The “Water Cooler” is a feature on Claycord.com where we ask you a question or provide a topic, and you talk about it.
The “Water Cooler” will be up Monday-Friday in the noon hour.
California is considering a state-wide ban on gas-powered garden tools.
QUESTION: Do you support this idea of a state-wide ban on gas-powered garden tools?
Talk about it….
Let’s hear it from the experts. Which is best? Which is worse? Seems to me, there’s a downside of all of them, but we have to use at least one of them.
*Gas powered
*Electric powered
*Battery powered
Aunt Barbara
why no rakes?
Because it’s really hard to mow your lawn with a rake!
I use a rake to rake leaves & I also use a broom to sweep the driveway & walkways, I do however use a gas powered mower to mow the lawn. I’ve been interested in switching to an electric or battery powered mower for some time now. Any suggestions on what to get?
If you have acreage it’s got to be gas. More power and more efficient.
Ozzie
No I don’t have acreage, in fact I’ve got a very small yard with grass. It still needs to be mowed though. Just wondering an alternative to my gas mower. Anyone?
Battery powered is too weak. Go electric. It is a big difference.
I never tried gas powered blowers or hedge trimmers.
When I had a small lawn I used an old fashioned person power mower.
NO.
Tree work, including clearing from PG&E wires will cease. I support a ban on politicians.
I like the way you’re thinking.
No, gas is far more efferent than environmentally bad lithium batts.or costly electricity.
NO
The only garden tool I want to see banned are leaf blowers. They don’t just blow leaves, they blow dirt, small rocks and other debris that can cause damage to a car’s paint.
I don’t care how they are powered, ban leaf blowers.
Agree Dawg!
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Why not! Years ago we survived without gas-powered garden tools. We need to ban plastics as well.
We also survived without electricity and running water and cars and planes and trains.
If this Includes gas powered lawn mowers then NO as I bought a new one 2 years ago.
If its just the gas powered leaf blowers then YES, I hate how they blow crap everywhere off the owners property but the users never pick up what they blow away and it just ends up down the road or on neighbors property.
And who is going to police this? We don’t have enough ‘police’ to deal all the other illegal ‘s’ goin on…. [smh]
Right! All these laws, and yet no one around to truly enforce this crap… such a joke!
California is big on passing lots of laws telling people how to live their lives, but then they set the example of ignoring laws they don’t like.
wcmom,
The pollution police aka Calif Air Resource Board or one of their entities will entice neighbors to turn each other in. That’s how they do it, pit neighbor against neighbor.
The noise pollution police will rely on neighbor against neighbor to ‘police’ the offender. Same as they do with the fireplaces.
Its what they do.
Stupid leaf blowers.
Loud and blow debris all over my car, not to mention leaves.
Let the nuisances be banned.
After they ban commercial aircraft…
No Barb, this would not be the best thing California could do for its residents……..NOT EVEN CLOSE.
Have leaf blowers ruined your physical health or are you just a grumpy neighbor? I’ll bet you go out and shoo the neighbor kid off the lawn. I know that every neighborhood has one, and every kid knows it.
I know that gasoline-powered garden equipment is convenient. With so much environmental impact these days in the name of convenience, it seems a bit short-sighted to point out one thing or other as the “thing that should be banned”. Take the new no-straw craze…or the no plastic bag movement as examples. Firstly, stores charge for plastic bags, the money doesn’t go to environmental relief funding, and then stores made *even thicker *less-biodegrade * bags, marketed as “reusable”, and people still toss them out or lose them, etc. Didn’t work with the whole no plastic bags allowed thing. Moving to the no-straw issue. Last I looked, straw garbage accounted for 0.03 percent of the ocean’s plastic problem. Talk about a drop in the bucket. What accounts for most of the plastic waste and biggest hazard to the earth’s marine life is discarded FISHING NETS. OK, I will get back on topic.
Regarding gasoline-powered garden equipment, I will say that with electric options available, it would be very wise and quite an improvement to use them. They don’t smell, they tend to be quieter, they are more environmentally friendly. To manufacture either kind is a huge blow to earth’s resources, but that goes for anything made with plastic and electrical, etc. That being said, I’m for limiting the gas-powered ones, because MILLIONS *if not billions* of lbs of CO2 and other extremely hazardous gases are thrust into the atmosphere every year due to garden equipment. The noise is obnoxious, it’s unhealthy for the gardener, the gasoline is frequently spilled…..
So, should we ban it? That’d be ideal, but it probably won’t work due to people being really pissed off and it’ll go pretty unregulated, so I believe a good starting approach would be an incentive of TRADING in a gas-powered for an electric one. People would feel better about getting something than another regulation taking something away.
The environmental argument isn’t as good as you think it is.
In California, electricity is generated by the burning of natural gas which produces CO2. It’s less than burning gasoline but you also have to consider the fact that there is a percentage of natural gas that leaks into the atmosphere during the extraction process from the earth. Unburned natural gas (methane) is much more potent greenhouse gas than CO2.
For the reasons listed above, experts that have compared the environmental impact of gasoline vs. natural gas powered cars have stated that natural gas as an energy source is equally as damaging if not more damaging than gasoline.
No problem here because my blower and whacker are both electric.
That should have been done long ago. So stinky. Every Monday used to fill up my condo with that smell. I feel awful for the guys using them and breathing that in.
Leafblowers now.
Notice how the Gavin Newsom recall has been buried?
Contra Costa never submitted the recall petition results.to the state.
And it’s leafblowers now. Yeesh.
Send your completed legal size recall form to the RAN ACTION FUND San Diego address listed on their website.
Good grief, no. Mandatory low-flush toilets, outlawed incandescent light bulbs, charges for plastic shopping bags, charges for plastic straws, charges for single-use paper cups, now this. I’m reminded of the old adage that goes something like this, “Be grateful you don’t get all the government you pay for.”
Back when compact fluorescents appeared and incandescents started disappearing, I’d stock up at the dollar store. That was YEARS ago, and the dollar stores STILL seem to have an unlimited supply of incandescent bulbs! Selection is limited. They’re usually Sunbeam brand. Did America have a Strategic Incandescent Bulb Reserve? cuz there’s still plenty.
If this ban includes gas powered lawn mowers, absolutely not! The electric ones are crap
No they are not. I had a BD one for years and it worked great. It did have a cord but I managed to never run over it. Imagine that?
Guess I’ll just buy a goat to keep my lawn down….jeeeez
And the goat will fertilize your lawn also.
YES Please they are so loud and at my condo complex they use them everyday yikes.
Keep it up because sooner or later state will require all new house with just electric stove, electric fire fireplace and electric heating. All gas, range to be, gone by 2045. So how, that for a huge ban on gas range??????????
And manage the electric company. Now there’s a monopoly
Someone somewhere must have been killed by a gas powered mower! This is California. We ban freedom!
In 2010, about 253,000 people were treated for lawn-mower-related injuries; nearly 17,000 of those involved children under age 19, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. Admittedly this doesn’t separate gas vs electric vs manual
Then why target gas models? Let’s outlaw all lawn mowers. While we’re at it, lets outlaw children under 19 years of age!!
The only gas powered tool I want banned is those damned leaf blowers the Mexicans in unmarked white vans use at 9am on Saturday.
That’s what we’ve been doing with cars. And the results are much better air. But then some dictator comes along and tries to make his base happy by throwing out all the rules. Sound familiar?
It’s yet another dumb idea proposed by the ignorant.
Gasoline is the most efficient fuel on the planet.
It’s safe to transport and store.
It’s an easy to handle liquid that can be used at temperatures from −70 to 150°F.
One gallon weighs six pounds and provides enough energy to move a car about 25 miles.
As it’s so easy and safe to handle, refilling does not need any special tools or equipment.
The combination of the high energy density with ease of storage and handling is why you can refill your vehicle in five to ten minutes.
Gasoline powered engines can be light enough that they are used in handheld tools such as chain saws. Gas powered engines are light enough that they can be used for tasks such as powering an aircraft where the balance between weight vs. net output power is critical.
Gasoline powered engines are also very easy to manufacture and to maintain. An average IQ teenager can understand how they work and can conduct most diagnostics and repair with minimal tools.
As the fuel is manufactured at such a large scale it’s very cheap. Technically, it’s organic!
These are the reasons why people worldwide use gasoline powered vehicles and devices.
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Another stupid idea. They can’t solve the many problems facing Ca, instead they dream up more laws when so many are not enforced.
Gasoline at one time weighed 7 lbs per gallon.It shows how much they’ve changed it.
Yes then move on to automobiles.
I cannot open a window without the incessant droning of baby, screaming all night, all over town, often with many crying at once.
I cannot open a window without the incessant droning of Harley Davidson motorcycles, roaring all day and night, all over town, often with many roaring together.
I guess I should keep my windows shut if I don’t want to hear the outside world.
You were once one of those screaming babies.
NO! NO! NO! Those batteries in electric tools account for more pollution than gas powered tools. Check the data on pollution from mining and processing rare earth metals, not to mention slave-labor.
Having said that, I know that under the single-party rule of the most Liberal faction of the Democrat Party, California is only to get even nuttier. At this point, you have to wonder how long you can wait before leaving with your belongings. Hate to be one of those folks flying out of Saigon with only the shirt on my back.
That’s what I’m sayin’. Battery powered machines don’t emit as much toxic gas as combustion engines where they are, but their pollution is outsourced to other locations. I’m not saying electric is just as bad as gas, but it’s also more complicated than “gas bad – electric good”.
And electric cars… does anyone else see the humor in the very real possibility of driving a nuclear powered Prius?
LOL – who uses gas-powered garden tools unless you mowing a massive lawn or cutting shrubs or trees for a living?
Pretty sure most folks have moved well past the early 2000’s.
How many tree services have you seen using electric chainsaws?
Have you ever seen gardeners with hundreds of feet of extention cord that uses the owners electricity?Why do you even bother?just to disagree?Its like a 10 year old.Theres an old saying look before you leap.Gas is portable.That amount of electricity isn’t,and the cords would be a huge safety issue.Get some rest.
Electrical cords may be inconvenient but they are really not much of a safety issue. That’s a stupid argument.
A hedge trimmer can cut right through them
They may not be a safety issue, but they’re an expense issue! Hedge trimmers in particular slice right through electrical cords like butter. Or, anything else around, like sprinkler valve electrical connections. If I ever spliced back together everything I’ve cut by accident with the hedge trimmer I’d have hundreds of feet of useable cord. And, you learn the hard way to buy multiple smaller cords, daisy chain them together, and only use what you need for any given job. Then, if you accidentally cut one of them, you’re not replacing an expensive 100′ cord.
Personally, my gas lawn mower was the best and most expensive on the market in the 1970s. Still works great. I’m on my third electrical string trimmer since the 90s, and due for a new electric hedge trimmer that only lasted 15 years. The motors eventually burn out with heavy use while gas engines can be maintained and rebuilt, endlessly. The only thing electrical gardening equipment does is assist the economy and manufacturers because you have to keep replacing it.
Yes, hedge trimmers are remarkably good at cutting electrical cords. I’ve watched my wife do it. I had to call out james on that silly argument. Why is it so difficult for people to make sensible arguments? And they should leave off the insult.
Jojo if you have a wife its a 2 mom house.Cords are a huge safety issue,they get tripped over,but you’ve never done yardwork,or anywork,so why comment?Alway worried about insults as you insult.You haven’t called anyone”out”.What does that even mean?Another one cent comment just to disagree or feel left out.
You’re ridiculous. Wanna know one way to tell he’s not a dictator? You won’t be thrown in jail for your ignorant comments.
If they ban all gas powered garden tools I think we may see a significant drop in illegal immigration. Not being racist, just saying! Surprised Trump didn’t think of it.
I would be all for a ban on gas powered leaf blowers. Beside being very noisy, the smell is horrible. It is like the little gas engines put on bicycles. The weed whackers are almost as bad. Mowers pollute but aren’t are annoying as the other two. I just don’t like government telling us what we can and can’t do.
It really sounds like more folks are concerned with the noise pollution aspect of gas leaf blowers. Electric leaf blowers still make a certain amount of racket and must be run for longer to complete a job due to reduced CFM.
I really dislike the sound of people slurping with drinking straws. The sound is really annoying, and it reflects poorly on their mother. Plastic and cardboard straws sound the same.
Certainly we have more pressing issues to solve.
The degree to which people in California want to control their neighbors has gotten out of control. The arbitrary ways in which they want to do it are ridiculous. Most of these people probably don’t even do their own yard work, but rather pay others crappy wages to do it. When their gardeners have to charge four times as much to get the same amount of work done, it’s going to be the same people complaining yet again.
The battery powered equipment is not going to keep up with larger lots, commercial gardeners or public works. I don’t want to ruin our environment, and I’m all for clean air, but it seems like a good portion of the people that push things like this always want to make sure it’s someone else that has to make a sacrifice and not themselves. Frankly, it’s often arbitrary and capricious what they decide to regulate. I don’t have to fly much anymore, so I say ban air travel. We used to get by fine without cell phones; they cause industrial waste and collisions- ban those too. Ban unnecessary travel unless you’re on your way to and from work while we’re at it. Eventually the people who want to control everyone else, will find they start losing things they enjoyed also, but they’ll realize it’s too late at that point. We banned plastic grocery store bags years ago, plastic straws last year, yet I see more trash along the side of the roadway than ever before. Start working on the major problems we have, and stop trying to feel righteous controlling every last little move the people around you make.
“From my cold dead hands.”
From sperm to urn, the democrats of California are trying to regulate ever facet of life.
That’s pretty much what communists do manbearpig reminds me of the opening scene from Scarface when Tony Montana talks about Cuba
Is the state going to buy my gas powered equipment from me? Are they going to swap my gas powered equip to electric at no cost to me? If my gas powered tools stop working I can fix them. If electric tools quit working we throw them away and buy new ones. What is worse?
I’ve been switching over to battery powered tools for a while. No cords or trips to the gas station. Big improvements in power over the years makes these a good alternative.
Just a note I have a large yard and don’t use my gas pole saws anymore for pruning.
Replaced with hi quality Japanese pole saw kind of expensive but very sharp and well made so I just spend a little more time pruning. No battery or gas needed. Also got rid of my front lawn and replaced it with a cottage garden.
(dictator)I think Castro is dead now,so her comments are safe.
I was born in the 60’s,and in all my years I’ve never seen such anger based mental illness flying around in the form of political comments when not even warranted,but the urge just can’t be resisted,the urge to continue making an a$$ of one’s self,over the crippling loss in an election 3 years ago,and one comig up in 10 months,one in 4 years and 10 months,8 years and 10 months,etc etc.
Thank yourself and your party for perpetual,self created loss.
Some dictator?If most of the country isn’t even as smart as you,we are truly finished,but this is your message,everyone is crazy,and you’ve got it all figured out.If that was true you wouldn’t be here talking about it.
When a law maker is doig something you don’t agree with,that is not the definition of a dictator,but I’ve seen several children discover that word and throw it at their parents,sound familiar??
Our yard maintenance men have a leaf-blower gizmo which evidently has a rechargeable battery. I’m not sure how they go about doing that often enough to last for several clients throughout the day, though. Anybody?
They likely have several batteries and a powerful charger wired to the truck battery. Quite expensive. That’s what model airplane flyers do.
Thanks, Kirkwood! I’ll go and scope out the situation the next time they are here.
I won’t buy a blower and won’t hire one. There are very, very few people who wouldn’t benefit from cleaning their own dang yard with a rake, some trimmers and a little old fashioned sweat. Good for the soul too.
I completely agree. Clear what you can if you want without the use of machines. Good old fashioned work!
I’m okay with leaf blowers being affected, because, well those things are annoying.
I feel for anyone who has to mow the lawn though.
This, just like banning plastic straws and free bags to carry food, really bugs me though.
If you have a postage stamp size lot it would work. But not for those living in the country