will take care of grass along walkways, fences etc, it's also lightweight and easy to use with a self loading string (no need to bump). That being said, it just hangs in my shop and never gets used- the batteries wear out fast and are too expensive to replace. I ended up buying a Stihl- loud, heavy and still always messing with the string getting stuck in the head, but I haven't found a better alternative. My wife can mow and I will string trim.

 

[Bird]

If you bought a Sthil homeowner version, or even a more expensive professional model, it would last for years, with minimal care. They are simple to start. That's my opinion, having used the same Sthil regularly for over 10 years.

My FS55RC is only 6 years old, but anyone should be able to start it with the Easy2Start system, or as the salesman called it, "the Granny start system".:laughing:

 

[Chilly807]

If you're going to get a gas trimmer, the Stihl 4-stroke trimmers/brushcutters are excellent quality. Probably a lot more machine than you need though. We have the FS 130, runs everything from a trimmer head to a saw blade.

It still uses mixed gas, though. There's no lube oil sump, just the oil in the gas mix.

Great torque, and fairly quiet, different exhaust note altogether from a 2 stroke.

Friend of ours has the Black and Decker battery trimmer, she's pleased with it.

Sean

 

[2manyrocks]

A Sthil mechanic told me that Sthil is coming out with a battery powered trimmer maybe later this year, and it will be impressive.

There's a difference in battery powered tools. I have a 18v Ridgid I've used to bore floor joists for wiring, and it's pretty impressive for example. Could be that Sthil will offer a product that is better than you think.

If you don't have a huge amount of trimming, an electric trimmer could have several advantages--one being that you'll never have to worry about stale gas.

 

[klrobert]

We have a B&D 18v trimmer. It is for light duty work only. If you have a small yard with little trimming to do, it may be okay. As posted earlier, it goes through batteries very fast and will kill them quickly. I think the next one we buy will be a corded one.

 

[redberankubota]

I bought the Ryobi trimmer and blower for the wife...SHE LOVES them!:thumbsup:

Personally I would not have even considered them for anything other than a glorified toys

They do an OK job , I guess...for quick clean-up work , then every 3 weeks or so , I break out the gas powered stuff and do a serious job of edging !

I like the blower for blowing out the garages as it`s not too powerful as to blow the stuff up in the air , and thus , back in the garage.

I also have everything Ryobi makes for around the house , so I already have several batteries and chargers. The funny thing is it`s almost like getting the tool for free , if you considered the cost of buying a new battery , and charger alone.

 

[schmism]

My Stihl works great and cranks on the first pull.

+1

I finnally upgraded my 15 year old shindawa to a stihl. While the stihl is easyer to start, I still use the shindawa as a dedicated brush cutter and can still get it to start with minimum fuss.

 

[forgeblast]

Just saw this come across the ap website.
STIHL Toolless Cap Safety Recall Notice | STIHL USA
shows the models affected.

More than 2 million power tools for the yard

are being recalled because of a potential fire or burn danger.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission says the recall involves

gas-powered Stihl (steel) trimmers, brush cutters, KombiMotors,

hedge trimmers, edgers, clearing saws, pole pruners and backpack

blowers.

In all, about 2.3 million of them are being recalled by

Virginia-based Stihl Inc. because of problems with the fuel caps.

The CPSC says the level of ethanol and other fuel additives in the

product can distort the cap, potentially causing gas to spill.

No injuries have been reported, but Stihl has received 81

reports of difficulty with the caps, either installing or removing

them, as well as fuel spillage problems.

More information can be found at STIHL The Number One Selling Brand of Chain Saws Outdoor Power Tools - Locate an Independent STIHL Dealer .

 

[kozak]

Troutsquezzer nailed it exactly for the dilema I am in. Battery powered is half the weight (Ryobi - 6Lbs, Echo - 10 Lbs.) Big difference for a woman.

I have an old 2 stroke FS 36 Stihl. Bought back in 1997. The thing is too stupid to die. I have done NOTHING with this thing except fuel it up & eat up weeds.

Battery powered is also less money.....but I hate to buy something if the reliability is not there especially given my experience with the 2-stroke I have.

The 6Lb Ryobi will be a featherweight to my at least 12 to 15 pounder. (But I love it !!) :licking:

I think I will try the battery operated & make sure wifey knows what to do about charging the batteries.

We'll see.

Vic

 

[grsthegreat]

DONT DO IT....

My wife bought one of those battery powered weed eaters. that thing never held more than 20-30 minutes usage. I don't remember if it was a riobi or a black & decker. I just remembered it was red and sucked.

She never got around to returning it....so i finally had to throw it out.
I bought a nice Husqvarna weed eater...not very heavy and it has worked flawlessly for 4 years now. Bought a contractor model not homeowner special. Very well balanced with a shoulder strap to balance weight.

 

[AMR]

OK, I will add a different take to this one.

I bought a Greenworks string trimmer with a 20V Lithium Ion 6 amp hour battery along with a blower from Amazon, delivered to the house for about $180. I couldn't be happier, it is perfect.

Now, like anything else you need to match the tool to the application. I mow my lawn every 4 to 6 days in the spring. When I mow I trim around my house which totals about 450 linear feet of foundation wall, I trim around the well and a few things like that, total trimming duration is about 20 minutes and it is just regular old yard grass. After I mow I put the same battery on a Greenworks blower and blow off the porch and part of the driveway, another 10 minutes or so. I can do this 2 to 3 times between charges.

For my application it couldn't be better. No fuel cans, no leaks, no smoke, no mixing gas/fuel, no starting, no smelling like gas, on and on and on. I love it.

For certain you wouldn't take this thing into a field and whack down 3 foot tall grass but for trimming around the house before you mow, there is no better tool. Same thing with the blower. You wouldn't do you fall clean up with it, but for blowing a dusting of snow off of the porch and cleaning up the top of the driveway after mowing, it is perfect.

 

[brucewj]

For my application it couldn't be better. No fuel cans, no leaks, no smoke, no mixing gas/fuel, no starting, no smelling like gas, on and on and on. I love it.

For certain you wouldn't take this thing into a field and whack down 3 foot tall grass but for trimming around the house before you mow, there is no better tool.

I have the B&D 18 volt trimmer and I agree with the statements above. I also have the B&D pole chainsaw and a B&D cordless drill. They all have the same battery, so I have plenty of spares if a battery gets low.

I always run out of power before the battery does, so I haven't had any problems. Plus, my wife will operate the battery trimmer, but will not mess with a gas one.