Are electric push mowers just as good as gas powered push mowers?
Owning an electric push mower in 2020 has benefits that out weigh the gasoline powered style. For one, you don’t have to spend money on fuel and oil. You don’t have to take up precious space in your shed or garage to store it either. You get a very quiet operation out of an electric lawn mower, and because brushless electric motor technology has come such a long way, you get the same life, power, and results that you would out of a gas powered push mower. They are easy start as long as you have a full powered battery. So you are not breaking your back trying to get the engine to turn over. Which also saves people money from having to pay someone to mow your yard. Its lightweight, and almost anyone can turn a key and walk behind these electric push mowers. Its crazy when you sit and realize all the different ways you can save money with these electric push mowers.
It does depend on how large of a yard you are working on, please note that we tested about 1/4 of an acre, that is mowed weekly with a gas powered push mower. The average run time with these electric push mowers are between 30 and 45 minutes. If you own a home in a subdivision that has 1/10th to 1/4 of a lot, you should be fine. However, its very important that you mow your grass more frequently. Because the style of once a week, may be the best of ideas when it comes to mowing your grass.
If you allow your grass to get very tall, the electric style battery operated mower, will cut it. However, it puts a major strain on your battery life, and that drains the charge. However, you can utilize the same features on an electric push mower, such as height adjustment, and the safety feature of grabbing the handle for the electric push mower to function. You could always set the electric push mower to the tallest setting, do a full mow, then go back over it again on a lower setting. Then once the grass is at the low height you want, just frequently run over the yard with the electric push mower, to insure it never gets out of control. We will be reviewing electric string trimmers as well, in the next few articles for our readers.
We tested 3 electric battery operated push mowers, because the restrictions of an extension cord, would not be the versatility you would want, so we left any corded style push mower out of this review.
Worx WG779 14” Push Lawn Mower
The Worx WG779 was the greatest electric push mower we reviewed. It features a 14” deck that cuts flawlessly. It is powered by (2) 20v 4.0Ah batteries, and can cut up to 5000 square feet of yard on just one single charge. The WG779 also has an amazing mulch feature to catch grass in an attached bag on the back. With its patented “intellicut” technology it cuts on demand, instead of a constant run time, which saves the life of your batteries, giving you a better run time. The intellicut feature also reduces wear and tear on the electric motor, which will give it a longer life span of use. The handles have a thick nice foam covering that will reduce your fatigue and and make your grip on the handle comfortable. You can select between 3 different cut height’s so you can tackle even taller style grass with flexibility. When you purchase the Worx WG779 on Amazon, it will come with a dual port charger with the battery power level indicators. It has a constant power delivery, and only after mowing about 4800 square feet of yard, we noticed a slight drop in power, but with the constant power, and reliable cut speed. The mulching results were fine, and evenly cut, and filled up decently even when mowing fresh green grass. We were thrilled to name the Worx WG779 the top dog for electric push mowers of 2020.
Snapper XD 82v 21 Inch Walk Electric Push Mower
This was a more “expensive” option, but had many great additional features that made this electric push mower in 2nd place on our review. Because of how expensive this Snapper is, we didn’t think it would be a good fit for everyone, especially on a tight budget. It has a steel 21′ mowing deck and has three in one designs, for mulching, bag or side discharge of your grass clippings. It also features up to 45 minutes of run time on the Briggs and Stratton 82v lithium 2aH batteries that it comes with. Its very easy to switch in between these different selections. The power of the batteries delivered by a “smart load” sensor on the electric push mower. To start this mower is as simple as a push button, making it very easy to use for users of all ages, and features a 7 position height adjustment lever. You will also get a 1.6 bushel bagger when you purchase the Snapper XD 82v on Amazon. We were very happy with the results we got out of the Snapper electric push mower, because we could get through the cutting and yard work so fast. It was super quiet, and in a small subdivision our neighbors really can appreciate the low decibel level of our yard tools now. Weighing only 90 pounds, my elderly grandfather was even able to mow the 1/4 acre in just under 30 minutes, and was excited when I told him that it still could go another 20 minutes or so. You need to also remember, that its very important to mow your lawn as frequently as possible.
Greenworks PRO 21 Inch 80V Electric Push Mower
Like the other electric lawn mower, this electric push mower features up to 60 minutes of run time, because of the 2 amazing 40v 4aH batteries that powers this amazing machine. It also features brushless motors, which deliver more power at a fraction of the battery power. They can compare this motor to the performance of a 160cc gas power engine. The kit they sell on Amazon is a Greenworks Pro, the batteries, the charger, and a mulching bag. However, if you already have tools that use the 40v Greenworks battery, you can buy just the electric push mower tool only. The run time was very impressive, however after about 45 minutes I could tell a slight decrease in the power, but still was strong enough to cut the grass that was thrown at it. It also features the smart cut technology, it can be stored vertically, and only weighs 79.5 pounds. Making it very light and versatile. The 30 minute rapid charger, helps replenish the drained batteries in no time at all. 10 inch rear wheels also makes it very easy to push in the yard as well. I was over all happy with it, and felt that the free shipping that was offered with it, only helped make more sense as to why one would be needed.
Conclusion
If you have a smaller 1/10th to 1/4 acre of a yard, and you own a gas powered push mower, I would seriously suggest you take a look into the following products that I reviewed above. It just does not make sense to own anything gas powered to mow smaller yards anymore. The savings of money will eventually pay for the purchase price of an electric push mower actually. For example:
No Fuel and Oil : I spend $10 every time I mow my yard, meaning $40 a month I have to spend on oil and gas to even operate my mower. So you save up to $480 a year on fuel and oil alone!
Quiet Operation: You can mow when your neighbors go to sleep! It was awesome that you could talk low or even on a phone and cut your grass at the same time. It has to be 60x quieter to operate an electric push mower compared to a gasoline powered one.
Storage: You can store these mower easily, and not have to worry about leaking oil, or gas being spilled out, you can vertically store them or hang them up on a wall, giving you more precious space in your garage or shed. Not having to have gas cans stinking up everything, or risk fuel going bad because you didn’t use it in time.
Long Battery and Motor Life: Imagine how much money you have to spend to tune up or maintain a gas powered lawn mower. No more spark plugs, no more air filters, and the batteries and brushless motors will last for years and years, before you ever have to even think about a replacement.
Instantly Start Up: You will never have to break your back pull starting a lawn mower, or flood it, or select the chokes, and then reek of exhaust fumes when you get finished mowing your yard. As long as your batteries are charged, and connected, you have a working mower!
Suggestion: You should always clean or wipe off any excess grass, weeds, dust or debris to help protect the longevity of your electric push mower. I usually take a air compressed can or air or flip on my bigger air compressor, and spray all the debris off in the driveway, before wiping anything off before putting my electric push mower up for the day.