I was toying with the idea of getting a leaf shredder like this, and was interested in hearing from anyone who had experience with such a beast.
We get quite a few leaves - probably 30-40 yard bags full a year. Mostly silver maple and ash. I’d prefer the idea of shredding them and leaving them on our flower beds as mulch. We lack space to store a larger gas powered shredder, but I thought this might do the trick.
I guess it is essentially a large string trimmer. Does it shred leaves quickly, or will I be spending hours feeding leaves into it?
Is it durable? I’d hate to buy it and have it break right away.
Does it jam often, require frequent string replacement?
Can you just move it from place to place in your beds, and essentially feed in the leaves where you are going to leave them as mulch?
Does it essentially sound like an electric mower?
I’d appreciate any info/opinions you could give me.
If you have a power rotary lawn mower, it may be one that does leaf mulching too. I had one (forgot the brand) and it was very good. I had friends who had other makes that did not do as well
When we moved to a place that had about four acres, I got a riding mower and kept mowing more and more tall weeks, until was doing about three acres of lawn! Stupid mistake. Anyhow, that rider did not mulch, but we also had a shredder/chipper for branches, etc. It did a great job of mulching leaves, but it was big. And noisy.
If nobody posts who has one of these, I’d either ask a dealer for a demonstration, or only buy it if there was a good return policy if it ends up that you don’t like it.
I have a small lot, but not much usable land so I can’t really compost. And until I took a large but ailing oak down, like you I was up to about 25-30 brown paper leaf bags every fall. I bought one of these shredders and ended up giving it away.
It is indeed a string trimmer, using nylon cords. It functions fine as long as the leaves are dry. Put the shredder over a barrel, drop in the leaves and the bulk reduces considerably which is great for oak leaves. However, put in wet leaves and it overwhelms the shredder. Accidentally put a branch in, and the cords snap off and need to be replaced.
If you are set on a shredder, save up a little more and get something like a chipper with blades instead of strings. Or, as KlondikeGeoff said, try to use a power mower if it is so equipped.
I know that you said that you don’t have storage space, but we bought one of these a couple of years ago. A bit pricy, but it cleans up the yard in a fraction of the time that it took with the leaf blower or lawnmower.
I shred lots of leaves,too.Mostly for mulching hardneck garlic,but also as a storable compost component.
After trying lots of methods (including a 10HP chipper/shredder) I’ve concluded I like a bagging lawn mower the best,provided the material isn’t wet,as that becomes inefficient and can clog the deck.
If you already have a string trimmer,leaves can be put in a barrel/trash can and shredded,but I find that hard on the back.
Thanks, guys.
Raised the subject with my wife, and she said she really didn’t like shredders, so I’m not about to try to convince her.
We have a gas mulching mower - my son’s department. If it were up to me, I’d use a push/reel mower. I’ll take a look at how powerful the mower is. I’d hate to try to use it on the leaves, and overwhelm it.
Thanks again.
I have that machine and I have used it for about 5 years. It works ok, especially when the leaves are dry. Like everything else, it is not as easy as you think its going to be. You need to replace the string on it about once an hour, sometimes more.
I use it mostly for the leaves I compost. The rest I just bag, especially if they are wet.
Is it durable? I’d hate to buy it and have it break right away.
I haven’t had a problem with it. Be careful when you replace the string that you don’t drop the screw that holds the head in place (you will never find it in the leaves.)
Does it jam often, require frequent string replacement?
You sometimes have to stir it with the rake handle (not your hand ). This happens a lot when the leaves are wet.
Can you just move it from place to place in your beds, and essentially feed in the leaves where you are going to leave them as mulch?
You will probably be happier putting it over a garbage can and emptying the can where you want the mulch.
Does it essentially sound like an electric mower?
It is louder than an electric mower. I was surprised at how loud it was when I first got it.
). This happens a lot when the leaves are wet.