
The Stihl AP 160 Battery.
There are many benefits to operating battery-powered lawn equipment:
- Less noise
- Lighter weight
- No emissions
- No mixing of gas and oil
- No cords
- Instant starting
- Lower operating costs
- Appeal to enviro-savvy clients, LEED-certified buildings, etc.
When considering the purchase of a battery-powered piece of lawn equipment, professionals should take note of the following:
- Power – But keep in mind that voltage is only one part of the equation when evaluating battery performance. The amount of “Watt Hours” determines power output over a given amount of time, and that is determined by taking the number of volts and multiplying it by the number of amp hours.
- Typical run time
- Typical charge time
- Typical lifespan, number of charges battery can withstand
- Power drop-off (at what point during operation will you start to experience a loss of power and performance?)
- Performance characteristics of the tool itself (i.e. cut swath on string trimmers, blade length and strokes-per-minute on hedgetrimmers, mph and cfm on blowers)