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BANG FOR THE BITE
If 10,000 Biters mowed their lawn for an hour with a reel mower instead of gas, we’d save the amount of pollution caused by driving a car about 10 million miles.
COCKTAIL FACT
Grass is the largest irrigated “crop” in the US, covering 3 times the amount of land covered by irrigated corn.
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home › tip library › Reel and Electric Mowers
What's better than the smell of fresh-cut grass?
The Bite
The smell of fresh-cut grass without the smell of gasoline. Use a reel or electric mower, rather than a high-polluting gas-powered one, and inhale the sweet scent of grass and greenback savings.The Benefits
- Save gas. Each weekend, 54 million Americans mow their lawns, using an estimated 800 million gallons of gas per year. More fuel is spilled while refueling lawn equipment each year than was spilled by the Exxon Valdez.
- Save cash. Using an electric mower, you’ll pay about $5 per year for the electricity costs. Using a gas-powered mower, you’ll pay that much in just two mows.
- Cleaner air. According to the EPA, gas-powered lawnmowers account for up to 5% of US air pollution.
- Today’s reel mowers (vastly improved from your dad’s old reel mowers) are the best bet for the planet, but rechargeable electric mowers are increasingly Earth-friendly.
- Bothered by noise pollution? It’s not a problem with reel mowers and electric mowers which make just a tenth of the amount of noise as gas-powered ones.
Personally Speaking
Jen inherited a John Deere riding lawn mower from the previous owner of her house, and used it once. Now she just trims the front part of her property with a reel mower and lets the rest go au natural.Wanna Try?
Letting grass clippings decompose is a great natural fertilizer, and keeps you from having to bother bagging and shipping the stuff to the dump. Alternatively, check with your local waste management company to see whether they’ll compost your grass for you.- Sunlawn/Brill Luxus 38 - efficient and light reel mower ($199).
- Scotts Classic - reel mower with an extra-wide cutting path ($130).
- Sunlawn EM-1 - Sunlawn’s option when you need some power behind your push ($380).
- Neuton Electric Mower - you can literally talk on the phone while this baby’s running ($399).
- EnvirOmower Eco 500 - recommended by Aussie/UK Biters (£229).
Jul 06,2006
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All editorial suggestions in this tip are the result of testing and a preference for the tip topic. No advertiser has paid to have its company referenced in the tip. For more information, please read our Editorial Policy.
Get your mo-mow on
When I was a child my parents paid me $10 to mow the lawn, which I really liked for two reasons: I would cut diagonal lines into the lawn (satisfying my right brain), and second, I would zen out (quieting my over active left brain).
It was a gas motor, and since then, I hadn't mowed a lawn until my recent move to Bozeman. My roommate is a bit lawn-freaky - and he bought a cheap reel mower and he said it sucked. Then he bought a slightly more expensive one and we love it. No fumes. Little noise. Perfect for this 1/4 acre. So I pitch in - get some sun and exercise and good roomie points.
Off to watch him mow the lawn.. Jen
Biter Comments...
This is a good 'bite' and one that I tried personally. With 3/4 of an acre to mow, the reel mower got dull fast and did not work well. It was also good exercise. I used a local merchant to sharpen the blades but it never wirked as well again.
Strides have been made with emissions on gasoline units especially with California raising the bar. It would be nice if manufacturers made diesel engines on these power lawn mowers which are both more fuel efficient and allow for one to use biodiesel without modification.
An even better option is to forgo the lawn altogether. Replace the grass with native plants that don't need to be mowed, and as a bonus they tend to be more drought resistant, so they'll need less watering.
After mowing my (government-provided) postage stamp, I use my straw broom to "sweep" the grass clumps so they fertilize the lawn rather than browning up in unattractive clumps that get dragged in by my kids' wet feet.
Our local utility district, Sacramento's SMUD, does this anual trade in where you trade in your gas mower, and $200 for a Neuton electric mower. It might be one of the best deals I've ever made. Not only is it quiet and clean, but it's light enough for my daughter to use, so the mowing duties have been officially passeed on to the next generation.
jason
I also like this bite, but have been relegated to the gas mower after trying a reel mower several times before I gave up because it just wouldn't cut the grass. I don't mind the exercise and even if the time spent was a little more it would be OK (I could do the lawn before my neighbors wake up in the morning). But, it has to work.
I hesitate getting electric because although the source pollution is less, the net pollution effect may be more since an electric motor is less efficient generally than a fuel motor and much of our electric power comes from fossil fuels anyway.
I like the idea of a non-lawn yard, but it seems like more work to build and maintain such a yard, but I hope someone can give some good reasons why I'm wrong.
Thanks --
Electric lawn mowing is the way to go!
I switched a couple of years ago to the Neuton electric lawn mower, and love it! Not only is it clean and quiet, it's lighter, easier to maneuver, and such a novelty, that I've had passers-by stop and want to try it! It's just as powerful as my old Honda commercial lawn mower, but takes up less space in my garage.
Plus, it's cheaper to run, since I never have to spend money (or time) buying gas for it.
(By the way, since our electricity comes from a variety of sources and not just fossil fuels, it's far cleaner than burning gas.)
I have a second rechargeable battery as a backup, but I've never had to use it-- I can do both my front and back yards in about two hours on one charge.
I just purchased a reel mower this week. I had one a few years ago, but when my husband and I moved here to TN, it somehow didn't make it with us. FYI, you can purchase a 14" mower for between $70-84 and a 16" for between $84 and 89. You do, however, have to buy either of them from Sears or Lowe's. Sears will ship to you, but Lowe's will only use what your nearest store has. BUMMER! So I bought mine through Sears. Both my husband and the clerk at Lowe's tried to talk me out of the buy. Last summer I almost bought one, but hubby talked me out of it. We live in the mountains and recently converted out front lawn to garden space (You can't see it from the road anyway.) so there's not too much to mow. Last Friday, I mowed and the gas mower almost turned over then almost took me down the mountain. I said enough is enough. I'm 56 going on 57, and that gas mower is getting just a little too heavy for me. My husband is unable to use anything but a riding mower and it is too big for the yard now. Besides, I love to mow; I know I'm weird. My new reel mower will be here either Friday or Monday, which is just in time to mow again. I have to keep the grass trimmed because of the garden. So that's my story.
Rechargeable electric is the way to go. I used to use a good reel mower, and when sharp it resulted in a modestly well cut lawn and a great workout. When dull, it wasn't so great, and it was always dull.
Now I bought the Black and Decker CMM1000 mower (rechargeable electric), and it does an outstanding job. It is quiet, it cuts well and is certainly big enough for my little lawn.
See the link in my post for more details, but I did want to make a couple other points.
First, right on to Andrew B -- we have a campaign of replacing our lawn with other growing things, and now have about 1/2 the lawn we used to.
Second, cut the grass high and leave the clippings. I used to (foolishly) put all the clippings in a paper bag -- my lawn needed more water, looked bad, and needed more fertilizer. This year, the lawn looks fantastic. And this morning we realized that we have attracted many birds who enjoy eating the worms and other fauna that live under the mulch that is created.
Finally, down with lawn services! I was sitting outside last weekend and after the crew did my neighbor's lawn and the drone of small machines faded, the smell of fossil fuels wafted my way. Can't someone come up with an environmentally friendly lawn service for those who really can't take the time to mow their own grass?
Tom
no name-
Good point. Our bad. The Exxon Valdez spilled oil, not gas. Despite what you've heard, we aren't perfect -- yet! KIDDING. But we're getting mighty close with readers like you that help us keep the facts straight. Thanks for catching this!
Instead of having a lawn, try xeriscaping with locally adapted plants that don't require constant watering and application of pesticides and fertilizers. We all know that lawns, to keep them green, require large amounts of water and fertilizers that get get into the ground water and impact aquatic habitats. Google xeriscaping and find out how easy it is and how much more beautiful your "yard" will be.
definitely true bruce. indigenous landscaping is the way to go...if only for the time saved from having to mow... not to mention the biodiversity and habitat benefits. and i agree about the application of (typically) petroleum based fertilizers. why encourage essentially an invasive species (the grass) to grow unnaturally, and then spend way too much time cutting it back!!
life's too short...
but for some things that are worth the time, you can't beat a lawn...volleyball, a fire pit...stuff like that.
so maybe minimizing your lawn to just enough for the superfun stuff is the way to go.
and plant some trees...go carbon positive, not just carbon neutral!
:)
I've been meaning to put on my Biter T-shirt and send a picture in of me mowing my suburban lawn with a reel mower. I LOVE the mower - I have a Brill and have been using it for about a year and I cut my lawn just as fast as with a gas mower...of course I have to stop more and talk to neighbors and tell tjhem what I'm doing!! Great tip that I encourage everyone to try.
We considered an electric mower, but our lawn is a quarter of an acre, so we decided to go with the gas because of the amount of time and distance involved with mowing.
However if it makes anyone feel better we compost the grass and have two large apple trees in the back yard and a crabapple tree in the front. :)
I received and used my reel mower this weekend. Oh man, oh man! I love it. Now again, I live in the mountains and have a steep and not very level yard. Also, we have converted a lot of the yard to veggie garden. The gas powered mower about killed me; I'll be 57 next month. The reel mower is quiet and does a better job of mowing than the power mower. The Zen of mowing the grass.
I'd been thinking of buying a reel mower and this tip pushed me just enough to do it. I bought the Scotts classic. Took about 15 minutes to assemble. I was surprised that it is only a little harder to push than my gas mower. I thought it would be a lot harder. It is so quiet and seems to do a good job. So why don't more people buy one?
However, I'd just mowed my lawn a few days prior so I'll have to wait about a week to really test it out. I can't believe I'm actually looking forward to mowing my lawn.
Another comment, I read somewhere that reel motors kick up a lot less allergens into the air.
Where do you get your numbers on the costs of gas? We used to go months without refilling the gas can we used to mow 1/4 acre, so we didn't use anywhere near 2 gal/mow.
I have a Neuton cordless electric mower and I have an acre of property - 40 percent in lawn. I think cordless electric mowing is the way to go! Currently gasoline powered lawn mowers and other small engine equipment - chain saws, leaf blowers, weed eaters do not have anti-pollution devices on them and are a great source of pollution (check the internet on this). On the other hand electric power plants do have anti-pollution devices and are highly regulated. Now if you recharge your batteries with solar collectors - that would be zero fossil fuel emmisions. That is my next step.
A reel mower would be perfect for my city lot. I've considered getting a reel mower, but am hesitant since hearing or reading a lot of unfavorable comments, mostly regarding the poor cutting job. I'm curious not only about whether or not you like your reel mower, but what brand you have. I see a thumbs up for the Brill and Sears products.
PHOTO ALBUMS
Posted by: no name | July 06, 2006 at 08:06 AM