There are a number of inherited old pieces of gear around here that have internal combustion engines and need maintenance from time to time.
I had to let the devil go because it was starting to look like a major project, but there is still a riding mower, an edger, weed eater, and two different sized tillers that are all at various states of battle-readiness. The new wood chipper will need basic maintenance, but I don’t think it is going to need major repairs at least for a while.
I was lucky enough to have a father, a grandfather and an uncle who were all patient enough with me to teach me how to use tools when I was younger. This combined with owning a few cars that required a considerable amount of attention (and not having a considerable amount of money) has helped me to develop some troubleshooting skills over time.
So when it came time to choose a lawnmower to supplement the riding mower, I had to think about what option I would take. Shelly says that she wants to mow, but doesn’t like the typical pull-start. Meanwhile, mowers with electric starters tend to be *much* more expensive than a mower you pull to start. On top of everything, I wasn’t sure I wanted a new motor to maintain.
Long story short, I took a risk on something different. This is basically a plastic mower with an electric motor and a 56v, 5 Amp-hour battery. No oil to change, no gasoline, spark plugs, pull starters and no carburetors. It costs about the same as a good gas mower, but it was less expensive (but less powerful) than the least expensive option with an electronic ignition.
The battery is the weak point in this strategy. A replacement battery will cost about half as much as the mower itself. It’s like an ink-jet printer. You pay about $100 bucks for it, but it costs half that to replace the cartridges.
All things considered, the new mower worked well the first time out. It’s light, has a rear bag and is quiet as can be. The dogs treated it like a vacuum cleaner and I had to shoo them away so they didn’t get hurt.
It may not last as long as a gas mower, but I suspect that it’ll work better for longer. We will have to see.