Yard-Man Leaf Shredder / Wood Chipper / Leaf Vacuum

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User Rating 4 Star Rating (1 Review) Write a review

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The Bottom Line

Leaf blowers are a step up from raking. Wheeled leaf shredders / wood chippers / vacuums go an additional step beyond that for ease of maintenance; but their far bigger price tag isn't worth it. They also won't chip up branches as well as true wood chippers. My advice: buy a leaf vacuum instead and put the money you'll save as a result toward the purchase of equipment designed specifically for wood chipping. These "3-in-1" gadgets try to play too many roles all at once.

Pros

Easy on your arms.

Cons

Costs more than leaf blowers.
Can't handle the tough branches: Better to get a true wood chipper.

Description

Unlike blowers, nothing to carry here. This equipment is pushed on wheels, like a lawn mower.
Touted as "4-in-1" equipment, the 4 tools being as follows:
1.The main vacuum nozzle is 24" and cleans a wide swath of lawn, reducing maintenance.
2.Secondary nozzle is attached to an onboard vacuum hose, included for those hard-to-reach spots.
3.Chipper chute chips up branches as big as 1.5" in diameter.
4.Optional blower attachment.
In addition, 5.5HP EasyStart engine is easy to start, if equipment is maintained regularly.
10:1 reduction ratio, meaning 10 bags of whole leaves reduced to 1 bag of shredded leaves.
2-bushel rear bag is easy to empty, although too small to hold much debris.
Height adjusters can be lowered or raised from 3/8" to 4", so you can adjust to ground conditions.

Guide Review - Yard-Man Leaf Shredder / Wood Chipper / Leaf Vacuum

Yard-Man's chipper / shredder / vacuum cleans up all lawn debris -- branches, acorns, maple seeds and pine cones -- not just leaves. Best of all, your work is kept to a minimum. In using leaf blowers for leaf removal, you have to swing the blower's arm back and forth. But Yard-Man's chipper / shredder / vacuum is pushed on wheels, like a lawn mower. Still, are you willing to pay substantially more money to save yourself this small amount of extra exercise? I'm not. But in case you disagree, here's how the equipment works. The vacuum nozzle (24" wide) cleans the bulk of your lawn debris. The chipper / shredder function grinds up leaves and small-sized tree branches. But it will choke on the bigger branches. Click the "Compare Prices" button to check on the availability of Yard-Man's chipper / shredder / vacuum.

For my money, I'll take a separate leaf vacuum and a real wood chipper. To read a review on a real wood chipper, please see the first link below under, "Related Guide Picks." If you're still looking for leaf clean-up options, see the link just below that, which takes you to a review on mulching lawn mowers.

User Reviews

4 out of 5

solid machine, Member harveyestes

This machine does a good job of picking up leaves and small litter, such as small limbs, pine cones, etc. It leaves the surface clean! It is a heavy machine, over a hundred pounds. It places the mulched debris in a heavy bag which is mounted behind the mulcher. The bag fills quickly, and the bag becomes heavy. If the leaves are moist, the weight causes the front of the machine to lift up. Emptying is fairly easy, but the machine must be stopped for emptying, since a switch stops the motor when the bag is removed. I like the machine, and I am now using my second one. The earlier one lasted about a dozen years, and would have gone a few more had I not neglected to keep the oil level up! My only complaint is that the machine is hard to start. Cranking it also requires moving the impeller that mulches the leaves, so it requires a very forceful pull, which is hard for us old duffers. It produces a mulch which is very useful for direct placement around plants and small trees, and it produces a great organic compost after a year or so in a compost pile. The newer machine is exactly like the older one, except that there is a switch that turns the motor off, and a different lever type choke. I consider it an essential for my yard/garden activities, which is why I now have my second one.

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