BRUSH CUTTER BUYING GUIDE
To maintain a beautiful lawn nowadays is not an easy job. The owner needs to continuously look after the lawn, provide it with proper fertilizer and seeds, and regular mowing and cleaning up the lawn is necessary. Landscaping is a very demanding process and it requires appropriate use of the tools. One of the tools used on a day-to-day basis on the lawn is brush cutters and trimmers.
Brush cutters are versatile and are used for multiple purposes like cutting the overgrown grass, getting rid of the weeds, cutting the woods, pruning the shrubs and grasses, and much more. Brush cutters come with shafts that make them easy to use and a rotating head with adjustable and frequently changeable blades. In the following section we are going to talk about:
•Need of brush cutters.
•Factors to look at before buying a brush cutter.
•Types of brush cutters available in the market.
•Safety measures while using brush cutters.
•NEED OF BRUSH CUTTERS
Brush cutters are used on a regular basis now as mentioned above for pruning the shrubs in the lawn, cutting the tall grass, and getting rid of the unwanted lawn weeds. To maintain a healthy lawn, brush cutters are often used to make the lawn weed-free and prevent the competition between weeds and lawn grass for common nutrients and water.
Inconsistent use of brush cutters in your lawn will make your lawn look dull and deprive the health of the grass in the lawn. Brush cutting is also important for proper assimilation of fertilizer in the soil and to harvest the grass.
Brush cutter buying guide
FACTORS TO LOOK AT BEFORE BUYING A BRUSH CUTTER:
•MATERIAL: material of the brush cutter should be lightweight, can be of steel or any other lightweight metal to make it easy for the handler to use it efficiently. Heavyweight material makes the task a bit tedious for the holder and consumes a lot more energy and time.
•AREA: Choose the brush cutter according to the area of your lawn. Handheld brush cutters are suitable for small-sized lawns whereas tow behind brush cutters are best for large lawns.
•NOISE RESTRICTION: Before buying a brush cutter always analyze your surroundings. Buy electric brush cutters for noise-sensitive areas like hospitals and schools other than that you can go for any type of brush cutters.
•POWER OF CUTTER: More power consumption by the brush cutters doesn’t correlate to its ability to work. So don’t buy a very high-power-consuming brush cutter in the misapprehension of more output.
•SIZE OF BLADE: the size of the blade is one of the important aspects of buying a brush cutter. Usually, changeable blades come with brush cutters.
3 prong and 4 tooth blades are suitable for light vegetation and dry grass respectively. 8 tooth blades efficiently work on heavy vegetation and groom your lawn. Whereas 40 tooth blades are suitable for knotty bushes, shrubs, vines, and saplings.
•QUALITY OF SHAFT: since brush cutters require manual efforts the well-padded shaft of the brush cutter is necessary for easy handling and smooth work. Some brush cutters also come with a supported pad to attach the cutter to your body which reduces the stress on your back and hand while working.
•VARIABLE HEAD ATTACHMENT: it’s very important to look for a brush cutter with a flexible head attachment in which it is easy to change blades according to the need of your lawn. Since the conditions of the lawn are not ideal every time though it becomes easy to landscape and grooms your lawn with appropriate blade structure fixed into your brush cutter rotating head.
•TYPES OF BRUSH CUTTERS: Brush cutter buying guide
•CURVED SHAFT BRUSH CUTTER:
Curved shaft brush cutters are made up of lightweight steel and are handy for the holder thus, being easy to use. It is quite simplified and has an on-off switch for its working. It consists of an easy start engine and gives a fine cut to your grass and helps to get rid of weeds in your lawn. Curved shaft brush cutters are suitable for urban settings like flower beds, sidewalks, or for grooming your driveway.
•HANDHELD BRUSH CUTTER: handheld brush cutters use manual control and work on the engine to cut the grass. They are suitable for small lawns with slight vegetation and flat line grass. The use of nylon rope on the adjustable head of the cutter gives high efficiency in work even in the sloppy or obstacle-filled pathway. The handheld brush cutters are easy to use and are always provided with a pad to hold it with the support of your arm and back to reduce the stress on your body from the long use of it.
•WALK BEHIND BRUSH CUTTERS: they are larger in size than handheld brush cutters and are easy to use and suitable for medium-sized lawns with moderate vegetation. It can also be used for dry grasses. Use of it gives a sharp and fine cut to the grass and reduces the stress on the lawn by removing all kinds of weeds.
•STRAIGHT SHAFT BRUSH CUTTER: straight shaft brush cutters are suitable for rural large yards and are more efficient than the curved shaft cutter. They work best for tall grass and vegetation and give a fine trimming to the lawn. It comes with a steel body and auto-cut head which makes it easy and efficient to use.
•CORDLESS ELECTRIC BRUSH CUTTERS: the use of electricity rather than fuel to run the brush cutter engine makes it eco-friendly. Plus it can be used in noise-sensitive areas like hospitals and schools. But it can only be used for small areas with slight vegetation and it doesn’t provide much output in a short span of time.
•TWO-STROKE ENGINE: They are called 2 stroke engines because to complete one power cycle they take 2 cycles of decompression and combustion. Two strokes are made of lightweight aluminum.
It is mainly a petrol engine and consumes less oil than a four-stroke engine and works more efficiently than it. The blades rotate at the rate of 1000 Rpm in two-stroke engines. It weighs up to 7-8 kg and produces less vibration. It’s easy to use and handy thus, brush cutters running on two-stroke engines are more efficient and cover large areas in less time. They are more suitable for lawns with light vegetation.
•FOUR STROKE ENGINE: To complete one power cycle the engine takes 4 cycles of decompression and combustion thus called a four-stroke engine. Brush cutters working on this type of engine model are heavy weighted and a little difficult to use. A four-stroke engine consumes more oil of about 900-1000ml than a two-stroke engine which consumes approximately 600 ml of oil. Despite the difference in oil consumption, the speed of the four-stroke engine is 600-700 Rpm less than the two-stroke engine. They are suitable for large yards and heavy vegetation.
After comparing the respective pros and cons of the engine models it can be concluded that two-stroke engines are more efficient than four-stroke engines and provide much better output in less span of time. As two-stroke engines brush cutters can be used from confined to open spaces and are easy to handle and transport. They are more affordable as they consume less oil and petrol. Thus investing in brush cutters working on two-stroke engines is a good option for the long run.
•SAFETY MEASURE WHILE USING BRUSH CUTTERS:
•Cover your eyes with glasses to prevent the grass clippings from entering and damaging your eyes.
•Wear a helmet or cap to protect yourself from the scorching sun and blades.
•Wear an earpiece to protect your ears from the harsh and high-frequency noise of brush cutters.
•Use of hand gloves for handling brush cutters is also advisable.
•Wear shoes to protect your body from the sharp blades of cutters.
•Cover your whole body with clothes to protect your body from the tool.
The process of grooming your lawn with brush cutters is a necessity today. Not only for the look of your lawn but for the sake of its health. The use of brush cutters equalizes the height and length of the grasses in the lawn along with removing the weeds and assimilating the fertilizer in the yard. Thus, it is advisable to trim your lawn at least once a week.
I hope the aforementioned tips on the brush cutter buying guide will guide you to buy a brush cutter according to the requirements of your lawn.