Leaf blowers are horrible. They're noisy and pollute more per drop of fuel than the worst car, and a rake really does the job better for non :grillman:
Edit: I looked this up because of the above and below argument, and it's even worse than I originally thought.
In 2011, a 50cc two-stroke leaf blower and a Ford F-150 Raptor with a 6.2 liter 411 horsepower engine were each run for 30 minutes, and the resultant pollutants were measured. The hydrocarbon emissions from the leaf blower were the equivalent of driving the Ford pickup 3,887 miles. For the same amount of pollution you can go from Dallas to Anchorage with your friends or blow some paper-thin organic material around your yard.
Some of the components of two stroke engine emissions are benzene, 1,3-butadiene, acetaldehyde, and formaldehyde — known carcinogens. More troubling is the ultrafine particles measuring 0.01 microns or less. These can get into the deepest recesses of the lungs. An operator of such equipment may as well be standing by a busy highway sucking down swirling brake dust.
For the user of a leaf blower the noise can get up to 100 decibels (ear protection is recommended past 85 decibels), but even hundreds of feet away the noise can be in the mid-sixties, a level that can trigger increases in blood pressure and heart rates. It is ruinous for kids’ concentration while learning and completely destroys naps.
The wind speed can approach 200 mph, so it is like a small EF-4 tornado in its ability to pick up particles of pollution from the ground and shove them right up your nose. Things like brake lining powder, lead, fungus spores, pathogens, pesticides, and herbicides can become airborne and a menace to health.
Do you own a leaf blower company? You seem incredibly defensive over a loud stench-inducing device that doesn't even clean up leaves and instead just blows them somewhere else to get blown around again.
Also, you're wrong about how much pollution they put out, even compared to an automobile. Very wrong.
In 2011, a 50cc two-stroke leaf blower and a Ford F-150 Raptor with a 6.2 liter 411 horsepower engine were each run for 30 minutes, and the resultant pollutants were measured. The hydrocarbon emissions from the leaf blower were the equivalent of driving the Ford pickup 3,887 miles. For the same amount of pollution you can go from Dallas to Anchorage with your friends or blow some paper-thin organic material around your yard.
Some of the components of two stroke engine emissions are benzene, 1,3-butadiene, acetaldehyde, and formaldehyde — known carcinogens. More troubling is the ultrafine particles measuring 0.01 microns or less. These can get into the deepest recesses of the lungs. An operator of such equipment may as well be standing by a busy highway sucking down swirling brake dust.
For the user of a leaf blower the noise can get up to 100 decibels (ear protection is recommended past 85 decibels), but even hundreds of feet away the noise can be in the mid-sixties, a level that can trigger increases in blood pressure and heart rates. It is ruinous for kids’ concentration while learning and completely destroys naps.
The wind speed can approach 200 mph, so it is like a small EF-4 tornado in its ability to pick up particles of pollution from the ground and shove them right up your nose. Things like brake lining powder, lead, fungus spores, pathogens, pesticides, and herbicides can become airborne and a menace to health.
Yes, you did seem incredibly defensive, especially considering you had nothing to back up your claim but dismissive assumptions.
Your "not that bad" 2 times a year (assuming 30 minutes each time) is still roughly 7k+ miles of road trip emissions when it comes to the worst pollutants in the fuel.
I can only assume there's some other device or means to do the same thing. I can't dictate your life, but unless your life in complete isolation, consider alternatives if you care about other people at all.
You say I don't know your situation. You also don't know mine.
At first glance, "don't tell me how to treat my lawn" sounds a lot like :grillman: talk. I should know. I have :grillman: all around me and their main issue is that I cultivate native plants (I don't belong to a HOA) and there's lots of pollinating insects and birds and an actual ecosystem in my yard and they hate that. Unlike the apparent situation with your neighbors, mine love gas powered leaf blowers and oversized lawn mowers and when they get obsessed with having bleak and wasteful 2cm high green over-watered Murica squares in the middle of a drough-stricken state, they get very passive aggressive about my low water actually thriving yard and flick gardener business cards at my door and try to get the city's regulators involved involving so-called weed height and fine threats.
Next time that 3.5k+ miles of car mileage pollution per 30 minutes machine breaks down and needs replacement, if you get an electric replacement, that resolves pretty much every major issue I mentioned.
The necessity of one yard that really can use an electric blower instead (when possible, yes economic necessity is a thing especially if your life or the life of others is immediately threatened), if nothing else, versus literally thousands of miles worth of carbon and other waste pollution per half hour of usage, and being this emotionally invested in what seemed like a spiteful reaction to being told just how bad gas powered leaf blowers are, is something I already said my part about.
If/when alternatives are possible (such as renting an electric blower versus a gas one), if at that time if the yard is still that important to you compared to how much waste pollution it generates if/when said alternatives becomes possible, it would then seem like some contrarianism and spite after being informed just how bad gas powered leaf blowers are for the environment. I mean, is the yard so vast that picking up leaves by hand is not possible? Keep chanting "zero awareness" if you must, but I still don't see a true necessity there, and dare I say it seems more like :grillman: hostility and spite, like the :grillman: that live in my area and use lots of gas powered leaf blowers and lawn mowers and expect everyone else to do the same, seemingly out of spite for environmental concerns than actual necessity.
Whatever the case, at this point, it's becoming :wall-talk: for me to go on here.
deleted by creator
Leaf blowers are horrible. They're noisy and pollute more per drop of fuel than the worst car, and a rake really does the job better for non :grillman:
Edit: I looked this up because of the above and below argument, and it's even worse than I originally thought.
https://medium.com/age-of-awareness/the-gas-powered-leaf-blower-is-the-most-polluting-yard-tool-ever-invented-ca0a9857969e
The most relevant part:
In 2011, a 50cc two-stroke leaf blower and a Ford F-150 Raptor with a 6.2 liter 411 horsepower engine were each run for 30 minutes, and the resultant pollutants were measured. The hydrocarbon emissions from the leaf blower were the equivalent of driving the Ford pickup 3,887 miles. For the same amount of pollution you can go from Dallas to Anchorage with your friends or blow some paper-thin organic material around your yard.
Some of the components of two stroke engine emissions are benzene, 1,3-butadiene, acetaldehyde, and formaldehyde — known carcinogens. More troubling is the ultrafine particles measuring 0.01 microns or less. These can get into the deepest recesses of the lungs. An operator of such equipment may as well be standing by a busy highway sucking down swirling brake dust.
For the user of a leaf blower the noise can get up to 100 decibels (ear protection is recommended past 85 decibels), but even hundreds of feet away the noise can be in the mid-sixties, a level that can trigger increases in blood pressure and heart rates. It is ruinous for kids’ concentration while learning and completely destroys naps.
The wind speed can approach 200 mph, so it is like a small EF-4 tornado in its ability to pick up particles of pollution from the ground and shove them right up your nose. Things like brake lining powder, lead, fungus spores, pathogens, pesticides, and herbicides can become airborne and a menace to health.
I hate leaf blowers so much
I'm fully in favor of redirecting all boomer energy toward anti-leaf blower sentiment, they get a free pass there for sure
Our leafblower is electric so I forgot gas powered ones existed.
deleted by creator
Do you own a leaf blower company? You seem incredibly defensive over a loud stench-inducing device that doesn't even clean up leaves and instead just blows them somewhere else to get blown around again.
Also, you're wrong about how much pollution they put out, even compared to an automobile. Very wrong.
https://medium.com/age-of-awareness/the-gas-powered-leaf-blower-is-the-most-polluting-yard-tool-ever-invented-ca0a9857969e
The most relevant part:
In 2011, a 50cc two-stroke leaf blower and a Ford F-150 Raptor with a 6.2 liter 411 horsepower engine were each run for 30 minutes, and the resultant pollutants were measured. The hydrocarbon emissions from the leaf blower were the equivalent of driving the Ford pickup 3,887 miles. For the same amount of pollution you can go from Dallas to Anchorage with your friends or blow some paper-thin organic material around your yard.
Some of the components of two stroke engine emissions are benzene, 1,3-butadiene, acetaldehyde, and formaldehyde — known carcinogens. More troubling is the ultrafine particles measuring 0.01 microns or less. These can get into the deepest recesses of the lungs. An operator of such equipment may as well be standing by a busy highway sucking down swirling brake dust.
For the user of a leaf blower the noise can get up to 100 decibels (ear protection is recommended past 85 decibels), but even hundreds of feet away the noise can be in the mid-sixties, a level that can trigger increases in blood pressure and heart rates. It is ruinous for kids’ concentration while learning and completely destroys naps.
The wind speed can approach 200 mph, so it is like a small EF-4 tornado in its ability to pick up particles of pollution from the ground and shove them right up your nose. Things like brake lining powder, lead, fungus spores, pathogens, pesticides, and herbicides can become airborne and a menace to health.
deleted by creator
Yes, you did seem incredibly defensive, especially considering you had nothing to back up your claim but dismissive assumptions.
Your "not that bad" 2 times a year (assuming 30 minutes each time) is still roughly 7k+ miles of road trip emissions when it comes to the worst pollutants in the fuel.
I can only assume there's some other device or means to do the same thing. I can't dictate your life, but unless your life in complete isolation, consider alternatives if you care about other people at all.
Maybe a blower with an electric motor?
deleted by creator
You say I don't know your situation. You also don't know mine.
At first glance, "don't tell me how to treat my lawn" sounds a lot like :grillman: talk. I should know. I have :grillman: all around me and their main issue is that I cultivate native plants (I don't belong to a HOA) and there's lots of pollinating insects and birds and an actual ecosystem in my yard and they hate that. Unlike the apparent situation with your neighbors, mine love gas powered leaf blowers and oversized lawn mowers and when they get obsessed with having bleak and wasteful 2cm high green over-watered Murica squares in the middle of a drough-stricken state, they get very passive aggressive about my low water actually thriving yard and flick gardener business cards at my door and try to get the city's regulators involved involving so-called weed height and fine threats.
Next time that 3.5k+ miles of car mileage pollution per 30 minutes machine breaks down and needs replacement, if you get an electric replacement, that resolves pretty much every major issue I mentioned.
deleted by creator
The necessity of one yard that really can use an electric blower instead (when possible, yes economic necessity is a thing especially if your life or the life of others is immediately threatened), if nothing else, versus literally thousands of miles worth of carbon and other waste pollution per half hour of usage, and being this emotionally invested in what seemed like a spiteful reaction to being told just how bad gas powered leaf blowers are, is something I already said my part about.
If/when alternatives are possible (such as renting an electric blower versus a gas one), if at that time if the yard is still that important to you compared to how much waste pollution it generates if/when said alternatives becomes possible, it would then seem like some contrarianism and spite after being informed just how bad gas powered leaf blowers are for the environment. I mean, is the yard so vast that picking up leaves by hand is not possible? Keep chanting "zero awareness" if you must, but I still don't see a true necessity there, and dare I say it seems more like :grillman: hostility and spite, like the :grillman: that live in my area and use lots of gas powered leaf blowers and lawn mowers and expect everyone else to do the same, seemingly out of spite for environmental concerns than actual necessity.
Whatever the case, at this point, it's becoming :wall-talk: for me to go on here.
deleted by creator