Battery technology is rapidly evolving because of pressure from the political and environmental parties. Will it get to the 8+ hour point? Who knows? There may even be a battery/solar machine down the road. But you can definitely rest assured that battery powered EVERYTHING is the long-term plan. Whether they can get to that point or not is yet to be seen........

 

If they are this far into development that means these products are years.. if not decades in the making. And there is a consumer and business owner demand for them. Im not a liberal tree hugger …but I want a lightweight easy to start blower for my little accounts that have nothing more than a 6 foot walkway to blow off. Rather then throw a 9010 on my back 20 times a day. For homeowners w little yards electric mowers are perfect. In contrast I see these ridiculous commercial trying to sell homeowners on scag riders to be the “cool guy” in the neighborhood.
Atleast some of these companies have grasped on the fact that we will eventually need alternatives to fossil fuel atleast on a consumer basis . So these companies have a decision …. Try to adjust and catch up after it’s too late ??? Or be an innovator ???

 

I forgot the name of the manufacturer...Green something or other, advertising UP TO 7.5 hour usage on a 72" ZTR...all for the low price of $37,000...how many you want??

I seriously think gas powered mowers will be around for another 15 to 20 years at least.

 

I've been interested in the mean green stander 52". It's called the vanquish. I don't know anything about pricing on it though.

 

Yes, Mean Green! They practically give these away...UP TO 7 hours of use on this model:

 

I'll add that electric mowers may, and likely will, catch on for homeowners with less than an acre or so to mow. And if I were in that category I might actually entertain it myself. I do have an EGO 21" electric that I cut the small area around our pool mainly because I am trying to avoid clippings flying in the pool and the gate isn't wide enough to get a mower in there anyway. And it's easier for the wife to use if she desires because all she has to do is pop the battery in and go. No fuel to fool with. I am on my 4th year with it. Same battery and no problems whatsoever. It mulches quite well and I have no complaints. As for a larger area, I'll take my Scag, thank you very much.

Commercial operators will probably use commercial gas equipment for many years to come.

 

The 4 hour charge would be enough for me, but unfortunately that price ain't there yet.

 

I wonder if all these greenies have ever been to a tractor pull? I wonder what they think of a Pro Stock tractor running diesel and 120lbs of boost?? LOL

 

Unfortunately in the long run I can't see electrical winning out here (and I don't mean just lawn mowers but everything they're considering switching over to)...
The sad part of all this is we're going to end up paying for it all.
With little if any actual benefit.
That's the sad of it.

Here's what Scotty Kilmer has to say about electric cars:

 

I'm thinking stihl will be one of the first commercial dealers to put out a commercial battery mower.
I have yet to see any battery equipment by Exmark, or Scag . Toro.

I do know if I was 20 years younger.
I would start setting up a enclosed trailer with solor kit.
To plug things in between jobs.

 

I'm thinking stihl will be one of the first commercial dealers to put out a commercial battery mower.
I have yet to see any battery equipment by Exmark, or Scag . Toro.

Does stihl make mowers or are you saying that they are going to make their debut with the commercial battery mower?

 

Can't we just have grass genetically modified to only grow 2" and no more? No cutting required.

We have seedless watermelons.

Instead of cutting the grass....you would just 'comb' it from time to time. hah.......!

 

Can't we just have grass genetically modified to only grow 2" and no more? No cutting required.

We have seedless watermelons.

Instead of cutting the grass....you would just 'comb' it from time to time. hah.......!

And now we're all unemployed 😁😁

 

I forsee a time in the future where mowing lawns will not be allowed. Roughly almost 8 billion souls on the planet. The 2nd and 3rd world countrys are rapidly becoming 1st and 2nd world countrys. They all want the American dream. A house with a lawn and stuff. We as a people and planet don't have enough resources to build, furnish with electricity or gas and oils 5 billion private property yards with lawn mowers and everything else that goes along with keeping up a grass stand of turf. Logic explains this very easily in the broadest terms. It is unsustainable.

If we keep extending human life through artificial means more than ever past 80 years old, instead of letting nature take its course, these problems will worsen very quickly. In 40 years their could potentially be 14 to 16 billion souls on this planet. There is no possible way we can dig ourselves the resources out of the ground to provide for mowing lawns as the population eats up more space on terra firma.

It is true that electric machines for keeping a stand of grass in ones yard is still a band-aid. We as people who provide a luxury service to clients who can "pay" for it won't be around forever. There will be more important things to worry about in 40 years than mowing a lawn.

 

I forsee a time in the future where mowing lawns will not be allowed. Roughly almost 8 billion souls on the planet. The 2nd and 3rd world countrys are rapidly becoming 1st and 2nd world countrys. They all want the American dream. A house with a lawn and stuff. We as a people and planet don't have enough resources to build, furnish with electricity or gas and oils 5 billion private property yards with lawn mowers and everything else that goes along with keeping up a grass stand of turf. Logic explains this very easily in the broadest terms. It is unsustainable.

If we keep extending human life through artificial means more than ever past 80 years old, instead of letting nature take its course, these problems will worsen very quickly. In 40 years their could potentially be 14 to 16 billion souls on this planet. There is no possible way we can dig ourselves the resources out of the ground to provide for mowing lawns as the population eats up more space on terra firma.

It is true that electric machines for keeping a stand of grass in ones yard is still a band-aid. We as people who provide a luxury service to clients who can "pay" for it won't be around forever. There will be more important things to worry about in 40 years than mowing a lawn.

I can appreciate your view of the future, but I do not share that same view...LOL! We have far more issues than lawncare...that is nothing compared to what our transportation usage of fuel worldwide will consume...or the emissions of that. Also keep in mind the average lifetime age has dropped for the last 2 years, so we cannot say with any certainty at this point if the trend will rise, but I do hope you're right in this. As for doubling our population that is also uncertain at this point. Who knows? We may all have a Doc Brown Mr. Fusion on all our vehicles and machines by then!!

 

 

Probably sooner than any of them will produce a gas powered mower than can run 8+ hrs on one tank of gas.

 

Nobody ever talks about the longevity of these “ electric engines” and the serviceability of them. Being brushless what does one do when it finally wears out? You can’t replace many of the internals to offset drastically the cost to just buying a brand new machine overall. Whereas you can service a petroleum based engine and some run for decades doing it.

 

Hmm. Do you think logically there is enough material and resources on the planet that we should build 400 million private vehicles per year? How about 200 million lawn mowers a year? Forget about it when you're talking using lithium. It is impossible. At the moment, plandemic or not, we can't as a world keep up with steel and aluminum production to make cast engines for motors. This is not a worker problem. It is a resource problem.

It is guaranteed to only get worse in terms of people wanting everything now. And always wanting more and more of everything their little human addicted hearts desire and demand. An interesting point to be made is people are freaking out that they can't get their utterly useless trinkets and addiction purchases. People will demand from a perspective of insanity and freedom that, "if we can build it or manufacturer it, I want it! It has to be made! Someone will make it for me! And no one will stop me or tell me I can't have it! Screw the earth! Screw thy neighbor! Screw the water! Screw the air! Gimme it all and give me it now!" That is humans in a nutshell.

 

Hmm. Do you think logically there is enough material and resources on the planet that we should build 400 million private vehicles per year? How about 200 million lawn mowers a year? Forget about it when you're talking using lithium. It is impossible. At the moment, plandemic or not, we can't as a world keep up with steel and aluminum production to make cast engines for motors. This is not a worker problem. It is a resource problem.

It is guaranteed to only get worse in terms of people wanting everything now. And always wanting more and more of everything their little human addicted hearts desire and demand. An interesting point to be made is people are freaking out that they can't get their utterly useless trinkets and addiction purchases. People will demand from a perspective of insanity and freedom that, "if we can build it or manufacturer it, I want it! It has to be made! Someone will make it for me! And no one will stop me or tell me I can't have it! Screw the earth! Screw thy neighbor! Screw the water! Screw the air! Gimme it all and give me it now!" That is humans in a nutshell.

Lets put some things into prospective. How many small engine castings does it take to equal one 16L. semi truck engine? To one 4L. auto/truck engine? As for at the moment, we can easily produce all the raw material for engine production and should be able to for many decades to come. We must always keep in mind that there is very likely going to be advancements in technology that may render are current methods of engine construction as obsolete, so we cannot say with any certainty what the future holds beyond 10 years or so. I mean when the gauntlet was thrown down to put a man on the moon in less than 10 years the majority of people thought that the very idea was ludicrous! Yet, we did it!! I believe we shall improvise, adapt and overcome the obstacles facing us. I must say I appreciate your passion about this!!

 

Maybe they are offered more so in other countries or something? Far as push mowers go I think there's already some companies way ahead of stihl when it comes to filling the niche of homeowner battery mowing. Ego comes to mind I've also been seeing the toro battery push mowers.

I've never seen a stihl zero turn or anything that looks like a commercial mower.

 

I read the review...would love that with a gas engine, but my mouth is far from watering over it as the reviewer notes...LOL

 

There is an issue with battery performance/longevity/capacity and recycling of the materials when done, but I have zero doubts that the electric motors of right now are worlds more efficient, need less servicing, and are less labor intensive than any petro counterpart.

 

My guy at Ace Hardware says exactly the opposite...that the electric drills of today suck compared to the ones built 50 years ago. They have far more newer drills and electrical hand tools failing than ever before. That definitely gives me doubt as to their longevity. Maybe because they're built lighter duty?? In most cases, most electrical motors today are not overbuilt...IMHO and his as well.

My appliance guy told me it's a race to the bottom. They use the cheapest components available to meet a price point. If Maytag use switches to a $30 component from a much better $50 component, you know every one else follows. All new appliances other than Viking and Sub Zero and other real high end stuff) are built with a 7 year lifecycle...7 years!! Maytag, Whirlpool, GE, Samsung you name it!! 7 years!! This came directly from a Manufacturer official! How many 70 year old round top fridges do you see in peoples garages? So I'm not sure about longevity...they will build something to a price point. Unless you're at the very high end, I see no improvement at all. Further, it may well be worse than comparable petrol power longevity. And at a higher cost as well.

I think the jury is out on this one currently.

 

I didn't say they never fail, everything on earth can fail. That wasn't the point. Electric motors need far less servicing than a petro engine, it's been that way for decades. The issue has always been energy storage, still is.

 

Sure beats steam power!! LOL

 

Happy Accident? or just another tease in unuseable technology that has unseen pitfalls or dangers? Interesting anyway, at least to me.

How an accidental discovery made this year could change the world

A lucky discovery involving lithium-sulfur batteries has a legitimate chance to revolutionize how we power our world.

bigthink.com

 

Well it certainly reads quite promising!!

 

Battery powered is an expensive joke. The technology is nowhere near where it needs to be for practical commercial landscaping equipment. Here's your 2000 dollar cleanup bill mam! But it was 700 last year. Yea well, I have to pay 4x for my blowers and I need 14 batteries charging constantly. Also I spend 5 x the amount of time to do the same job a gas one does. See you next season though, right? Lmao.
They just can't leave anything alone can they? Tickets. Licensing to mow. My town so clearly understands that electric blowers are a joke, that they lifted the ban for a week this summer after a heavy storm. hahaha i'm dying at what idiots these people are. Now if you'll excuse me. I'm going to go plug 14 electric batteries into the wall of the new shed I had to build to house them... I forget how the power gets there though.... it's hamsters running on wheels right? Or do they run off the same magic power as Teslas?
Whatever I need to do to keep The Sun Gods from melting me!

 

Discussing the topic reminds me of the cordless string trimmer discussions. The discussions/arguments always shake out the same way.

String trimmers - Cordless is a little more expensive to operate. Offers enough benefits, that some people find them to be worth it & superior. Others, disagree & stick with gas trimmers.
Hedge trimmers - Battery seems to be OK, as these tools don't require/use as much energy for the same task to be done.
Chainsaws - Similar to trimmers, the smaller battery chainsaws provide enough benefit, that some find them to be worthwhile.
Push mowers - Battery works OK for small yards, and pushmowers. Expect 30-45 minutes of runtime on BIG batteries.
Blowers - Too short of battery life to be effective.

Mowers are going to be similar to blowers - too much work required to be effective. Turns out, moving lots of air (which is what the decks do) consumes a lot of energy.

DeWalt's concept of the quick removable batteries seems promising - You negate the long charge times, by swapping out for fresh batteries. Their big reveal however, got a little heated...



Maybe if mower manufactures moved toward electric reel mowers instead of rotary blade decks, we could see the energy requirements drop, and it would tilt the calculus more in favor of electric drive. The question then becomes - how well will they perform in real world conditions for weekly cuts, especially in the spring time?



I still think we're a decade away from electric commercial mowers, going mainstream. If at all.



Myself, I have my doubts about cordless electric anything, shy of contractor's tools, catching on mainstream. I think the energy required is too expensive, and I don't see the economics changing unless governments go bananas with regulations to make consumer gasoline just unjustifiably expensive. And how will they be successful at that, without affecting wholesale bulk energy prices of coal & natural gas, needed to generate electricity? (Rhetorical question...)

 

I hear DeWalt's mowers are fire 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 🔥🔥🔥🔥

 

I'd be pretty impressed.
If a battery unit.
Can handle what I put the Br800 & 52VR2 through today.
3 of the 7 stops. Was wet & heavy leafs. From the rain that passed

 

We have no other choice, these are all we have.