Gas-powered mowers remain the No. 1 choice among homeowners, accounting for four out of every five mowers sold in theUnited States, according to The Stevenson Company, a leading consumer research organization. Lawn care experts say they aren't surprised because gas mowers give consumers so many choices when it comes to power, price and options—something they don't get with electric and battery-powered mowers, which are mainly an option for homeowners with small yards.

"Gas mowers provide a range of power to reliably mow any size yard and even tall, thick grass," explains Rick Zeckmeister, a vice president at Briggs & Stratton Corporation, which engineers and manufactures gas engines for outdoor power equipment.

Today's gas-powered lawn mowers, he points out, are also in tune with today's environmentally conscious lifestyles. Since 1995, Briggs & Stratton has reduced carbon emissions produced by its gas engines by 75 percent. According to EPA statistics, all gas-powered outdoor power equipment combined accounts for less than half a percent of all carbon emissions in theU.S.(Greenhouse Gas Emissions from the U.S. Transportation Sector 1990?2003, Office of Transportation and Air Quality, EPA 420 R06 003, March 2006). Based on EPA statistics, if a family replaced a single 75-watt incandescent lightbulb with an equivalent compact fluorescent bulb in their home, it would more than offset the carbon emissions from using a gas walk-behind mower for an entire mowing season.

"Gas mowers have improved dramatically over the years in every way," says Zeckmeister. "It would be like comparing a television from the 1990s to a new flat- screen LCD TV you would buy today."

Other innovations and benefits of the newest gas mowers include:

• Easy starting, with a single pull of the starter rope or the push of a button, like in the newest cars;

• Improved fuel efficiency and advanced muffler systems that produce a more pleasant sound quality and less vibration;

• Ample engine power to mulch grass clippings while mowing, turning them into a natural fertilizer for the lawn;

• A variety of options to make mowing easier, from mowers that automatically adjust to the walking pace of the person mowing to digital dashboards that show the time, fuel level, maintenance reminders and other information.

Reviews say the two-stage Troy-Bilt 3090 XP snow blower has enough muscle to plow though piles of snow. Features include one-handed operation and a four-cycle engine. It has nice extras such as heated handgrips, aexpandheadlight and a 30-inch clearing path. With power steering and six speeds, the Troy-Bilt Storm is easy to maneuver, even though it weighs 370 pounds. If you have a long or sloping driveway, reviewers say the Troy-Bilt Storm is worth the money. It's overkill for smaller drives and/or moderate snowfalls, however. Note that this is essentially the same model as the Craftsman 88830; both are manufactured by MTD.

26" Two-Stage, 208cc OHV Engine, 6/2 Speed, 16" Tires, 21" Intake Height, Electric Start, Light

Description

Product No: TB-Storm2620 - Made by: Troy-Bilt - Manufacturer Part No: 31BM63P3766 - Overhead Valve Design - Electric Start: 110 Volt Starter - Shipping Weight: 215 Pounds - Condition: New - Warranty: 2-Year Manufacturer's Warranty -

Reviews

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Troy Bilt Snow Blower 28 Model Storm 9528 Used Twice
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TWO STAGE SNOW THROWER BLOWER CAB fits Troy Bilt Storm 9528
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Reviewers at ConsumerSearch.com judged Toro Power Clear to be the best single-stage gas snow blower. Here is some of what they had to say.
For moderate snowfalls of less than 8 inches on flat, paved driveways, a single-stage gas snow blower such as the Toro Power Clear 210R is your best bet. You could instead opt for a low-end, two-stage blower like theexpandCraftsman 88957 (*Est. $600), but it weighs twice as much (190 pounds compared to 73 pounds for the Toro) and can't clear snow right down to the pavement. For $60 more, the Power Clear 210 is available with an electric starter, sold as the 210ES (*Est. $560). Both Toro snow blowers have a 21-inch clearing path and a throwing distance of up to 30 feet, but no headlight. The rubber auger actually scrapes the pavement and helps propel the Toro Power Clear forward so it's easy to push.

Toro Power Clear 621QZE (21") 163cc 4-Cycle Single Stage Snow Blower w/ Electric Start, Zip & Quick Shoot - 38459

Description

Toro 163cc 4-Cycle OHV Engine Packs enough power to move more snow in less time Dependable cold weather starts 120 Volt Electric Start w/Recoil Back-Up Plug it in, push a button and start clearing snow

Features

• Toro Premium 163cc 4-cycle OHV engine21" clearing width and up to 35' throwing distance
• Electric start - no need to pull on a rope to start
• Ideally used to clear 3-9" of snow at a time on a driveway that can park up to 8 cars

Reviews

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117 7717 Toro Power Clear 180 Snowblower Power Clear Scraper
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After a season of record snowfalls and lengthy cold spells in many parts of the country, homeowners are finding their houses and landscapes unusually battered. Blizzards, wind and errant snowplows have conspired to make this spring one of long recovery, leading to an early sales uptick for the yard and home-repair industry.

"Many people will see the worst lawn this spring and summer in the history of their lives," says Jackson Madnick, founder of Wayland, Mass.- based Pearl's Premium Inc., which packages and sells its own grass-seed blend. Looking at ornamental-plant damage over the past 15 years, this winter ranks in the "top five," says Doug Erickson, an arborist with Bedford Hills, N.Y.-based landscape service SavATree.

Resuscitate the Lawn
Before regular spring fertilizing and thatch removal, watch out for snow mold, a fungal disease appearing in circular patches of pink, gray or white hues. It takes hold after extended periods of snow cover, sometimes on grass left unmowed or buried under leaves before winter set in.

"The first thing I'd do is rake up any matted leaves and any patches of grass that have a bleached-out look and are stuck together," says Ashton Ritchie, lawn and horticultural expert and spokesman for Scotts Miracle-Gro Inc. "You want to break that up to expose the crown of the grass plant to sunlight." The first mow, he adds, shouldn't be a "scalp" job but rather set the mower no more than one notch lower than regular mowing height. Turf suffering the double whammy of last summer's drought followed by heavy snow may require the laying of new grass seed on top of existing grass—known as over-seeding, says Mr. Madnick of Pearl's Premium.

"Many lawns may be weakened and susceptible to bugs, mold and other problems."
At Andrew Gadaleta's home in Elkins Park, Pa., 1,500 square feet of lawn were wiped out by drainage from melting snow. He's using Snow Joe LLC's "Tiller Joe" electric garden tiller to rework topsoil with compost and reseed the area. Sales of the company's tillers are up 33% so far this year.

A Shrub Pick-Me-Up
Calls for help with bent, broken or misshapen plants are already pouring in to Arlington, Mass., landscape designer Laura Kuhn. "The snow came so early and there was so much that people couldn't make it out to shake the snow off the plant and are calling me guiltily," she says. Frequent plowing wrecked shrubs and grass near driveways too.
First step: triage. Ms. Kuhn recommends pruning broken limbs flush to the branch's collar as soon as possible. If limbs are cracked or twisted, they might be salvaged using small hardware such as a carriage bolt to draw them back together, says Mr. Erickson of SavATree.

For shrubs like boxwoods misshapen from the weight of ice and snow, he advises temporarily tying plants together with twine or rope made from jute fiber, or propping them up for the season with the crotch of another fallen branch. Those victim to what gardeners call girdling, when winter-starved animals chew off a ring of bark where the plant peeks above the snow, may require replacement.
Be patient with plants like rhododendrons with brown leaves, Ms. Kuhn says. "Don't start hacking. Wait to see if buds will break in a few weeks."

Piling several inches of compost, topsoil, mulch or straw around plants can help stabilize their soil from melting runoff, says Susan Murphy, a landscape designer in Weston, Wisc.
Think about next winter now. Record where snow gets piled from shoveling and reevaluate if plants are in the right spot.

Tools to Help Heal the Garden's Scars
1. Structured Solutions Leaf Loader, $29.95: Four-foot-wide funnel for channelling raked leaves into bags.
2. Neuton Lithium Pole Pruner,$179: Cuts up to 6" diameter limbs left torn or dangling overhead by storms. Interlocking rustproof fiberglass sections reach up to 14'. Its 18V lithium ion battery can be swapped with other tools.
3. Cub Cadet Chipper Shredder Vacuum, $499: Gasoline-powered machine works like a vacuum to chip and shred wood and other lawn debris.
4. True Temper True American steel-tine rake, $10: Steel-tine rakes are recommended by grass pros for gentle cleanup of lawn debris.
5. Black & Decker battery chain saw, $203: Easy-to-start chain saw for cutting limbs up to 7" or 8". Runs off 20V lithium-ion battery.
6. Troy-Bilt Electric Cultivator, $199.99: Used to prepare garden beds, this tool also works for lawn repair—smoothing out snow-plow damage or prepping bare spots for new seed.

• The first step is to evaluate your present situation for using a mini electric tiller. Electric mini tillers can easily be switched on with the simple press of a button, and they are essentially quiet and clean. The most essential thing on what to look for in a mini tiller is whether you want it to work through an electric cord or through battery operation. If you decide on buying a tiller which uses a power cord, you must choose a cord lengthy enough to reach your garden and yard area. In some cases, you will be obliged to purchase an extension cord in order to move around your garden.

• Next, evaluate all the advantages of using a gas powered mini tiller. Gas tillers have an invariably greater power compared to electric tillers; however, these types of tillers are louder and are not clean running. They are somewhat similar to gas-operated lawn mowers. These gas-operated tillers are of two different types. They can either be a 2-cycle tiller or a 4-cycle tiller. A 2-cycle tiller necessitates that you combine a proportional amount of gas and oil. The 4-cycle tiller only needs gas and is typically a bit easier to operate. It also runs at a lower RPM than the 2-cycle tiller.

• Considered as one of the most important things on what to look for in a mini tiller is the tiller’s wheels. Make sure that the wheels of the tiller are durable enough for free movement. You will find it easier to move around when you try to purchase a tiller with bigger wheels.

• Also check if the tiller is basically designed with a lift handle. This will allow you to carry and transport your tiller more easily.

• Lastly, try to consider the necessity in getting a drag stake. The drag stake will be the primary equipment that will dig down into the soil and will provide you a greater control as you move your tiller around your garden area. However, if you are into a light busting, a drag stake is unnecessary.
A mini tiller can be a great asset to any gardener. They are easy to maneuver and easy to store because of their small size. Mini tillers are perfect for small yards and for working around shrubs and plants.

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