Why Reel Mowers are Still Best for the Environment

Most U.S. electricity is generated by burning coal.

Our family business sells both electric and reel mowers, and starting 2009,  solar powered mowers. We started over 12 years with a simple mission to retire as many polluting, noisy, gas powered mowers as we could. Originally we offered only one very perfect reel mower: the Brill Reel Mower.  And to this day, 55,000 mowers later, with countless customer feedback on all the mowers, we still believe manual push reel mowers are the solution for smaller lawns most of the time.

GENERATING ELECTRICITY IMPACTS THE ENVIRONMENT::
Why? Because generating electricity impacts the environment by producing green house gases. In 2004, 40% of the US total emissions of greenhouse gases was from electricity generation (pdf). Most of our electric power still comes from the traditional burning of fossil fuels, with the largest amount coming from the dirtiest source, coal.

THERE IS A MIDDLE GROUND::
So the compromise between the pure manual push reel mower and electric mower is the electric reel mower : Brill Accu. We love this mower because when we get back from vacation and the lawn is overgrown, cutting is easy using the cordless electric feature. And the rest of the year we can simply push this mower with out the electricity on. So it’s like 2 mowers in one. This also means when you run out of battery (because high grass is harder to cut and uses the battery up quicker), you can finish the job by just pushing.

So when choosing a mower, do consider that electric mowers are not without environmental cost…only reel mowers can claim that!

UPDATE TO THE MIDDLE GROUND- SOLAR POWER IS HERE! :
As of April 2009, there is a new solar powered mower that is a great choice. It is powerful, a rotary so a heavier and needs blade maintenance, but still a environmentally sound option for those whose yards are not candidates for reel mowers.

RELATED LINKS:
Chart to compare all the reel mowers out there.
Great site for more on the costs of electricity.

Remington Cordless Electric Mower Replaced by Epic Electric Model with Solar Option

So What Happened to Cordless Remington Electric Mowers?
Last year we were pleased to sell an electric mower made by Remington. This winter Remington Mowers (after announcing 2 great new models) surprised us all by filing for bankruptcy and went out of business. We were told that the employees tried to purchase the company but they were unsuccessful in their bid. Isn’t that a shame.

epic solar mower specs

Epic Electric Mower Can even be Solar Mower :
With that knowledge (and lots of customers to whom a reel type mower is not an option), we began a search for another powerful cordless electric rotary to round out our electric mower line. Features we looked for were those like a high-end gas model: mulching, push-button start, self-propelled rear wheel drive. After testing the new models out there, we chose the Cordless Electric Epic 21″rotary mower which utilizes a brushless system. The Epic mower is manufactured by Linamar and under the Solaris, Epic and Utopia brand names. Our customers are uniformly very happy with the Epic. They like the powerful features that are usually just on gas-powered models,  and the ability to go completely off the grid and add a solar charging station.

New for 2009: Epic Solar Powered and Cordless Electric Mower

The Epic Mower is arriving at our warehouse in days. We’ll begin shipping on Monday March 23, 2009

Epic Mower: The new Epic Cordless Electric Mower uses a 24 volt system comprised of two 12 volt batteries. The Epic EP21H is a rotary mower, self-propelled and will run for approximately 45 minutes.

Arriving Soon: The only high-performance cordless electric mower with features typically found on high-end gass models:

• mulching
• push-button start
• self-propelled rear wheel drive

One Powerful Cordless Mower

• cuts the average lawn in one charge
• 21″ inch extra wide cut
• battery powers mower for 45 minutes on one charge
• 24 volt system powered by two 12 volt batteries

Maintenance + Hassle + Pollution Free

• requires no gas, oil, maintenance or annoying cords
• low maintenance costs, hassles, and pollution
• solar panel option

YouthBuild: Takes back abandoned buildings, rebuilds, gives to homeless

great kids!

This 30-year old program YouthBuild began when East Harlem youth were asked a question: what would you want to do if you had adult support? The answer: take back abandoned buildings from drug dealers, rebuild them, and give them to homeless families.

I came across this event on the Washington D.C. mall by accident today and was fascinated, humbled,  and very inspired ::
Over 100 students and graduates from YouthBuild USA programs around the country showed off green building techniques on the Mall and, in a tent next to the building going up, took seminars about green building-related practices (event program (pdf)).

FROM YOUTH BUILD WEB SITE::

In YouthBuild programs nationwide, low-income youth ages 16-24 work toward their GEDs or high school diplomas while learning job skills by building affordable housing for homeless and poor people. About 90 percent of YouthBuild students have quit high school, and 40 percent have been through the court system. Emphasizing leadership development and community service, YouthBuild creates a positive peer group to compete with the lure of the streets while developing new young leaders who have transcended poverty in America’s poorest communities. In 30 years, 84,000 students have built 18,000 units of affordable housing and have transformed their lives and communities.

Big Belly Solar Trash Compacters = Win, Win, Win

We are delighted to announce the addition of Big Belly Solar products to our line. These compacters can do a great deal toward lowering energy costs associated with trash pick up.

The compacters can work in many ways. The units have a solar panel which is placed on top of the compacter which stands about four feet  high. All trash can be placed in the unit and is slowly compacted by energy gathered by the solar panel. Compaction occurs at an average of 5 to 1. This means that collection occurs 80% less frequently.

A more efficient use would be to have just recyclables placed in the Big Belly Solar unit. After the 5 to 1 compaction and collection, the contents should be brought to a single stream recycling facility, where everything would be effectively recycled.

The City of Boston has many Big Belly units in use, and Mayor Menino speaks highly of the job they are doing. Towns, cities, businesses, parks, beaches, and colleges will soon be adding Big Belly Solar compacters to their recycling and trash plans.

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Peoplepoweredmachines is a family owned business, 11 years old, always selling environmentally sound products such as reel mowers, electric mowers, composters, rainbarrels, solar products and more.

The Best Composter for Really Busy (or lazy) People!

In-ground Composter: No-turn, Empty Once a Year.

A product we love is the Green Cone System made by Solarcone. The Green Cone acts like a complete compost maker without the end product, compost. Basically, using the sun’s power, the Green Cone converts your food waste to water, carbon dioxide, and a small amount of residue. 90% of food waste is water which the Green Cone returns to the soil.

An outstanding feature of the Green Cone is that you can put fish, meat, and bones into it. Most compost makers do not handle fish, meat, and bones. Another excellent feature is that the Green Cone fits right into your garden. It has a nice clean look. And lastly the Green Cone needs to be emptied about one time per year. How’s that for low maintenance?

You wonder about customer satisfaction? Along with many of our products, this is a winner. We have not had one Green Cone returned in 12 years of business.

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Peoplepoweredmachines is a family owned business, 11 years old, always selling environmentally sound products such as reel mowers, electric mowers, composters, rainbarrels, solar products and more.

Hey! We are Looking for Great Recycling Units and Compacters

Just a year ago we sold a neat in home or office recycling unit called the Ecopod. Ecopod operated business on the west coast. Something happened to the owner, and we were no longer able to get supplies.

Since we lost contact with Ecopod we have been looking to replace the product line. We just have made contact with two exciting products. One is very similar to the Ecopod and is called the Mode Premium. You use it in your home to store and compact bottles and cans. You also use it for paper collection and trash.

At the same time we have made contact with a company which makes solar compacters on a larger scale. These would be used by businesses, towns, schools, and universities. Presently the compacters compress what is put inside at a 5 to 1 ratio.

Customers have the option of identifying one compacter to be item specific so that plastic bottles go in one compacter, aluminum cans go in another compacter, and trash for yet another. This is obviously better for the recycling benefit.

The compacter company sites all the savings associated with trash collection. Successful use would mean an 80% savings on fuel, traffic, and pollution associated with trash collection.

We’ll keep you posted as we learn more about the Recycling units and Compacters.

Charge Your Cells + Ipods Anywhere there is Sun: Portable Solar Charger that Actually Works!

NEWEST SOLAR TECHNOLOGY THAT ACTUALLY WORKS
We have been playing all month with our new little Solio solar charging gadgets and are really impressed! Impressed enough to decide to carry a couple versions of this new small personal solar charger…that can keep your cell charged on the slopes or in your sloop (I made that one up myself being a sailing skier !) Of the devices we have looked at the Solio Chargers are the most flexible and get the best customer reviews. Is small for its function, just a bit bigger than an iPod and similar in weight. Is simple to operate, and easy to remember how to operate! It is rugged and robust. In the past 4 years we have tried many older solar chargers and been very disappointed with their performance…but the consensus is : THE SOLIO CHARGER WORKS! Solio generates free and clean energy – immediately

CHARGE WITH THE SUN OR THE WALL OUTLET
Solio solar chargers come in 3 models for 3 different price points and markets.They are small and compact and the solar panels fan out when needed. It can charge all  your products from cell phones and iPods, to digital cameras, game players, and GPS. The Solio is charged by power from the sun OR by plugging into a wall outlet. That part makes it perfect for traveling – use the sun when you can, and when you can’t, plug it in.

NO MORE BATTERIES
The Solio really does what it claims to do, and that means no more buying nasty disposable batteries. It’s a great, lightweight and will keep you talking and your tunes playing! A full charge takes about 5-7 hours of direct sunlight to keep my iPod topped up. A fully charged Solio will recharge the average phone up to two times, or give you up to 15 hours of MP3 music. Solio’s intelligent internal circuitry and Adapter Tip System lets you charge devices at about the same rate as their dedicated wall chargers.

The 3 models are

• Solio Magnesium – about $170
  Engineered to meet the demands of the serious adventurer, Solio Mg edition combines the most efficient solar panels with the highest capacity battery to collect and store power.
• Solio Hybrid 1000 – about $80
  Plug into the Solio Hybrid 1000. This hybrid boasts a powerful solar panel and battery in an incredibly compact and slender case, conveniently geared with a built-in rugged carabiner and cable. The Hybrid 1000 is simple to use. Just clip on, plug in, and charge up!
• Solio Classic – about $99
  Solio Classic is a Hybrid because it can accept power from either the sun or the wall, storing this energy within Solio’s internal rechargeable battery. Solio will hold its charge for up to a year.

Ok….so set off on your adventures with the security of knowing you can keep in touch, and in tunes! (Thought of that one myself too )