Customer Reviews

Epic EP21H 21-Inch 24-Volt Cordless Self-Propelled Lawn Mower

5 star:		(28)
4 star:		(23)
3 star:		(12)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(13)

 

 

I've had this for about two weeks but just had a chance to use it today. I was very impressed at how quiet it was. Even my wife made a comment about how nice it was not hearing the noise of our gas mower wile she worked in the office. I wasn't sure what to expect as we have a large corner lot and several clumps of thick crabgrass spread throughout the yard. I didn't take it easy on the mower. I used the same cutting height as my gas mower and I left in the mulch plug just so I could compare them side by side. There really wasn't much difference between my 6.5hp 21 inch Yard Man and my new Epic Electric. As I ran them side-by-side they both choked in the same places on thick grass (about 8 inches high) on the first mowing of the season. I did notice that the Epic left some tall grass standing after the cut but I'm guessing that will even out after the grass fills in. It did not leave any clumps of cut grass and even did a better job of mulching than my gas mower. I think it is a winner.

Pros:
First one in my neighborhood.
60% less noise than a gas mower.
Instant on.
Self-Propel works well. Took me along at a nice clip.
Comfortable handle and controls.
Steel deck. Looks like it should last a long time.
Yard looks nice. I was impressed how well it mulches.

Cons:
Manual is a joke. The one for the charger is in broken English. Luckily it is easy to assemble and run.
There is a key in the battery area but no clear directions how to remove it.You have to rock it either forward or backwards with a pretty good push to get it to snap out. I was afraid the first time I did it that I would break it but it is strong plastic.
There is a black adapter you have to put on the batteries (facing each other) if you want to charge the batteries out of the mower. Put them in position first as they are heavy and hard to move after they are connected.
When you engage the Self-Propel it kind of pulls you quickly for a second and then it slows to a normal pace. Took me a couple of times to get the hang of it.

It's good to go GREEN!

The Epic 21-Inch 24-volt cordless mower appears to work very well. The batteries were about 75% charged when we received the mower. Our grass had not been cut all spring and we had just had two days of rain. The weeds were about 3' tall and the grass is about 6" tall. The mower encountered no more difficulty in this tall wet grass than a regular gas mower.

Noise: makes about a 1/3 of the noise of a gas mower

Speed: the self-propel is too fast if the self-propel is fully squeezed

Blade: spins up when first started (takes about five seconds). No noticeable difference in cutting performance if the self-propel is used. If the mower cuts out to protect the engine in very thick & tall grass, the safety switch must be released to restart the mower.

Mulch: at least as effective as gas mulcher

Power: there are no polariy indicators on the mower or external charger. However, the battery shapes only allow for a single charging configuration.

Packing: the poorly packaged, which created a few minor scratches. But, it's a mower, so it will get more soon.

Charger: neither the on-board or external chargers have charging indicators, so not sure how long it takes to charge batteries. The external charger can handle both batteries simultaneously, which is convenient.

Safety: the green key between the batteries is easily removed -- pull forward or back. Leaving the key in when the mower is not in use will cause the unit to beep.

So you do hours of research on the mower you want and settle on this self-propelled electric mower. It's perfect! Low maintenance. Quiet. Very green. And the wife says "I don't know, it never seems to work out when you buy these cutting edge things." And you say "Not to worry, it'll work." You take the plunge. Then the mower comes and you try it out. Something is not right. The power is running out too fast. Maybe the batteries weren't fully charged? Charge and try again. Again the mower cuts off after only a short time. Maybe a minute. Use the self-propulsion and it cuts out after only a few seconds. Sometimes it won't start and I get an LED warning that there's a "fault."

Just great.

Contacted the manufacturer and they didn't seem to think it was the batteries... faulty wiring or controller, maybe. Had me do some tests. They weren't able to nail it down after a few days and the spouse brought down the hammer. Back to Amazon it went.

One defective item does NOT mean this is a bad product line... but I thought I would share my experience.

I was totally psyched to get a 'green' mower, but my heart was broken! The assembly is shoddy. The lower handle was improperly punched and didn't match the keyed bolt so handle did not mount properly. Once charged the mower would not run for more than a minute or two. It seemed to bind up and shut off like a safety mechanism sensed something wrong as soon as it moved. After 2 phone calls, disassembly, reassembly and all sorts of machinations,I was forced to return it.
I was extremely disappointed with the quality of construction, the documentation is deplorable, and the phone support was barely acceptable. This manufacturer is building the cheapest product possible and I couldn't see it lasting for more than a season or two...

We have been using the Epic 21" self-propelled mower for about 2 months now and we (my wife and I) love it. We mow over one acre of land with lots of bumps, hazards, and small hills. I have used everything to mow this yard...including a 4 hp gas pushmower (3-4 hours, lots of pollution), an old riding mower (1-2 hours, even more pollution), and 2 different manual reel mowers (8-10 hours, no pollution). The Epic is my favorite, hands-down.

The Epic takes me 3 hours to mow all of our lawn, which equates to 3 charge cycles. I purchased an extra set of batteries and the rapid charger. As soon as the first set of batteries runs out, I put them on the rapid charger. Usually by the time the second set runs out and I grab a drink of water and a snack, the first set is charged up and ready. If not, I play tag with the kids until it's ready. (By the way, the wetness and length of the grass definitely have an impact on the batteries.)

The mower itself is fairly heavy and feels very sturdy. It cuts well and is a breeze to start (luckily, because the manual does stink, as another reviewer pointed out). It is pretty quiet and is great if there are kids running around...you can stop and start easily without priming, yanking on a rope, etc. I would not have opted for the self-propelled option, but my wife requested it (and she enjoys using the mower, too, so it worked out well).

While it's not totally "green" unless you are using the optional solar panel charger, or use green energy to power your electrical outlets, it is a far cry better than the junk-spewing lawnmower engines on the market today.

My ideal would be to replace the grass with something that requires no maintenance (wood chips, some groundcover plant, gravel, sand, a field of Twinkies, etc.). Seriously, who ever thought grass was a good idea? But since I'm stuck with it for now (the grass, not the mower), using this mower is the next best thing.

i ordered this mower expecting to do my share and go green. what a mistake. the first mower came and would not start straight out of the box. after several calls to the manufacturer i was told that the motor was bad and it would have to be sent back. i decided to order a replacement because i loved the idea of using battery power as opposed to gas fumes. in the meantime i had to use my gas mower to do my lawn. after another week the new mower came. started right up and the lawn looked great. the mower wasn't as easy to use as my lawn boy but my good feeling about the enviornment overcame those issues. for two mowings. the third time i tried to start the machine i got a fault warning and had to call the manufacturer again. guess what? THE MOTOR WAS NO GOOD!!!!! i had to send the machine back again. needless to say i didn't order a THIRD replacemenmt . obviously this company has no quality control. i'm more dissappointed than i can say. again i'm back to the lawm boy which i've had for 10 years and have only had to replace the spark plug in all that time. i guess going green is harder than i thought. save yourself the aggrevation and look at something else. i wish i had.i will say that the people at amazon have been great and i would definately order from them again.

I actually had the Solaris SP, which is identical to the Epic except that it drives the front wheels [the Epic drives the rear]. It had to go back due to an electric problem; the mfr was very easy to deal with.

Instead of getting the identical replacement, though, I bought the Solaris S21 which Amazon also sells. The missing "P" means propulsion. This sister product is strictly manual drive, but it's 18# lighter than the self-propelled models. I found it a pleasure to use [though my yard is flat; people with hilly lots may want the power assist].

Check my review on the Solaris for more detail. It's worth considering. The $70 I saved on the manual drive model almost paid for a 2nd set of batteries [1 charged set isn't enough for 1/2 acre]. With brushless motor, easy battery change, & large deck, either model is head & shoulders above the competition.

I recieved this mower last month and have been both delighted and frustrated. While it is mowing it is great, its the battery that is the BIG issue. I have a slightly larger than average yard. probably 1/5 of an acre. There are hills and thats why I needed a self propelled unit. To give you an idea I could fill up the old self propelled mower and finish the yard with just a bit of gas left. I would top it off before each mowing. So the yard I used to do in one tank of gas takes me 4 charges! At first I thought I could mow the front yard one day and the back the next. I kept blaming the battery issue on taller than normal grass. Then I came to realize, this time of year the grass grows fast. From one week to the next its going to be over grown, AND thats why we mow our yard, because the grass is too tall.

It simply is not powerful enough which would be forgivable IF the battery could last at least what 1/2 a tank of gas would cost. To get the equivalent 1/2 tank of gas I will have to buy another set of $100 batteries. Hum... five hundred dollar mower, plus another set of ninety nine dollar batteries and then I have a $600 mover that will mow only 1/2 of my yard at a time. IF I want to mow the entire yard at one time it would be 4 sets of batteries to equal one tank of gas. That would be a $900 lawn mower that would do what you would expect a lawn mower to do.

Love the idea but the batteries don't last long enough... With better Batteries this would be the revolutionary product that it promised. In my opinion it falls short.
Epic/ Solaris, Please fix these batteries.

W

This is a very easy to use mower. It is almost like a regular gasoline mower without the oil and gas. Needs to be recharged after about 45 to 50 minutes. A little heavy. I would highly recommend that the manufacturer develope lithium ion battery packs for this mower. They would be lighter and have more power time.

Well built mower.

Aug 2010 Update:

Last month the batteries pretty much gave out. In self propelled mode it would move about 10 feet and die. I checked everything I could think of, but could get no improvement. In manual mode it would cut for about 15 minutes then I had to recharge the batteries.
So in a season and a half new batteries are needed!!! Nuts to that! I went out and bought a self propelled gas mower(@ $168).

Sep 2009 Update:

Summer is over and how did this mower work over the summer?
Well it did get thru the summer. On about the 8th mowing (4 wks old) the rubber grip split on the left side; repaired it with duct tape! Since about a month ago the mower is leaving ugly uncut grass blades sticking up even using a 40% overlap. Mowing coverage did not improve-still takes 2 sessions to mow my 4900 feet of grass. Also there is a safety concern: Be carefull when closing the drive bar, you can easily close it on your fingers which is very painful! I have to drop my rating to 1 star-not recommended.

**********************************************************************************************The mower looks good but after mowing my grass, 4,920 square feet, 3 times with it I have the following issues:
1. (Most Important)I am only getting 30-34 minutes run time on the batteries after a full charge. This time only allows for cutting 80% of my grass (Kentucky Bluegrass and some Crabgrass). The mower height is set on the mid range position.
2. Adjusting the height is easy now, each wheel adjusts seperately, but may not be so after much use.
3. You can not leave the mower in idle. When you release the handle not only the blade stops but so does the motor. A full restart is required to begin mowing again. (This is annoying when you are only stopping to move something out of the way, especially after a couple of times.)
4. You need to hold 2 release handles to activate mowing and the power drive.
5. Placing the "key" in can be startling. It usually sparks and makes a loud popping noise. Also you have to listen to the annoying beep signal that the key is in place if you haven't started the motor within 10 seconds.
6. The leds are not very readable in bright sunshine.
7. The batteries die down without prior warning.

To the good:
1. Unit is pretty guiet compared to a gas mower.
2. The mower is pretty mobile.
3. It cuts well, only leaving an occasional grass stem sticking up in the lawn.
4. Priced reasonably compared to it's cordless competition.

If the batteries were giving me an hour run time I would rate this mower at 3 stars.Epic EP21H 21-Inch 24-Volt Cordless Rear Wheel Drive Self Propelled Bag/Mulch/Side Discharge Lawn Mower