Electric lawn mower diy. 17 Creative Lawn Mower Storage Ideas to DIY or Buy

Creative Lawn Mower Storage Ideas [to DIY or Buy]

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Are you tired of tripping over the lawn mower in your cluttered garage? Perhaps your riding mower spends its off-days outdoors? Then you need some creative lawn mower storage ideas that will free up floor space and protect your push or riding mower from the elements!

You can buy a prefabricated storage solution or create a bespoke DIY space for your lawn mower. Either way, we’ve compiled a selection of creative lawn mower storage ideas to suit any budget. Let’s shed some light!

What’s Inside

• 1. DIY a Rustic Wood Shed for Your Riding Lawn Mower
• 2. Lawn Mower Storage using a DIY Electric Garage Lift
• 3. DIY Lean-To Carport for a Riding Mower
• 4. DIY Over-Car Trolley Table for a Push Lawn Mower
• 5. DIY a Manual Lift Platform for a Push Mower
• 6. DIY Pallet Goat Shed for a Riding Mower
• 7. DIY Three-Wall Mower Shed on Trolley Wheels
• 8. Make a Tarp Cover for Your Lawn Mower
• 9. Buy a Small Yard Tent for a Push Lawn Mower
• 10. Hang an Electric Lawn Mower on Hooks
• 11. Buy a Lawn Mower Cover
• 12. Buy a Resin Shed for a Small Riding Mower
• 13. Buy a Large Tarp Storage Box for a Push Mower
• 14. Buy an Overhead Garage Mower Storage Rack
• 15. Buy an Overhead Pulley Hoist
• 16. Buy a Large Tent Shed for a Riding Mower
• 17. DIY Pallet Barn for a Riding Mower

Creative Lawn Mower Storage Ideas [to DIY or Buy]

A riding or push lawn mower can be safely stored using a creative DIY storage idea or a store-bought product. Lawnmowers vary in size, but all require protection from UV rays, rain, snow, and dust while in storage to ensure component longevity and engine health when mowing season returns.

The cool thing about lawnmowers is they’re rugged machines requiring only crude servicing and storage when not used.

And better yet, all materials get employed when creating the ideal storage solution for your lawn mower. No matter the space limitations of your garage or yard!

• You can use wood and repurposed materials to make a lawn mower storage shed, DIY a clever garage space-saver, or fashion a suitably sized waterproof cover to pull over your grass cutter.
• If a factory-produced mower storage solution is what you’re looking for, there are several products you can buyfrom a store that enables you to house your lawn mower in safety and style, indoors or outdoors.

But which lawnmower storage ideas are best for you? We have 17 bright lawn mower storage ideas for you to consider.

DIY a Rustic Wood Shed for Your Riding Lawn Mower

Here’s a sassy idea for a small garage and a lightweight lawn mower – a wooden table on castor wheels that acts as a storage table above the hood of your automobile!

You can construct this versatile piece of garage furniture. You only need DIY woodwork skills, four-by-four timber, plywood, and castor wheels with brakes. It can safely store your mower (you will have to lift the lawnmower onto the tabletop), plus other gardening and DIY equipment.

DIY a Manual Lift Platform for a Push Mower

Getting your push mower off the garage floor using a manual pulley-operated lift platform will bring a touch of ingenuity to your garage ergonomics. And save your toes from those annoying mower stubs!

• The lift design is ideal for a wee push lawn mower, using a simple timber platform and a traditional rope and pulley setup.
• A trailer winch does the heavy lifting while heavy-duty hooks keep the lawn mower lift securely level and safely aloft.

The design from instructibles.com is a perfect educationalDIY project for parents and kids.

DIY Pallet Goat Shed for a Riding Mower

Here’s a clever, low-budget, easy-to-DIY storage solution that combines your existing bricks and mortar structures (walls and driveway). It’s a three-walled wooden shed on castor wheels with a roof, perfect for riding and pushing lawnmowers. The original design is to shelter a motorcycle, but the proportions can get tweaked to suit your lawn mower.

• Pallet wood and two-by-two lumber will make the frame and wall.
• The roof could get made from various materials. Consider weatherproofed wood pieces, tin, plastic, or polycarbonate sheets.

The castor wheels on the base of the shed allow you to move the shed away from the fourth wall (house or garage), making the mower parking procedure a breeze!

Make a Tarp Cover for Your Lawn Mower

A budget-friendly barn idea is a homesteader’s dream! Here’s one using pallets – a proper high-roof home for lawnmowers of all sizes. And then some!

This wood shed can get constructed for less than 500 using free pallets for the frame, plywood for the cladding, two-by-six boards for the double doors, and corrugated iron sheets for the roof.

• The shed is secured to the earth at each corner using concrete footers, with rebar and steel bands embedded in concretedholes tied to the corner posts of the 10’ x 10’ structure.

A lick of paint and a gravel floor round off a surprisingly aesthetic shed – perfect for horsepower!

Creative Lawn Mower Storage Ideas – FAQs

Choosing the best place to store your lawn mower is more work than garden enthusiasts think!

We also know you may have further questions. So – we amassed a list of the most critical lawn mower storage FAQs. We hope they help!

Hanging a gas-powered lawn mower upright is not advisable. Fuel and oil could leak onto the storeroom floor or contaminate parts of the mower engine that should be free of gas and oil.

You can safely store a lawn mower outdoors by covering the machine with a tarp or structure to prevent water, dust, and insects from entering the engine and UV rays from perishing the bodywork.

Leaving gas in a lawn mower over winter will result in the gas gumming up, posing a risk to engine components when the mower restarts. Adding a fuel stabilizer to the gas in the lawn mower will prevent gumming.

Do not drain the oil out of the lawn mower for winter. Components inside the engine require lubrication even when the mower is in storage. However, we advise changing the oil as old oil can corrode your lawn mower engine.

Do not leave a lawn mower out in the rain. Moisture entering the air and fuel system will compromise engine lubricity and combustion efficiency. Always cover the mower with waterproof material in wet weather.

A lawn mower can safely store in a basement if the basement is well-ventilated and the mower fuel tank is empty.

It is advisable to run the mower with a fuel stabilizer additive in the fuel tank to coat the engine components with a stabilized fuel coating before draining the remaining fuel from the gas tank. Component longevity will be optimized when the mower engine gets blanketed with stabilized fuel.

A lawn mower battery should be removed from the lawn mower during winter and be connected to a trickle charger to ensure battery health. Sub-zero temperatures destroy lawn mower batteries if uncharged for six weeks or more.

Lawnmowers should get winterized to ensure ongoing engine reliability and component longevity. The key to winterization is keeping the engine components lubricated with oil and a coating of stabilized gas. Ensure the gas tank is empty and the oil tank gets filled to the specified level. Store the mower in a weatherproof but well-ventilated area.

The Best Shed for Lawn Mower Storage!

You’ve now scoped our 17 creative lawn mower storage ideas. But now comes the tricky part! You must decide whether to DIY or buy! Building a mower shed yourself or with friends can save you some cash.

And it can make for a fun outdoor project. If you prefer shopping for a ready-made storage solution for your lawn mower, you’ll reap the benefits a well-made product gives you – peace of mind. And, more important, more time to make hay! (And play in the flower garden!)

Which lawn mower storage idea do you like most?

Or maybe you use a top-secret lawn mower storage method you can share with us?

We’d love to hear from you either way.

Author

Paul writes for a living, about trucks mostly. He lives away from the city and off the road, nurturing his love for all things outdoors –- like tiny house construction, country cooking, bushcraft, woodwork and power tools, alternative energy, and minimalist living. If there’s a way to Do It Yourself, Paul wants to hear about it, and try it out. Then he’ll write about it, and share his story with blog readers around the world. Paul was raised on a South African homestead where he tended two horses, a Jersey cow, and half a mile of split pole fencing. At age 16, he bought a dirt bike, pirated a punk rock compilation, and commenced a blind-rise adventure that continues to this day where words, Wabi-Sabi, cooking, all-terrain tires, and all things to do with canvas and wood are his fodder. His overarching existential question is – “What more does a man need than a cast iron pot and a pair of loose-fitting trousers?” View all posts

Best Electric Lawn Mower 2023 – Battery-Powered Mower Reviews

As the mowing season comes up on the horizon, it’s time to offer our recommendations for the best electric lawn mowers in 2023. Whether your top priorities are for large lawns, small lawns, high value, or something in between, our experts have weighed in on these best battery-powered lawn mower models.

The good news—there are a lot of quality battery-powered lawn mowers to choose from this year!

Don’t see what you’re looking for? Ask in the Комментарии и мнения владельцев below and we’ll let you know what our choice would be!

Considering gas models, too? Check out those in our best lawn mower recommendations!

Best Electric Battery-Powered Lawn Mower Overall

Commercial Pick: Milwaukee M18 Fuel 21-Inch Self-Propelled Lawn Mower

Boasting a monstrous 10 ft-lbs of torque (more than a 200cc gas engine!), Milwaukee’s M18 Fuel self-propelled lawn mower is the strongest battery-powered walk-behind we’ve tested so far. Using a pair of 12.0Ah batteries, it can run up to an hour in light conditions and we ran it for more than 40 minutes when taking off 4 – 6 inches of growth. If there’s a downside, it’s that the drive thumb bar introduces some thumb fatigue, but we were able to adjust our grip to deal with it.

The mower also has a tough build designed to handle professional use while offering the convenience of single-point height adjustments and vertical storage. While there are larger options now available (such as Greenworks’ 82V 30-inch), Milwaukee’s price tag is much easier on your budget.

Price: 1099.00 with two 12.0Ah batteries and a dual-port Rapid charger

Residential Pick: EGO 56V Select Cut XP Self-Propelled Lawn Mower With Speed IQ

The EGO Select Cut mower became an instant favorite of ours with its stacked-blade system and solid performance level to go with its excellent cut quality. EGO stepped it up with the release of the Select Cut XP, taking everything we already loved and stepping up the torque to 8.3 ft-lbs. Now, it’s taking the next evolution by adding Speed IQ.

Speed IQ is a drive system that automatically adjusts with the pace you’re walking. Unlike Toro’s Personal Pace system, this doesn’t use springs and a sensor in the handle arms. In fact, there’s no physical movement we were able to detect at all. Yet EGO’s sensor perfectly adjusted in our tests. Is it magic? No, but there’s some crazy-good engineering in play.

Price: 599.00 bare, 999.00 with a 12.0Ah battery and a Turbo charger

Best Self-Propelled Electric Battery-Powered Lawn Mower

As self-propelled models, our recommendations from Milwaukee and EGO top the charts in this category, too. Here are two more outstanding options for you.

Commercial Pick: Greenworks Commercial 30-Inch Self-Propelled Lawn Mower

At Equip Expo 2022 (formerly GIE), we got our hands on the Greenworks Commercial 30-inch lawn mower. As the first in the 30-inch class for the commercial market, it’s an eye-opener for Pros who have been skeptical of battery power.

As we saw from the 25-inch version, the mower uses two side-by-side blades to achieve its cutting width. Thanks to brushless technology, it cuts with 16,000 fpm blade tip speed, making for clean cuts and efficient bagging/mulching and exceeding the power of a 200cc gas engine.

It’s Smart, too, taking advantage of 4G coverage to provide GPS tracking. On the “why didn’t they do that sooner?” list, it has a reverse function for its independent hub wheel motors.

Price: 1999.00 bare tool, 2999.00 with three 8.0Ah batteries and dual port charger.

Ryobi 40V HP Brushless CrossCut AWD Self-Propelled Lawn Mower

Ryobi crushed it with the development of the 40V HP Brushless CrossCut self-propelled lawn mower, making huge strides over its previous generation of mowers. Matching up very well against EGO’s Select Cut XP, it’s a stacked blade design that offers excellent power and cut quality. Where it has a clear advantage over its competitors is on the side discharge. This mower distributes clippings far better than other battery-powered lawn mowers we’ve tested.

With the upgrade to an all-wheel-drive system, the design team made it selectable so you can run AWD when you need it and just the rear wheels when you don’t. Plus, Ryobi builds this mower in the US using global materials.

Price: 849.00 with two 6.0Ah batteries and a Rapid charger

Toro 60V Stripe Dual-Blade Self-Propelled Lawn Mower

Toro is introducing what is probably the most compelling battery-powered lawn mower for 2023. Using its 60V battery platform for power (there are also gas models), it’s making the jump to a stacked two-blade system similar to EGO’s Select Cut and Ryobi’s CrossCut models. What Toro is doing differently is adding a built-in striping feature, leaving your lawn not with just a clean cut, but also a professional finish.

Price: 629.00 bare, 729.00 with 7.5Ah battery and charger

Best Electric Ride-On Lawn Mower

Commercial Pick: Greenworks Commercial OptimusZ Zero-Turn Lawn Mower

At Equip Expo 2023, it was clear that Pros have more battery-powered ride-on lawn mowers than ever, and more are coming. Greenworks revealed its second generation as it moves from the LithiumZ mowers to the OptimusZ line and embraces a whole-system approach.

With several ride-on and stand-on ZT options up to 60 inches, there’s a wide range for professional crews to build from with the runtime to back up a full day of mowing. Greenworks also unveiled a trailer to support a 100% battery-powered crew, including up to three ride-on/stand-on mowers. Taking it another step further, the team is also working on a version of the OptimusZ that can run with an operator or fully autonomous. We got to see a working prototype at Equip Expo.

Residential Picks

If you’re looking for a residential battery-powered riding mower, there are several really good choices. Of those, two rise above the rest this year.

EGO E-Steer Residential Zero-Turn Lawn Mower

While some will argue EGO’s 54-inch zero-turn is the better option because of its wider deck, the EGO E-Steer is turning heads this year. It has a zero turning radius but uses a steering wheel rather than lap bars for turning. If the traditional lap bar steering system has been keeping you from going to a zero-turn model, it’s a big win.

Even if you’re comfortable with lap bars, there’s still a reason to consider the E-Steer system. EGO shifted the control panel from the side of the mower to the center of the wheel. Now they’re conveniently in front of you where it’s easier to keep an eye on your battery status and make quick adjustments.

Price: 5999.00 with four 12.0Ah batteries and onboard charger (scheduled for May 2023 launch)

Ryobi 80V iDrive Zero-Turn Lawn Mower

Ryobi is also joining the alternative control group this year. These 80V zero-turn lawn mowers feature the iDrive system that uses joystick control. Whether you want to think of it as playing a video game or flying a grass-maintaining fighter jet, it doesn’t take long to get used to.

For its first-generation iDrive models, you have three deck sizes to choose from: 30, 42, or 54 inches. They primarily use a suitcase-style 80V battery that can also be supplemented by 40V batteries to extend your runtime. With performance levels reaching up to that of a 42 HP gas engine, cutting power isn’t a problem.

Price: 5999.00 – 7999.00 ready to mow

Best Cordless Push Lawn Mower

EGO Select Cut Push Lawn Mower

EGO’s Select Cut mowers were the first to introduce a stacked two-blade system to battery-powered lawn mowers. By cutting high first and then following with a lower cut, you get a cleaner finish with finer clippings. EGO packs that performance and a host of convenient design features into an easy-rolling push mower for those of you who don’t want or need a self-propelled model.

Price: 379.00 bare, 649.00 kit with 7.5Ah battery and Rapid charger

Best Cordless Mower for Small Lawns

Skil PWRCore 20 18-Inch Lawn Mower

The joy of a small lawn is that it doesn’t take long to cut and you can go with a smaller mower that takes up less space. A 17 or 18-inch deck is great for that kind of lawn. The good news is, you don’t have to sacrifice all the features of larger mowers to get.

Our top pick is Skil’s PWRCore 20 18-inch lawn mower. It has the benefits of a brushless motor, folds up for vertical storage, and its 20V batteries are compatible with Skil’s entire line of PWRCore 20 lawn and power tools.

Price: 299.00 with two 4.0Ah batteries and a dual-port charger.

Best Electric Lawn Mower for Large Lawns

Ryobi 80V 30-Inch Self-Propelled Lawn Mower

We knew it would take something special to displace Greenworks 60V 25-inch mower as our top choice for large lawns. It’s taken a couple of years, but Ryobi has an 80V 30-inch self-propelled model that’s taking over.

Like the iDrive ride-on mowers, the 30-inch walk-behind uses an 80V suitcase-style battery for power. The brushless motors turn two sets of stacked twin blades, making for a total of four. By going that route, Ryobi keeps the overall blade mass down while achieving the large cutting width, performance, and runtime it needs to make sure you get the job done well.

This one is slated for launch later in the Spring. Check Home Depot for availability.

Best Budget Cordless Lawn Mower

Skil PWRCore 40 20-Inch Self-Propelled Lawn Mower

Here’s the challenge: find a brushless self-propelled lawn mower with a battery and charger for under 400. When it comes to the brands we trust, there aren’t many options.

Skil offers a lot of value with its 20-inch self-propelled lawn mower. Running on the stronger PWRCore 40 line, this brushless mower has excellent all-around performance and cut quality characteristics compared to others in the same price range. If you’re trying to make the switch to battery power on a budget, Skil offers the best value self-propelled lawn mower available.

Price: 399 with 5.0Ah battery and charger

Best Electric Battery-Powered Lawn Mower: Options From Brands We Trust

Best Echo Electric Battery-Powered Lawn Mower

Echo phased out its 58V battery lineup in favor of a completely new 56V eForce line (sorry, the old batteries are not compatible with the new tools) and that includes a new mower, the self-propelled DLM-2100SP. It’s a solid design that presses all the right buttons and makes for a well-rounded machine. It doesn’t challenge the power levels of the top performers, but it doesn’t have their price tags, either.

Price: 449.00 bare, 549.00 with a 5.0Ah battery and charger

Best Greenworks Electric Battery-Powered Lawn Mower

Greenworks has a couple of excellent CrossoverZ battery-powered ride-on lawn mowers to choose from. They use the same 60V batteries that power its other mowers and lawn care equipment (there are 80V versions, too). The design is a very easy transition if you’re switching from a gas mower and you can choose between a zero-turn or lawn tractor design.

Best HART Electric Battery-Powered Lawn Mower

HART stepped up with its SUpercharge 40V brushless self-propelled mower, demonstrating that the brand can make a mower capable of cutting 3/4-acre lawns. The performance level is in the 160cc gas engine class thanks to two active battery ports and the two 6.0Ah batteries included in the kit. Compared to the mowers we’ve used from HART before, this is by far the most capable for those of you holding out for a mid-range gas replacement.

Price: 598.00 with two 6.0Ah batteries and a Rapid charger

Best Husqvarna Electric Battery-Powered Lawn Mower

Husqvarna launched a 20-inch commercial-grade 3-in-1 battery-powered self-propelled lawn mower with an aluminum deck and front bar to protect the battery/motor housing. The W520i notably is compatible with a battery backpack. It doesn’t fit as cleanly as Makita’s ConnectX since you still need to run an adapter into the battery slots, but it does take the weight off of your back and keep you from being tethered. It also has a higher-than-normal cutting range that tops out at 4.5 inches.

Take a look at Husqvarna’s Lawn Xpert mower—a Lowe’s exclusive for 2023!

Best Kobalt Electric Battery-Powered Lawn Mower

Kobalt is quietly still making excellent electric lawn mowers and the 80V line is where its performance peaks. The most recent is a 21-inch rear-wheel-drive system with an upgrade to the handle system that makes folding it forward for vertical storage easier. In addition to its excellent cutting power, Kobalt also makes efficient use of its batteries, running up 60 minutes with a 6.0Ah battery. Plus, its high 4 1/8-inch top cutting height is great for tall grass species and reclaiming neglected areas.

Price: 699.00 with a 6.0Ah battery and charger, 749.00 with two 4.0Ah batteries and charger

Best Makita Electric Battery-Powered Lawn Mower

One of the biggest challenges with any battery-powered electric lawn mower is runtime. Makita put that problem squarely in its crosshairs and developed the ConnectX system. Unlike other designs, the 1200Wh power supply attaches directly to the top of the mower, offering more than 3x the capacity of most cordless mowers and running up to 3 hours continuously.

Similar to the 18V X2 (36V) XML08, the mower tops out at 2800 RPM with a 2300 RPM Quiet Mode and has a true 21-inch steel deck.

Price: 949.00 bare, 1399.00 power supply (2348.00 for both)

Best STIHL Electric Battery-Powered Lawn Mower

STIHL has been a little more cautious in entering the electric lawn mower market and upgraded the line with a couple of self-propelled models. Of the two available, the STIHL RMA 510 V is your top performer. It features a 21-inch steel deck (20-inch blade) with a tougher build than the 460 series and its 3.9-inch top cutting height is appropriate for taller grass species. The one downside is that this model runs through batteries quickly compared to other self-propelled mowers.

Price: 599.99 bare, 749.99 with AP 300 battery and charger

Best Electric Lawn Mower: What We Look For

Power

Brushless motors make testing power much more challenging because of their ability to sense and adjust to the load the blade is experiencing. To gauge it, we cut an overgrown section of grass to a manageable height and follow it up by seeing how short we can cut an even standard height section of grass.

The more effectively a battery-powered lawn mower can reclaim overgrowth and the shorter it can effectively cut a baseline height, the more working power it has.

Runtime

How much runtime an electric lawn mower has is only part of the equation. The best information is how much area you can cut on a charge. We start with a section of grass cut to a standard height and then see how long we can mow on one battery charge as we cut it down to 3 inches.

Once we know that, we calculate the maximum area you should be able to mow without having to stop and recharge.

Cut Quality

We test three basic areas of cut quality: evenness, bagging efficiency, and mulching efficiency.

Evenness is simple enough—we gauge how even the cut is by looking for blades that stick out and areas that may have been cut shorter than intended.

Bagging efficiency is a matter of seeing how much grass is left behind compared to the amount that is collected in the bag.

Mulching efficiency takes in consideration the size of the clippings the mower drops and whether it creates any clumping or trailing.

Build

We consider the quality of the build based on the materials and how well the mower is put together. We’re looking for solid components that will last well beyond the warranty period, a rigid construction, and protection for the electrical components and batteries.

Hills, Slopes, and Uneven Terrain

Sure, it’s Florida and we don’t have many legit hills. But we do have sloped lakesides and ditches to go along with plenty of uneven ground. We drive or push our mowers to see how well they hold wheel traction mowing uphill, downhill, side-to-side, and bumping along.

Features

In addition to any standout features, here’s a list of the standard items we look for:

• Brushless motor
• Drive type and function
• Deck size
• Deck material
• Height adjustment
• Height range and number of levels
• Handle positions
• Discharge options
• Battery ports

Value

For our team of experts, value is much more than just price. It’s about what you get for what you pay. An expensive model may very well be the best battery mower value if it’s performing far enough ahead of the budget brands to justify it.

Best Electric Lawn Mower Buying Guide

As you’re deciding on the best battery lawn mower for you in 2022, there’s a lot to consider. These electric mowers are a long way away from when we started with battery power.

What’s Your Budget?

While you can get a battery lawn mower for less than 300, plan on spending at least 500 for a quality model and more than 700 for the best electric lawn mowers.

That can cause a bit of a conflict. When you look at what you can get for the same price on a gas mower, you get more power and features from that gas engine. It won’t have the noise, emission, and maintenance benefits, though.

Are Battery Riding Mowers Viable?

There are a few riding mowers available for both professional and homeowner use. Professional crews have options such as Greenworks’ Lithium Z zero turn (they also have a battery-powered UTV).

Homeowners have more choices with well-known brands Ryobi, Cub Cadet, and EGO (along with several others) providing a handful of zero turns and more traditional lawn tractors.

The models we’ve tested work well and do the job they’re designed for. However, there are two key trade-offs you need to keep in mind. One, there’s a big premium on the cost compared to a gas model. Two, at the moment, you need to plan for long charge times.

A third consideration is simply that this class of electric lawn mower is still relatively new. It’s possible to keep a gas model running for 10 years or more and repower it if necessary. With a full electric power plant, we simply don’t know what kind of service life to expect with proper maintenance.

As battery technology continues to move forward, keep your eyes open for the first graphene or silicon lithium batteries. They’re able to take a charge much faster than standard lithium-ion or lead-acid batteries and have the potential to get you back in the saddle quicker.

Residential or Commercial Quality?

On the surface, there’s not a huge difference between commercial-quality and residential-quality walk-behind battery lawn mowers.

At the high end, power doesn’t seem to vary much (though Milwaukee just changed that expectation). In fact, one of the most powerful we’ve tested—EGO’s Select Cut XP—is technically a residential model.

What commercial battery mowers have going for them is a design and feature set that’s much more tuned in to what professionals ask for. Some of that is merely the difference between what homeowners and professional crews prefer on a mower. But there are differences in the quality of the components that brands choose for their separate lines. Commercial mowers have to be ready for far more service hours each week.

Brands such as Greenworks Commercial, Husqvarna, and STIHL rely on their dealer networks rather than big box stores. You get additional support during and after the sale that you won’t find at other retailers.

Electric riding mowers are a completely different ballgame. With those, you’ll find a much greater difference in design and performance, along with a massive gap in cost.

Self-Propelled vs Push

Considering a self-propelled drive doesn’t have a huge effect on your runtime, it’s a feature you should get if it’s in your budget. Look for variable speed controls and try working it in the store before you bring it home. You can usually tell in just a few minutes if it’s comfortable and natural for your hands.

Look for a mower that disengages its drive easily when you want to pull the mower back. Some systems have a hard time letting go and force you to drag the drive wheels rather than allowing them to roll.

Let’s not completely rule out the classic push mower style, though. When you’re on a budget, you can easily save 100 or more without losing cutting performance if you’re willing to carry more of the workload.

If that’s the direction you’re heading, look for a poly deck to help reduce weight and wheels with bearings and low rolling resistance to make your job a little easier.

Self-Propel Drive Adjustment

Our testing team generally prefers a variable speed dial separate from the presence bar. Taking a different approach, Toro’s Personal Pace and Ryobi’s Smart Trek systems offer a self-adjusting speed that some folks like.

As you’re trying different adjustment styles, look for one that’s on the stiffer side or has positive stops. This will reduce the chances of accidentally knocking it to a different speed if your hand hits it or the terrain is bumpy.

Keep an eye on the location of the dial as well. Front and center is convenient to make adjustments on the fly. However, some people hit that position with their hand or hip as they turn. If that’s you, you might prefer your adjustment on the side so you don’t accidentally change your speed with each turn.

Steel vs Poly Deck

In the gas-powered world, there are really no poly decks—most are either steel or aluminum. The cordless lawn mower world is much different with poly decks in every direction.

Storage Caddy for Lawn Mower and Yard Tools

Steel is more durable, but it’s very unlikely you’re going to wear through a poly deck over the life of your battery-powered lawn mower. Poly also has an advantage in design. It’s much easier to make subtle changes in the shape that optimizes airflow for better lift, mulching, and bagging than a steel deck.

As we said, steel is more durable. If you have a lot of small rocks you kick up when you’re mowing or perhaps your teenager doesn’t pay quite as much attention as you’d like, then a steel deck can extend your mower’s life. Plus, it just looks good.

Bag, Mulch, or Side Discharge?

You probably already know whether you prefer to mulch or bag. Here in central Florida, we usually mulch to return nutrients to the lawn and avoid stopping every 10 minutes (literally) to dump the bag.

Sometimes, however, you go on vacation or the weather prevents you from hitting your normal mowing day. That’s when side (or rear) discharge becomes helpful.

Instead of keeping the grass up in the deck for finer mulching, it kicks it out. You could bag it, of course, but you’d spend a lot of time emptying. For the sake of getting your cut back under control, side discharging can help keep you moving along when your grass gets long.

Look for a mower that gives you all three options and keep that side discharge chute somewhere handy just in case you need it.

Deck and Blade Size

Most of the best electric lawn mowers have 20 or 21-inch deck sizes with slightly smaller blades (Several brands list the actual blade diameter rather than the deck diameter).

There are smaller models appropriate for smaller lawns or areas with a lot of landscaping to work around.

There are also larger models. Greenworks Commercial and Greenworks 60V both have 25-inch models available. Battery-powered riding mowers run up to 52 inches or more on the residential side and 74 inches for commercial.

The larger deck sizes are most helpful on lawns over 1/4-acre where they offer more significant time savings. For lawns 1/4-acre or less, the standard 20 or 21-inch deck is usually fine.

Single Point vs Multi-Point Deck Height Adjustment

There’s no doubt that single-point height adjustments are more convenient than adjusting each wheel. The relatively lighter weight of cordless lawn mowers also makes it a more viable solution.

Don’t completely discount two or four-point adjustments, though. A four-point system typically has a more rigid construction over single point. Plus, you can kick your front wheels one notch higher than the rear to improve your bagging efficiency.

This one is really about what your preference is. We find most people set their height once and leave it, so a four-point system may not be all that bad from a convenience standpoint.

Multiple Battery Ports

If you have a lawn that’s more than 1/3 of an acre, there’s a good chance you can benefit from multiple battery ports. There are three possibilities: a second storage port, a second active port with a manual switch, and a second active port with automatic switching.

Automatic switching is the most convenient and usually comes on higher-priced mowers. Manual switching and simple storage take some extra effort, but not as much as going back to the garage or trailer for another battery.

Height Range

The majority of electric lawn mowers have all the height range you need to cover a wide variety of grass species. If you prefer to cut at heights over 3-1/2 inches or under 2 inches, just double check that the mower you’re looking at covers it.

Why Buy an Electric Lawn Mower?

The best electric lawn mower for you should get your lawn cut on one charge. No matter which model that is, they all share some common characteristics. There are no gas emissions and no gas engine to maintain. You still need to clean it off when you’re done, but the maintenance is much easier and takes less time.

They’re also quieter. The early bird gets the worm and if you want to start mowing at 7:00 on Saturday morning, your neighbors can probably sleep through it. of a night owl? Many battery-powered mowers have headlights, and you’re unlikely to disturb your neighbor’s Lord of the Rings marathon at 10:00 PM.

Those are some of the more obvious reasons, but one of our favorites is the ability to put the battery in and mow. There’s no cranking, no choke, and no fuel cut-off valve. As long as you have enough batteries to get the entire lawn cut, it’s an easier system to work with than gas.

Why You Can Trust Pro Tool Reviews

Ever check out a “review” site and you can’t tell if they actually tested the tools or if they’re just “recommending” the Amazon top sellers?

That’s not us. We only recommend what we’d actually use, even if we don’t earn a commission from it. It’s all about giving you a legitimate recommendation and our honest opinion of each product.

We’ve been in business since 2008 covering tools, writing reviews, and reporting on industry news in the construction, automotive, and lawn care industries. Our Pro reviewers work in the trades and have the skills and experience to know whether tools can perform well in the field.

Each year, we bring in and review more than 250 individual products. Our team will put our hands on hundreds of additional tools at media events and trade shows throughout the year.

We consult with innovators in the technology and design of tools to gain a broader grasp of where these products fit and how they work.

We work with more than two dozen professional contractors around the United States who review products for us on real job sites and consult with us on testing methods, categories, and weighting.

We’ll provide more than 500 pieces of new content this year absolutely free for our readers—including objective evaluations of individual tools and products.

The end result is information you can trust because of the editorial, scientific, and real-world professional experience we collectively utilize each and every time we pick up and test a tool.

MOWING WITHOUT PERIMETER WIRE

With the ArduMower GPS RTK system, a perimeter wire is no longer required. Mowing by map, simple and flexible.

Mow the lawn in lanes, without perimeter wire and without chaos principle!

Thanks to the GPS / RTK system, the ArduMower navigates cm-pricse in your garden. Create a map with the Ardumower App, choose a mowing pattern and off you go. Eliminate obstacles flexibly and easily.

One board. all possibilities

Whether you want to operate your ArduMower cm exactly with the RTK / GPS system or the classic perimeter loop, one board. all options.

So you can switch to a different principle at any time.

Around the world

ArduMower are on the move. Become part of the huge community.

Find and be found with the Member Map

open source

The current Ardumower software and all other information are available from GitHub. The plans for the chassis can also be found there.

Comprehensive WIKI

Over time, a very extensive wiki has been created. Here you will find all information about the ArduMower project.

sustainability

We develop for the longevity of our products. Repair your technology instead of constantly buying new ones! The modular structure also helps.

Find schematics on Github

Cheap hardware

From GPS kit to electrical resistors, cheap hardware for your project. Support the project, buy from Marotronics. 🙂

pictures than words.

Visit our YouTube channel for more information.

Large support forum

Over 3500 members provide many ideas and solutions. You will always be helped here.

One project, one board and many options. From classic mowing with a perimeter wire to a GPS-controlled mower without a perimeter cable, the choice is yours!

Lawn robots are now abundant on the market. The ArduMower has what you lack. The freedom to individually adapt your robot to your own needs.

Decide for yourself what your ArduMower can do, how it looks. The possibilities are huge.

Save money and protect the environment! Why should you buy a new board or even a new robot lawn mower because of a 3 cent electrical resistor? Wasted money and more electronics scrap. There is another way. Publish schematics, cheap spare parts and a large community to help with problems.

Is it time to switch to an electric lawn mower?

Are you tired of struggling to get your old push mower started? Maybe it’s time to go green and get a battery-operated lawn mower.

You’ll see tons of electric push and walk-behind mowers available in stores and online this year. Every major manufacturer offers numerous models of cordless lawn mowers with ranging from around 200 to over 1000.

Should you make the switch to a battery-operated lawn mower?

Here are some observations about electric mowers that will hope you decide.

Advantages of battery-operated mowers over gas-powered lawn mowers

Electric mowers are easy to use and don’t pollute the environment. Here are some more popular aspects of battery-powered lawn mowers.

No gasoline needed

You don’t need to use and store gasoline when you have a battery-operated lawn mower. Bam! Home safety shoots up 10 points when you switch to an electric mower. Gasoline isn’t just flammable, it emits toxic fumes. You can stay healthier by switching to a battery-powered lawn mower.

You’ll also spend less money on electricity to recharge the electric mower’s battery than you would spend on gasoline for a gas-powered mower.

Goodbye engine tune-up

Mower engine tune-ups are expensive and time-consuming. With an electric lawn mower, all you need to do is dust off the motor and move on. No changing oil, replacing the air filter and installing a new sparkplug every season.

Easy to start

A gas-powered mower can be difficult to start. Problems with the carburetor, spark plug, air filter or ignition coil could prevent a gas mower engine from starting.

With an electric mower, just pull the operator presence bail arm and press the start button and the motor will start right up. No yanking on the starter cord needed.

Less noise

Electric lawn mowers run much quieter than gas mowers. You’ll likely be able to mow earlier in the morning without worrying about disturbing the neighbors.

Light-weight and maneuverable

Electric mowers are much lighter than gasoline-powered mowers. Many cordless mowers have plastic decks and electric motors are much lighter than gasoline engines. Even with the battery installed, cordless mowers typically weigh half as much as gas mowers.

Easy tipping

Unlike a gas-powered mower, you can easily tip a light-weight cordless mower over to clean the deck and change the blade without worrying about flooding an engine cylinder with oil.

If you tip over a gas mower the wrong way, this article/video explains what can happen and how to fix the problem: How to fix a pull cord stuck after tipping.

Drawbacks of cordless lawn mowers

Battery-powered lawn mowers aren’t completely free of drawbacks. The #1 problem with these mowers in previous years was short runtime. Manufacturers have fixed this problem for most models. Powerful lithium ion batteries in 2023 models can power cordless mowers for up to 60 minutes in many models. That’s plenty of time to mow up to 1/2 acre of lawn. Many suburban residential lots are less than a half-acre.

Check the amp-hour (Ah) rating of cordless mowers that you’re considering. Manufacturers also provide run time and the amount of acreage that you can expect to mow. You can then decide whether a cordless mower is right for your size of residential lot.

Here are some limitations of cordless mowers that you should consider when deciding whether to go electric.

Recharging takes time

If your cordless lawn mower runs out of battery charge before you finish mowing, it will take some time to recharge the battery before you can continue. With a gas mower, you can refill the tank and resume mowing immediately after running out of fuel. Score 1 for the gas mower here.

Less power

Motors in many low-end electric mowers are less powerful than gasoline engines. The battery-operated motors Cordless can struggle when cutting tall, thick grass. Cutting thick, wet grass can also be a challenge for battery-operated mowers.

To get a cordless mower with comparable torque and power to a gas engine, you’ll typically need to spend twice as much as a gas mower costs.

Tip: If you buy a cordless lawn mower, be sure to spray the underside of its mower deck with MO-DECK lubricant so grass clippings don’t stick to the deck and discharge chute. Here’s a video clip that shows how to use MO-DECK:

Limited blade width

On the least-expensive cordless mowers, you’ll often see blade widths starting at 17-inches. A few battery-operated models even have blade widths as narrow as 13-inches. You’ll be walking back and forth across your lawn more often if you choose an inexpensive cordless mower with a 13-inch blade.

For comparison, low-end gas mowers have blade widths of 20 to 21-inches.

If you want a cordless mower with a 21-inch blade and the power to run it long enough to cut your lawn, you’ll typically pay twice as much as you would for a comparable gas-powered mower.

Longevity of the battery

The battery (or batteries) in a cordless mower typically only last 3 to 5 years. Replacement batteries often cost more than 100. Batteries for larger, premium models of cordless mowers can cost more than 200. Don’t get caught off-guard when you need to replace the batteries in your cordless mower after only a few years. In some situations, it may be more economical to replace the entire mower instead of just replacing the batteries.

A gasoline engine will easily last more than 10 years with proper maintenance.

What is better, an electric or gas lawn mower?

Now that you know the facts about electric and gas mowers, you can make an informed decision about which type is right for you.

For small to medium lawns, choosing a cordless mower is often the way to go. You’ll avoid maintenance tasks associated with gas mowers and you won’t need to buy and store gasoline. Using an electric mower also helps the environment by reducing carbon emissions.

If you have a large yard, consider buying an electric riding mower. Our article Should I get an electric riding mower? elaborates on the pros and cons of using a battery-operated riding lawn mower.

In some situations, it may be better to stick with a gas-powered lawn mower for now. Gas mowers still have advantages of dependable power and durability over cordless lawn mowers for homeowners with large lawns.

If you decide to keep using a gas-powered mower, visit our DIY walk-behind mower repair help section for tips and advice on keeping your lawn mower in top shape.

Whether you choose a cordless or gas mower, find the parts and accessories you need to keep the mower working smoothly at Sears PartsDirect. When you’re looking for a new blade for your cordless or gas mower, our mower blade page can help with that, too. We’re here to help you with all of your lawn and garden needs.

Santa Monica Startup Graze Wants to Make Lawn Mowing Electric (and Autonomous)

Decerry Donato is a reporter at dot.LA. Prior to that, she was an editorial fellow at the company. Decerry received her bachelor’s degree in literary journalism from the University of California, Irvine. She continues to write stories to inform the community about issues or events that take place in the L.A. area. On the weekends, she can be found hiking in the Angeles National forest or sifting through racks at your local thrift store.

Is there any worse sound to wake up to than a gas-powered lawn mower? Not only are they a noise pollutant, but they are clunky environmental ones as well. Insert Graze, a Santa Monica-based startup looking to change the landscaping industry by building electric, autonomous lawn mowers. On Tuesday at the Glendale Sports Complex, Glendale Mayor Paula Devine announced that the city will be the first in Los Angeles County to join Graze’s pilot program, allowing Glendale facilities like Sports Complex to its equipment. In exchange, the startup will be getting free beta-testing research. Graze CEO John Vlay said that he hopes other municipalities will follow Glendale’s lead. “Gas-powered mowers are just so polluting and have been unregulated for so many years,” Vlay, a 30-year veteran of the landscaping industry, told dot.LA.

Graze CEO John Vlay. Image courtesy of Graze

The showcase came five months after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a new law that bans the sale of new gas-powered landscaping equipment in an effort to curb emissions. (The new law takes effect at the start of 2024.) According to Environmental Protection Agency data, gas-powered lawn mowers account for 5% of total air pollution in the U.S. As a gathered crowd listened to Vlay speak, one of Graze’s machines, roughly the size of a go-cart, mowed the Glendale Sports Complex grass. The sound that emitted from the mower was minimal compared to gas-powered mowers; Vlay didn’t even have to use a microphone to be heard. Three engineers were onsite and paraded the mowers across the field using a tablet that mapped the perimeter and locked in the boundaries that the mower must stay in.

From there, the mower continued to make parallel passes, at 1.5 meters per second, throughout the field. The battery life of one mower can last up to eight hours, while the mowers have also been tested on rocky and undulated terrain. A Graze mower consists of two large sections. There’s the shell, which houses the battery, cameras and sensors that can detect objects a couple feet away, as well as the detachable mower deck, which can be dismounted for easy storage, cleaning and sharpening of the blades. Vlay boasted that the detachable mower deck was built with future attachments in mind, such as a leaf blower or golf ball picker. Graze autonomous electric lawnmower demonstrationVideo by Decerry Donato Currently, Graze has four robots completed, and its team is in the process of building more for future pilot programs that cities like Glendale may want to adopt. (The startup says it has secured over 400 pre-orders since launching 2017.) Though he did not disclose how much each unit will be sold for, Vlay said Graze’s business model is focused on “robot-as-a-service,” which would charge users for the machine per acre mowed and based on how difficult the mowing will be. With crowdfunding, Graze has raised over 9 million in funding split between 6,200 investors. Vlay believes that the product will sell itself as more than just an eco-friendly option. “It really becomes a Swiss Army knife of lawn mower equipment,” he noted while watching the machine whir around the field quietly.

Decerry Donato is a reporter at dot.LA. Prior to that, she was an editorial fellow at the company. Decerry received her bachelor’s degree in literary journalism from the University of California, Irvine. She continues to write stories to inform the community about issues or events that take place in the L.A. area. On the weekends, she can be found hiking in the Angeles National forest or sifting through racks at your local thrift store.

Why Women’s Purchasing Power Is a Huge Advantage for Female-Led Leagues

Samson Amore is a reporter for dot.LA. He holds a degree in journalism from Emerson College. Send tips or pitches to samsonamore@dot.la and find him on @Samsonamore.

According to a Forbes report last April, both the viewership and dollars behind women’s sports at a collegiate and professional level are growing.

In 2022, the first 32 games of the NCAA tournament had record attendance levels, breaking records set back in 2004, and largely driven by the new and rapidly growing women’s NCAA tournament. WNBA openers this year saw a 21% spike in attendance, with some teams including the LA Sparks reporting triple-digit ticket sales growth, about 121% over 2022’s total. In 2023, the average size of an LA Sparks crowd swelled to 10,396 people, up from 4,701 people. Women make up half the population, but “also 50% of the folks that are walking into the stadium at Dodger Stadium, or your NFL fans are just about 50% women,” noted Erin Storck, a panelist and senior analyst at Los Angeles-based Elysian Park Ventures. Storck added that in heterosexual households, women generally manage most of the family’s money, giving them huge purchasing power, a potential advantage for female-run leagues. “There’s an untapped revenue opportunity,” she noted. In the soccer world, Los Angeles-based women’s soccer team Angel City FC has put in the work to become a household name, not just in LA County but across the nation. At an LA Tech Week panel hosted by Athlete Strategies about investing in sports, Angel City head of strategy and chief of staff Kari Fleischauer said that years before launching the women’s National Women’s Soccer League team, Angel City FC was pounding the pavement letting people know about the excitement ladies soccer can bring. She noted community is key, and that fostering a sense of engagement and safety at the team’s home venue, BMO stadium (formerly Banc of California Stadium), is one reason fans keep coming back. Adding free metro rides to BMO stadium and private rooms for nursing fans to breastfeed or fans on the spectrum to avoid sensory overload, were just some of the ways ACFC tried to include its community in the concept of its stadium, Fleischauer said. She noted, though, that roughly 46% of Angel City fans are “straight white dudes hanging out with their bros.” “Particularly [on] the woman’s side, I’d like to think we do a better job of making sure that there’s spaces for everyone,” Fleischauer told the audience. “One thing we realize is accessibility is a huge thing.”

Samson Amore is a reporter for dot.LA. He holds a degree in journalism from Emerson College. Send tips or pitches to samsonamore@dot.la and find him on @Samsonamore.

LA Tech Week Day 5: Social Highlights

L.A. Tech Week has brought venture capitalists, founders and entrepreneurs from around the world to the California coast. With so many tech nerds in one place, it’s easy to laugh, joke and reminisce about the future of tech in SoCal.

Here’s what people are saying about the fifth day of L.A. Tech Week on social:

#LATechWeek has been on Yes the events are super cool at amazing venues. But, I’m blown away by the people. I’ve met so many founders building generative AI companies from the ground up. I’m so bullish on LA right now. LA is for builders #longLA

Successful LatinxVC Avanza Summit 2023 in LA! It’s been an amazing few days near the beach w great company. Thank you to our panelists participants.

Huge thanks to our incredible sponsors SVB, Chavez Family Foundation, Annenberg Foundation, PledgeLA, Fenwick West, Countsy! piccom/oVuGIgFurk— LatinxVC (@LatinxVCs) June 9, 2023

30 gaming startups presented at the A16z Speedrun Demo Day in LA yesterday. Great thanks to the @a16zGames team for an awesome day of events! #LATechWeekpiccom/DKq8IFo5QZ— Grace Zhou (@graceminzhou) June 9, 2023

What’s the buzz? It’s #LATechWeek from @TechstarsLA @TechstarsHealth joint demo day with the #Techstar HC team where our @fyelabs founder/CEO Suvojit Ghosh mentored both cohorts! #TechStars demo day highlighted 12 amazing emerging #startups in #healthtech#innovation. piccom/0RXClCtfDQ— FYELABS (@fyelabs) June 9, 2023

Another successful Coffee On Slauson in the books for #LATechWeek.

Special thanks to the good people at Pledge LA, SVB and @GundersonLaw for the ongoing support and the @findyourhilltop staff for providing the space, eats vibes. ♻️ piccom/51cMDoEn30— Slauson Co. (@SlausonAndCo) June 9, 2023

The perfect combo to start #LATechWeek Day 5: pastries, coffee, and great convos with industry founders ✨

My favorite event from @Techweek_ has to be Modern Storytelling Business Building. Hosted by @STHoward#LATechWeekpiccom/SV1eexMJ4k— JonnyZeller (@JonnyZeller) June 9, 2023

And the finale of the night was courtesy of the one and only @zedd for an unforgettable end to the City of Games party! Hosted by @a16zGames and @100Thieves#LATechWeekpiccom/hliI9yLKse— Tech Week (@Techweek_) June 9, 2023

Excited to be at the @a16zGames Speedrun Demo Day! Loved the energy and excitement from the companies that pitched there. It was also great to see @Tocelot and @ndrewlee at this amazing #LATechWeek event piccom/NfLQO5lR27— Andy Lee | andypwlee.bit (@andypwlee) June 9, 2023

Thank you to everyone who joined the Sony Venture Fund US team at #LATechWeek for our screening of Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. Last summer, we started building a presence in LA. Today, it’s exciting to host such an event with the @Sony family and the LA VC community. piccom/wdDm6qtHdL— Sony Innovation Fund (@Sony_Innov_Fund) June 9, 2023

.defense primes partnering with cutting edge defense tech startups, to.

.hardware x LLMs improving mental health.

From the rich and diverse LA ecosystem stems generational companies: piccom/v5S5r8JtbU— Shahin Farshchi (@Farshchi) June 9, 2023

LA Tech Week has been a blast! Met some amazing creators, founders and investors from all over the world! #LATechWeekpiccom/AAh9JFELhe— Chris Germano (@netslayer) June 9, 2023

Had such a blast at LA Tech Week and hosting events for @brexHQ

Top highlights were collabing with @pulley on an Emerging Managers / Founder mixer at the @poplco House, rooftop event in Venice, creator panel with @thechangj proper Korean food with in KTown.

Really enjoyed #LATechWeek. Here are some observations I made — s.personal.ai (Suman Kanuganti) (@SumanPersonalAI) June 9, 2023

Thank you @TheKofiAmpadu for including me in #demoday with the latest @a16ztxo cohort! It was a real full circle moment to witness the brilliance of both @ChrisLyons @ZMuse_ #PledgeLA very own. She’s why we’re #LongLA #LAtechweekpiccom/itkKXMxQRb— Qiana Qiana! (@Q_i_a_n_a) June 9, 2023

Hosts Kevin Zhang, Partner at @upfrontvc, and Eden Chen, CEO of @pragmaplatform, interviewed two special guests from @raidbaseinc Stephen Lim, Co-Founder Product Director, and Trevor Romleski, Co-Founder Game Director. #LATechWeekpiccom/hxHEAoELZ6— Tech Week (@Techweek_) June 9, 2023

Yesterday at @socinnovation I got to have this AWESOME conversation with @iamwill — musician, producer, technology entrepreneur, and Founder CEO of https://t.co/D60y1e2JOu#LATechWeekpiccom/KBxK6rXyTG— Anna Barber (@annawbarber) June 9, 2023

Had a blast at LA Tech Week this year with @brexHQ

From hosting moderating my first creator panel featuring @BlakeMichael14, to a fun rooftop night in Venice, and to attending some amazing events such as Watertower’s emerging manager panel and a VC/founder tennis tournament piccom/udjfmLHE0L— Jonathan Chang (@thechangj) June 8, 2023

LA Tech Week: Six LA-Based Greentech Startups to Know

Samson Amore is a reporter for dot.LA. He holds a degree in journalism from Emerson College. Send tips or pitches to samsonamore@dot.la and find him on @Samsonamore.

Making 14 Hp Brush Mower. using Lawn Mower parts

At Lowercarbon Capital’s LA Tech Week event Thursday, the synergy between the region’s aerospace industry and greentech startups was clear.

The event sponsored by Lowercarbon, Climate Draft (and the defunct Silicon Valley Bank’s Climate Technology Sustainability team) brought together a handful of local startups in Hawthorne not far from LAX, and many of the companies shared DNA with arguably the region’s most famous tech resident: SpaceX.

Here’s a look at the greentech startups that pitched during the Tech Week event, and how they think what they’re building could help solve the climate crisis.

Arbor: Based in El Segundo, this year-old startup is working to convert organic waste into energy and fresh water. At the same time, it also uses biomass carbon removal and storage to remove carbon from the atmosphere and sequester it in an attempt to avoid further damaging the earth’s ozone layer. At the Tech Week event Thursday, Arbor CEO Brad Hartwig told a stunned crowd that Arbor aims to remove about five billion tons of organic waste from landfills and turn that into about 6 PWh, or a quarter of the global electricity need, each year. Hartwig is an alumni of SpaceX; he was a manufacturing engineer on the Crew Dragon engines from 2016-2018 and later a flight test engineer at Kitty Hawk.

Antora: Sunnyvale-based Antora Energy was founded in 2017, making it one of the oldest companies on the pitching block during the event. Backed by investors including the National Science Foundation and Los Angeles-based Overture VC, Antora has raised roughly 57 million to date, most recently a 50 million round last February. Chief operating officer Justin Briggs said Antora’s goal is to modernize and popularize thermal energy storage using ultra-hot carbon. Massive heated carbon blocks can give off thermal energy, which Antora’s proprietary batteries then absorb and store as energy. It’s an ambitious goal, but one the world needs at scale to green its energy footprint. According to Briggs, “the biggest challenge is how can we turn back variable intermittent renewable electricity into something that’s reliable and on demand, so we can use it to provide energy to everything we need.”

Arc: Hosting the panel was Arc, an electric boating company that’s gained surprising momentum, moving from design to delivering its first e-boats in just two years of existence. Founded in 2021, the company’s already 70 employees strong and has already sold some of its first e-boats to customers willing to pay the luxury price tag, CTO Ryan Cook said Thursday. Cook said that to meet the power needs of a battery-powered speedboat, the Arc team designed the vehicle around the battery pack with the goal of it being competitive with gas boats when compared to range and cost of gas. But on the pricing side, it’s not cheap. Arc’s flagship vessel, the Arc One is expected to cost roughly 300,000. During the panel, Cook compared the boat to being “like an early Tesla Roadster.” To date Arc Boats has raised just over 35 million, according to PitchBook, from investors including Kevin Durant, Will Smith and Sean “Diddy” Combs.

Clarity Technology: Carbon removal startup Clarity is based in LA and was founded by Yale graduate and CEO Glen Meyerowitz last year. Clarity is working to make “gigaton solutions for gigaton problems.” Their aim? To remove up to 2,000 billion pounds of carbon from the atmosphere through direct air capture, a process which uses massive fans to move chemicals that capture CO2. But the challenge, Meyerowitz noted in his speech, is doing this at scale in a way that makes an actual dent in the planet’s emissions while also efficiently using the electricity needed to do so. Meyerowitz spent nearly five years working as an engineer for SpaceX in Texas, and added he’s looking to transfer those learnings into Clarity.

Parallel Systems: Based in Downtown LA’s Arts District, this startup is building zero-emission rail vehicles that are capable of long-haul journeys otherwise done by a trucking company. The estimated 700 billion trucking industry, Parallel Systems CEO Matt Soule said, is ripe for an overhaul and could benefit from moving some of its goods off-road to electric railcars. According to Soule, Parallel’s electric battery-powered rail vehicles use 25% of the energy a semi truck uses, and at a competitive cost. Funded in part by a February 2022 grant from the U.S. Department of Energy, Parallel Systems has raised about 57 million to date. Its most recent venture funding round was a 49 million Series A led by Santa Monica-based VC Anthos Capital. Local VCs including Riot Ventures and Santa Monica-based Embark Ventures are also backers of Parallel.

Terra Talent: Unlike the rest of the startups pitching at the Tech Week event, Terra Talent was focused on building teams rather than technology. Founder Dolly Singh worked at SpaceX, Oculus and Citadel as a headhunter, and now runs Terra, a talent and advisory firm that helps companies recruit top talent in the greentech space. But, she said, she’s concerned that all the work these startups are doing won’t matter unless we very quickly turn around the current trendlines. “Earth will shake us off like and she will do just fine in 10,000 years,” she said. “It’s our way of living, everything we love is actually here on earth… there’s nothing I love on Mars,” adding that she’s hopeful the startups that pitched during the event will be instrumental in making sure the planet stays habitable for a little while longer.