Expert Picks: 4 Best Mowers for Steep Hills

Customer Review: “Okay first of all, I’d just like to say that I am autistic, and I absolutely LOATHE mowing the lawn. The mower is too loud, the vibrating of the handle makes my arms go numb, and I can never quite pull on the cord hard enough to get it started by myself. I always have to find someone else to turn it on for me. And not to mention the fact that the smell of gasoline gives me a headache.So I finally decided to see if any old-fashioned mowers still existed, because I would much rather deal with something slower and time-consuming if it meant I wouldn’t have to deal with using a normal lawn mower.Imagine my surprise when I found that there are /new/ manual lawnmowers, and I can just order them from Amazon!So I decided I had nothing left to lose, and I would give it a try.Best. Decision. EVER.NOTE OF ADVICE: If you have difficulty putting it together (specifically, attaching the handle to the blade part), find someone with more upper-body strength to help you. They’ll get it done in two seconds. (it took me half an hour of attempting to do so before I gave up and waited for my sister to get home so she could help me)Also: it only cuts while you’re pushing it forward, so all you have to do to move it when you’re not cutting is to pull it along behind you.As for cutting grass? I love it. It works perfectly, aside from a few snags on branches that I didn’t notice. If you move it forward and back a few times, you can cut even tall weeds! Much easier than pulling them out by hand in the areas that the normal gas mower can’t reach.It’s not silent, but it’s also not the deafening roar of a gas mower. If I had to describe the sound, I’d say it’s a whooshing sound, and much much quieter than a gas mower. Plus, you don’t have to deal with your arms vibrating and constantly having to turn the mower back on!No more buying gas, no more struggling to pull on the cord hard enough to turn the mower on, and no more complicated wire-pulling to turn it off.All I have to do is push forward, and the grass gets cut. Stop walking, and it stops cutting. It’s easy to maneuver, and it’s not so heavy that I can’t pick it up and carry it up a flight of stairs to my porch if I need to.I’m never using a gas mower again.”

Customer Review: “My husband did not want to buy this and thought it would be so dumb to have a push lawn mower , that isn’t motorized. But we have a small lawn so there’s really no point in Us having a huge lawn mower that takes gas or electric. So finally I talked him into it And this thing is great the first time you use it if you haven’t Mowed the lawn in a while It will be difficult to mow because of the height of the grass. But after some upkeep , you’ll be fine. The other thing to keep in mind is if you get stuck on a clump of grass. That’s kind of thick. It does take a bit to get it cut but it’s really not bad. Personally, I love mowing the lawn because of this thing. It’s a good workout and it’s quiet , and you can do it at any time of the day , so you’re not disturbing anyone. It’s also light, so if you’re living in a place where you’re in a row home and you’re in the middle this way you can carry it through your house to the front or back. And it’s not too heavy to carry. That way , you don’t have to walk it down the alley or figure out something else. It’s honestly really nice and such a good workout like I said, and it makes me really enjoy mowing the lawn. as a short woman it’s not very hard to push. I am pretty strong but I’m also really short. So big things are kind of hard for me to move if they’re too tall but it’s not bad for me. I’m very much an outdoor person. So I like taking care of the yard and I also love being independent so this way I don’t need to constantly ask my husband who’s super tall to help me pick things up or move them. And I can just do it on my own. I wish we never got away from using lawn mowers like this. It really is great, especially if you have a small lawn, but even if you had a big lawn and you like being outside doing yard work And just working out in general , it’s such a great workout , so you should try it. I will say you will need someone to help you put it together if you need a lot of upper body strength. So my husband helped me put the rest together. Because I had a hard time hooking the blades in but it was great. It didn’t take long to put together either.”

Customer Review: “I live in Phoenix on an acre parcel and most of it is in desert landscape. Therefore no formal lawn to mow. Yaaa. However when it rains here the weeds grow, well like weeds. Fast and furious. This year we had lots of rain and lots of weeds. I’ve been running a battery powered weed eater every day for a week or so. My back is aching from twisting sideways back and forth so it was time to look for a better solution. I figured how about a small battery powered lawn mower and then I found this thing at about half the cost. So figuring I’d probably junk it after a couple tries I decided to give it a try. Really glad I did. Soon as it arrived I put it together and out I went. It had just rained again and everything was wet but I had to try it. Worked perfectly. Knocked down and chewed up everything I ran it over and no extra back pain as a bonus. I charged up the batteries( comes with 2) overnight and set out to do a good cleanup the next day. This thing is a real delight. It runs about 20 minutes on each battery and since the batteries are fairly small you can carry the spare one in your pocket. another thing about the batteries is the way they eject from the tool. Push the button on the battery and it pops out of the tool’s battery compartment. I mention this because removing the battery from my other “green” weed eater is a real chore You have to push in 2 tabs, one on each side of the battery, and forcibly pull it from the tool. My wife can’t even manage doing it and I barely can, often resorting to prying it loose with a screwdriver while pushing the tabs with both hands. The black and decker baterries just eject with 1 hand by pushing the button, I love it. When you get close to a fence or wall and the platform won’t get close enough, the weed wacker removes from the deck instantly by stepping on a lever on the deck and lifting the handle of the weed wacker forward and up. To return it back in the deck reverse the process, simple and easy. Keep in mind this is a regular string trimmer. It is not a bladed lawn mower and does not do the job of a bladed lawn mower It is a string trimmer on wheels. because you push it similar to vacuming a carpet , front and back, front and back, instead of constantly twisting sideways it doesn’t put the strain on your arms and back liike a regular string trimmer does. It does not mulch as fine as a mower would and if you have tall weeds or grass as I did you will need to make several passes, as you would with any string trimmer except you don’t have to hold it up, just push it back and forth. I have not had to replace the line yet so I cannot comment on that, except to say looking at it, it looks like the exact same process as the other 2 trimmers I have. To clear the bottom of the deck I simply remove the trimmer and wash out the deck with a hose. its been coated with wet grass almost every time I finish. I’m sure dry shorter vegetation will cut much easier. I’m cutting damp weeds and bermuda grass about knee high. The deck is light weight plastic but seems durable enough. If the deck should deteriorate and I have to replace it, the replacement cost of the set is about the same as a different manufacture’s string trimmer alone. but I’ll worry about that if it happens. so far I have no regrets whatsoever.”

Customer Review: “The 3-in-1 Black + Decker lawn mower, trimmer is tops in my book!Let me tell you I sure wish I had this gem of a tool years ago and not when I’m 71.I just happened to see this when I was looking at yard tools on Amazon. When I saw it was Black + Decker I knew it was worth a try. And it’s a game changer. The kids that used to do lawns in my area don’t want to do it now.And that’s okay now that I found what I call my “Barbie doll mower” 😆When I picked up the box it came in my thought was there is just no way there is a lawn mower in this box. But Black + Decker did not disappoint! It works like a charm. I can mow my own lawn often to keep up on it and keep it looking nice without paying someone. And at the very low cost I could buy one of these every other month and be at the cost I was paying.So no more weed whacking for me like I had to do recently after the weeds got out of control while I was trying to find somebody to do my lawn.I was not able to upload a video so I will tell you instead. I can mow and turn the mower to an angle with ease. I can stop mowing if I see a spot that needs the trimmer, remove the handle and trim the spot, then reattach and continue mowing.The mower also gets into tight spots and goes on an incline easily to mow in front of plants.It is light to life and carry.Color me happy!The only reason that it looked like I was having trouble is because I was taking the video with one of my hands.Lift out the trimmer which is also the edger.The battery life may not be as long as I would like but the two charged batters are enough to do the mowing. After recharge I can do the edging.”

Customer Review: “Like others, I needed to know the lowest measurement setting from the ground to the operating button with the mower attachment and trimmer in place. For some unknown reason, the community answers seemed to avoid such an easy question for those who owned one?! With that said, I just purchased my own to get that exact answer with a measuring tape.The LOWEST MOWER HEIGHT (from ground to button pressed): 22-1/2 inches.The HIGHEST MOWER HEIGHT (from ground to button pressed): 31-1/2 inches.**Due to my very own physical needs, the lowest height works perfectly for me! Fortunately, I did not have any of the ‘troubles’ that some have reported with theirs. If it works as it all did with my first use on a small yard today for even a season or two, I would definitely purchase again! Although it does kind of sound like a small shop vac in use, it is absolutely adorable and FUN for me to use. I love it!!It does look like a toy and is nearly identical to vacuuming (with both physical motions & width). So those that are impatient, hate vacuuming or want to look ‘manly’, may not appreciate this trimmer/mower like I already do. Did I mention that I I love this thing! :)However, as not to wear down the thin and very narrow plastic lip that holds the trimmer into the mower attachment, I personally won’t be pressing the trimmer into the mower attachment until it “clicks” per the instructions. Instead, I simply press on the pedal and gently seat the trimmer all the way in before releasing the pedal to lock it in place. Noting again, that’s just my own suggested solution to hopefully prevent that thin plastic ‘lock’ from wearing down so easily, or as I see that it probably could otherwise.Further, the trimmer seems to hold in place just fine when pressing the trimmer handle down to make turns (just like placing the weight on the back wheels to turn a vacuum). To ‘lift up’ on the trimmer handle when mowing, is when it wants to detach from the mower –so don’t do that people lol.Just like every electric tool that I’ve ever owned, it does NOT come with an extension cord (and it makes me laugh that anyone would expect it to). However, since I wanted an extension cord designated just for this unit, I also purchased what did NOT work –and that was a 50 ft 16AWG Yellow HUANCHAIN brand through Amazon at the same time as well. To my disappointment and even trying to force it further into the plug hole, that extension cord does NOT and will NOT make a tight enough contact to fit but for ‘brief’ contact spurts. At first, that was a big GRRR there for me because the mower kept cutting out before I realized it was that extension cord that was barely making contact. Okaaay….**Instead though and most fortunate for me, I ended up using my older orange extension cord (that most of us have laying around) that has a slightly narrower plug encasement … which seats all the way into the plug for continuous contact well and fits perfectly tight! With my recent experience: If it feels slightly wobbly, kind of loose or pulls out too easily… just forget it and try another extension cord plug! You’re welcome. LolAgain, before getting super frustrated with the extension cord constantly coming loose from the plug (like I did with the brand new yellow one), you may want to try to find an older style or better fitting extension cord first (even if to take the trimmer to your local hardware store to try one there)!See my extension cord pics as example: Orange (narrower) = Perfect & Tight Fit! Yellow (chubbier) = Frustrating, Loose & Horrible Fit!!Lastly, my reason for purchase: Living in an apartment with a small yard has became just too ridiculous annoying every year to ‘wait’ for yard maintenance not even mowing until the weeds are almost 18″ high and allowing the clippings to just fall where they may for their tenants to just track long grass/weed clippings into our cars and apartments — I finally had ENOUGH when a thorn weed recently caught my pant leg causing me to trip and fall! With this fun to use, light and nifty little edger/mower that I can enjoy taking care of my yard weekly and all by myself… I won’t and NEVER will want such careless “yard maintenance” in or around my yard (or vehicle) again now anyway! I’m not done yet but just after mowing the whole yard once & quickly edging to ‘test’ it today, my yard already looks way better than it ever has before! I’m HAPPY and very pleased with this fun little B&D trimmer/mower being my new ‘toy’!The only reason I’m not including pics of the results with its use on my yard today is due to some privacy concerns but it already looks GREAT! Yet, I hope my lengthy review helps answer some of the questions that I had prior to my having to purchase it to find out for myself anyway. I’m sure glad I did though! I don’t enjoy raking so to prevent that, I will just be sure to mow weekly through the growing season because I CAN and will enjoy doing so, too. Just make sure you get a tight fitting extension cord and well then . . . Happy mowing the easy way!! :)”

Customer Review: “UPDATE: May 17, 2024, after owning for one yearThis little lawn mower has been GREAT! Haven’t had ANY problems with it so far.I only cut my grass every 2 weeks or so. The original trimmer string lasted all that time. I just bought replacement string off a web site (rhymes with hay) super cheap.While my string was out and I waited on a replacement, the front and back grass was getting TALL. Easily 8-10 inches, thick, like a small jungle. I should have taken pictures but it never crossed my mind. It was much taller than the pictures submitted in my original review.I did have to go over most parts 2-3 times, but this little mower did the job just fine, never bogged down in HEAVY grass, just chopped it right up, and kept going.Honestly people, for a small to medium yard, this thing does a great job!ORIGINAL REVIEW MAY 2023:Pros:- Easy assembly. Just had to connect shield to weed wacker, lock it in the base, and attach the trimmer/edger handle.- Light weight, can pick it up with one hand.- Compact, can be tucked into a small corner.- Did exceptionally well on my tall grass! Many sections were well over 6 inches. It took a couple times going over, but this little unit worked great and never bogged down! I kept the wheels at the lowest setting the entire time.- I didn’t find it loud at all. Just a typical weed wacker. Definitely not as loud as a gas lawn mower.- Wheels adjust from about 1-2 inches high if you like your grass a little taller.- Handle telescopes out approximately 12 inches. If you are really tall this might not be adequate.- Briefly used the edger, the wheel was a big help, it did the job fine. Haven’t tried the trimmer yet.- Great for a small to medium size yard, limited space for storage, people with arthritis, seniors, disabled, those who can’t lift much weight, and want virtually maintenance free! Besides cleaning, you only need to replace the trimmer cord when it runs out.Cons:- Weed wacker locking mechanism into base is poorly designed. Mine popped out several times. It’s not a constant problem, but annoying (like the IRS or DMV).- Power cord came out of the loop in the handle numerous times. A spring loaded clamp would be much better.- Would be nice to have a grass discharge port in the side.- Sucks having to rake grass afterwards.Other:- Some reviewers said it doesn’t come with a power cord. My warehouse item said missing cord but I don’t recall the box or description saying it is included. You will need an extension cord regardless. Any standard cord plugs into the 2 prong handle fine. This doesn’t require an engineering degree folks.- I bought a warehouse return to save a little money. It was FILTHY! Previous owner did a bad job cleaning it. I’ve bought many warehouse items, but never had anything this dirty before. I did get a nice discount so I can’t complain too much. Also didn’t include owners manual. Maybe I can download a PDF from B&D? These are not product cons as none are B&D fault.”

Customer Review: “I laughed hysterically telling my cousin and my ex about this lawnmower. I feel like I beat the system or found a loophole and won the lottery. To make sure you understand the conditions I’m dealing with, let me start it by telling you that I weigh 95 lbs, I’m 5” tall, I lift weights almost daily and usually run a few mikes at least twice a week, and I have a yard that’s 99 ft x101 ft (I think that’s just the back… I don’t think that’s either side or the front). I live in the NE of the US so our summers range from about 71°-101° F I think. I live on my own and don’t think I can afford to pay someone to now my lawn every week.Long story: When I first bought my house in 2008, my mom bought me a gas push lawnmower (not self-propelled). It was a bit of a workout to use, but what was challenging for me was the pull cord which always made my sides hurt after a while or made me have to get my boyfriend to start it. I also didn’t know what amounts of the necessary liquids had to go in it or how to prime it. He had to oversee all of that. That pump button didn’t have instructions on it. After we got married, my husband started paying a crew to mow the lawn and got a Ryobi self-propelled electric mower for when they weren’t available. After divorce, my husband sold the mower and moved out. I spent $400 on a Ryobi electric push lawnmower of my own (not self propelled). I did fine with it and had to use I think 2 batteries to cut the whole yard. I have three for when the grass gets too high because of too much rain, too much overtime, or too much homework (I’m in school and I work full time). It could be an extra workout pushing the lawnmower after running 7-26.2 miles or lifting weights for 3 hours, but usually a nap just before was all I needed. About a month ago, the mower stopped working. It didn’t matter which battery I put in it, it wouldn’t start or it would start but turn off after a few seconds or a few minutes. I put it in Home Depot’s repair shop and was told it would be a month and a half before they could even look at it. My brothers have let me borrow their Ego self-propelled mowers a couple times since then. They’re nice but they’re also $800 and they’re heavy, so yay for self-propelled mowers, but I can’t afford to buy my own and my brothers’ mowers are hard to get in and out of a car. I decided to buy another cheaper lawnmower.I wanted one that could cut at the same 4” height, fully electric since I seriously injured my psoas a few times over the past couple years (same place) and can’t be fooling with a pull cord now. I needed it to be cheap otherwise I might as well not bother with the repairs of the other mower. This mower came up in my search along with the Fiskars Stay Sharp 18” push reel mower. A friend suggested I go with this one thinking that even with my athletic lifestyle, a push reel mower might be too exhausting to use regularly on my size yard. When it arrived, I actually picked up the box with one hand! After opening the box, all I had to do was lift the push bar into place and screw the bolts to lock it in position. I bought a couple 12 gauge extension cords, plugged it in, and it started right up. Pushing this thing feels almost like vacuuming. It’s SO lightweight. It makes a grinding noise when I let the trigger go and it sounds like something got caught underneath, but the manual mentioned this so I know it’s normal. This mower cuts better than anything I’ve ever used. The yard looks like I used a laser to cut straight across the grass. My only disappointment is that I only have one outdoor plug on my little old house. I’ll need more extension cords until I can get my ex to come over and teach me how to put in more outdoor plugs (he’s an electrician). Aside from that, I LOVE this mower. No need to recharge batteries, haul on pull cords, mix and pour in fluids, or anything. Oh, I do have to keep moving the cord out of the way, but after getting all those don’ts, what’s one do? This mower was inexpensive and does the job better than my two previous mowers with less exhaustion on my part. Long story short: I highly recommend this mower. To everybody.”

Customer Review: “Okay, I bought this because my gas powered Husqvarna took a s***. So my grass has been growing like crazy after the hurricane, my yard is a quarter acre and has a drainage ditch in the front with about a 2-ft drop. I live in Florida so that’s about a pretty standard size yard and standard size drainage ditch. The lawn mower showed up basically ready to use all’s I had to do was to extend the arms and tighten down 4 the connectors. To lock the handle in place. Now let me be clear, I’m a plastics engineer. The plastic used to make all the components on this lawn mower are either polystyrene or polypropylene. Which are the absolute cheapest and easiest to use in making plastic components. They will work, but you cannot expect them to have a long lifespan. And you have to protect them from the sunlight. If not they will get brittle and shatter after 2 years. The day I got the lawn mower I was absolutely brutal with the use of it. My grass had grown because of the hurricane. But I was still able to mow my lawn with basically one hand while my other hand held the cord for the electric power . The mower seems to have plenty of power to mow tall grass and is very lightweight. I seem to remember that the website said it weighed 35 lb, but it does not seem to even weigh half that much. Which is a good thing. You’re going to hate the power activation handle that the mower has. First of all again, it’s made out of that cheap plastic and is going to break in a couple of years. In the meantime, you have to hold it constantly to keep the mower from shutting off. If I had my choice I would probably use a zip tie and lock it open but that’s unsafe. And while I don’t care, I’m sure that there are those that would. The mower actually made short work of my yard. I was very, very pleased with how it performed. Definitely worth the money.”