Leaf Blower?

[LMITOUT]

Looking at possibly buying a leaf blower and it'll most likely be gas unless someone can recommend a good electric (not battery powered).

Suggestions?

[gunmunky]

I have an electric Toro blower. Works good for blowing off the drive and the patio but not that great on the grass. I had a lawn vac (the ones that resemble a mower) and it would easily convert to a blower. It was much better at every thing except for up close to my house. I had it for about 14 years before it finally died. It had a fiberglass deck and I had to repair it several times due to it picking up walnuts and punching holes in the deck. It would pick up rocks or just about any thing that went under the mouth. The wife keeps telling me to get another one because the mower just doesn't clean the yard like the vac did.

[jjohnson5150]

Be good to yourself & get a nice gas backpack blower. I've bought electric & think they are under powered. The cord is a pain. Echo & Stihl are going to be top of the line, but well worth it. It's like anything, you get what you pay for. The hand held gas blowers will get the job done, but with a big yard, your arm will get tired.

[MuleShack]

Ditto on the back pack blowers, get one they get the job done quickly and they last for a long time if taken care of. You can push rocks out of the grass in the spring with these as well as sand too. Little more spendy but well worth it...THey work great to clean out the garage and the boat too

[Jack Peterson]

Get the Stihl BR600..legit back pack blower. i seriously blew off acres of leaf covered grass in no time. I think it runs about $450-489. Kind of expensive, but well worth it.

[LMITOUT]

My lawn isn't that big and don't care to spend that much on a blower, so I think I'll stick to the handheld types.

[Shack]

I just sold my BR400. It worked great, but clearing only about 1.5-2 acres of area that have leaves on it I decided it was just not needed. Majority of this area is sucked up by the mower anyways. Plus I have a Ryobi 4 stroke trimmer with the blower attachment for larger areas. That works great and has for 6+ years now. If you want a very good hand held elec. blower and even vac/shredder, my Toro Super Blower has been doing the job now since 03-04'. IMO it blows just as good as the others, but tethers you in via the extension cord.

The only thing bad I can say about my old Stihl BR400 is basically you are strapping a chainsaw engine to your back and the sound is about the same. Even with ear protection, my kids could not stand it. It does weigh a good amount also. When your kids are a major driving force for fall clean up, you have to listen and take notice.

[bigdog]

I have Stihl hand held blower/vac that has been going strong for 9 years.

[Bigrack]

For a handheld, stihl is the best I think it is a bg86 some come with bagger attachments or you can get seperately and work great, start easy and last if you take care of them with proper oil to gas mixture. The bagger is nice in the fall to pick up leaves around shrubs and landscaping. I have tried many different types, worn out several but the stihl keeps on!

[MikeH55343]

I've had the Sear's Craftsman electric leaf blower for 10 years with no problems. It was rated at something like 140mph air speed and now there is a 225mph model. Even my older model has plenty of power small leaves and clippings.

I elected to go with the electric model and bought a 100ft extension cord. The electric model is so much more simple to maintain.

[Ralph Wiggum]

I elected to go with the electric model and bought a 100ft extension cord. The electric model is so much more simple to maintain.

Me, too. One less carburetor to maintain. I've got a Toro that works pretty slick. Blow em into a pile and then suck them up. It really reduces the number of bags of leaves I collect.

[WaveWacker]

i have an Echo brand and it works great.

[pureinsanity]

I found a back pack blower on the side of the road. A couple small repairs and she works great. even has enough power to blow snow around. I wouldn't want an electric after using this back pack

[Down Deep]

I mulch my leaves with my Toro mower. For the leaves that hide along the fence and house I have a Craftsman 150 mph blower. This blower gets a top rating by Consumer Reports and it is put on sale every spring at a super price. I never have to use a blower for more than 15 to 20 mins so a backpack is not necessary for my needs.