# Rechargeable Electric Mowers



## Deadlawn (Sep 8, 2020)

Hi all,

I'm looking to go electric. I have pretty much narrowed my decision down to two choices:

1) Greenworks 2501202 Pro 21 inch Cordless Push Mower:

https://www.amazon.com/Greenworks-21-Inch-Cordless-Included-GLM801602/dp/B019VXKUDI/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8

2) Toro Model 20361 22 inch 60V Push Mower:

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Toro-22-in-Recycler-60-Volt-Max-Lithium-Ion-Cordless-Battery-Walk-Behind-Push-Lawn-Mower-Battery-Charger-Not-Included-20361T/308863033#overlay

Priorities are:

1) Run time

2) Mulching ability

3) High cutting height

Both of these units had good reviews on run time and mulching ability. The Toro's highest HOC is 4 inches while the Greenworks' HOC is 3 3/4 inches. It looks like once the batteries and charger are factored in, the Toro will be more $$ than the Greenworks.

Does anybody else here have any experience with either of these mowers?

Thanks in advance!


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## always_creative (Aug 28, 2020)

I have a different Greenworks battery mower that I keep at a rental property that I own, and it's a piece of garbage. The one I have is the 17" 24V unit (I provide the mower and my tenant mows). Every time you adjust the HOC it seems to loosen the assembly, and none of the wheels track straight anymore. Like I said, it's a different model but I would not get another mower from that company. Between those two, I would get the Toro, which people seem to like.

Look at what other tools may be looking to get, because you can use the same battery on other devices once you have it and the bare tool is cheaper. Toro has a rather limited selection of 60V tools but I'm sure they will grow their family.

It's not on your list, but Home Depot near me has some closeout EGO self propelled mowers for $319. That's the same cost as a replacement battery by itself, so it's a good deal and their other tools are fantastic. I have the EGO LM2100 push mower and it's merely OK, it works well and is solidly built but requires a high-lift blade to get good suction and the plastic wheels leave very defined tracks. It's 5 years old and has had zero problems to date. Their other garden tools are phenomenal however, and again very solidly built, so it may be worth it to be on their battery platform.


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## Deadlawn (Sep 8, 2020)

@always_creative Thanks for your reply! I did consider the EGO mower line, but saw a number of reveiews and complaints about short run time. That was a year ago, so I'll reconsider this one.

Wow, that Greenworks mower you have sounds like a train wreck! And 24V isn't much unless you are drawing a tremendous amount of current which could overheat a motor. How old is that one? A couple of neighbors have a Greenworks and they like theirs, but then again, they're also newer models so the products have either improved or they haven't had enough time to develop potential problems. I read that Stihl recently bought the company. Interesting considering Stihl's own version of rechargeable mowers had dismal reviews even though their power tools have an overall good reputation.

I don't really see any value in a self-propelled mower as that can only draw more juice and run down a battery faster, not to mention one more thing that can break. As the saying goes, complexity is the enemy of reliability.


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## Deadlawn (Sep 8, 2020)

Correction on my last post: It was the DeWalt rechargeable mowers that had dismal reviews, not the Stihl mowers. Brain fart here.


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## dwaugh (Aug 25, 2020)

I have the Toro 60V (but the self propelled model), I posted a mini-review on it  here. I'm really happy with it, the flap in the back is a little annoying as when pulling the mower back it wants to dig into the ground, so far that is my only complaint. I love being able to side discharge as it really improves the suction.


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## always_creative (Aug 28, 2020)

@Deadlawn I have a push-only model for the same reason, I like simple machines.

I use this at my primary home, which has a hair over 2500 square feet of grass to mow. I get two full mows out of the 5aH battery before it needs a charge. I would think that the 7.5aH battery should be able to handle the 1/4 acre no problem.

Had the Toro been available when I got mine I probably would have gotten that, but I don't feel like I'm missing out on anything without it.


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## always_creative (Aug 28, 2020)

Also, to answer your question on the Greenworks, it's about 3 years old. It's used on a rental duplex with under 1,000 SF of grass, so I just got my tenant the cheapest unit. It really is a piece of crap, although the nicer models may not have the same issues with build quality. Build quality on the EGO has been rock solid for me.


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## Deadlawn (Sep 8, 2020)

@dwaugh Thanks for the reply and your recommendation for the Toro. It's good to know it will go through thick grass wirhout bogging down which was a concern I had, not to mention I thought the extra load would deplete the battery too quickly.

I got a good laugh at your old Honda turning into a side discharge mower via rust, LOL! I too have a Honda and although it's still in overall good condition, I like the idea of a quieter time mowing and less emissions. Yes, I know that depending on how your electric utility gets its power, it may or may not be a whole lot of improvement in CO2 emissions, but it's definitely an improvement in particulate emissions.

My Honda does an overall good clean mulch cut. The one thing I don't like is that it only goes up to 3 1/4 inch HOC. I think that is due to the deck clearance necessary for the twin blades which are supposed to improve mulching. I plan to keep it as a backup.

Lastly, I'd like to know why do you prefer side diacharge over mulching?


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## dwaugh (Aug 25, 2020)

Deadlawn said:


> @dwaugh Thanks for the reply and your recommendation for the Toro. It's good to know it will go through thick grass wirhout bogging down which was a concern I had, not to mention I thought the extra load would deplete the battery too quickly.


I'm sure cutting thick grass would use up more battery power. I can double cut my ~3,000 lawn and still have roughly half a battery left.



Deadlawn said:


> Lastly, I'd like to know why do you prefer side diacharge over mulching?


I like the side discharge because it creates more suction giving better cut. I've been cutting often enough that you can't see the cut grass anyway. Now that there are lots of leaves I'm mulching mostly and that seems to work well and the cut is OK. So basically I like that I can do both. The bagging seems to work well too (I generally mulch the leaves but in a few areas that I overseeded I didn't want to smoother the grass).


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## Deadlawn (Sep 8, 2020)

dwaugh said:


> I'm sure cutting thick grass would use up more battery power. I can double cut my ~3,000 lawn and still have roughly half a battery left.


Double cut as in effectively cut 6000 sq ft and still have half left over? So that means that battery is good for 12,000 sq ft? That's pretty good. I figured I would need two batteries to do my yard, but who knows? And there is nothing that says I have to mow my front and back yards the same day.



Deadlawn said:


> *I like the side discharge because it creates more suction giving better cut.* I've been cutting often enough that you can't see the cut grass anyway. Now that there are lots of leaves I'm mulching mostly and that seems to work well and the cut is OK. So basically I like that I can do both. The bagging seems to work well too (I generally mulch the leaves but in a few areas that I overseeded I didn't want to smoother the grass).


Interesting. I wouldn't think the side discharge would chop up the grass clippings as fine as if there is no way for the clippings to get out.

I mulch the leaves as long as it's just the red maples coming down. They're small and chop up small. Once the oak starts dropping, those are too big to chop up, so I just remove them.


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## dwaugh (Aug 25, 2020)

Deadlawn said:


> Double cut as in effectively cut 6000 sq ft and still have half left over? So that means that battery is good for 12,000 sq ft? That's pretty good. I figured I would need two batteries to do my yard, but who knows? And there is nothing that says I have to mow my front and back yards the same day.


Well, certainly the 2nd cut offered less resistance, but yes, it cut 6000 sq ft; in fairness, I was probably only cutting 1/2 an inch off, and my yard is not very dense in some areas. I was also walking slowly. I tried not charging the battery after mowing and then two days later tried cutting the lawn again, I was able to double cut the backyard and was able to mow the front yard almost once, minus two small passes. So 12,000 sq ft might be possible, but that would depend on many factors I suppose. I also didn't really have a good reason to double cut or walk slow, but I was having fun with the new mower.


Deadlawn said:


> Interesting. I wouldn't think the side discharge would chop up the grass clippings as fine as if there is no way for the clippings to get out.


I think what happens is that the grass and/or leaves in the mulch mode keep spinning around in the mower and slowly escape so they get chopper more times than in side discharge when they get booted out more rapidly. The battery mower is not silent, but you can actually hear stuff being chopped, so if I am mulching leaves, I can get the the end of a pass, pause, and listen for the chopping to stop, at which point I know I can turn the mower around without un-chopped stuff spitting out.

One issue with the battery mowers (and for battery tools in general) is that the batteries are way more expensive to buy without a tool, so a 2nd battery is not a cheap date. The battery that came with my mower goes for 260$ (first click was Ace Hardware, I assume that is more or less the going rate) so that's almost 1/2 the cost of the mower.


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## Buffalolawny (Nov 24, 2018)

I watched a demo video a year or two ago that one mower was stock and the other had the self propelled disconnected. Same yard the non self propelled went 1/3 more. meant that no need to buy that other battery and charger @ half the price of the mower!!


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## Deadlawn (Sep 8, 2020)

dwaugh said:


> Well, certainly the 2nd cut offered less resistance, but yes, it cut 6000 sq ft; in fairness, I was probably *only cutting 1/2 an inch off*, and my yard is not very dense in some areas. I was also walking slowly. I tried not charging the battery after mowing and then two days later tried cutting the lawn again, I was able to double cut the backyard and was able to mow the front yard almost once, minus two small passes. So 12,000 sq ft might be possible, but that would depend on many factors I suppose. I also didn't really have a good reason to double cut or walk slow, but I was having fun with the new mower.


Oh, OK. I wonder how it would do if I neglected to cut for awhile. I don't usually follow the 1/3 rule, but use more like the 1/2 rule. But if my mower weren't so noisy and smelly, I might be motivated to mow more often, LOL! And if I do run out of power, well, I can either wait till the following day to finish or just finish with the 10-year old Honda.



dwaugh said:


> One issue with the battery mowers (and for battery tools in general) is that the batteries are way more expensive to buy without a tool, so a 2nd battery is not a cheap date. The battery that came with my mower goes for 260$ (first click was Ace Hardware, I assume that is more or less the going rate) so that's almost 1/2 the cost of the mower.


Oh yes, I did notice that a 7.5Ah battery costs almost as much as the bare tool. If you get the entire package, the 22" Toro I am looking at is $519, the bare tool is $369, so that is $150 for the 6Ah battery and can I assume the charger comes with that package? A 6Ah battery on its own costs $250 and a 7.5Ah battery is $350.

In the grand scheme of things, the electric will actually cost more to run long-term. I don't know what the life expectancy of these batteries is. The battery warranty is 3 years and I don't know if that is a full replacement or a prorated warranty. I can't imagine one of these batteries will last more than 5 years. Going green isn't cheap!


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## dwaugh (Aug 25, 2020)

@Deadlawn you are certainly correct, it's not the most economical choice. Oh par for what I paid I could have bought a Toro super-recycler with Honda engine and aluminum deck that could easily last 20 years. I love the lower noise level, not having messing around with gas and fumes, and being able to hear what the mower is doing, so I can't imagine going back to a gas mower. It was certainly an upgrade in performance compared to my old Honda.


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## BBLOCK (Jun 8, 2020)

first year having a battery machine for me. I have the stihl. My favorite part about it is that it's quieter, it's def more neighborhood friendly for noise pollution. It last a while on one charge. Mine has become my mulching machine for leaves and what not as I've gotten into reel mowing but it really has done a great job of mulching the leaves this fall.

The stihl has eco mode, so you can turn it off or on. So when it's on, the mower automatically lowers the rpm when it's not mowing thick, raises back up as needed. 
Allows for longer battery life.

One thing I have noticed with it though is on thicker grass it will leave a straggler here and there where a gas motor likely wouldn't.

But I'm confident enough in its abilities that next spring I will be selling my two other gas rotary's.


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## always_creative (Aug 28, 2020)

dwaugh said:


> One issue with the battery mowers (and for battery tools in general) is that the batteries are way more expensive to buy without a tool, so a 2nd battery is not a cheap date. The battery that came with my mower goes for 260$ (first click was Ace Hardware, I assume that is more or less the going rate) so that's almost 1/2 the cost of the mower.


I think this is an often overlooked aspect of battery mowers. Due to the battery cost, you should not only be evaluating the mower, but the entire product ecosystem for that battery line. I fell *** backward into my EGO mower (it was a gift) but I'm glad the other lawn tools on their battery platform are decent machines.


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## Deadlawn (Sep 8, 2020)

dwaugh said:


> @Deadlawn you are certainly correct, it's not the most economical choice. Oh par for what I paid I could have bought a Toro super-recycler with Honda engine and aluminum deck that could easily last 20 years. I love the lower noise level, not having messing around with gas and fumes, and being able to hear what the mower is doing, so I can't imagine going back to a gas mower. It was certainly an upgrade in performance compared to my old Honda.


An upgrade in actual performance? I have to say my existing Honda was a significant upgrade in performance over the Craftsman (Tecumseh engine) I had before. One of the complaints about electric mowers of the past was lack of power. They sure have come a long way.


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## dwaugh (Aug 25, 2020)

Deadlawn said:


> An upgrade in actual performance? I have to say my existing Honda was a significant upgrade in performance over the Craftsman (Tecumseh engine) I had before. One of the complaints about electric mowers of the past was lack of power. They sure have come a long way.


Compared to my old Honda, yes this was a big improvement. Compared to a new Honda I have no idea. Clearly there is point where the battery is just going to drain too quickly and a gas mower is going to be the best option, but in my small suburban lawn I feel like this mower could handle the grass in the unlikely event that let it get overgrown for a month (it might take a couple of charges though). I would assume most of the similarly priced battery mowers would have more or less the same performance as the model I have, maybe even better. Could I regret my purchase in a few years, maybe.... I'm still in the Honeymoon phase with it clearly.


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## Deadlawn (Sep 8, 2020)

dwaugh said:


> Deadlawn said:
> 
> 
> > An upgrade in actual performance? I have to say my existing Honda was a significant upgrade in performance over the Craftsman (Tecumseh engine) I had before. One of the complaints about electric mowers of the past was lack of power. They sure have come a long way.
> ...


@dwaugh I got your email, thanks! I tried to PM you, but the message is stuck in my Outbox.


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## Chocolate Lab (Jun 8, 2019)

I got the basic Ryobi battery mower for my first mower a few years ago and like you guys said, the battery is the big question mark. It performs great and I actually loved it. It could do my entire 9- 10k sf yard on one charge. Still use it on the rough corners of my yard that aren't ready for reel mowing yet. But the battery went bad about 2.5 years in. Got a replacement (just under the warranty wire) but that was obviously a refurb that doesn't last nearly as long.

You're talking about better machines and the tech has improved since then, but it's still a small concern. It does stink to not be able to finish the job when the battery conks out. As long as you're good with paying a few hundred bucks every few years, the electric is nice.


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## Hendermp (Oct 19, 2020)

I have had a Toro 60V this whole season and love it so far. I have 2 7.5ah batteries and I go through about 1.5 on about 11k sqft yard. That is with self propel used extensively as well. I have the snow thrower and whacker too and they all work great. The mower kicks into high mode on its own when needed which is nice. I kept about 2.5 HOC most the season. Nice not worrying about carburetors this winter.


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