THE RISE OF BATTERY-POWERED EQUIPMENT

Hear That? Neither Do We. Welcome to the Future of Lawn Care.

It’s a balmy summer afternoon. Sam is glued to her laptop in her parent’s upstairs guest room, studying hard for the MCAT (Medical College Admission Test). Next Tuesday is her last chance to score high enough to catch the eye of admissions staff this year. The sound of a leaf blower breaks her concentration. Try as she might, she can’t drown out the noise. Between Sam’s hospice care job and research internship, this is all the time she has to focus on this. If only someone could put the thing on mute.

Virtually every human in America has had reason to glower at the sound of loud lawn care equipment. This fact is not news, but most have accepted maintenance noise as a necessary evil. Not

“My goal is by the end of 2025 to be 100 percent electric on our maintenance side,” says Greyson. “The biggest hurdle for us right now is range. We have a few high-mileage routes to work out, and we are looking to make substantial progress next year with the new options becoming available. It’s landscaping. You know, you’re going to have to overcome problems every day. The problems with electric equipment are just new.”

Greyson is a world traveler with a background in finance. Observing construction projects abroad has given him ground to question deep-rooted practices that few think twice about in the states. Becoming aware of the dubious consequences presented by widely used products like dyed mulch and chemical herbicides was just the beginning for Greyson. At Lawn Capital, they call their green missions Plan Zero and The Quiet Revolution.

“There has never been an option like this before,” says Greyson. “It can all be done to the standards clients expect from any lawn care company. Weeds in garden beds are still going to be curbed. We will keep delivering high-end service, just without noise, gasoline or yard chemicals. It is hard to gauge the demand precisely when this is so new, but when we explain it, people are excited.”

Five years ago in Dallas, Texas, Stephen Gault was out walking the dog with his wife. The pleasant moment was shaken by a reverberating racket behind his neighbor’s fence. He pictured the battery-powered tools the couple picked up for their home garage a few days prior. The moment gave way to a research frenzy for the longtime lawn care business owner. A total rebrand renaissance began, and EcoMow, a 100 percent emissions-free lawn and landscape company, was the result.

Business took time to grow, but the COVID-19 pandemic drastically increased the amount of calls to EcoMow. With so many Texans working from home, sound became a top-of-mind concern.

“What’s strange is that we kind of came into this whole thing thinking the big sell would be that we run on zero emissions,” says Stephen. “As we continue to understand why people call us and why they choose to stay with us, we have learned that it is more about noise pollution than anything. We have communities here in Dallas that have noise ordinances in place. They have had them for years and years, but rarely were they ever enforced. Within the last 12 months, that changed. Communities are taking action on noise ordinances. The gas-powered guys are leaving those areas in response.”

It would be remiss to ignore the poor reputation the electric equipment trend currently holds within the industry. The perceived expense, break-down risk, charge time and power limits cause many heads to shake at the idea. Looking at how far the technology has progressed, particularly within the last two years, electric enthusiasts like Stephen find most concerns on the topic unfounded or inconsequential today. Although he acknowledges electric mowers are behind the curve compared to other types of equipment, on the whole, Stephen is exceedingly positive about his decision to switch over to electric power.

“We kind of failed our way forward in our process,” says Stephen. “I didn’t know anything about how to build a charging setup with lithium batteries, power inverters and solar. [I had] no experience whatsoever. A tremendous amount of research was involved, particularly looking at how van lifers set up their vehicles. We built out our charging rig, and we kept destroying this equipment. So we got in touch with the manufacturer. I had a great conversation with the folks there, telling them what we were going through with equipment continuously breaking on us. They invited us to their headquarters and set us up with heavy-duty, commercial-grade equipment. That was ultimately a game changer for EcoMow.”

To educate himself and his employees on subjects like best practices for electric equipment use, how to dispose of batteries and efficient battery charging methods, Stephen is glad he had the foresight to sign up for the American Green Zone Alliance (AGZA) certification program. Outside his AGZA community, Stephen contributes insights to a weekly podcast called “Electric Lawn Talk,” cohosted by Stephen and seven industry peers representing businesses in Texas, Colorado, Florida and Maryland.

Jarmar Dupas, one such podcast co-host, is not only the owner of Peaceful Lawn & Garden in Southwest Houston, he is also a firefighter and paramedic for the city. Shortly after moving into his first house, Jarmar’s dog broke out in hives from the supposedly pet-friendly fertilizer in his garden. At the same time, Jarmar was losing sleep. Working nights, Jarmar needed to rest when the mowers and blowers were often active in his neighborhood.

“One morning in the spring of 2020, my wife and I were sitting on the back deck, trying to enjoy our coffee and tea, and our neighbor’s lawn guy was just making all kinds of noise, smoking the place up with the oldest backpack blower you can imagine,” says Jarmar. “It was so loud we couldn’t even hear each other speak. We thought there had to be a better way. Then it became, let’s do vegetable gardens, organic lawn fertilizer and lawn care. We can help animals and the planet. Let’s see if we can use our new batterypowered mower.”

Heart is what sets Jarmar apart in all aspects of his life. Aside from his degree in biology, Jarmar had no experience in the field before he built his business from scratch. Believing in his mission, he picked up skills and knowledge fast and now offers his customers a premium service that he can reasonably charge more for than gas-powered companies in the area. The customers, however, are not the only ones relieved about electric lawn care.

“There are tons of benefits just for your crew,” says Jarmar. “I have had guys thank me because their girlfriend or wife is no longer smelling gas when they get home. That vibration in your hand from holding motor-powered equipment all day, they do not experience that anymore. Hearing protection, smelling the fumes, the emissions that these things put off—I know we don’t want to talk about it, but these backpack blowers are terrible.”

How can business owners set themselves up for perpetual success? It’s a question with an answer that never takes solid form. Yet, whether you swap your entire fleet with emission-free equipment or start small with a gas-to-battery conversion kit, battery-powered equipment has a promising outlook in our industry. Improving the quality of life for employees, bringing peace to communities, and reducing emissions— that is a vision of the future to look forward to.

Stephen Gault

CEO of EcoMow Lawn & Landscape, LLC

Phone: (888) 326–6691

Email: info@ecomow.com www.ecomow.com

Jarmar Dupas

Owner of Peaceful Lawn & Garden, LLC

Phone: (832) 430–2630

Email: jarmar@peacefullawn.com www.peacefullawn.com

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