Are you done with gas powered or electric weed trimmers? You will LOVE this battery powered Black and Decker weed trimmer which is so easy to operate, and does the job perfectly!
This post is not sponsored, however does contain some Amazon Affiliate links.
As many of you know, I am a sole owner household, so what gets done around these parts (or lack thereof) is done by me.
One rather big hurdle for me personally lately is yard upkeep. Is it just me or is yard work better geared for the younger crowd?!
Perhaps it’s finally realizing I’m not in my 20s any longer. I don’t really know what it is, but one thing I do know, I had thrown my weed trimmer to the curb until this one came along.
I was using the Weedeater Featherlite for years. I still in fact have it! But when my one cutting cord wonder died, I bought another. Only… now they make them with two cutting cords.
Let me just say, the two stringer is sitting brand new on my workbench used only once. I can’t start it, and can’t stand fussing with the more technical cord stringing. Done! I’m totally over it.
So I resigned to just do without a weed trimmer and pull the grass by hand.
I did this over the course of several weeks, and felt really enlightened I no longer had to fight that silly machine, when I spotted my neighbour through the weeds and proudly chortled, “I am so weed eater free! Yep! Happy to be pulling by hand these days…”
“Oh, I LOVE my weed trimmer!” stated Janette.
What? When did this happen? I remember them having a big heavy lug that made you shake like a jack hammer after the fact.
“What are you even talking about? You hate weed trimming!”
“Not since I got my battery operated one!”
“It’s soooo light! It doesn’t need any pulling to start, just flick a switch. And the battery lasts for my entire yard and then some. AND… my hands don’t shake afterwards at all! Hang on a minute and I’ll show it to you…”
I lifted it up and it felt like a feather. And perhaps even.. dare I say it… toy-ish?
“May I try it?”
“Sure!”
Well I’ll be. Back to the one cutting cord thing once again. I was nearly sold at that point.
So I proceeded to crack that little whip on my entire yard in minutes. With a half used battery. My goodness… this battery powered weed eater was so light, it was like I just walked around with a broom in my hands.
And get this… no grass even landed back on my legs. Don’t you hate it when you turn into a walking grass creature after the fact?
Ecstatic, I then put that thing on my shopping list pronto and finally picked up my own!
So… let me show you MY new toy! : )
Brand
Mine is a Black + Decker 20V Lithium Cordless 10″ String Trimmer / Edger, LST201.
It does not have the wheel, but there are some that do.
It only came with one battery which lasts a long time. I nearly purchased a 2nd, however they are as much as the trimmer. No point! Just get another trimmer if you want another battery. (so silly isn’t it?)
This is a light duty edger, perfect for a typically kept up regular sized suburban type yard. It would not be tough enough for say…acreage needing to hack down blackberries.
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Easy to assemble
Oh I don’t love assembling stuff. But I made myself drag out the directions so I could figure out how to snap the protection cover on, then screw it in. VERY simple. When you read directions…
The (single) cutting cord was already installed, so I purchased an extra.
Weed trimmer and flower bed edger-in-one!
This is my fav feature!
I like to trim along cut turf edges and sidewalks, however I always had to hold my old weed eater upside down in order to do edging.
For this unit, the handle loosens, allowing you to spin the head so the cutting part swings backwards.
It turns into the perfect edger!
And it was so nice not to have to play a lawn version of Twister for a change in order to do it!
Lovely clean cuts along the sidewalks here I come!
Here’s a shot of the cutting head flipped for edging after I used it.
Janette’s had a wheel so you could roll the head while edging. I found when I used hers, I didn’t use the wheel.
So when I purchased mine without the wheel (by mistake), I didn’t worry about it.
But it is a neat feature to watch out for.
So anyway, I told one lie in this post.
I said I was thrilled to not have to use an automatic weed trimmer.
But what I really meant was a GAS run one. Because I am VERY thrilled to run this battery operated variety! I LOVE LOVE LOVE it!
Light duty tools, you are now officially welcome in my home anytime, as long as you do your tasks well.
And without killing me in the process…
Video
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Click above to see how I edge my flower bed edges with this weed trimmer! It works so good!
Visit the original blog post on how to edge flowerbeds like a pro HERE
And HERE is a post on my other current fav tools…
Hey, as another woman who does manly things – carpentry, mostly, I can vouch for “the right tool for the job” mantra.
When strength isn’t on your side, having and mastering the proper tools is a must. I cannot sand a piece of wood for two hours, but my sander does the job just as well in minutes. Next on my shopping list is a battery powered screwdriver. I can drive in screws and have a few good screwdrivers, but when the number swells to double digits, I am sure electric power will spare my puny little arms.
It was a revelation when I finally learned to drive a nail properly. How to hold the hammer so the weight of the head does the work and hold the nail with a pair of pliers so I don’t ease up on the force for fear of smashing my fingers. Life changing.
Leticia, I highly recommend to go Makita if you can find them. Lighter than most, especially if you get the really small one. It’s on my need list!
Here’s a post on my fav tools to date: https://www.funkyjunkinteriors.net/2013/06/must-have-tools-for-diyers.html
I want one!
I have one too! Love it! Since I do all of our yard maintenance-including having my own tractor-I am the decision maker for the yard tools. I agree that the majority of yard tools are way too awkward and heavy for female use-so I take a long time to figure out which product I prefer. Always done the “manly” things both professionally and personally.
Hi Donna — amazing what a difference the right tools make, isn’t it. When I saw your new toy, I thought I had the same one in the garage. But alas, I must have an earlier model. However, when it’s time for a new one, I will be looking for the twist-and-edge feature. Enjoy — your new edges look awesome.
I moved from Southern California to a small town in Missouri and have a yard for the first time. Somehow I was fortunate enough to buy the same trimmer you have. But, I can’t find the directions and didn’t know how to turn it into an edger, so – thank you.
I agree this is a great product.
Oh my… you’ll love it all over again now! Have fun playing! : )
Now if they could only make a light weight battery drill! The Craftsman I have is so HEAVY due to the big lithium battery on it – and maybe in pink too 🙂
Oh they do Sharon! Look for Makita. They have some tiny batteries for mini drills that are still quite powerful! I regret not listening to a friend when I picked up my last two Bosch. Love them, but they are a little too heavy for my liking. I’ll get a small one and blog about it… yeah… research… that’s a good reason to buy, right?!
I’m a 78 yr old widow of 10 years and still mowing an acre with my rider, but have a Ryobi battery operated weed wacker, chain saw and blower that use the same battery. Next purchase is another drill cuz my back up drill died. It’s almost as cheap to buy another tool as to buy a battery. I love reading your blog.
Awesome! I can now see it’s a matter of setting oneself up with tools that work for them. On we go! p.s. thank-you for the kind words!
Thanks! going to buy one today!!!
Watch out edging grass… you’re about to disappear… and beware, you’ll go looking down the road for more to do! haha
It is always good for me to find light weight things as not much strength in my arms. I am glad you found this item and it is working so well for you.
What do you mean by. a “wheel”? Thinking about getting this weed eater
Thank you.
Hi Mary, see the wire gadget that is attached to the cutting head? Janette’s wore a wheel there instead so you could roll the head while edging. There are several different variations of this trimmer on the market, so I suggest to just look at the pictures on the box carefully to compare features you may wish to have.
I have a black & decker weed trimmer too. I bought a black & decker leaf blower at the same time — the batteries are interchangable and so I have two batteries!
I can identify with you so VERY MUCH.
I actually wrote a submission to a contest sponsored by Stihl. In my submission, I murdered my former weed-trimmer and talked about getting rid of the “body”. It went something like, “I hate you! Die, dammit,” I screamed as I bashed his head on the ground as hard as I could. His head actually cracked. Wow. I let him go, and he didn’t move. Decker was dead. (Yes, I know, too much violence and no, Stihl was not impressed.)
Sorry, my two former weed trimmers were Deckers, but they were not battery operated. Oh, how I hated them.
My female boss once told me she pulled the cord on her gas-operated trimmer 99 times until it FINALLY started. She said she wasn’t going to let it win.
Anyway, I own an electric Stihl, but have seen the battery operated weed trimmers and have been seriously thinking of buying one. I hate pulling around the cord. You may have just pushed me in the right direction. Thank you!
I can totally relate as well! I also take care of all our lawn work and we happen to sell this very product at our store here in Navasota, TX! I use this exact trimmer and I also have the leaf blower too!
I think I may have to pick up the leaf blower now too! Thanks for sharing that Jamie!
Wait Whaaaaat, you get a battery operated weed trimmer? I need one. I’ve got one of those electrical ones with this silly little plug that keeps on pulling out when I yank it too hard, which I do every 5 minutes because the darn cord seems to get stuck around everything. UGH, I hate that thing.
HATE HATE HATE my electric B&D. I have to big of a yard for it so it takes at least 3 charges to get my yard done so I can never get my yard done in one day. I will be buying a gasoline powered Stihl this season.
Oh that’s funny! It certainly depends on what kind of yard you have too. This is a lighter duty model, however I can get my entire yard done with half of a battery charge to spare!
Have you tried replacing the battery to see if perhaps it’s on its way out?
Donna, Can you tell me how long your battery last? I read a lot of reviews and it seems the major complaint with this product is the battery last about 10 minutes. Still I’m trusting your review more. I don’t have a lot to edge but I’m the one doing it.
thanks
Hi Cindy!
The battery lasts to do my entire yard. I’ve never timed it though. If I don’t trim every week though, the extra effort it needs every two weeks puts more strain on the battery, and sometimes I can run out right before I’m done.
But for the most part, I’ve got it down! The key is light duty. If it works hard, it uses more power.
If you have a larger but still kept up yard, you may want to consider investing in an extra battery so you can just get it done all at once. Or continue the next day once the battery is recharged of course.
This is the perfect weed trimmer for a yard that is kept up. If you let it ramble, it may not have enough strength.