Mowing season is upon us, folks! I know some people enjoy it.
I’m not one of those people.
Growing up, my folks had 5 acres. As myself and each of my siblings got old enough, we would mow it all.
I’m done with big yards.
Karl is too.
Which is why we want a small plot of land in our first home.
In preparation for (hopefully) moving soon, Karl has been researching mowers for a long time, but was inspired by one of his fave blogs, Art of Manliness to look into push mowers [the article is called “In Praise of the Push Reel Mower” for those interested in reading it].
Why a push mower?
For starters, it’s quiet. The first time Karl used the Fiskar, he came back smiling and saying how peaceful it had been, and promptly showed me a picture he’d taken of a bee on a nearby flower that he had been mowing near. I’ve been in the yard with him while he’s mowing and we can chat – kind of crazy sounding, right?
It’s a pleasurable experience to mow, something neither of us can recall mowing ever being before.
It’s a money-saver. Psssh, buying fuel or charging with electric to simply mow our lawn? Our ancestors would be shaking their heads at us.
The push mower itself is inexpensive as well – the best price I’ve found for it is on Amazon for $190, free s/h. [note: affiliate link] Or do what we did: good ‘ol Craigslist! I found a nearby seller who had used it only twice whom we bought it from for $150. Nice!
Bonus: Want exercise and muscles? Buy this instead of exercise equipment.
There. You just saved money in three ways already.
Push mowers are like taking snipping shears across your lawn, allowing the grass to grow in a healthy manner, and also giving your lawn a nice manicured look.
Lastly, push mowers are much safer. Ever catch a rock and the mower chucks it at major league baseball speeds? We’ve had siding from 50 ft away get punctured by such a scenario. Imagine if someone had been standing there? Yikes. Then add in the hot motor to burn yourself on and the continuously spinning blades even when you’re standing still.
No motor on a push mower, and the blades stop when you stop. You would have to run right over a person to actually catch them with the blades with a push mower.
Why the Fiskar mower?
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| adjustable height, from 1-4″ |
It trims very well and has different settings for how high or low you want to cut your grass. Unlike a lot of push mowers, it also allows you to cut right up against edges of walls.
Is a push mower for everybody?
To put it simply: no.
If you have a yard that’s more than half an acre, you’ll probably want to get a bigger mower.
Is your yard crazily uneven or rocky? Then a push mower may not be your best bet. You’ll have a harder time moving it across your lawn, especially if you like cutting your grass very short. See the video here for a little demo of cutting it very short on uneven ground:
Although, if you ever wanted an excuse to redo your lawn so that it is flattened and smooth, this would be a good excuse.
Overall we’re glad we have a push mower. I’d say to really look into them if you’re interested and go for it!
Shared On: fromdreamtoreality, hitmewithyourbestshot
