Spring means mowing the grass -- again and again and again. For users of gasoline-powered lawn mowers, it is a noisy, nasty chore, and one that produces more pollution than the family jalopy.
Now, there's an alternative for those who want to be environmentally correct and stay on speaking terms with neighbors: a solar mower.
That's right. Let the sun cut the grass -- or at least power the mower. No exhaust emissions, no gasoline or oil to buy (and spill), no electric cord to cut or tangle. And blessedly little noise.
For those who dislike even the task of putting the mower back in the shed or garage, this machine is meant to be left in the yard. Three solar panels built into the top of the mower recharge the battery in 10 hours of direct sunlight.
All that is promised by the manufacturer of the Solar Mower, billed as the "world's first walk-behind solar lawn mower." Made by Solar Power International of Bloomfield Hills, Mich., the sun-charged grass cutter seeks to cash in on the conservation ethic -- and on its convenience.
"It's really slick," says Chris Fanning of Columbia. He is co-owner of C&P Small Engine Repair, which has the franchise to sell the mower in the Baltimore area. "No pull cord to start it. In spring, you get it out and then go."
The Solar Mower has a hitch, however. It costs $900 -- about $200 more than the priciest gas push mower. Cost aside, the solar mower hits the market at a time of increasing concern about pollution from lawn and garden equipment. A gas mower lacks pollution controls, and it can spew more smog-forming exhaust and fuel fumes in one hour than a car driven 250 miles. The Environmental Protection Agency, saying gas mowers are responsible for 5 percent of the nation's air pollution, has required new mowers to reduce emissions, starting with this year's models.
Electric mowers don't emit anything, but they pollute indirectly. The electricity they require often is generated by coal- or oil-burning power plants.
The Solar Mower is really just a cordless electric grass cutter, with the ability to use the sun to recharge its 12-volt battery. The battery, adapted from one used in F-16 jet fighters, can run the mower's 5-horsepower electric motor for about an hour.
The mower is ready to go again after recharging for 10 hours in bright sunlight -- or after 24 hours, if stored indoors where sunlight filters through windows.
