[Agatha]

Does anyone have any experience of these?  I have a friend who wants to replace her old petrol mower as it is too heavy for her to manage and she doesn't want to have to rely on friends and relatives mowing for her all the time.  But she is worried about mowing over the cable if she buys an electric mower (her garden is a very awkward shape with lots of trees & things to mow round).  I've offered to do a bit of research for her and am looking at various websites etc but you can't beat personal recommendation (or non-recommendation!) so would be grateful to hear from anyone who has used one of these machines.

[Goosegirl]

Funnily enough, I have been researching the same thing as I am increasingly fed up with the way the cable always gets caught up around things when, if you tried it for weeks yourself, you couldn't do it!! On the Which? Best Buy list, there is only one cordless - the Viking MA39 rotary with a battery life of 18 mins over an area of 240 sq. m (depends on how fast you walk I suppose) and scored 71% with a price of £450 (ow!). I so wanted a cordless, but am now thinking of a Bosch Rotak 43 which has had very good reviews. I currently use an electric mower and, once you get used to where you wang the cable and in which directionn to turn the mower so you don't encounter it, it's really not too bad. You can make cable stakes that you put in the ground to hold it up above the lawn but, personally, I don't know how well they work.

[JayG]

I suggest you check out the price of replacement batteries before making your decision - my Bosch rechargeable hedge trimmer came with 2 NiCad batteries, one of which, after 3 years of being used about 4 times a year will no longer hold a charge. Best price I can find for a replacement is £43 (a brand new trimmer with 2 batteries only costs £86!  )

Lithium ion batteries may be more long lived and a better choice, but I've no actual experience of them.

[compostqueen]

I've been looking at these mowers but they seem big and expensive, which has put me off as I want something little and lightweight. I'm thinking along the lines of a push mower or getting rid of my grass allotment paths completely to avoid the problem

[Agatha]

Thanks for the feedback.  I think I will recommend my friend avoids the battery mowers due to expense and the fact that she will need to recharge halfway through mowing the lawn.  The longest use time I have come across is 25 minutes on short dry grass and using the petrol mower it takes me 30 minutes to mow her lawn.

Goosegirl, I have used a couple of Bosch Rotaks at various jobs and they are really good - apart from the cable!  Think I will recommend one to my friend.     

Thanks for the tip about the batteries, JayG.  That pricing makes no sense at all! 

Compostqueen, I tried out the battery mowers at the garden machinery store and they are a little heavier than a similar sized electric mower with a cable, but much lighter than a petrol one.  Hope this helps!

[miggs]

I saw the gadget show did a reveiw on them last week maybe have a look on there on catch up. Not sure what channel the gadget show is on though, I caught it as I was channel hoping only a few days ago.

[jezza]

hi have you checked out the robot mowers husqvarna honda they need a buried wire and an electric socket the one i saw working ran about cutting grass when it wanted recharghing it popped back to its charching point charged then came out again  jezza

[Growster...]

I've been looking at these mowers but they seem big and expensive, which has put me off as I want something little and lightweight. I'm thinking along the lines of a push mower or getting rid of my grass allotment paths completely to avoid the problem

This is indeed a good way, CQ, and so as not to hijack this post, (which interests me as I've been considering battery options for the Patch as well), I'll do another one

[compostqueen]

My paths are very uneven because of moles so mowing is just a pain in the butt to be honest.  I've got a strimmer but I've never used it.  My husband won't use a strimmer ever again as he managed to slice his face with ours 

I don't like power tools (you may have guessed)  They make too much noise for me. I like a bit of peace so I think push mower or get rid of grass paths. Nowt wrong with padded earth is there ?

[Agatha]

Thanks for the feedback.  Miggs, I don't have a tv so can't check out the show you mentioned, but thanks anyway.  Jezza, the robot mowers are hugely expensive, way more than battery ones, so it would be out of reach financially...but we can dream - I love the idea of a mower that mows by itself!

[arugula]

Thanks for the feedback.  Miggs, I don't have a tv so can't check out the show you mentioned, but thanks anyway. 

Agatha, the Gadget Show has a website. I've taken the liberty of navigating to it and putting battery mowers in their search box:

http://gadgetshow.channel5.com/search?q=battery+mowers&commit=Search

I'm sure if that isn't the search you wanted you could refine it.