How to Choose a Quality Grass & Branch Garden Shredder
Content
Description of the device
A garden shredder or, another name is a shredder, resembles a meat grinder in its internal structure. All kinds of garbage that gardeners constantly encounter - pieces of tree bark, dry branches, cones, old grass, weeds, are subjected to shredding. After grinding, all this debris turns into large sawdust. This happens due to the fact that the receiving funnel is crushed with sharp knives debris.
At its core, the shredder has a powerful motor, due to which heavy materials are grinded. There are two sources for starting the engine - electricity and gasoline, but we'll talk about that later. First, we will examine the internal structure of the grinder. It consists of only three elements - the bunker, the engine and the grinding system itself.
The first in importance is the element - the bunker. It acts as a filter, that is, it does not allow foreign objects to the chopper. Otherwise, clothes, hose, metal objects can get into the mechanism and the shredder will break immediately. The bunker is present in almost all electrical devices that are unsafe for humans. Also, the function of the bunker is to pass recycled waste or what is left of it.
The waste recycling function is performed by a grinding system. It consists of knives or a cutter. Knives can recycle garbage - branches, stems up to three centimeters. The milling cutter, in turn, handles larger debris - up to eight centimeters. For safety reasons, you must wear protective goggles when working with the shredder, otherwise sawdust can damage your eyesight. Hands should also be protected with gardening gloves.
The whole mechanism is powered by the engine, it is important to choose which type to use for yourself. First of all, this will depend on what kind of garbage you are dealing with. Also, the shredder is equipped with a regulating device and, if necessary, you can slow down or speed up the shredding system.
A device such as a reverse goes to the garden device. It will allow you to clean the knives when needed. Having considered the internal structure of the garden machine, we will try to determine which power source is best suited for the job.
Electric or gasoline
One of the advantages of an electric shredder is its low noise. Also, speed - such a mechanism is capable of crushing a branch with a diameter of 4-5 centimeters. They are inexpensive and easy to operate. The disadvantages include low mobility due to short electrical noise. The electric shredder is sensitive to voltage drops and their power is low (1.6-2.6 kW.).
In terms of power, the gasoline shredder comes to the fore.Its capabilities allow you to recycle garbage of any complexity, suitable for branches up to 8 centimeters. Ease of use provides the ability to move freely with the machine around the entire perimeter of the summer cottage. The gasoline type of mechanism in its structure has a two-stroke or four-stroke engine. Such a device works quickly and efficiently, but the noise level of the engine is quite high. A gasoline chopper needs a special fuel mixture - it can be oil or gasoline. This leads to not small financial costs.
It is difficult to give an unambiguous assessment of which type of food to choose. With a gasoline unit, you can move freely and it copes with any kind of garbage. But a large amount of gasoline exhaust and high noise levels are not very beneficial for our body. Electrically, in this regard, it is much easier, but if you need to work in a place remote from the outlet, then such a shredder will not work.
Video "Nuances when choosing a shredder"
In this video, you can hear tips for choosing a garden shredder.
Advantages of working with a chipper
A chipper is a shredder's cutting mechanism and there are knife, screw and cutter-based ones. This element is needed to quickly grind grass and branches, and it is the main action of the meat grinder. The main advantage of the chipper is that the mechanism can handle branches of different sizes from 1 to 8 centimeters. If you need to grind more garbage, you can use more sophisticated types of chipper.
For example, cutter-based chippers handle large branches, rough materials. Shanks provide the so-called rubbing of garbage, after grinding, this type of chipper is quite effective. Knife units provide fast chopping of small branches and grass, but are not intended for heavy waste.
In any case, each chipper has a built-in protective system that prevents the unit from unnecessary loading and when foreign objects enter. Also, chippers are divided according to the area of application. There is a class of amateur mechanisms for processing grass, small branches. They are usually used in small gardens that are still not rich in various plants.
The middle chipper is represented by a steel shaft and a knife mechanism. The advantage of such a unit is that it is able to independently suck debris into the chopping funnel. Suitable for working with old tree branches and provides a reasonably safe operation.
For the most difficult debris, only a professional chipper working with a milling cutter is suitable. The powerful gasoline engine provides fast processing of waste of any complexity. This unit is often used in industrial horticulture. Based on the characteristics of your own garden, you can quickly decide how to choose a garden vacuum cleaner.
Which to choose
But there are often areas where the amount of dried grass and dry branches requires a special approach. Then you need to study the recommendations for choosing a shredder for professional gardeners.The first is to take as a starting point the maximum amount of work on the site and analyze the most difficult waste. Then it will immediately become clear to you whether you need a complex unit or a simple, electric one is enough.
The next criteria are brand name, shredder weight, and price range. So, there is a rating of shredders, with a description of each unit. Moreover, this rating was compiled by professional gardeners. It is better to choose a shredder with speed adjustment function. Then you can change the type of shredding of the branches. It is also more convenient to use a garden machine with a special pusher.
A shredder with two holes is convenient for processing branches. For example, for large debris and for small ones like grass and weeds.
It is good if the pre-cut knives are included with the gardening machine. Then the unit will serve you much longer.Also, the kit should include additional knives and accessories for cleaning the shredder.
Remember your own safety. The chopper noise should not exceed 84 dB, otherwise it will damage your hearing. Always wear protective goggles and gloves when using the shredder. Make sure that the number of branches in the machine does not exceed the norm. The shredder will help to quickly get rid of unnecessary branches for everyone who does not like to do it with their own hands. When choosing a shredder, stick to the characteristics of your garden and then the unit will last more than one year.
Video "Overview of shredders"
In this video, you can see an overview of garden shredders, as well as find out what they are for.