Yep, the new joystick controlled 80 Volt Ryobi with the 54 inch deck. They are supposed to come out later this year. And I'm hoping to get another couple out of my old Dixon. I figure by 2024, all the kinks will be worked out. Also looking into converting an old tractor into electric. All I need it for is pulling a trailer around my yard (firewood, dirt, etc) Trying to see if it can be done for less than the price of a new Kohler engine.
battery powered lawnmowers
- Thread starter bluesboy
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tjpavlov
Well-known member
Its worth looking to see if your state offers any rebates for these purchases. In MA, you get $75 back for a lawnmower and $30 back for most others electric lawn equipment.
Especially with a $5k purchase price.
The other thing on the RYOBI battery level discharge level that is unanswered in the video. I would think the RYOBI a would design their gauge and battery management to show the safe level or ideal discharge or usable available power and not allow to get into a full discharge where the batteries are damaged. Like the deep cycle on fishing boat trolling motor. The gauge is based useable power.
Either way lead acid were a very bad choice for a reasons mentioned prior.
Example ……lithium tool companies battery level indicators show 5 lights full charge.
1 light or zero lights the tool stops. The voltage is not in the “danger or damage” zone. The run time in based and measured by the useable power not the running the battery to dead zone.
EV bikes are another good example. The fuel gauges often give a choice of voltage or 100% charged.
Most users use percentage and voltage levels as no meaning to most……or takes knowledge and memory.
Then there’s the 80% to 20% actual battery use area. The bold type at 80%-20% has meaning. Then res slow charging from 80-100%. The red area below 15% in the chart should be avoided. Good design keeps the user out of that area.
52 bolt EV bike battery
58.8 volts 100%
acer66
Well-known member
This and maybe that would cut into their claims on how much it can mow and their bottom line.
Thanks for the info and I am sure there is lots of work from every manufacturer that are trying to extend the life of batteries. Batteries are disposable, always have been and I hope in the future that wont always will be.
A 10 year "limited" warranty is nothing more than marketing fluff to make the consumer feel good when it covers virtually nothing but "defects in workmanship" which is highly subjective to begin with.
I am not trying to bash battery powered equipment but just bringing a different perspective to the conversation.
Hub
acer66
Well-known member
Very true, I just find it weird that some people act like these overinflated claims and unobtainable warranties are limited to a certain industry.
Not that it is right by any stretch but you really do your own homework before you buy into a claim from any manufacturer.
Methodical
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There are reviews on the $5k Ryobi ZTO mower where the reviewer says the battery no longer holds a charge and it takes him a couple days to cut the lawn. Here's the kicker, Ryobi doesn't have replacement batteries. As one reviewer put it, he now has a $5k paper weight. I'll let you'll be the lab rats for these companies new science projects. They will get there, but the tech just isn't mature enough for me to drop $5k. I'll wait it out.
reader2580
Well-known member
They are just lead acid batteries so I don't know why couldn't be replaced easily. I don't think Ryobi is using some special style of lead acid battery. If I saw the same review the reviewer said he is pretty sure the reason his batteries are shot is because he discharged them over 50% every time.
RonnieC
Well-known member
I’ve had a 21” Greenworks 80v self propelled for a few years now. No complaints.
Methodical
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OP, the battery powered push mowers are light years ahead of the battery powered ZTO mowers and you have many options to choose from on the market these days...some better than others in different categories. Do your research and seek out real world user experiences and you should be ok. Don't put too much emphasis on those open box reviews other than maybe to find out what features they have. Check out Blades of Grass Youtube channel. He uses a battery powered push mower and edger in his Lawncare business and has commercial experience using them. To me, that kind of experience of a piece of equipment is a good way to determine if the equipment is good or not. Check out his Youtube channel. https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=blades+of+grass
Methodical
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If I can't discharge them beyond 50% then they are **** batteries and I have no use for that ****. That's old battery technology being used in a new high tech high priced piece of equipment. Shame on Ryobi for using that ****.
White Shadow
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My grandfather had a battery powered riding mower in the 70s.
Thanks for posting that pitcture. I remember as a kid my neighbor had one of those pale yellow electric riding mowers and I never knew what they were....but now I know that they were old GE mowers. I do remember he had a bunch of car batteries in them though.
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White Shadow
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I've done the math for the Ryobo zero turn mower, which uses 4 sealed lead acid batteries that allow up to 3 acres cut per charge.
What I determined is that the batteries would have to last me 6 years beforing replacing them in order to break even with the cost of gas for the same 6 years. But that was well before gas prices spiked. Battery prices were probably a bit cheaper too.
If we assume $800 to replace the batteries, then I'd end up using $800 in gas in about 4 years at current pricing. And since the mower is capable of about 3 acres cut per charge, the batteries would have to be seriously degraded for me not to be able to cut my 1 acre property on a single charge.
Mowers that use Lithium batteries are obviously a different story since those batteries are much more expensive.
Rich M.
Well-known member
My guess you are an unlucky Honda mower owner. It seems that most Honda owners get well past the seven years you got. My newest is six years old and the oldest is about 18 years old (neighbor gave it to me). So far other than new rear tires and one belt change on the older one, no other maintenance other than the yearly stuff.
Sorry you did not get you money’s worth out of your Honda. They normally hold up well.
Do it.I've actually been thinking about getting 3 of these
and never mowing again. They say they will do 1/2 acre each, I have 1.1. But once you take out the house, driveway, sidewalks, pool, deck and detached garage, I figure I'm closer to 3/4. Put one inside the fence, 2 outside, and have them cut every third day.
Landroid
The Worx Landroid is a leader in robotic lawn mowers. Mow up to 1/2 acre on a single charge with the Worx Landroid L. 100% autonomous mowing. Shop now.www.worx.com
I contest that the market leader is the landroid, certainly in Europe it’s clearly Husqvarna, but regardless - the 430x robo mower is the best tool I’ve bought.
We have about 1/2 acre of lawn, the back yard would take me 4hrs to mow if I let it get long, now it is constantly the same length because the robo mower does its thing. Then we put a hatch in the fence and I don’t have to mow the front either. It’s a bunch of hours of my life that I’ve got back.
sleek98
Well-known member
I agree it should have lasted longer, esp with fresh oil every year, but I would bet the 18 year old one of yours will last longer than 90% of the ones produced in the last 5 years. I feel that way about alot of stuff produced now vs 20 years ago, not just the mowers.
Jazz1
Well-known member
I’m considering a battery lawnmower since the wife’s shoulder isn’t up to pull starting our current gas mower. I decided not to mount deck on lawn tractor this year since i only mowed 4 times last year,,this year looking like a weekly chore.
I actually enjoy mowing, usually. But not when its 98 degrees like today. I just hate everything that goes with it- spilling gas, oil changes, deck lubrication, clogged carbs, flat tires, decks getting out of level, etc. I've got a pool with a mini fridge full of beer I could be enjoying instead. My main concern about robot lawnmowers is safety. I live out of town in the country. Is the mower going to run over a rabbit nest? Is the mower going to wander into the road? Is it going to get stuck on the neighbors ugly farm fence? Is some kid gonna get their foot cut off if he gets curious? Plus my yard isn't exactly level or smooth.
andyvh1959
Well-known member
Thing is many of here on the Garage Journal forums are wise enough about the reality of equipment, especially battery powered equipment. But these products are marketed to the general market who have not one clue about the realities of ownership. They only know it works when I turn it on. Beyond washing it off that is the level of ownership and maintenance considered reasonable. Shame on Ryobi taking advantage of the "green buyer" market with an obviously limited market life product.
What Ryobi should do is provide a near wholesale/OEM priced Lithium replacement battery pack for owners of the lead acid powered ZTRs. Restore some honor to the Ryobi product name. Makes me wonder if there is a new market out there for Lithium battery packs. Produce them in standardized pack sizes, so packs can be stacked/grouped, plugged together to create the wattage/amp-hours needed. Like a 100 amp-hour per pack size, at various wattage rating.
This is a review of the newer Ryobi ZTR:
All You Need to Know About Li-ion Batteries
Li-ion batteries have a voltage and capacity rating. The nominal voltage rating for all lithium cells will be 3.6V, so you need higher voltage specification you have to combine two or more cells in series to attain it
circuitdigest.com
Probably this needs a separate thread, I’ll start an automower appreciation thread when I get a minute later on.
Answering for our husky, but probably similar for others:
- the mower does bump detection, so any objects like trees, sheds, fences, your foot, the dog, get bumped off and sit stops, turns direction and sets off again. It does make the dog jump a little, but otherwise no harm. The mower can still get stuck, so if there’s a 3x3 resting on the lawn, low enough to go under without tripping the bump, it can ride up on it and get stuck, it can also get stuck under stuff like lawn chairs - I once saw it making off with a lounger like a turtle. I don’t know what rabbit nests are like, in the uk they live in holes in the ground, and depending on the size/scale you might have issues with the mower getting hung up, we haven’t but don’t have any big rabbit holes, just the odd little one.
- almost all automowers use a buried boundary wire (“loop”), which the mower detects and will not cross, so it won’t set off for Kansas, similarly if installed correctly it’ll stop before it hooks on your neighbour’s fence (assuming it wouldn’t just bounce off it anyway). The top of the line mowers (for golf courses, schools, mansions) are starting to use a corrected gps signal to avoid the need for this. We paid a dude $300 to install the mower and boundary wire with a cable laying machine, ran it around the perimeter and any shrubs that the mower might have got hooked under. Since then Mrs F121 has moved, shortened, extended the wire as she remodels the yard.
- the husky uses three tiny blades, like a Stanley Knife blade, but double sided, that are mounted in a spinner and pop out with centripetal force. When not spinning, they just pop back in if you push on them, when the machine stops, gets lifted, can’t find the loop signal, bumps into something, is going to charge, etc, they stop spinning. Maybe if a young kid lay in a slight dip in the lawn with their arm flat on the lawn pointed in the path of the mower, they might get a small cut? Pretty theoretical, none of the dumb kids have managed to sever anything yet, the biggest casualty of ours was a roll of duct tape I left on the lawn (because I’m an idiot). We change the blades every 6-8 weeks or so, for about $10.
The mower copes well with undulations on our not-great lawns, and handles slopes well, they do a 4x4 one for ridiculous slopes but most people don’t need it. One slight issue is that because it’s a much smaller area cut in one go than our ride on, it doesn’t average the lawn length out over dips, instead it tracks the undulations so you notice it a bit more.
reader2580
Well-known member
There are various lithium-ion 12 volt batteries that could probably replace the Ryobi lead acid batteries, but not particularly inexpensive. Ryobi should have decreased the stated range and limited the depth of discharge, but they didn't. I'm sure Ryobi knew that a more limited range would mean fewer sales.
Lithium-ion can be discharged to 20% with no ill effects. Anything with a lithium-ion battery must not discharge the battery below 20% to avoid destroying the battery. Your cell phone battery at zero really has 20% remaining that can't be used. 12 volt lithium-ion batteries designed to replace lead acid batteries have electronics (a BMS) in them to prevent discharge below that 20%.
andyvh1959
Well-known member
Right, like you said "not particularly inexpensive". But a dead ZTR is useless other than scrap metal.
Little bit of Amazon shopping found a 12v/100Ah battery for "just" $599. Four of these wired in series would provide 48v and 100 Ah (close to the 115 Ah rating of the stock Ryobi). But paying $2,396+ just to get the batteries, not to mention fitting them and wiring them to the ZTR, IF possible. Would have to get the ZTR for free to make that viable money wise.
There are other 12v Lithium Ion batteries for a LOT less, like $99 for a 12v/10Ah battery. But no deal there trying to run a ZTR with less than 10% of its rated amp-hours even with new batteries.
Little bit of Amazon shopping found a 12v/100Ah battery for "just" $599. Four of these wired in series would provide 48v and 100 Ah (close to the 115 Ah rating of the stock Ryobi). But paying $2,396+ just to get the batteries, not to mention fitting them and wiring them to the ZTR, IF possible. Would have to get the ZTR for free to make that viable money wise.
There are other 12v Lithium Ion batteries for a LOT less, like $99 for a 12v/10Ah battery. But no deal there trying to run a ZTR with less than 10% of its rated amp-hours even with new batteries.
cpttuna
Well-known member
I have a heart problem so I bought a Hustler raptor XL this spring. I can sit and if I die , my wife can sit. If it needs serviced, the local guy has a trailer and can come get it for her. She thought about a walk behind electric but I told her that sitting just might be the way to go.
Crowbarman55
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And for those who think electric cars are a new ish thing only need to look up the Detroit Electric.. built electric cars from 1907 to 1939.
Todd
andyvh1959
Well-known member
Electrics are not new at all,..it all comes down to the power storage to power the electrics. Batteries back in 1907 just provided the power storage just like Lithium-Ion does now. As batteries and power storage improve so will electric vehicles.
Hell, there is historical evidence of rudimentary batteries existing over 2,000 years ago:
Hell, there is historical evidence of rudimentary batteries existing over 2,000 years ago:
WhiteSSP
Well-known member
I'd love an electric mower, but it would need to keep up with the mower I have now. I have a 54" Husqvarna riding mower that can cut at 7mph. It cuts my half acre in 15 minutes. I'd love to be able to get rid of the noise, but not at the expense of more of my time wasted. Doesnt use much gas (3 gal tank I fill up maybe once a month...I cut the yard every 5 days or it gets obnoxious), so thats almost a non factor. It would need to be similar in price and speed for me to switch.
I probably will go electric when my weedeater and blower die on me though. But those are 10 year old Husqvarna's also, and they both run like a top with basically zero maintenance other than a carb adjustment and replacing a fuel line once.
I probably will go electric when my weedeater and blower die on me though. But those are 10 year old Husqvarna's also, and they both run like a top with basically zero maintenance other than a carb adjustment and replacing a fuel line once.
Formerjeeper
Well-known member
We had an Ego mower which worked well until the plastic deck broke on a cold day. Now have a Makita XML08PT1 which came with 4 batteries (and have lots of other Makita 18v batteries) and a steel deck. It does a great job. A little less power than gas so will bog occasionally if the grass is super long but that's not common.
andyvh1959
Well-known member
Electric rider would be nice for not having to fill it with gas, keep gas cans in stock/filled. Electric just get on and start. Gas powered not so different as long as the tank is filled So to me its more maintenance/lubing of spinning things, again not much different electric or gas. Sure, air filter, oil filter/oil change every other year, again not much of an issue. I'll stay with the gas power for a long time yet. In fact as more people go electric the gas powered equipment cost for good used equipment may drop a lot. Fine with me as I rarely buy new.
AP514
Well-known member
I use a AUTOMOWER 450X......Great unit. It mows my 1 acre for the last 5 years.(wish I had the HX model for St Aug grass)
It now has over 7K hours of mowing on it. I had a few things go out on it like the Charger Powersupply($200)
but all in all it has been good.
It now has over 7K hours of mowing on it. I had a few things go out on it like the Charger Powersupply($200)
but all in all it has been good.
west_perf
Well-known member
jrsavoie
Well-known member
I would be interested in a rear discharge.
What is the O.D. on the push mowers?
I haven't seen much on Dewalts. Are they worth buying?
I already have other Dewalt stuff
www.toolsofficial.com
What is the O.D. on the push mowers?
I haven't seen much on Dewalts. Are they worth buying?
I already have other Dewalt stuff
[numprocon] Reasons to/NOT to Buy DeWalt DCMW220P2 ([current_month_year]) - Tools Official
DeWalt DCMW220P2 review to help you make the best purchase. Ultimate guide to see all the features, pros and cons at a glance. Updated [current_month_year]!
www.toolsofficial.com
duneslider
Well-known member
Okay, big confession to make. I bought the makita XML08PT1 from home depot on Friday. My neighbor is paying a neighbor kid to mow his lawn and the kid was using a new Ryobi mower. I was talking to the kid and his dad about it and they love the mower, I gave it a couple of passes and was pretty impressed with it but that was it.
My wife and I have been feeling the need to get our kids to help out a little bit more and for whatever reason my boys seeing the neighbor kid mowing the neighbor's lawn made them want to mow the lawn. My yard is sloped a bit and we just have a gas push mower. My 12 year old was able to handle the mower in the front okay but my 10yr old couldn't. Seeing the opportunity to take a little of the work off my shoulders I went looking at mowers while at HD getting some other stuff. I was taking a closer look at the Ryobi at HD. There are def some things that I like about it and also some that I didn't care for based on the closer inspection. Biggest issue for me was the plastic deck, that had me worried and my concern with their batteries based on past experience. I had actually moved down the aisle to the gas mowers and was looking at the Honda mowers. The "associate" started chatting me up which I normally find annoying but this guy was actually very knowledgeable and helpful. After chatting about the Honda's for a few minutes, without knowing I really like Makita stuff, he pointed down the aisle and said I should at least look at the Makita before deciding what to do.
The makita looked like a solid mower, I was very impressed with it upon inspection and the 4 5ah batteries really swayed me...
Anyway, took it home, put it together, and gave it a try. It frankly just seemed like a mower BUT my boys (8,10,12) were all able to handle it just fine and mow our backyard that has some slope to it that makes it a little more difficult. I was very impressed with the height adjustment, very easy to use. I was also incredibly impressed with how well in fills the bag, when you go to empty the bag it is 100% full, that has never been the case with my gas mower, it just doesn't seem able to fill the bag right.
Since this was my younger boys first times mowing the quality was a bit low so I decided to hit some of the "rough" areas with the gas mower while they finished up the main yard. This is when I became really impressed. The grass was a bit long, not way long but a healthy cut and my gas mower was bogging whereas the makita was cutting like it was nothing. My gas mower says it is 6.75hp but I don't know that I believe that. Its a 15 year old craftsman, its been a great mower but it definitely doesn't have the power of the Makita.
I have just about 13000sqft of grass (I only know this because it hasn't been long since I ordered the sod) and the batteries just had enough to get it all done. I think if I had been mowing, it would have done it all no problem. My boys aren't as efficient or as fast as I would have been. Anyway, I was very impressed with the mower, actually more impressed than I thought I would be. I am sure the Honda I was looking at would have performed fine also, prices were pretty similar between the two.
superspec
Well-known member
My GF has been using a EGO 21” for about 4 years now. I’ve used it for about 3 years and I must say I’ve been pretty fond of it and I’ve always been die hard gas. One charge gets about 3/4 of her yard done if you do the pushing and the motor doesn’t constantly speed up. We don’t mind the extra effort for the exercise. Another battery would be nice. Maybe her Christmas present. Battery life hasn’t really dropped off and while she was in Louisiana we would mow sometimes twice a week and have 7-8 months of mowing. Now she is living in Ohio and that Kentucky blue grass is a new animal. You can’t let it get out of hand or you’ll more it twice.
We’ve recently gotten the atlas brand from HF at our shop and it does very well so far. It’s only done the job about 4 times but it would be called abuse by most standards when it is done.
We’ve recently gotten the atlas brand from HF at our shop and it does very well so far. It’s only done the job about 4 times but it would be called abuse by most standards when it is done.
Methodical
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- Jun 12, 2014
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- 55
Saw this video, but this guy who had the mower for a year and provided a non-glossy brochure review after having it 1 year (not just purchased it) said the batteries had degraded afte 1 year (batteries have only a 1 year warranty) and that he could no longer cut his lawn on one charge anymore and that it now takes him at least a couple days to cut the lawn. It no longer meets so called lofty cutting time. A $5k piece of ****, just ****.Thing is many of here on the Garage Journal forums are wise enough about the reality of equipment, especially battery powered equipment. But these products are marketed to the general market who have not one clue about the realities of ownership. They only know it works when I turn it on. Beyond washing it off that is the level of ownership and maintenance considered reasonable. Shame on Ryobi taking advantage of the "green buyer" market with an obviously limited market life product.
What Ryobi should do is provide a near wholesale/OEM priced Lithium replacement battery pack for owners of the lead acid powered ZTRs. Restore some honor to the Ryobi product name. Makes me wonder if there is a new market out there for Lithium battery packs. Produce them in standardized pack sizes, so packs can be stacked/grouped, plugged together to create the wattage/amp-hours needed. Like a 100 amp-hour per pack size, at various wattage rating.
This is a review of the newer Ryobi ZTR:Listen to that review and its a great machine, run out and buy it! Listen to the Aged Wheels video and get in touch with reality.
All You Need to Know About Li-ion Batteries
Li-ion batteries have a voltage and capacity rating. The nominal voltage rating for all lithium cells will be 3.6V, so you need higher voltage specification you have to combine two or more cells in series to attain it
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So the batteries aren't up to the task.
Doesn't mean the mower itself is ****. I didn't watch the video though. Don't care enough to.
Would he be back to normal with new batteries?
I can find a video on youtube about every single product saying "DON'T BUY THIS"
andyvh1959
Well-known member
He said it right up front that with enough power storage (batteries) he felt it was a decent mower and purchase. He said the motors on the blades could be better power wise but otherwise he was pleased with it. That is until the batteries degraded to the point the two acres mowing range reduced from two acres to barely a 1/2 acre.
The EV would be a dream, if only the batteries would hold up more
Yep, Its called click bait.. and most people take the bait.
They want views and replies and subs to make money.