Having a large yard or garden is not easy. Especially if the yard is planted with grass plants that cover almost every soil surface.
It’s not enough to just cut the grass using a lawn mower. Not to mention the position of mowing the grass which requires the user to squat and of course makes it tiring if done for a long time.
One solution to make cutting grass easy and practical is to use a lawn mower. Even so, choosing a lawn mower is also not arbitrary.
There are several things that must be considered so that the lawn mower fits your needs and of course works optimally. Here are some tips for choosing a lawn mower to follow:
1. Choose a Lawn Mower According to Type
In the market itself there are 2 types of lawn mowers, which are backpack lawn mowers and push lawn mowers. Each of them has its own advantages and disadvantages.
The backpack lawn mower is specialized for cutting grass that is on an uneven or bumpy ground surface. This cutting machine is equipped with a handle made of iron which is quite long.
For its use, the user must carry the lawn mower by carrying it using the provided rope. After the engine is turned on, the mower blade located at the bottom of the metal handle will rotate and be ready to cut the grass.
Using this backpack lawn mower should be done by walking forward slowly. This machine can reach even small areas and is very suitable for yards with uneven ground contours.
Push mowers can only be used for lawns or yards with flat ground contours. This mower is equipped with a handle that serves to push the mower when in use.
In addition, this machine can cut the grass to the edge according to the path of the wheel. Not only that, this machine is also equipped with a grass container that can be installed or removed easily.
Push mowers are more suitable for owners of a very wide and square yard or garden.
2. Blade
Not only the type of machine, it turns out that the blades on the lawn mower must also be considered. The lawn mower can be divided into 2 types based on the blade used, namely the rotary type and the reel type.
Rotary blades have a blade similar to a disc and can rotate horizontally when cutting grass. This blade is perfect for cutting long grass.
Rotary type is also only found in carrying type lawn mowers, there are even 3 types of knife models that can be used, such as a cross-type knife that functions to cut elephant grass, reeds, and others.
There is also a round knife with 8 serrations which is used for cutting shrubs, and an 80 serrated round knife which is useful for cutting large plants.
As for the reel type blade, it is characterized by a cylindrical blade that can rotate in a vertical direction. When used, the rotating blade rubs against the fixed blade so that the grass is pinched and cut.
The results of cutting using a reel-type blade tend to be neat compared to the rotary type.
3. Fuel Used
Tips for choosing the next lawn mower is to pay attention to the fuel used. To be able to turn on a lawn mower, it is necessary to have fuel that functions as a power source.
There are a variety of fuels to choose from, ranging from electric, battery, gasoline, or manual. Each of course has its own advantages and disadvantages.
Lawn mowers with electric fuel must of course be connected to a power source that can be easily accessed anywhere. Problems will arise when the cable contained in the lawn mower is not long so that a connection cable is needed so that the machine can reach further areas.
A lawn mower with a battery as a power source looks much more practical than an electric mower. Users can easily reach distant areas, it’s just that the use of the machine is very limited considering that the battery power source has a short period of time.
For lawn mowers with gasoline fuel can last longer, it is suitable for use on a very large area because it has great power. However, most mowers powered by gasoline are heavy.
The next lawn mower requires no fuel or manuals. How to use it is very easy, just need to push and the blade will automatically rotate to cut grass.
Although it looks practical, it turns out that this manual lawn mower is quite tiring. Especially if the grass to be cut is in a very large yard. However, the advantage of this machine is that it does not cause emissions so it is environmentally friendly.
4. Reach Width and Cutting Height
In a lawn mower, it is known as the cutter width, which is the width of the range of grass that can be cut at one time. The wider the range, the more grass is cut.
It’s just that such lawn mowers are usually large enough to make it difficult to reach tight areas. Not only that, every lawn mower has a height limit in cutting grass that has been determined by the manufacturer.
However, it turns out that there are some lawn mowers that can be adjusted to the cutting height. Therefore, it is very important to know in advance what types of plants or grass will be cut using a lawn mower.
5. Warranty and Accessories
When buying a lawn mower, it never hurts to ask if the engine or other parts of the lawn mower have a warranty.
This is important to note because if there is damage over time, the product can be easily handled by a technician or replaced with a new item.
Not only that, the completeness of additional accessories can also be considered, for example the presence of spare blades, cables, oil, and so on. That way, buyers get the advantage of not having to buy additional accessories separately.