How to Blow Your Load With a Leaf Blower

At the end of a hard day’s work in your garden you just want to sit back and relax, you don’t want to worry about the load that you’ve built up all week long. You’ve asked your wife to help you get your load off your mind, but she won’t help. You’ve asked your neighbor if they could give you a ‘hand’ with your load, but they have run off in fright. Heck, even your dog runs the other way when you ask for help.

You’ll be cracking the champagne bottles, after reading this article, when you discover how easy it will be to blow your own load and get it off your mind. Short of using soap and water (to get the dirt off your hands) after you have been racking up the leaves into a load, the following is a list of leaf blowers available to help you easily move those autumn (fall) leaves.

So treat yourself to a leaf blower and reduce the back breaking, blister making work of racking the leaves in your yard into a heap/load and then into the bin or compost heap.

Which Leaf Blower is right for me?

I can't answer this question for you exactly but I can help you choose the leaf blower which best suits your situation. Everyone is different, therefore your needs and budget will be different to every other person.

Below I have compiled a short list of leaf blowers available on the market. There are literally hundreds to choose from. I am affiliated with Amazon therefore to reduce my biased view on these leaf blower I have listed a few leaf blowers that Amazon does not stock.

Oh, and if you want my opinion in order of brand preference (if I didn't have to worry about budget) I would chose:

1. Honda
2. Stihl
3. Makita
4. Bosch
5. Ryobi, Black & Decker
6. Homelite, Toro

How to blow your load of leaves: Leaf blowing techniques.

For best results (and you will work this out pretty quickly) on getting your load of leaves to where you want it try a sweeping motion at various positions as shown in the diagram below. It will be easier to mound your leaves with the leaf blower if you have something to blow them against, like a fence corner or your homemade compost retained area.

If you have a pile of leaves and you want to move this load from one spot to another then consider these simple tips. Firstly, try not to blow the load from the base of the pile as leaves may be thrown back in your face from the eddies caused by the height of the pile, as shown in the diagram below.

Start blowing from the top of the load, as shown in the diagram below, and you will achieve a quicker rate of leave movement. It may be messy blowing your load this way but if you sweep your movements as well (as per top diagram) then you will find this task less frustrating and laborious.

Questions you should be asking yourself when looking at buying a Leaf Blower:

Do I need a leaf blower?

This is probably the most important question that you should ask yourself. Is a leaf blower really practical for me and my yard? Will I use it that often? Do I have deciduous trees or am I using it to clean my driveway and concrete paths of dirt etc?

Is my yard small enough to get an electric leaf blower?

If you have a courtyard or small driveway you might be able to get away with having an electric leaf blower. But keep in mind that you will still need an electrical extension lead if you buy an electric leaf blower as your electric leaf blower cable will not come with enough length.

Can I use my leaf blower for other uses?

Have you considered using your leaf blower for other uses? For example you could use it to blow the dust off your work bench or timber construction job during sanding intervals. You could use the leaf blower to blow bog dust off your vehicle while sanding it back for respraying. Also you could use your leaf blower for blowing hair trimmings in your home hair saloon or home dog grooming shop.

Do I need a blower that has extra features or advantages?

You can also purchase blowers that can also vacuum and shred leaves. These blowers carry a vacuum bag for you to distribute the leaves into your garden as mulch. When considering these option you might have to be aware of the blowers performance for large quantities of leaves or if the leaves are wet with moisture.

There are many other possibilities that you could use your leaf blower for and it doesn't have to be used in the garden.

Leaf Blowers

Honda HHB25 Blower

"Honda’s famous engineering delivers the world’s first 4-stroke Blower, making it the most powerful and lightweight machine in its class.

With its ultra-quiet 4-stroke engine this little beauty makes the uncomfortable vibration and ear-piercing wail of the 2-stroke obsolete.

Unlike its 2-stroke rivals the Honda 4-stroke Blower runs on unleaded fuel so you’ll never have to mix oil and petrol again and it will start first time, every time.

Superior engineering means Honda Blowers produce less noise and smoke and with their ultra-compact, lightweight design, Hondas are easier to handle and will keep you working longer with less fatigue.

Features

• Effortless power from its GX25, mini 4-stroke engine
  with throttle cruise control
• Starts first time, every time with Honda’s famous one pull easy start system
• Environmentally friendly with low emissions, less noise and low fuel consumption
• Improved safety and performance due to a unique anti-suction fan cover
• No fuel mixing – runs on unleaded petrol"

Words and picture from Honda Australia, visit Honda Australia for more information on their blowers.

 Sthil BG 86 Easy2Start

"STIHL Blowers clear every last fallen leaf and blade of cut grass in the garden and near the house. They can be converted into powerful vacuums by means of the easily fitted vacuum attachment. The leaves are then guided through a fan as they are vacuumed up and shredded in the process making them into the perfect mulch for the garden. Another useful accessory is the roof gutter cleaning kit, making it possible to clean even the most inaccessible parts of the roof gutter."

"State-of-the-art blower with market leading performance and ultra-low vibration levels. This will rapidly become the ultimate benchmark in pro blowers."

Words and picture from Sthil Australia, visit Sthil Australia for more information on their blowers.

Environmental concerns of Leaf Blowers

If you are environmentally conscious then using a leaf blower is not the answer. If you get a petrol model leaf blower then you are using fossil fuels and adding carbon dioxide into the environment, not to mention the noise pollution.

If you get and electric model leaf blower, then you will most likely be getting your source of energy from a coal fuel power station. The jury is still out on whether other forms of electrical energy, like nuclear power stations are environmentally advantageous.

If you use your garden hose to wash the leaves off your concrete paths and driveways then you are wasting a limited resource just to make your job easier.

Therefore if you are environmentally conscious then you’ll have to buy a pair of durable gardening gloves and take on the job, in stages, with your trusty rake.