Robot Mowers

I think people really like the Luba. And when I say people I mean the folks that I see use them on The Lawn Forum.

As for me, I enjoy the task too much.

Not hating on robot mowers but legitimate questions I think about everytime I see people talk these up.

How does it get from the front yard to the back yard?

Who does the edging and blowing? Is there like attachments or settings where it does that as? What about the rest of the lawn maintenance?

Who is the target customer? I would assume someone that only cares about mowing the yard and no other lawn/landscape maintenance but at the same time someone willing to spend 2.5k+ on a unit and is somewhat techy? Why not just pay a lawn service at that point?

I have about a 5k sqft lawn and it takes me about 30-40 minutes to mow it but there is edging and blowing added to that and any other lawn maintenance. Just seems like spending 2.5k+ to automate (somewhat?) just the mowing part for a few hours a month for 6 months of the year is a bit much.

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Brother??

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Maybe. I was using that name long before I joined this board. Sort of reflects part of my attitude, but I am not as argumentative here.

I had a Worx robomower for about 5 years, bought in 2016 or 2017. The screen on it ultimately died and I could no longer program it. I really liked it for my intended purpose, and it was a relative bargain at $600 at the time (on sale).

I used in my backyard only (front was mostly ornamentals and concrete). It would mow to about 8 or 10" from the fence. I had a yard full of kids obstacles (swingset, playset, etc). I set it to run every day around dusk. The benefit was the yard was always mowed for the kids to play in. I weed whacked around the fence and nooks of the toys about every two weeks. Without the mower, the yard needed mowing every 4 days or so. So it saved me a ton of time and sweat especially in the summer. The downsides are that it would sometimes hangup on toys, and I had a big dog with big mounds out there that would be all over the wheels and the poop harder to spot after the top got lopped off. Cleaning the thing was kind of gross, but I didn't do it often.

All in all I'd say it's worth it if you have an enclosed space and value keeping it mowed all the time. Not sure it's work $2k+ they want for them now though. Happy to answer any specific questions about my particular model, although they look to be much updated from the one I had.

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ow does it get from the front yard to the back yard?

Who does the edging and blowing? Is there like attachments or settings where it does that as? What about the rest of the lawn maintenance?

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You wouldn't need to blow anything - mine (and most I believe) actually use blades similar to razor blades. They cut such small pieces off that they don't create visible waste. You would need to edge if using it around that kind of area. I'd say they are much better for a fenced space vs an open front yard. The one I had needed a guide wire boundary. You could run it to a front yard and it would follow along whatever path you laid out for it, but I never tried since our yard was fenced in and they don't handle curbs well. I used round up around the fence line to minimize the need for extra weed whacking. I would do it every 2-3 weeks, usually to get in between kids toy structures the mower couldn't get to.

Yes mine used a wire. Very easy to install. I just used my weedeater to make a very small trench and buried it with my foot about 10" or so inside the fence line. I used roundup near the fence to make it weedeating less essential.

I was pleased with mine - kept grass mown at a reasonable height at all times if it ran every day. If it rains for a prolonged period sometimes I would need to push mow because it didn't do well cutting tall grass.

We have a segway. It doesn't require a boundary wire at all. As far as getting it from the back yard to the front... I prop the gate open a couple days a week and send it to the front. It usually takes a second charge to do the complete front, so it is open a few hours. I put a port in the fence, but I just haven't felt the need yet.

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He told me he got sick of mowing and spent 6k on a mower that does it for him.

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There is a tipping point where it would be cheaper to hire out. $6k seems high assuming one robot mower with normal battery life.

Wright Autonomous Mower

I was intrigued by this bad boy.