Taking care of the landscape of your home is an important aspect to home owning. You want to be sure that your home looks taken care of and that you care about it. A weed eater can be a little tricky to know how to use for some. But once you learn how to use a weed eater, you can care for your lawn perfectly.
You can reach the hard to get to spaces that your lawn mower can’t fit over, clear some unwanted overgrowing brush, and easily slice through the grass that has grown around the trunks of trees.
It’s one of the best tools you can use on your lawn, here are some things you need to know before and during your operation of one.
Power Source
First things first. What is the power source of your weed eater? Is it a gas-powered, electric, or does it run on a battery? Be sure you have enough fuel for your gas powered weed-eater and that you have the right oil filled into your oil reservoir—most commonly for a two cycle engine.
Charge your battery for at least 24-36 hours especially on its first charge to have the longest lasting battery.
With an electric weed-eater you will need to run off of a power outlet, so if your weed-eater doesn’t come with one you will need to purchase an extension cord. Walk out your cord to all the places you need to reach before starting your weed-eater to ensure that you have enough cord to reach.
Type of Trimmer
There are two different types of trimmers: the curved and straight shaft. Both have their advantages but your preference will vary as everyone seems to prefer one or the other. Some say that a straight shafted weed-eater is easier to control and cut with. While other may tell you that a curved shaft weedeater is more ergonomically satisfying for a nice and easy fluent motion.
You will have to test it out for yourself, just know that even though it may be advertised as better either one will suffice for your weekly lawn care.
Cutting Direction
Safety is always a cut concern for anyone learning how to use a weed eater. As it cuts your grass and clears a path the grass cuttings are going to need to spit out—and you need to be sure that your trimmer guard is position in the right direction.
If your trimmer spins counter clockwise then it will eject the debris on the left-hand side of your weed eater. If your trimmer turns clockwise then you need to re-position your guard to the right side. Most guards will cover the entire half of the tool that is closest to you for full protection.
Always wear safety glasses, and protective clothing when operating your weed-eater.
Cutting Motion Techniques
Alright so after you have figured out how your weed-eater operates, and you have the proper safeguards in place. You now should learn about the different cutting techniques that you can apply to different tasks around your landscaping jobs.
- Tapering
When you want to cut the edge of your lawn and need to cut it so that it smooths out to the edge without any noticeable cut. This gives it a beautiful and pristine look and it’s quite simple to achieve with your weed-eater.
Hold your weed eater at the proper height that you want to cut your grass and hold it steady at a slight angle. The direction of your angled grip will depend on which way your lawn is slanted to the edge. This also is useful for when you are want to weed-eat a small hill or mound that you may have on your lawn; that is otherwise difficult to reach with your lawn mower.
- Edging
When your lawn overgrows over your driveway or sidewalk it can be difficult to remove the excess growth. A good technique for you to utilize with your weed-eater that takes an accurate eye and firm grip.
Flip your weed-eater to the side so that the string cuts vertically and push it along your edge. Try doing this in short distances to get the feel for it and make a perfectly cut edge. Expect for different debris that could pop out from this and so you will need to stand behind your guard while you operate it.
- Scything
When you want to get rid of a large amount of overgrown brush or grass, scything can be one of the best methods to evenly slice away at this larger tasks. To scythe you move your string trimmer in and out of the area you want to cut in a “U” motion. Repeating this motion over an area ensures that you maintain an even cut. Repeat this motion as you walk forward and you will clear out almost any path you step towards.
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