Search reveals one thread on the subject of Robotic Mowers, two years ago, posted by Phil and with one comment.
Hate to say it but I am impressed with the finish they leave on appropriate lawns, as they take off so little grass so often. I reckon that anyone with a suitable lawn would find an appropriately size of robotic will pay for itself in between one and three years over getting their lawn cut commercially.
I reckon if I can get a couple more years out of my current Ride-on (Etesia), if I replace it at all it will be with a domestic ride-on for the first cut of the year and occasional use thereafter. Only unsuitable shaped lawns, and customers who demand stripes will be left for regular domestic work.
Now, let's hear it from you all.
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One customer who used to cut his own grass, now has two and wastes the time he has saved watching them at work. His lawn has never looked as good though. He even says he feels a bit sorry for the machines when they are cutting in the rain!
Customers will buy them mostly; there might be a niche for professionals offering a 'supply, service and complete (strimming /verges/etc)' package but whilst margins might be higher it will still leave a good lump of time gone from those who spend all their time cutting grass.
A client of mine has a flymo one. Does an okay job cuts very high and no striping due to the lack of weight and there isn't a proper deck as such, doesn't mulch the leaves up (basically ends up windrowing them) even if its set to cut every day.
The future yes, but I think a long way off.
Also we have to do the edges as the machine obviously doesnt do the edges itself.
I had a conversation with one manufacturer/distributor a few months back and was told robot mowers have been 'a flop' in the UK.
In the not too distant future I can see a more conventional driverless mower though.
Phew!
John I think it is only a matter of time before they catch on.
Might be an NI thing...well known as early adopters! Thing is it's those who pay people to cut their lawns who may see the economics of it first. You'll be okay with your stripes for a bit longer!
I have been looking at robotic mowers for my own garden for a few years now. Capital outlay was the initial reason in holding off, but now time is more important; it would certainly free up a fair amount of time, not only in terms of cutting, but the fast mulching that benefits the soil, obviates the need to pick up any grass, reducing the amount of compost, reducing time spent sorting the compost (I have it in abundance), and reduces the amount of scarifying required as there would be less thatch build up. In addition I only operate electric tools whether at work or domestically, and prefer a quieter garden, so the extremely low noise of some of these mowers (58dB) is very attractive. The only maintenance appears to be sharpening or replacing the blades and cleaning out the base now and again. I recently saw the Husqvarna challenge and it's a shame that I missed seeing it earlier as I would certainly have been game for trialling it. The other issue with the current mowers is the installation in terms of setting up the guide wire; that I think is a stumbling block and if one has bulbs that come up in different parts of the lawn in spring then one has to be aware of that or isolate a group (say, daffodils) which is possible.
In terms of it replacing professional work? Perhaps, but customers baulk at lawn cuts at £20-£30 so not sure how many would be willing to stump up a grand for a small robot mower. If the cost comes down dramatically though, yes, I can see it changing the lawn business, as well as a robot mower that doesn't require guide wires; that would be a huge evolution in robot mowers (they exist but only on very large and expensive robot mowers). Edges are still an issue as the robot's aren't advanced enough in terms of cutting right to the edge or don't have the necessary chassis to get out of a dip between the border and the lawn if they fall into it which is why appropriately positioned guide wires are still a necessity. I would also hazard a guess that many people are still not aware of the existence of robot mowers and the time or money they could save.
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