What Tools Do I Need?? - An Equipment Story

"I need to get myself a..." - Famous words said by me to my wife over the past 4 years.

Thankfully I have two working hands and feet and did some landscape work as a kid at my house as well as two years at the local town pool. I learned a lot those years about mowings, trimming, edging, planting, leaf removal and many other aspects of landscaping. I thought, "How hard could it be to take care of the front and back lawns, planting beds, bushes, etc. as well as snow removal for the driveway? I'm not paying soemone to do this stuff!!"

First thing I needed was the tools for the job. So, I turned to the vast internet for information, reviews and comparisons. The internet is an amazing resource for that type of information. First thing I did was make a list of what I needed and when I needed it. Since it was springtime when we moved in, I knew I was going to need a lawnmower and a Weed Trimmer/Whacker. Then in the fall I would need a leaf blower. This allowed me to spread the cost of the different equipment over a longer period fo time instead of buying everythign at once.

HOME TIP: Buy your equipment on an as needed basis in order to spread the cost of purchasing sometimes expensive items.

I've put together a set of pictures below of the equipment I've purchased over the years and how I came about to purchasing them.

Click on the photos for larger versions of the picture.

First things I purchased was the mower and trimmer in 2007. I shopped around the internet, read reviews and thought about the brands I used in the past and found that the Craftsman line from Sears was very well reviewed so I went to see what kind of deal I could find. That day I purchased the mower below and a trimmer that has universal attachments that you can purchase. The box came with the weed trimmer and the edging tool (awesome tool!) I love the universal trimmer. I would HIGHLY recommend it for anyone doing their own work at home. Trimmer, Edger, Pole Saw and Hedge Trimmer. I recently purchased the pole saw as well and it works great!!! (The Pole Saw will be part of a later post as well).

Then fall of 2007 came around the leaves started falling. I am surrounded by huge trees and a forest behind my house. The amount of leaves I get is sickening to look at because I know the time it will take to removed it. I did the research and read the reviews and purchased the handheld, gas Troy Bilt blower below. I used that to clean the entire property and it took HOURS and HOURS of work to get done. Just not powerful enough and heavy to carry around. I didn't want to spend the money on the backpack blower at the time.......but I should have. Terrible move!!!

HOME TIP: Know when to spend the extra money. Think things through and think about the possible consequences of going the cheaper route. Many companies have 0% financing so don't be shy about spending a little more if you are in position to that can be paid off over time. You don't always need THE BEST but the cheapest doesn't always workout.

After 3 years of using the handheld blower and taking WAY too long to get done with the leaves, I decided it was time to buy a backpack blower and sell this one on Craig's List. Well, I did the research and found that there were walking blowers that cost just as much as the backpack versions and I already had the other one for the smaller areas. DONE. 0% financing for 12 months. This thing blows the doors off of having a handheld or a backpack. It's powerfull and easy to push. It is a Troy-Bilt as well. SECOND BEST PURCHASE SINCE THE MOVE!

BY FAR THE NUMBER ONE PIECE OF EQUIPMENT I HAVE PURCHASED IS BELOW. After 2 years of shoveling, hiring a plow man and just overall frustration about the snow removal, I finally caved in and purchased a snowblower in the Winter of 2009-10. My driveway is long, a hill and with an extra two car parking area away from the two car garage. NOT easy to shovel. Took at least two hours. I hired a plow man who would come several times a storm and charge me for each visit or wouldn't come enough and I would have to shovel. Disaster. What a difference this machine makes! I do my whole driveway in under 45 minutes depending on the amount of snow. Any homeowner with a sizable driveway needs one of these.

That is mostly all the things I've purchased for outside use. I've purchased some power tools but maybe that will be another post at some point! Thanks for reading!