I don’t have a lawn that needs to be maintained, but if I did, I would want a cordless battery-powered push mower like the Ryobi 40V (RY40112A kit, RY40100A bare mower).
Obviously larger lawns and fields are better mowed with ride-around or robotic mowers, but for smaller lawns the Ryobi walk-behind mower looks quite good.
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The cordless mower has a 16-inch cutting deck, quick height adjustment, large wheels, 3/4″ minimum cutting height, and mulching capabilities.
The handles even fold up and collapse down for storage. It looks like this is accomplished using large tool-free levers.
Runtime is said to be 40 minutes. The kit comes with two 40V batteries which charge completely in 90 minutes.
According to Ryobi, this mower is suitable for lawns are yards 1/4 to 1/2 acre in size.
Price: $349 for the 2-battery and charger kit, $169 for the bare tool.
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Black & Decker’s 19-inch ($399 via Amazon) and 18-inch ($310 via Amazon) 36V cordless mowers look like reasonably good alternatives, but I find the Ryobi to be more visually and functionally appealing. The bumper on the front, large carrying handle on the top, and large levers and adjustment knobs make the Ryobi mower look a little more polished.
Do you use an electric battery-powered lawn mower? Which would you recommend?
Jason
I have a Honda HRX lawmower I got as a smoking deal a few years ago, and It’s been great the seven years I have had it. I have to admit the new cordless lawn mowers have been tempting me lately. The fact that they are so quiet and you don’t have to hassle with gas going bad and other maintenance like oil changes. I don’t have a large lot to mow so running out of a charge isn’t an issue. The one thing that concerns me about these 40v tools is the replacement battery cost 130 dollars is pretty pricey and you only get 3 years of warranty on the battery.
Greg Post
I use the Neuton CE6 and I like the mower but dislike the battery technology. The lead-acid battery technology is slow to charge and the battery is really heavy. I also don’t like the customer service of DR Power the company that sells Neuton. That being said I would never again buy a gas mower for a small lawn, it’s not worth the hassle, noise and smell of starting and maintaing a gas mower.
Don
I had an older model Ryobi for a few years. The moment your done using it you better get it back on the charger. After about a year it would no longer fully charge and the battery life fell apart. I bought a new battery and always kept it on the charger when not in use. Worked fine again for a while until hurricane Ike. We were 9 days without electricty and a lawnmower was not my priority on my generator. Battery again fell apart. Trashed it and went back to a gas mower. I’ll never buy another.
Stuart
Reasons like this are why I am really, REALLY hoping that brands release 18V x2 battery pack adapters for the 2015 lawn and garden tool season.
Black and Decker had mixed results with their efforts in this area, but Makita seems to have seen favorable sales for their 18V X2 tools.
(2) Li-ion batteries that provide combined voltages of 36V or 40V Max would be great for lawn & garden tools and gear. I know a lot of brands (such as Craftsman) have new tools out this year, but maybe they can still work on battery adapter solutions.
Bill
Too bad Don did not read the owners manual it would have saved him a low of headaches. The manual states remove the battery from the charger when fully charged and unplug the charger.
Ted
For small lawns I simply use an old fashioned style push mower. Significantly less issues than I can imagine with a battery operated unit. The push mower always has power, as long as I can push it. For small lawns it takes little effort or time with the push mower.
Lisa
Actually I own this particular model and it’s incredible. It has two batteries and they last a descent amount to get both my front and backyard lawns done. The batteries also do not lose any charge while sitting around. I love this system and my husband is a big tool guy and he says it’s so much better then gas powered lawn equipment. I assure anyone looking for a good quality product, this one is excellent! Unless you have massive yard then you might need a few more batteries but otherwise great!
Paul McHone
Thanks for your review Lisa. Can you tell me where you bought your Ryobi mower?
Steven
Hi,
I have a B&D 24v mower which I really like. A few years ago the charger went bad. Because I had just bought a new battery, I decided to get a 24v battery tender, which was cheeper than the replacing the B&D charger. It works great. I have thought about getting a second battery and making them interchangable, but the wife just looks at me funny when I mention it.
Seth
Craftsman has its clone of this mower in red and black, if you prefer that look.
Both mowers have extremely chintzy handle locks which don’t leave a good impression if you fold the handle up and down a few times. Likewise with the bagging door and mulch plug – all of these items are plastic, but thin in places they ought not to be to save weight. Don’t be mowing on a chilly morning, folks.
Other than the plastic, the motors are reasonably grunty and the mower is fairly well balanced. I wish the price was a bit more reasonable, but those 40V batteries are spendy little suckers.
Speaking of batteries, while I haven’t gotten a chance to test it yet I’m fairly certain the Ryobi 40V batteries and the Craftsman 40V batteries are the same connector, just like how the B&D 20V Matrix and the CM 20V Bolt-On used the same battery with different casing and color.
Alex
I have a Greenworks 40v mower that I purchased off Amazon 6 months ago. I believe it’s the same as the Ryobi. One charge can do my whole yard (1/4 acre of grass) with 25-35% battery left. It’s light, quiet, and plenty powerful for what I need. Under load (thick, damp oak leaves) it increases in rpm temporarily. I like not having to maintain or run a gas mower. Adjusting the cut height is easier and faster than with the Troybuilt mower I used to own and it takes up less storage in my shed.
Brian Kempton
I agree completely. I have the Greenworks 40v Gmax and I LOVE it. I have only had it one full season, so we shall see about long term battery life. So far this thing is a beast. It is suspiciously similar to the Ryobi and I am in process of researching if they are indeed sister companies. I suppose best practices would mean many brands adopt successful features.
Darlene
Purchased the Ryobi 40V, 20″ cordless mower and found it poorly made, especially the handle to mower attachment, and overall ‘flimsy’. Considering it’s price tag here in Canada at HDepot of $449, it is poor value. Will be returning the one I bought and looking for something else.
phil
Have a Ryobi lithium mower – runs well tho have only used it 3 times – Who knows how to adjust the lower handle at the mower body – cannot get the handle to sit up high enough for comfortable use – do not see mention of adjustment for that part of handle in the manual- there are round ‘caps’ some sort of plastic, that have a lever type lock, but for what ? if cannot adjust..
Wm
I just bought the ryobi 40v mower about three weeks ago. I grew tired of cleaning the carburetor of my gas powered, self-propelled lawnmower. My old lawnmower had large rear wheels to ensure the self propelling would be easy my 1/4 acre lawn, so I was a little worried about going to a battery powered lawnmower, that is not self propelled. After cutting my lawn twice, i am convinced this is the best lawnmower I have ever had! I cut my lawn (front and back) with a single battery (40v 5 amp), and still have about 25 % charge or more remaining.
It’s easy to push around, quiet, efficient and even fun. I am even thinking of trying the chainsaw to replace my gas powered chainsaw.