Are you in the market for a new leaf blower but do not know what to look out for? Such outdoor equipment is particularly important especially during the summer and makes spring cleanings a heck of a lot easier.
In this article, we offer a comprehensive leaf blower buying guide that covers just about everything that one needs to know about buying such equipment. Such information ought to prove useful for finding the perfect leaf blower to suit one’s needs and preferences.
A Good Look at The Various Types of Leaf Blowers on The Market
Leaf blowers come in various types, and while they all fulfill the same purpose (to blow leaves), they differ enough that you might want to choose one type over the other.
Handheld Leaf Blowers
Backpack Leaf Blowers
Do you need a bit more power than a handheld unit offers but do not want to sacrifice maneuverability too much? If so, then a backpack unit might be the best leaf blower for you. These units are perfect for workshops, garages and large fields that require extended run time. More importantly, a backpack leaf blower is powerful enough to blow rocks, wet leaves and small pieces of wood and metal debris.
Walk Behind Leaf Blowers
These are the largest among the kinds of leaf blowers on the market and has plenty of blowing power to bear allowing you to complete cleaning jobs quickly with a lot less effort. Walk behind units are the kind of leaf blowers you typically see being used by professional cleaning services. These are powerful enough to blow away large pieces of wood, heavy cardboard and other large rubbish.
Other Factors That Must be Considered Before Buying a New Leaf Blower
Noise Levels
How much noise a particular leaf blower generates is often one of the things that people overlook when buying a new unit. This is rather unfortunate and can lead to many problems such as noise complaints or disputes among neighbors simply because one used an overly powerful (and noisier) unit when a small and quieter one would suffice.
A good rule of thumb for buying leaf blowers for residential use is that the quieter it is, the better. After all, you do not want the neighborhood police showing up every time you try to blow off some leaves and dust on your lawn.
Remember These Two Things:
- Electric units are quieter than their gas operated counterparts
- Bigger motor equals more noise
How Much Power Do You Need?
Perhaps the most significant factor in this Leaf Blower Buying Guide is the amount of power a particular unit has to offer. To determine the latter, you need to check its’ specifications and find a good balance between two things:
- Cubic-feet-per-minute (CFM)
- miles-per-hour (MPH)
Now you might think that high MPH means that a particular unit is more powerful than the other which is not necessarily the case. Yes, a high MPH means that leaves will be flying out off nozzle much quicker, but that will not do you much good if you have much ground to cover. Hence it would be best if you also considered the CFM which refers to the volume of air coming out of the blower. Likewise, a leaf blower that has high CFM but no enough MPH won’t be able to blow away leaves and debris to a reasonable distance.
Simply put, you need a good balance between both values to get a particular job done quickly and efficiently.
What Power Source Does a Leaf Blower Use?
Last but not least on the list of factors that one needs to consider in buying the right leaf blower is the type of power source a particular unit runs on. This is particularly important and weighs heavily into one’s decision on which leaf blower to get.
There are three general types of power sources to choose from — battery, power cord, and gas. Each type has its’ own pros and cons and can be the best leaf blower of choice depending on the situation.
Let Us Take a Good Look at These Power Sources in Detail
Battery-powered Leaf Blowers
If you are looking to buy a leaf blower for the first time and do not foresee any heavy duty use, then you cannot go wrong with a battery-operated unit. Most of these blowers use standard batteries or compatible with battery packs from other power tools you may already have in the house such as a cordless drill, flashlights and battery-powered screwdrivers.
Another advantage with battery-operated leaf blowers is that they are a lot simpler to use whereas gas units can be quite intimidating. With the former, the operation is as simple as slotting in the battery and pulling the trigger/button. Also, as such a unit uses an electric motor, there is hardly anything to worry about in terms of maintenance save for the occasional cleaning which is always a boon for first-time users.
One disadvantage though is that batteries only provide a limited operating time which makes it unsuitable for large jobs. Unless of course, you do not mind pausing for a few hours once in a while to recharge the batteries or invest in multiple power packs.
Again, if you have never used a leaf blower before and not particularly keen on having to operate a sizeable gas-operated unit, then a battery-powered leaf blower is often the better choice.
Corded Leaf Blowers
If a battery-powered unit does not appeal to you and would still prefer a leaf blower with an electric motor, then a corded leaf blower offers a good compromise between power and functionality. You can think of the latter as a good alternative for battery and gas-powered units. You get more power than a battery-powered unit offers while avoiding the hassles of using a gas-operated unit.
The downside to corded leaf blower unit though is just that — it is corded. While it is still reasonably light and maneuverable, the cord can snag and twist as well as limit you in operating over a particular area that is within range of a power outlet. Still, if you do not see yourself having to use a leaf blower outside your lawn, then a corded unit will more than suffice.
Gas-operated Leaf Blowers
While gas-powered leaf blowers do tend to be bulky and intimidating, they are also strictly the most effective when you consider the job at hand. If you are familiar with gas-operated machinery or have no trouble using one, then there is no reason not to pick this one up.
As you have probably realized, a gas-powered leaf blower is more powerful than both of its’ counterparts combined but do require some maintenance to keep them in good condition. Also, they tend to be the loudest which is why you don’t typically see them being used around homes.
One thing that people need to know about gas-operated blowers is that they also require an excellent ratio between oil and gas to use correctly. The oil is necessary because it lubricates the moving parts during and after use. For this reason, the gas-oil ratio must remain consistent regardless of how much fuel you have in the tank. Fortunately, you do not have to process the fuel yourself as there are premixed fuel canisters that you can buy which takes care of all guesswork for you.
Alternatively, there are oil-free gas-operated leaf blowers in the market that requires gas to operate although these tend to be more expensive.
Additional Accessories and Features
Leaf blowers also come with various accessories such as leaf bags, gutter tips, and interchangeable blower heads. These accessories/attachments can help make cleaning jobs more manageable. Hence it is also a good idea to choose a unit that comes with a generous amount of accessories even when it is not readily apparent to you what they are for. As the old saying goes — it is better to have something and not need it rather than need it and not have it.
An excellent example of how such accessories can be useful for you is the vacuum and mulcher attachment. Both are handy for repurposing fallen leaves into compost pits for your garden. Some attachments also slightly increase MPH and CFM allowing you to blow away debris like snow and sawdust with relative ease.
Conclusion
Leaf blowers are some of the most critical outdoor equipment that you can buy and certainly deserves a great deal of thought. We hope that this Leaf Blower Buying Guide proves useful in this regard and serve as a good jump off point for finding the one that perfectly suits your needs and situation.