While you might not quite be in the age of The Jetsons, where there are domestic robots and machines available to take care of every conceivable task, it can still feel like such a thing is not so far away. You might already have a robotic vacuum cleaner that cleans your floors, seemingly of its own accord. But what about your backyard? Robotic lawn mowers have been available for a while now, although they are not yet a common sight in backyards or on rural properties. As the technology becomes more mainstream, the price of such devices will drop. You can already find robotic lawn mowers from a variety of manufacturers, including trusted brands which you could find at a Husqvarna dealership. But just how effective are these robotic lawn mowers?
Realistic Expectations
A robotic lawn mower can be extremely effective just so long as you're realistic with your expectations. The unit has a limited capacity when it comes to how much grass it can carry. This means that if you set it to cut the grass short and assign it to a large patch of land, you will still need to do a bit of work yourself. The lawn mower will stop working when it's full, as it will essentially be waiting for you to empty the grass clippings. You can actually get some models which will send a message to your smartphone when assistance is required, although you will still need to empty it before it can resume its cutting. So how do you get around this?
Just a Trim
Set the unit to merely trim the grass, rather than cutting it short. The unit can be assigned to do this several times per week, keeping the grass at an acceptable length and preventing the mower from becoming too full, too quickly. The machine will cut your grass and will then return to its charging station, allowing you to empty it whenever you're ready to, as opposed to having to empty it before it can continue the job. If you have a particularly large property, you can still have a robotic lawn mower cut your grass, although you might wish to make some adjustments to the unit's settings.
Large Backyards and Rural Properties
Even when just set to perform a trim, the unit's grass catchment section will quickly become full when you have a large backyard or live on a rural property. So that you don't need to be constantly emptying it, you might want to set it to sift the grass clippings back onto the ground. This means that the unit will not capture any grass, and it will only pause in its duties when it needs to return to its charging station.
The trick is to assign your robotic lawn mower to cut less grass than if you were cutting it yourself. Don't be concerned about the noise of having a lawn mower working on your property several times a week. Remember that it has an electric motor, meaning it's infinitely more quiet than its petrol-driven cousins.
