I dunno why you are ruling out battery rechargeable. There have been countless threads discussing them, and my research suggests they could easily handle 5000 sq’ (about the size of my yard.) Only reason I have not bought one is that my old gas mower has not died yet. Inertia, basically, and a dislike for tossing things that aren’t “used up.”
For me, it would be a no-brainer. Adding in the air/noise pollution, needing to buy gas, hassle w/ cord… If any question as to charge, buy an extra battery. Plus, you can get other tools using the same battery. My wife and I have already discussed - next spring, if our mower does not start right up, we’re tossing it and going right out to buy a cordless.
My only concern would be with MAJOR mulching - I mulch all of my leaves. But I think the more powerful cordless mowers could handle that as well (unless you have - say - multiple huge oaks.).
My research seemed to show the batteries don’t have a great lifespan for the mowers and are expensive. 2 Batteries are almost as much as a good plugin electric mower. I also already have a 100’ heavy duty cord, so that part is no problem.
It looked like a well maintained electric could easily give 10 years and some of the gas ones that are well maintained go 20 years.
Yep, I switched to a “Real Mower” (okay, it’s a reel mower, but I don’t know why).
The quiet is wonderful.
ETA: And it’s easier…by the time I would’ve gotten the old power mower out of the garage (had to move the car to wheel it out), check the gas, find the can of special gas/oil mixture* and fill it, wrench my shoulder pulling the cord, switch arms, and finally get it started… oh, by now I’d be halfway done with the “analog” mower. And no bluish clouds of oily smoke!
Corded electric makes a lot of sense for that small area. A small gas mower costs somewhat more but those things are pretty reliable and start easily these days and you don’t have to worry about dragging a cord around. If you have any difficulty reaching the edges of the property or anything else that could get in the way of the cord then go with a low cost gas powered mower.
I use a corded electric for a yard about that size. I’m very happy with it. I had a battery mower before that, and it wasn’t reliable. It wasn’t the battery, but a connection somewhere. No problems with the cord. Cuts well, plenty of power. Relatively quiet.
Funny, the electrics have no gas or clouds of smoke either and just start right up. Also never a manual mower. Has to be powered somehow, just trying to decide how.
Even my crappy tractor I’ve been nursing along for 2 years doesn’t have that bluish clouds of oily smoke.
I updated the OP, to reflect my prejudice against manual mowers.
I looked into electrics, but none of them seemed to have self propelled. My patch of land isn’t giant, but it’s a bit hilly, and I’m not in the best of shape.
Went from a gas powered non-self propelled to a gas powered self propelled. It was pretty awesome, IMHO.
When I was a kid, I had to mow my Dad’s half acre with a self propelled, it took forever but it wasn’t hard work and that was the late 70s. They are pretty good.
Thankfully our new yard is flat and small. I think I won’t mind a push mower, I’ve seen estimates it should only take 20-30 minutes for 5000sq’. I hope that is right.
I’m use to 90-120 minutes with a big lawn tractor currently.
I’m leaning towards electric as is probably obvious. But open to merits of gas, corded or cordless. Just not manual. Yuck!
I have a corded electric and there is good news and bad news about it. The good news is that it has both the reliability that you would expect of an electric and the cutting and mulching power that you might not expect. It actually has more power when dealing with thick overgrowth than the classic old two-cycle Lawn Boy that it replaced. Sometimes I’ve been afraid that it might trip a circuit breaker when dealing with tall grass but it never has. TBH I haven’t used it in the past couple of years because I’ve been relying on a gardening service, but I’ve had it about fifteen years, including back when I had a house with a much larger back yard. It’s a cheap one, too. I got it when the old Lawn Boy quit after many decades and the government was offering a big rebate for those trading in gas mowers for any type of electric, so the thing ended up being practically free.
The bad news is that I absolutely HATE dealing with the cord. If I were buying another mower I’d seriously look at the battery-powered ones. I can’t comment on them because I’ve never had one but I would pay close attention to the power ratings as I imagine that would be their weak point, especially in the lower price range.
The cord problem is just the combination of multiple small hassles. Having to unwind and sometimes untangle the stupid thing. Then after doing part of the front yard, doing the side invariably means any car(s) in the driveway are in the way of the cord which then has to be repositioned around them. Then the whole thing has to be wrapped up and taken to the back and replugged. Having the thing always trailing behind is just a nuisance, all the more so when mowing around obstacles like trees. And then of course at the end you have to coil up the cord and put it away, hoping to avoid tangles.
One could argue that no single one of these things is a big deal, and I’m sure you could film a commercial that makes it all look easy, but taken all together I find the cord a major nuisance. I knew it would be an inconvenience when I got the mower, but as I said, it was practically free, but I was surprised at how much I disliked the hassles. YMMV.
As I understand the only maintenance involved in electrics is new batteries. On gas-powered mowers I’ve had to spend money on air filters, spark plugs, carburetors, starter fluid, ethanol-free gas, new throttle linkage, new crank reel and/or cord, and all the time and inconvenience from identifying/diagnosing these problems. Plus educating myself on small-engine mechanics, which is a skill that’s probably going out of style as soon as I learn it.
I also tried a hand-powered reel mower. A smart person would only use the reel for a postage-stamp lawn, but I insist on cutting it on my newly installed lawn up until mid-summer. That’s when the zoysia starts getting attitude, and the oak trees start dropping stuff that interfere with the momentum. Bagging the clippings is a no-go, it should go without saying.
I’m definitely going to electric after I run through the spare parts for my gas mower. Committing to just splurging for 2-3 batteries right up front so I never have to wait for a recharge.
Last winter I bought an EGO snow thrower. My lot isn’t that large so it’s all I need barring a 3 foot dump. Not as powerful as a gas snow thrower but I’m pretty impressed (for battery) and wouldn’t hesitate to give their lawn mowers a try.
ttps://egopowerplus.com/power-mowers/
I bought a gas Cub Cadet mower 4 years ago. Still usually starts 1st pull. Occasionally 2 pulls if it’s been out of use for awhile.
I used a corded mower when I was a kid, and a reel mower. No thank you very much to those. I have a briggs and stratton powered toro thats getting pretty old and cantankerous that I use for the first mow and the back yard only. I bought a kobalt battery powered mower for Vaderling to mow the front. Um, not sure of the square footage off hand, but it will mow the front 2 and 1/2 times on a single charge. My mower has a sensor so that when the grass is thinner or shorter it rotates slower and only increases the power for longer or thicker grass, well, weeds actually in my case.
I’d strongly recommend looking into battery power. My mower never clogs the throat to the bagger(because it’s huge compared to the old toro) it’s light, even when the bag is jammed full. Plenty of power, reliable for two seasons now, no gas or oil or pulling you arm/shoulder/back out of wack trying to get it started and it’s easier to use all around. Not even self propelled like the toro is.
