My autonomous lawn mower thread/blog

Frankirish

Hi all, This is my first year with the Husqie 430x. I bought it back in April so this will be my first winter with it. Just wondering what you experienced owners reccomend I do over the winter. Currently I have it running at night for about 9hrs.

Should I leave it out including the docking station and keep an eye out for heavy snow falls and heavy wind etc. and bring it in on those ocassions.

Or do you pick a date when the grass stops growing, charge it and bring it and the docking station in for the winter until the spring? If I do bring it in for a couple of months do you leave it in the docking station in the shed connected to a power supply or is it okay to charge it, switch it off and leave it until its first cut in the spring?

Can I leave the docking station out for the winter or do I need to bring it in?

Thanks.

KCross

Frankirish wrote: »

Hi all, This is my first year with the Husqie 430x. I bought it back in April so this will be my first winter with it. Just wondering what you experienced owners reccomend I do over the winter. Currently I have it running at night for about 9hrs.

Should I leave it out including the docking station and keep an eye out for heavy snow falls and heavy wind etc. and bring it in on those ocassions.

Or do you pick a date when the grass stops growing, charge it and bring it and the docking station in for the winter until the spring? If I do bring it in for a couple of months do you leave it in the docking station in the shed connected to a power supply or is it okay to charge it, switch it off and leave it until its first cut in the spring?

Can I leave the docking station out for the winter or do I need to bring it in?

Thanks.

Once the grass stops growing, charge it up and bring it and the docking station inside. No need to have it plugged in. Just warm and dry will do. Be sure to weatherproof the end of the power cable that goes into the docking station. It can stay outside but just dont leave it sitting in a pool of water.

Li-ion batteries dont like freezing cold and its pointless having it cutting during the winter if the grass isnt growing!

Just make sure that you get it back onto the lawn before the grass gets too high in the spring. Start at cutting height 9 and work your way down over a week or two.

gizmo555

KCross wrote: »

Once the grass stops growing, charge it up ...

Should also note that it's best not to 100% charge the battery before storage. About 40% is better for the long term battery life.

https://zeusbatteryproducts.wordpress.com/2012/08/22/5-best-storage-and-charging-tips-for-extending-lifespan-of-lithium-ion-batteries-in-home-business/

Shaunoc

gizmo555 wrote: »

Should also note that it's best not to 100% charge the battery before storage. About 40% is better for the long term battery life.

https://zeusbatteryproducts.wordpress.com/2012/08/22/5-best-storage-and-charging-tips-for-extending-lifespan-of-lithium-ion-batteries-in-home-business/

the husky pops up message on display every now and again to fully charge for winter storage...i'll probably go with their advice

Peppa Cig

Anybody have an issue with Husky not being able to find way back to charging station.

All wires connected correctly with no fault lights.

Husky just can’t find way back.

(Asking for friend)

Thanks

jprboy

Peppa Cig wrote: »

Anybody have an issue with Husky not being able to find way back to charging station.

All wires connected correctly with no fault lights.

Husky just can’t find way back.

(Asking for friend)

Thanks

I assume there's a guide wire in the lawn - possible that it got cut?

KCross

gizmo555 wrote: »

Should also note that it's best not to 100% charge the battery before storage. About 40% is better for the long term battery life.

https://zeusbatteryproducts.wordpress.com/2012/08/22/5-best-storage-and-charging-tips-for-extending-lifespan-of-lithium-ion-batteries-in-home-business/

Shaunoc wrote: »

the husky pops up message on display every now and again to fully charge for winter storage...i'll probably go with their advice

As Shaunoc says, Husqvarna recommend a full charge before winter storage. I suspect that Husqvarna have built in a buffer so that when its "fully charged" its not really fully charged. Its how electric vehicles work so I think the automower will be the same.

I follow the manufacturers advice anyway.

I'm at the end of my 5th season and its on the same battery since day one and it gets exactly the same amount of time on the lawn per charge so the battery is holding up very well.

KCross

Peppa Cig wrote: »

Anybody have an issue with Husky not being able to find way back to charging station.

All wires connected correctly with no fault lights.

Husky just can’t find way back.

(Asking for friend)

Thanks

It has happened to me. I noticed that the mower was also sometimes going out along the permineter wire rather than the guide wire. There were no errors showing but it turned out to be the connections on the docking station for the guide wires.

The connectors, imo, are not the best. Over time they lose their connection to the inner core of the cable.

I presume he is using guide wires so I'd start with using the "Test" function in the menu for each guide wire. You can test "Following out" and "Following in".

Once you figure out which guide wire is in trouble then I'd start with the connectors at the docking station and take off the connector entirely and just wrap the raw core of the cable around the docking station connection and then repeat the guide wire test. If that fixes it then get new connectors and pinch them onto the cable again and reconnect as normal.

If its not the connections at the docking station the next place to look is where the guide wire connects to the perimeter wire. That connector might be poorly connected. Get new connectors and re-make those connections.

See how those go and come back to us.

Peppa Cig

KCross wrote: »

It has happened to me. I noticed that the mower was also sometimes going out along the permineter wire rather than the guide wire. There were no errors showing but it turned out to be the connections on the docking station for the guide wires.

The connectors, imo, are not the best. Over time they lose their connection to the inner core of the cable.

I presume he is using guide wires so I'd start with using the "Test" function in the menu for each guide wire. You can test "Following out" and "Following in".

Once you figure out which guide wire is in trouble then I'd start with the connectors at the docking station and take off the connector entirely and just wrap the raw core of the cable around the docking station connection and then repeat the guide wire test. If that fixes it then get new connectors and pinch them onto the cable again and reconnect as normal.

If its not the connections at the docking station the next place to look is where the guide wire connects to the perimeter wire. That connector might be poorly connected. Get new connectors and re-make those connections.

See how those go and come back to us.

Thanks for replies guys.

Test In and Test Out works ok. No fault lights.

So I guess guide wire function ok.

But still mower not finding way home.

He tried the same area with another mower and same issue.

Not sure what’s next given that test in and out confirms guide wire operation is ok.

KCross

Peppa Cig wrote: »

Thanks for replies guys.

Test In and Test Out works ok. No fault lights.

So I guess guide wire function ok.

But still mower not finding way home.

He tried the same area with another mower and same issue.

Not sure what’s next given that test in and out confirms guide wire operation is ok.

If it managed to find and follow both guide wires in the test (for both in and out?) they are obviously good, as you say.

Must be the settings so.
In the menu there is a section called "Finding charging station". Could you get a pic of that?

Also, when it is trying to get back to the docking station what does it do... does it go randomly around the lawn and then stop in the middle or does it start following the guide wire or what does it do?

If it fails to get home it will show an error in the panel so there must be some error displayed when it happens.

Peppa Cig

He rebooted the mower and it seems to be working now...
Thanks for input. Will update if it happens again.

Water John

The great IT solution.

bauney

A question on husqavarna automower.
Do you know can i used the Lawn coverage Area function to prevent the mower going to the damp/patchy area?
Can i create areas to allow my mower cut all the lawn as normal except the part at the very front? e.g.
area 1 is everything up to the bad part and let the mower cut this 99% of the time
area 2 is the damp patchy area and let the mower cut this 1% of the time

See pic attached.

Any help appreciated?

KCross

bauney wrote: »

A question on husqavarna automower.
Do you know can i used the Lawn coverage Area function to prevent the mower going to the damp/patchy area?
Can i create areas to allow my mower cut all the lawn as normal except the part at the very front? e.g.
area 1 is everything up to the bad part and let the mower cut this 99% of the time
area 2 is the damp patchy area and let the mower cut this 1% of the time

See pic attached.

Any help appreciated?

Its all or nothing really. If its a damp area not suitable for cutting you just have to exclude it.

If it were even possible how would it help you in reality... what 1% of the time is the right time to go into the wet area? It could have just lashed out of the heavens when it decides now is its 1% time!


EDIT: Thinking about it a bit more.... how big is the wet area?
You could in theory section that piece off (either using perimeter wire across it or sleepers to physically stop it getting in there) and use a second guide wire to lead the mower into it and you can tell the mower to only use that guide wire 1% of the time. Its not ideal but do-able.

WhichWay

yes section the wet area off with the perimeter wire.
Allow a 2 foot entrance to one side.
I think one guide wire would do both areas, on setup you just have to specify the distance along the guide wire.

timing: you can adjust the percentage of time the unit spends in each area. obviously the wet area will get long and be more difficult to cut and will look different.

Barrier: alternatively you could put a 2 foot obstruction in the way. if the automower intends to cut the wet area it will default to the main lawn until you remove the barrier. in good weather you could set the mower to concentrate on the wet area. spiral cutting or timer override.


warning: I would be concerned about an area with pools of water, the barrier might get moved without you knowing.

drunkmonkey

I picked up a flymo 1200r on Amazon warehouse deals last night for €299, is it any good, reviews looked ok, thought at that price was worth a punt.

KCross

drunkmonkey wrote: »

I picked up a flymo 1200r on Amazon warehouse deals last night for €299, is it any good, reviews looked ok, thought at that price was worth a punt.

No personal experience with it but its only for 400m2 lawns which is quite small. No guide wires if you have hard to reach areas and only 25deg slopes.

For the price it looks like a good deal if it suits your lawn.

Cyrus

drunkmonkey wrote: »

I picked up a flymo 1200r on Amazon warehouse deals last night for €299, is it any good, reviews looked ok, thought at that price was worth a punt.

agh

i had this in my basket, dithered then it was gone

must have been you

drunkmonkey

There was a few of them there when I first put it in the basket, they disappeared quickly. Not sure if it's going to cover all lawn mighten go the distance.
Let you know if it's not suitable for me.

drunkmonkey

KCross wrote: »

No personal experience with it but its only for 400m2 lawns which is quite small. No guide wires if you have hard to reach areas and only 25deg slopes.

For the price it looks like a good deal if it suits your lawn.

Doesn't come with any guide wire? There's probably 400m2 of grass but it's very spread out.

Water John

When you read the detail of some good suppliers/installers, they tend to size up as the manufacturers are stretching what the machine is actually capable of, in their literature. Like motor cars and their MPG.

KCross

drunkmonkey wrote: »

Doesn't come with any guide wire? There's probably 400m2 of grass but it's very spread out.

If you have, for instance, a section of the lawn that is not simple to reach because it has to go through a long narrow passage (between shrubs, trees etc) it wont be able to get there, enough times, to keep on top of that section. It drives randomly so if there is a long narrow passage its not going to get down that passage by driving randomly.

A guide wire is an extra wire to lead the mower to that hard to reach area and also, importantly, to get back from there to charge up.

Its very much dependent on the layout of your lawn as to whether it will be able to reach every blade of grass without a guide wire.

Cyrus

drunkmonkey wrote: »

There was a few of them there when I first put it in the basket, they disappeared quickly. Not sure if it's going to cover all lawn mighten go the distance.
Let you know if it's not suitable for me.

cool please do

SchrodingersCat

KCross wrote: »

If you have, for instance, a section of the lawn that is not simple to reach because it has to go through a long narrow passage (between shrubs, trees etc) it wont be able to get there, enough times, to keep on top of that section. It drives randomly so if there is a long narrow passage its not going to get down that passage by driving randomly.

A guide wire is an extra wire to lead the mower to that hard to reach area and also, importantly, to get back from there to charge up.

Its very much dependent on the layout of your lawn as to whether it will be able to reach every blade of grass without a guide wire.

It comes with a guide wire. You can set the percentage of time that it follows the guide wire when it wakes up.

KCross

SchrodingersCat wrote: »

It comes with a guide wire. You can set the percentage of time that it follows the guide wire when it wakes up.

Ok cool. Its strange they dont list that on the main page. Its an important feature.

Its a very good deal then as long as your lawn is the appropriate size.

muckyba

Have people taken their automower out of action and stored for the winter yet?
Mine is still outside but not scheduled to run at present.

Must look at investing in some new blades for next season, any recommendations where to get these at a good price? Has anyone tried spurious blades, rather than Husqvarna blades, and if so, what are your thoughts?

KCross

muckyba wrote: »

Have people taken their automower out of action and stored for the winter yet?
Mine is still outside but not scheduled to run at present.

Must look at investing in some new blades for next season, any recommendations where to get these at a good price? Has anyone tried spurious blades, rather than Husqvarna blades, and if so, what are your thoughts?

Took mine in a few weeks ago including the docking station. Seal up that transformer cable from the weather as well.

I did buy spurious blades last year. Much cheaper. They work fine.

SchrodingersCat

Yea, I brought my flymo 1200r in two months ago too. The grass has slowed down its growth that you wont need it for another good while. Left the dock out though, will have to plan on bringing it in. I plan to do a battery rebuild for it too.
I resharpened the blades on it using a whetstone. It is a 10min job.

KCross

SchrodingersCat wrote: »

I plan to do a battery rebuild for it too.

Tell us more. Whats that about?
Do you just mean a new battery or something more technical?

The battery in my Husqvarna is the same one since day 1 and its after doing 5 seasons now.

bauney

Perhaps a silly question but is it possible to Sharpen blades with electric grinder?