It is time to convert your outdoor gardening equipment from being powered by battery power. This is great news for the environment but what about your ears!
California Governor. Gavin Newsom has signed legislation to ban the sale and use of gas-powered garden and lawn equipment in California. This law will be in effect for small-sized off-road engines like leaf blowers or lawn mowers, by 2024.
The state will provide a rebate to encourage people to use electric lawn and garden equipment. The environmental benefits of electric lawn and garden equipment should be enough to encourage people to switch. State legislators have found that leaf blowers emit more pollutants per day than passenger cars in 2020.
Consumer Reports conducts annual tests on different types of lawn mowers and leaf blowers. The most recent Consumer Reports guide to blowers was updated on October 5th. It found that battery-powered handheld options only last for 15 minutes. The noise reduction is well worth it.
Our tests have shown that gas mowers emit more noise than their battery-powered counterparts. The machines that were powered by gas emit 85 to 85 decibels at the user's ear. Only a handful of them are quieter," the buying guide explains.
However, earplugs may still be beneficial as a precaution. "Blowers that are relatively quiet from a distance can be deafening at close range," the guide states. Using your battery-powered blower will save your neighbors decibels but not necessarily your own.
A quiet lawn. Credit: honda
Honda's robotic lawnmower, Miimo has a rechargeable lithium-ion battery. According to Honda's website, the electric power is both quiet and economical. You can even choose quiet mode to make your night or morning mows even more peaceful.
Consumer Reports has done a lot of research on noisy yard tools. The quietest options are either corded or handheld electric. This applies to all equipment, not just leaf blowers such as weed whackers or lawn mowers.
A happy lawn is one that is quiet.
