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Battery powered brushcutter?

NollieNollie Posts: 7,529
in Tools and techniques
I have started the immense task of clearing overgrown land covered with brambles, tree seedlings etc., but my little florabest strimmer is too slow and not really up to the task so I need to upgrade! A couple of handy guys with professional petrol blade strimmers did it 18 months ago but it’s back to wilderness and I can’t afford their cost this year.

I’m quite a little guy so am wondering if anyone has tried the Ego battery-powered brushcutter with blade and whether it’s as light and good as they claim or if there is anything else comparable? With a decent battery and charger it’s a big investment at around £530. Is it worth it?

The alternative is a smaller, lighter petrol cutter, any recommendations?
Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
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  • KT53KT53 Posts: 9,016
    With that level of expenditure I'd want to see it in operation before spending.  Is there a garden machinery specialist in the area where you could see it in use?  Alternatively, bite the bullet and get the men and petrol brush cutters back in once more to get the area under control and then blitz with weedkiller when it starts to regrow.
    Just looking at UK price of £270, does an additional battery and charger really double the price?
    The big benefit of battery over petrol is that it won't require regular servicing.  Unless you can do the servicing yourself you may find that any initial cost saving with a petrol model is eaten up by servicing costs in just a couple of years.
  • CebeCebe Posts: 61
    I don’t have the brushcutter, but I do have an Ego strimmer. I like it, although it’s quite a bit heavier than I expected - I haven’t used a petrol strimmer, so I can’t compare the weight. I have the regular battery & charger and I find it charges quickly (about 30-45 mins from empty) and holds its charge well when not in use. It seems well made - I’ve had it about 18 months and it tackles fairly tough weeds well. Obviously it’s not tough enough for what you want, the bladed brushcutter sounds good, bear in mind that for brambles you will probably need something stronger than a lightweight petrol cutter
  • NollieNollie Posts: 7,529
    It was the lack of servicing that appealed and would love to see it in action KT53 (not sold in Spain, so far as I can find) hence wondering if anyone has tried one. I watched a NZ guy test it on YouTube but he only appeared to be cutting long grass, not brush. Men with strimmers cost around €1,000 which I don’t have, but an internet credit card purchase on the other hand...

    It’s lovely oak woodland, gorgeous wildflowers emerged post-strimming last time, so I wouldn’t want to use any weed killer. I am legally obliged to keep it strimmed for fire prevention.

    The base cost of the Ego does include a harness and the metal blade (interchangeable with the string trimmer) but excludes any battery or charger. According to NZ guy, the 5ah battery gives you about 40 minutes run time and about the same to recharge with the infinity charger - his came as a bundle, but see sample UK costs below:


    Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
  • glasgowdanglasgowdan Posts: 632
    There's hardly any difference in weight between petrol and battery tools, but once you have the battery you can use it in a mower, hedge trimmer etc and those units will be cheapish to buy. The trimmer doesn't have top end power but possibly enough for you. Best alternative would be buy a used petrol machine in the 35-40cc range. 
  • raisingirlraisingirl Posts: 7,093
    Are you able to hire that sort of thing over there? I'd be tempted to hire a petrol one for a week and see if you can manage it, if that is an option. I have a battery strimmer which is excellent and as GDan says, the batteries are swapable from OH's power drills and the like (same make). But I doubt it would have the oomph for brushcutting for very much time. A lot of the battery lawnmowers use two batteries.
    Gardening on the edge of Exmoor, in Devon

    “It's still magic even if you know how it's done.” 
  • NollieNollie Posts: 7,529
    Thanks for your input everyone, hmm, so if there is not much weight difference between the Ego (and I have just checked the battery weight and with that added in, it does seem to equal out) and a petrol one, the only advantage is the convenience factor of not servicing, faff of starting, refuelling etc. There is no immediate advantage for using battery with other tools for me just now as I already have the other tools in various brands. Huge difference in price for that no faff convenience though!

    I think I will do as you suggest raisingirl and see if I can hire a petrol one to try out. I definitely need the metal blade as a string one is not tough enough for the saplings and tough brambles that spring up everywhere.  Second hand market is not well developed here, either, everyone hangs on to tools and cars until they drop!
    Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
  • KT53KT53 Posts: 9,016
    Nollie said:
     Men with strimmers cost around €1,000 which I don’t have, but an internet credit card purchase on the other hand...

    Just another bit of lateral thinking after being shocked at the cost of men with strimmers!  Could you hire a petrol brushcutter yourself to get it all back under control and then use the battery powered version to keep it down?  My concern is that a battery powered brush cutter may not have the power to cut through thick brambles and other harder weeds.
  • NollieNollie Posts: 7,529
    Thanks for the additional thought KT53, I should have said, the woodland is about 2 acres - took beefy guys with hefty strimmers 70 man hours to do @ €15 an hour. Might be all too much for me and my florabest battery strimmer to keep under control afterwards, so I suspect I will end up buying a metal blade one (battery or otherwise) in the end. But will try to hire a petrol strimmer first and see how I get on.
    Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
  • KT53KT53 Posts: 9,016
    I can now understand the issue and the costs. :) I assumed it was just a large overgrown garden.  It's going to be a mammoth task for you to get it back under control and it will need a metal bladed brushcutter rather than nylon line strimmer to get it there.  Heavy duty strimmer might keep it under control but it's likely to be a never ending job.
    Another bit of lateral thinking for once it's been cut back, if you are in a rural area might you be able to find somebody who could supply a couple of goats occasionally to chomp the new growth back?
  • ButtercupdaysButtercupdays Posts: 4,546
    Countryfile last night featured a slot from Spain, about keeping pigs in oak woodland. Trees give pigs shade protection, pigs give trees manure, trees give pigs acorns and leaves in autumn and pigs give owners cash, when sold for meat. Wins all round!

    Maybe you could subdivide your woodland and alternate some animals and still keep some wildflowers.Pigs would dig some up perhaps, but goats would stand on their back legs to eat the leaves and strip the bark from the trees, at least the young ones. if you only had a few though, it would minimise damage.
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