Robot mowers

Author
Discussion

Andehh

7,107 posts

205 months

Sunday 22nd April 2018
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Dad has a Worx mower, without control panel. He tried setting up the app, following instructions to the letter but said it failed to connect.

Before I get mote details off him tomorrow, anyone else experienced any issue setting up their connections?

Harry Flashman

19,283 posts

241 months

Monday 23rd April 2018
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Chaps - I am about to turf our lawn, and love the idea of a robo mower. We are leaving beds around the outside, some of whiich are corved to go around trees etc. Should I bury the wire under the borders of the turf when laying? Or just lay in the beds, butted up against the new turf?

Also, in terms of power for the housing - I assume that the housing needs to be on the lawn, rather than on a patio, so have to bury a power cable for the docking station?

Chris Type R

8,018 posts

248 months

Monday 23rd April 2018
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mikeiow said:
We bought a while back and deployed it last weekend. It is too early to really say - come back at the end of the season! - but so far I am mighty impressed!

Lay the wire closer than you think to the edge - they suggest 35cm, I would say 25-30cm is fine.
I probably should have been more thorough in laying it 'loosely', running a cut high (6cm) to check better, then move it in, but we had reasons to get it down fast!

I've made a 'garage' out of some decking which Rob takes himself into every now & then, & so far we've been running it 10am to 7pm.
Make sure the run into the garage is nice & flat: mine was slightly uphill, & I found him today NOT having quite plugged in.....so another hour or two digging out a bit to make it better.
Anyway, we also have some longer areas he is not down to cover, and we can see a dramatic difference. I have gradually reduced the cut - now around 25mm - I suspect around 30 will be where we will leave him on over summer.
Rob O'Mow is covering about 450sqm for us here. He really is mesmerising to watch!

I am naturally a keen cynic, and kind of had a 40% expectation of him really working....right now, 6 days in, I would raise that to 90%
Thanks. Most of the negative Worx reviews seem to be about the lack of UK support (and spares).

mikeiow

5,288 posts

129 months

Monday 23rd April 2018
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Chris Type R said:
Thanks. Most of the negative Worx reviews seem to be about the lack of UK support (and spares).
I saw the same.....& the reality is that I feel I am still a season from knowing whether I have made an expensive mistake or genius decision.....but I am pretty hopeful after the week with it!

Harry Flashman said:
Chaps - I am about to turf our lawn, and love the idea of a robo mower. We are leaving beds around the outside, some of whiich are corved to go around trees etc. Should I bury the wire under the borders of the turf when laying? Or just lay in the beds, butted up against the new turf?

Also, in terms of power for the housing - I assume that the housing needs to be on the lawn, rather than on a patio, so have to bury a power cable for the docking station?
The middle of the mower (in the Worx case at least that we have!) will follow the wire when it 'returns to base', potentially from anywhere else in the garden, in an anti-clockwise route.
...so you can do what you suggest in the beds butting to the turf, but you may find the right rear wheel would get a bit claggy with soil.
I would personally have the lawn/soil level but bury the wire probably 10cm in from the edge.

If I had the time when doing it, I would also lay it 'slightly loosely' - wire on top, not pressed right down - then run a boundary run with the mower at high setting just to actually see how close it can get to things. I was on a tight schedule, so failed to do that - if I had, I believe I would have laid it closer to our edges. So likely some strimming action ahead for us......

Podie

46,630 posts

274 months

Monday 23rd April 2018
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mikeiow said:
Harry Flashman said:
Chaps - I am about to turf our lawn, and love the idea of a robo mower. We are leaving beds around the outside, some of whiich are corved to go around trees etc. Should I bury the wire under the borders of the turf when laying? Or just lay in the beds, butted up against the new turf?

Also, in terms of power for the housing - I assume that the housing needs to be on the lawn, rather than on a patio, so have to bury a power cable for the docking station?
The middle of the mower (in the Worx case at least that we have!) will follow the wire when it 'returns to base', potentially from anywhere else in the garden, in an anti-clockwise route.
...so you can do what you suggest in the beds butting to the turf, but you may find the right rear wheel would get a bit claggy with soil.
I would personally have the lawn/soil level but bury the wire probably 10cm in from the edge.

If I had the time when doing it, I would also lay it 'slightly loosely' - wire on top, not pressed right down - then run a boundary run with the mower at high setting just to actually see how close it can get to things. I was on a tight schedule, so failed to do that - if I had, I believe I would have laid it closer to our edges. So likely some strimming action ahead for us......
The Flymo is the same - it has a "home" wire that goes through the centre of the dociking station.

We used a lawn edger to create a 1 inch hole and ushed the cable in that way - which seems to have worked pretty well for us (with tthe occasional peg as well)

If you know which mower you're likely to get, then have a look at the PDF instructions on the manufacturers site first.

Harry Flashman

19,283 posts

241 months

Monday 23rd April 2018
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The lawn won't be that big - about 25m x 15m, with a slight slope on it. Which mower would you guys recommend? I'm doing some research but real world experiences are really welcome.

kryten22uk

2,344 posts

230 months

Monday 23rd April 2018
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Finished my installation this weekend and all works a treat. I used the pegs to peg down the perimeter wire, but I ran out, so I buried the guide wire. A novel approach to burying the wire - I simply used a wood saw to saw a line/channel through the turf, then stuck the wire in it. Worked a treat! Must have looked a bit odd if any neighbors noseying I've the fence.

wjwren

4,484 posts

134 months

Friday 27th April 2018
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Im about to install the everedge lawn edging - that wouldnt interfere with the robo mower would it?

Also as previously stated I have a break in my guide wire - what is the best way to join it. Last year I used a normal electrical connector strip which then stopped working - most likely got wet or rusty.

Chris Type R

8,018 posts

248 months

Friday 27th April 2018
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Join the wire and heat shrink (adhesive lined) ? ( https://www.amazon.co.uk/Heat-Shrink-Tubing-Adhesi... )

wjwren

4,484 posts

134 months

Friday 27th April 2018
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Thanks Chris - how does that shrink tubing work please?

Muncher

12,219 posts

248 months

Friday 27th April 2018
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wjwren said:
Thanks Chris - how does that shrink tubing work please?
You slide the tube over the wire, solder the joint, slide it back over the joint and gently heat it with a lighter/soldering iron, it shrinks and sticks to the joint protecting and insulating it.

wjwren

4,484 posts

134 months

Friday 27th April 2018
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Great. Il get some of these. Never seen them before.

Podie

46,630 posts

274 months

biggiles

1,699 posts

224 months

Friday 27th April 2018
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Podie said:
Yes, these are much better than chocolate block / screw connectors, which WILL fail at some point. These cut into the wire, making a circuit, then fill the area with gel. Keep any unused ones in a ziploc bag as they can sometimes leak in storage!

Cheap enough to buy a couple on ebay, if you look for "IDC" or Scotchlok connectors.

Chris Type R

8,018 posts

248 months

Friday 27th April 2018
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Muncher said:
You slide the tube over the wire, solder the joint, slide it back over the joint and gently heat it with a lighter/soldering iron, it shrinks and sticks to the joint protecting and insulating it.
I use my go-to tool, a Creme Brulee Torch (this also sees action heating up solder ring plumbing fittings) biggrin

Flibble

6,470 posts

180 months

Friday 27th April 2018
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Hot air gun works well, less likely to scorch the cable.

Podie

46,630 posts

274 months

Friday 27th April 2018
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I have Mrs Podie’s old hairdryer for DIY tasks... 2200 watts and the option for a cold blast hehe

tomsugden

2,233 posts

227 months

Friday 4th May 2018
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ash73 said:
I looked at these last summer but decided to simplify my garden layout first. Goal accomplished it's time to pick a robot mower, lawn area is 650sqm, single zone and flat.

Anyone here got the McCulloch RM600? Seems to be the same design as the Flymo 1200R but claims to work with a larger area, price is about the same online.

Any other recommendations, £500-800?

p.s. Found a handy lawn area calculator
https://www.redbanduk.co.uk/lawn-size-calculator
I've been doing a bit of research on this lately and bought this yesterday:

https://www.myrobotcenter.co.uk/en_gb/worx-landroi...

The next model up would probably do you, and it comes with a 5 year guarantee:

https://www.myrobotcenter.co.uk/en_gb/worx-landroi...


Edited by tomsugden on Friday 4th May 15:14

Podie

46,630 posts

274 months

Friday 4th May 2018
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ash73 said:
Anyone here got the McCulloch RM600?
Trawl back throught the thread and you'll see where I posted about the Flymo 1200R, Gardena R40Li / R60Li, McCulloch R600 / R1000 and Husqvana 105

I've seen a few of these now and you'll find that even with the Flymo body the supplied wire, charger, and various parts are stamped Husqvana.

Ean218

1,959 posts

249 months

Friday 4th May 2018
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ash73 said:
I looked at these last summer but decided to simplify my garden layout first. Goal accomplished it's time to pick a robot mower, lawn area is 650sqm, single zone and flat.

Anyone here got the McCulloch RM600? Seems to be the same design as the Flymo 1200R but claims to work with a larger area, price is about the same online.
I bought the R600 last year, it's identical to the equivalent Husqvarna/ Flymo versions. Our lawn is a total of 600 sqm in various sections and not particularly flat or even. Tthe mower goes out 5 days a week with an 8 hour window. Just last night I was thinking how good the lawn looked.