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Thread: Totally electric commercial contractor

  1. #61
    Senior Member Arfa Brayne's Avatar
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    Default Re: Totally electric commercial contractor

    Thanks for clearing that up David. I was only running on the numbers in your post.
    Sounds like you have a fair bit of experience running your house "off the grid".
    It would be interesting to see how well it would work with mowing.
    A mate of mine has a similar place in Nimmitabel that runs a combination of solar power, wind power and wetback wood stove. He has a backup genny and LPG but rarely uses them unless there is a big crowd visiting. Works well.
    When the time comes that we can run all our gear on clean green power, great. ! But for now I need something that will put out 5-6hp constantly, recharges in 30 seconds (fill the tank) and costs under $5 a day in power (fuel).

    I admit to being biased against electric stuff - if it's electric, you can rely on it ! (to fail)
    Best of luck to the blokes who have the guts to pioneer the new technology.
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  2. #62
    Senior Member DavidS's Avatar
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    Default Re: Totally electric commercial contractor

    I am looking at setting up a full system when we decide to settle down some where.

    1000Ah of lithium at 12 volts only because thats what I have experience with, will be running a 5000watt inverter which will power everything in the house and shed. Will have 3kw of solar to recharge, should be able to sell power to the neighbours LOL
    Would only have to worry about power if we have a week of rain and it was 30 odd degrees then I might have to break out a wind generator to help recharge the house batteries.

    As I have said though the technology is improving quickly so in a few years I my not have to worry about rain and lack of solar charge.

  3. #63
    Senior Member conrad's Avatar
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    Talking 100% Electric - Volt Mowing

    Aye aye, maties! Lend me your ears (or eyes)... I would like to tell you a story about a young fella who started up his own mowing business based on a 100% electric service.


    The What Now??
    I started out 100% electric in January 2014. Using the Mean Green MGP-20 push mower, Core Outdoor Power line trimmer CGT400 & hedge trimmer CHT410. For the blower - a little Ryobi job from Bunnings. The other gear I had to import from the U.S. as it's not available in Australia - it was the only electric gear that had any kind of commercial build or commercial warranty.









    I have been regularly using all of this as my main equipment. As you'd expect there are no issues on regularly maintained lawns, but if you try and mow or trim overgrown jungles you will quickly find the limitations of the machine. Actually the mower isn't too bad if the blockoff plate is removed and you side discharge, I've done a few overgrown yards that way. There are also 2 power settings available, low is what I use most of the time on my regular lawns. But it has also gone through some overgrown yards.



    I think any mulching mower would struggle on this lawn below, not that it was ever overgrown - but the lawn is so thick & dense that clippings just sit on top and can't fall through to the soil. But there's still ways to deal with this when you get to know your equipment.



    The line trimmer is pretty much the same - no problem on regular lawns. But if it's nasty overgrown edges, I can turn up the power and it will get through it. Just a little bit slower than a petrol machine, and it chews through the juice a lot faster - as well as chewing up the line pretty quick. So I only use the high power setting when absolutely necessary.

    The Core gear is pretty good - even with the option of using a petrol line trimmer I still go for the electric because it's much lighter and easier use, which means I can actually get my regular jobs done quicker and with less effort. There is no shaft in the line trimmer, the motor drives the trimmer head directly. That funny looking thing you see at the end of the trimmer shaft? That's the motor.



    The hedge trimmer is a bit cumbersome, it's obvious that they've tried to keep cost down by using as many common parts as possible between the line trimmer and the hedge trimmer. They could have had a much better hedge trimmer if they didn't go that way, but I believe this is no longer produced anyway. If you want their hedge trimmer you need to buy their multi-tool.

    The mower is very good to use, the balance is excellent due to the battery being placed low on the handle so the machine can be manoeuvred with a minimum of effort. It has a fabricated aluminium construction and uses large Honda wheels. Not sure what brand blade it uses, but it's just a regular bar blade and I got a couple of spares with the machine so I haven't had to buy any.

    The mower is ok to be used in light showers, but due to the open battery compartment on the Core gear they do not recommend using it in rain. I've put a bag over the battery compartment of the line trimmer and have finished up ok more than a few times when it's started raining.

    Run time
    Energy density is the main downside with electric equipment. The electric motors can put out plenty of power, that is no issue. They're super-efficient, not nearly as much friction or heat loss compared to petrol engines. But petrol still has the advantage in energy density. But having said that - I've found the manufacturer guidelines pretty much spot on. 2-3 hours per battery for the mower, and up to 40 minutes per battery for the line trimmer. Obviously using them on lower power settings will give a longer run time, also if I'm just nipping the top off a regular lawn it's not going to use as much power as when the grass is slightly longer. 2 batteries for the mower and 3 batteries for the line trimmer have been enough to get me through even the busiest days. Remember those run times are actual mowing and actual trimming times. Every time you stop, put the machine down or do something else, you're not using power. To keep the power flowing I just got into a routine of charging the batteries after every day (or as needed in winter). I made up a padded duffle bag I carry all the batteries in, and they stay in the bag when I'm doing jobs.

    Maintenance
    This is pretty easy. I would put it this way: how often do you need to do maintenance on your washing machine or microwave?
    There is literally nothing to do other than make sure the line trimmer has line, make sure the blades on the mower are sharp, and I just give the hedge trimmer blades a hit with lanolin spray now and then. That's it!

    Why Electric?
    When I was starting out I wanted a point of difference to every other lawnie out there. I had quite a lot of feedback from people that a quiet mowing service would be really good for unit blocks, shift workers, doctors surgeries, home offices etc. But in reality I'm not sure that any of my customers were particularly keen on the 100% electric aspect. For sure everyone wants less noise - I've never had anyone say that they preferred my equipment to be louder! But I didn't do any really targeted marketing to the people or businesses who might be my "target market". I just went out and picked up regular lawn mowing jobs. I might try that kind of targeted marketing in the future though...

    I am also very health conscious and didn't want to be sucking down exhaust fumes all day long. Previously the only petrol mower I've used has been the small domestic Victa at home - and I don't miss the petrol engine one bit. Starting out commercially with 100% electric equipment has really been a breath of fresh air. (Ok, sorry... I may be breathing fresh air, but nearly choked on that pun. )

    Low noise is also a very good thing from an operators point of view - I don't need to worry about ear plugs, I never have ringing ears, headaches or any other worries. I had a guy who was working across the street come over while I was doing a job one day, he was especially interested in the hedger. He said after a day of using the petrol hedger he goes home with pretty bad headaches. If you're dealing with that kind of a problem, I would seriously look into electric. You can't put a price on health.

    Downsides
    Cost is a big factor - no doubt that alone would scare away a lot of people. I knew it would be a big cost, but the trade-off is that ongoing running costs are miniscule, and you save time on maintenance. I picked up a spare motor for the mower as well, not that they're prone to fail or anything, but Mean Green suggested it because the motor is what does all the work so if anything fails that will be it - as well as being in Australia it was cheaper to order the spare motor rather than have it air freighted later, plus the downtime etc. About $200 for the motor, so it looks like repair cost on electric machines are not too bad either. I'm still running the original motor though, but it's developed a bit of noise after I hit a raise concrete drain doing an overgrown job...

    The build of the hedge trimmer is one other possible problem. When it came through Aussie customs it looked like they'd tried to reef it out of the box, wires exposed and the handle/blade in two pieces. Core was really good with email support, I got it back together and it worked fine. But just in the last couple of weeks I was trimming and the motor started free spinning, no movement at the blades. I took it apart as far as I could and the main shaft from the motor had snapped. The shaft is pretty small, maybe 3mm diameter - not like the beefy shaft shown in the exploded view above. 9 days ago I emailed Core hoping to get some more email support, but nothing back from them yet. If I don't hear from them soon I will just have to keep pulling it apart and hope I don't break anything, If I can get the old shaft out I will just get a new one made up at the local engineering shop - easy fix.

    It can be a bit of a hassle to have to bring the batteries inside to charge at the end of the day, but you get used to it. Probably no more drama than filling jerry cans and doing premix. To get the most out of the batteries you've got to use them until they stop, so then you've got to go back to the vehicle and do a swap. Perhaps not quite as easy as looking at fuel level and topping up as needed (there is no battery indicator on the Core products, and the indicator on the mower seems to be a bit flaky). But unless it's a super-busy day, I will just rotate the batteries through the day, it's a few seconds to swap them. So it's not that often that I will run a battery completely flat.

    Other than those things, I don't have anything bad to say about the mower or the line trimmer. Actually the mower could have a lever height adjust system, that would be nice. With the current setup you need to adjust each wheel individually to your desired height setting. Not that it's such a big deal, there's an allen key attached to the handle so you're never looking for tools. If they were available locally with dealer support at a cost comparable to petrol equipment, I have no doubt that lots of contractors would be using them.

    If I had continued down this path I would have done a fitout on my van so I could charge the batteries on the go, everything would be self-contained and I wouldn't have to bring batteries inside at night. Solar panels and an alternator charger, it's no stretch to be able to recharge all my batteries during the day, ready to go the next day and with power to spare. But it's a decent size investment, and as far as electric equipment I don't think the blower/vacs are there yet.

    A Devalued Economy
    100% ain't what it used to be... Yep, I've added some petrol gear over time. The first was a backpack blower, needed to be able to blow leaves along a fairly large area so the little Ryobi blower wasn't going to cut it. I haven't talked about the Ryobi blower at all because it's fairly unremarkable. The Stihl BR600 or even a handheld petrol blower at idle would be as effective as the Ryobi blower at full tilt. But I went with the little Ryobi because it was cheap enough, and I needed some way to clear stray clippings and it was mostly fine for that. I know of a guy who never used a blower - he used to just wave his petrol line trimmer over the paths etc. to clear leaves & stray clippings - but that is just not my style.

    The next addition was a Shindaiwa line trimmer. I had a vacant lot to clear - no way with the Core line trimmer. But that is the only type of job I would use it on, and I've only used it once.

    I was using a corded Bosch blower/vac for a long time as well - it blew up after I picked up some elastic cord type stuff. I replaced it with an Echo blower/vac which is actually disappointing compared to the Bosch unit. It jams much more, it's much harder to use - cannot be switched for use on the left side of the body and the length of the vac tube would probably only be comfortable if you're about 6'3". But the tradeoff is that there's no cords to worry about, and I have a smaller backup blower if I don't want to get the Stihl backpack out.

    Along the way I've also been using an old Rover Rancher, and recently upgraded to a much less old Walker MT GHS that was built in this century. So there's definitely petrol power in my future for at least a few years I'd say, until cordless electric gear can compete with petrol blowers and ride ons.

    Speaking of which I would have spent $13k on a Hustler Zeon if they had all day runtime. But since they use flooded lead acid batters (seriously, WTF???!!!) there is no way there are a viable option. With lithium batteries - yes, I bet they would get pretty close to a commercially viable runtime. But the cost of such a battery pack would be enormous... the technology is all there, now we've just gotta wait for the cost to come down. And then down some more. Haha.

    Electric In The Australian Market
    Speaking about the locally available electric push mowers like the Victa and Stihl units - I haven't used them, but there is no way I'd go near them for commercial work. If someone wants to go mowing with a dinky little $500 plastic mower, well I'd be interested to see how they go... but given the limitations of the Mean Green mower which has a full cut (20 or 21", couldn't find the exact specs as I'm writing this), fabricated aluminium construction and some decent runtime I don't see a plastic mower doing too well.

    I really wish there was a good strong cordless electric commercial push mower available locally, but catch 22. No one will make it because there is no market for an expensive niche machine. And no one would buy it because it's an expensive niche machine. Which is just too bad really! Because manufacturers could make some very competent machines.

    If I can't fix my hedge trimmer I may be in the market for another one soon... the cheapest and easiest thing would be to buy a petrol trimmer. Just today I was looking at Oregon Cordless gear online, looks like they have Aussie distributors (and a normal looking hedge trimmer!) I've looked at Pellenc in the past - and while everything looks very promising and I'm sure it is excellent equipment with local dealer support, it's very, very pricey. I would still prefer to stick with an electric trimmer if I could, but then if you're changing equipment you have the issue of buying into another system and another complete set of batteries, chargers, etc. None of which are compatible with other brands. A bit of a drama if you want to use different bits of gear for a whole bunch of manufacturers.

    A Future For 100% Electric Lawnie?
    I'm glad that I haven't stuck to the 100% electric idea out of some misplaced sense of eco-friendly tree-hugging glee. But I'm also glad that I gave it a shot and tried something different. My two favourite pieces of electric gear are the Mean Green mower and the Core line trimmer, I'm still very happy with them and plan to keep using them as long as I can, they will be my main gear for smaller & inaccessible lawns. I probably should be trying to use them as much as possible considering that I don't have to buy fuel or do maintenance on them, but you also have to be willing to make changes - there's no point in sticking to some idea or plan if it's going to make life hard for you or limit your ability to make money! So for the moment I will also keep using the petrol gear as required.

    But I will be keeping a close eye on cordless equipment, and I will switch back away from petrol as soon as there's a good alternative. No fuel, no maintenance. That's a whole lot of time & money saved, you've got to agree that is awesome!

    I have been thinking that I should re-brand myself now...



    Although I still do have the ability to provide a 100% electric service. But a part of me wonders if "electric" in peoples minds still means "underpowered and slow". I think that may be the case, since Joe Bloggs won't have a clue what a commercial grade electric mower could do. At least not while the only people using them are crazy guys who import them directly from the U.S...

    Actually as far as I know I'm the only person with a Mean Green mower in Australia. I guess that does make me kinda special!

    I've only had one enquiry as a result of the signage on the van, and that turned out to be a landscaping & turf job. Actually I lie, I had another enquiry from someone wanting to buy parts for his electric mower.

    Not too long ago an elderly lady walking down the footpath as I was packing up asked "Is the van electric?" I knew what she was doing, I just laughed and said "no, only the mowing - not the driving." "Ok, I just thought I would ask." I thought good on ya luv, you keep asking and I'll keep telling you answers... Smart alec's everywhere I tell ya! Part of me wants to get ride of the "100% electric" signage just to keep the smartie pants at bay!


    Well, I think that's just about all I can say about the subject. Let me know if you have any questions about the equipment or anything else. I'll be here all week, thank you!

  4. #64
    Senior Member Arfa Brayne's Avatar
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    Default Re: Totally electric commercial contractor

    Conrad.
    Very impressed ! - Well written and "straight up" information about your venture into electric mowing. That photo of the overgrown lawn half mown by the 'leccy mower was like seeing a photo of my truck sprouting wings and flying - incredible.
    I've had a lot to say about the inadequacies of using electric gear for commercial mowing, but I love to be proved wrong - that's when you really learn.

    Congratulations for having the balls to step outside the box and give something new a go. An old mentor of mine once said "look around at how everyone else is doing it - and do the opposite". There are plenty of "me too" sheep in this country, and not enough pioneers.
    I'm not electrically friendly - my motto has always been "if it's electrical, you can rely on it ! - TO FAIL ", but if you're stuck on a mechanical problem associated with your pioneer gear - give me a yell and I'll do my best to help you out.
    "Can't" is a dirty 4 letter word.
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    Sip on a mugfull, relax, and take a look at what you've got left to work with.

  5. #65
    Senior Member steveo's Avatar
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    Default Re: Totally electric commercial contractor

    The cheapest way to rebrand yourself conrad is to get rid of one of the 0's. So van signage for example goes from 100% electric to 10% electric. I'm kinda serious and kinda not. You can still make claim to some electric, just not all.

  6. #66
    Senior Member imoww's Avatar
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    Default Re: Totally electric commercial contractor

    Their zero turn looks like a beast too
    Everything looks good with a haircut.... ɐuıɥɔ ɯoɹɟ pɹɐoqʎǝʞ ɐ ʎnq ı ǝɯıʇ ʇsɐl ǝɥʇ sʇɐɥʇ

  7. #67
    Senior Member AJD Mowing's Avatar
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    Default Re: Totally electric commercial contractor

    Great post Conrad thanks for all the info mate
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  8. #68
    Senior Member conrad's Avatar
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    Default Re: Totally electric commercial contractor

    Cheers Arfa Brayne. I'm gradually getting the hang of mechanic'ing, if something is not where it should be I can usually figure it out and make it right. But doing work on the electrical side of things is what scares me. Haha. I know it's not really that bad, there's a process to follow - it's just not as in your face as mechanical stuff. Thankfully I've had no electrical problems at all with any of the electric gear. I was a bit worried thinking about what if something goes wrong - but I always figured I could take it to an auto electrician or somewhere else, even a good mower shop - plenty of qualified people around who could diagnose & fix electrical problems.

    After my comment about the locally available electric mowers with plastic decks I saw your thread about importing the Honda from the U.S. and noticed they're doing plastic bodies/decks now as well? How has that held up? Maybe the plastic deck on locally available electric mowers isn't as much of a weak point as I thought...

    Haha steveo - I thought about doing something like that or adding an extra vinyl near the 100% electric to say "optional service now available". But I think any mention of electric, especially if it's so prominent may be a bit too far out there for most people. I did the artwork (worked as a graphic designer for nearly 6 years) and installed the vinyls myself, so it's not such a big cost to replace them - I think I will swap them over soon to something much more simple, just a generic "lawnmowing & gardening" type signage and see how that goes.

    And yeah imoww - their zero turn is what a real electric zero turn should look like, up to 7 hours mow time on one charge. Makes the Hustler Zeon look like a kids toy, I've read up about them & people were struggling to get 1-2hrs runtime! But the Mean Green CXR also has the price tag of a real electric zero turn, $22,000 of your hard earned Aussie dollars. And then you need to add shipping on top of that. But then again, people spend more than that on machines like Walkers. If they had local distributors & dealer support - let me tell you I would seriously consider it! Not sure if they have motors that drive each wheel directly as well as a motor driving each blade directly, but that's how the Hustler Zeon is setup. No need for hydros, no belts, no drive shafts, way less maintenance than petrol zero turns. Oh boy oh boy... I get excited every time I think about it...!

    Looking for a video of the CXR I found this one. Maybe someone should turn down the speed/sensitivity on that, you could pull some G's spinning on the spot. (That is not a CXR though, looks like a DIY job.)



    I've also got to mention this interesting bit of info - back in February I emailed Mean Green enquiring about their blower and line trimmers. They said that their mowers (but I'm assuming they mean all their gear generally) "aren't certified for sale in Australia right now". BUT, they also said that it looks like that could change within another year, so Feb 2016. Here's hoping!

    I bought the mower directly from them, but it was shipped to a U.S. parcel forwarding/freight consolidation company. At the time I told them I was located in Australia and even asked for a charger with an Aussie power plug, which they supplied. So I'm not sure what changed in their policy that they no longer sell to Australia.

    No worries AJD Mowing, happy to share!

  9. #69
    Senior Member conrad's Avatar
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    Default Re: Totally electric commercial contractor

    Only allowed to have one video per post, there is a short clip of the CXR here starting around 1:30,


  10. #70
    Senior Member AJD Mowing's Avatar
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    Default Re: Totally electric commercial contractor

    Very cool!!

    What is the cost of each item do you know Conrad?
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  11. #71
    Senior Member conrad's Avatar
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    Default Re: Totally electric commercial contractor

    These are the costs I was quoted when I made my first enquiry back in 2013. Not sure if current prices are very different, but if you wanted to buy from them at the moment you would need to include shipping cost. The cost of air freight is ludicrous. The push mower was delivered to the U.S. freight forwarder on a pallet, and they want to send it just like that. Quoted me $6,000 shipping!! After much back and forth with them, some emails and phone calls they eventually caved in and removed the boxes from the pallet. Still not cheap by air freight (it wasn't hundreds of dollars, it was thousands), I would take the delay and go by sea if I did it again.

    The commercial warranty is 2 years on structural components, 1 year on all other parts & labor. They quote an operational saving over the serviceable lifetime of about $2/hr for the MGP-20, $5/hr for the WBX, and $7/hr for the CXRs (USD). I haven't worked this out myself, but if you calculate all your running costs of a similar sized zero turn - fuel, spark plugs, belts, oil, filters, workshop fees, etc. for a usage of 2,000 hours they are saying you would save (AUD) $9.50 every hour, or $19,000 over 2,000 hours. That seems like a lot... I don't know if that would be accurate? But maybe it is? That's how it is with electric gear - biiiig cost up front, then almost non-existent running cost.

    Here's the 2013 prices (no idea about their newer backpack blower and line trimmer products). All prices in USD:

    MGP-20 Commercial Electric Push Mower
    MODEL# PRICE
    MGP-20 $1,399
    LEM10 $475
    LEM20 $625
    LEMC-2.5 $115
    LEMC-12 $255
    MGP-20CP $35
    MGP-20GC $435
    LEM10 battery (60-70 minute continuous runtime)
    LEM20 battery (120-140 minute continuous runtime)
    LEMC-2.5 overnight charger (charges LEM10 in 4 hours, LEM20 in 8
    hours) Standard 110V plug.
    LEMC-12 fast charger (charges LEM20 in 130 minutes, not for use on
    LEM10) Standard 110V plug.
    MGP-20CP Side discharge closure plate (for mulching and use around
    sidewalk/mulch to avoid clipping spread out)
    MGP-20GC Aluminum grass catcher (clips on the side discharge chute for clipping
    containment


    WB-33 Residential Electric Wide Area Walk Behind Mower
    MODEL# PRICE
    WB-33* $4,595

    OPTIONS:
    WBX-33CP $45
    WBX-33GC $459
    *WB-33 Residential Walk Behind mower with up to 1 acre lot sealed lead
    acid pack (50-60 minute run time) and overnight charger.
    WBX-33CP Side discharge closure plate (for mulching and use around
    sidewalk/mulch to avoid clipping spread out)
    WBX-33GC Aluminum grass catcher (clips on the side discharge chute for clipping
    containment.


    WBX-33 Commercial Electric Wide Area Walk Behind Mower
    MODEL# PRICE
    WBX-33 $4,195
    LEM40 $1,189
    LEM60 $1,724
    LEM80 $2,259
    LEMC-12 $255
    LEMC-30 $495
    WBX-33CP $45
    WBX-33GC $459
    LEM40 battery (120-140 minute continuous runtime)
    LEM60 battery (180-220 minute continuous runtime)
    LEM80 battery (240-280 minute continuous runtime)
    LEMC-12 Overnight charger (charges LEM40-80 in 4-8 hrs) Standard 110V plug.
    LEMC-30 Fast charger (charges LEM80 in 2.25hrs) Standard 110V plug
    dedicated to charger.
    WBX-33CP Side discharge closure plate (for mulching and use around
    sidewalk/mulch to avoid clipping spread out)
    WBX-33GC Aluminum grass catcher (clips on the side discharge chute for clipping
    containment.

    CXR-52 Commercial Electric Zero Turn Mower
    MODEL# PRICE
    CXR-52 $11,400
    LEM80 $2,465
    LEMC-12 $255
    LEMC-30 $495
    CXR-52CP $45
    CXR-52GC $659
    LEM80 battery (60-70 minute continuous runtime/ LEM80. CXR-52 carries
    2-4 LEM80s)
    LEMC-12 Overnight charger (charges 2ea LEM80s in 9 hrs) Standard 110V plug.
    LEMC-30 charger (charges two LEM80 in 4.5 hrs or 4ea LEM80s in 9 hrs.)
    Standard 110V plug dedicated to charger.
    CXR-52CP Side discharge closure plate (for mulching and use around
    sidewalk/mulch to avoid clipping spread out)
    CXR-52GC Aluminum grass catcher (clips on the side discharge chute for clipping
    containment

    CXR-60 Commercial Electric Zero Turn Mower
    MODEL# PRICE
    CXR-60 $11,900
    LEM80 $2,465
    LEMC-12 $255
    LEMC-30 $495
    CXR-60CP $45
    CXR-60GC $659
    LEM80 battery (50-60 minute continuous runtime/ LEM80. CXR-60 carries
    2-4 LEM80s)
    LEMC-12 Overnight charger (charges 2ea LEM80s in 9 hrs) Standard 110V plug.
    LEMC-30 charger (charges two LEM80 in 4.5 hrs or 4ea LEM80s in 9 hrs.)
    Standard 110V plug dedicated to charger.
    CXR-60CP Side discharge closure plate (for mulching and use around
    sidewalk/mulch to avoid clipping spread out)
    CXR-60GC Aluminum grass catcher (clips on the side discharge chute for clipping
    containment

  12. #72
    Senior Member steveo's Avatar
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    Default Re: Totally electric commercial contractor

    Quote Originally Posted by conrad View Post
    Only allowed to have one video per post, there is a short clip of the CXR here starting around 1:30,

    You can put a headlight on it and mow at night with that thing. Noise wouldn't be an issue.

  13. #73
    Senior Member troppo's Avatar
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    Default Re: Totally electric commercial contractor

    Hey Conrad, either you've got a lot of spare time or you type a lot quicker than me!!!!!!! Good posts, and shows the upside of electric gear. Electric motors have peak torque all the way through their rev range unlike internal combustion engines too. Last few years of driving taxis was in hybrids. Was good fun sneaking up on jay walkers and giving them a blast with the horn at point blank range!!!!!! Passengers thought it was the best.

  14. #74
    Senior Member AJD Mowing's Avatar
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    May 2011
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    Default Re: Totally electric commercial contractor

    My only downside would be you would need a quite a few spare batteries to get a full days work without recharging.
    Great post Conrad gives everyone a good insite.

    Cheers
    Dean
    AJD Mowing Giving Back Your Life

    http://www.ajdmowing.com.au/

  15. #75
    Senior Member conrad's Avatar
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    Jul 2008
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    Default Re: Totally electric commercial contractor

    I've thought about whether I could get away with starting with my electric machines at 6am or something like that... but the council does list mowers as regulated equipment. It doesn't specify a difference between petrol/electric, so it's a bit of a grey area I guess. Might give it a try one day... as long as it's not disturbing anyone I don't think they'd mind, and unless their bedroom is outdoors right next to where I'm mowing I don't think they'd even hear it anyway.

    I have been known to type quickly, and I like telling long stories so it works out well. Haha. I would love a Tesla... there are some pretty good electric motorbikes out there as well.

    Yeah Dean, depending on the type of work, you would need to have spare batteries - especially for the smaller machines (push mower etc.). The CXR specs on their webpage say up to 7 hours mow time, they might have made improvements and found some more battery life over those 2013 specs which say 4.6 hours mow time. Getting 7 hours of mowing - that's a fair bit! If you're driving 1-2 hours of the day, take off time for any edging, breaks, lunch, etc. you might find that you could go a whole day on a single charge.

    Probably won't be too long now and we'll see people getting around in a Tesla towing a trailer full of electric equipment.

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