Customer Reviews

WORX Air WG540.5 18-Volt Lithium-Ion Cordless 120 mph Blower/Sweeper

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

I recently purchased this blower to replace my Black and Decker cordless blower NS118 18V NiCd blower. I had the B&D since 2005. The main reason why I decided to replace my B&D with the Worx is because it uses a lithium battery instead. The B&D uses NiCd battery that lowers the power to the blower motor as the battery drains. With the B&D, I usually had full power for 5 minutes however by 10 minutes it was usually coming to a slow stop (even with new battery). I did try out the Ryobi lithium blower (HD) before ordering the Worx however the Ryobi had very little power. The Ryobi was actually less powered than the B&D. The Worx by far is the best cordless blower currently on the market. It has significant more power than the B&D and blows the Ryobi out of the water. The great thing about the Worx is that it uses lithium battery instead. With lithium, you have full 100% power until the battery is totally dead. There is no slow down of power as the battery drains compared to older battery technology. The Worx is also lighter (probably due to the lithium battery being much lighter than NiCd). I used the blower for the first time today. I used it for about 15 minutes and did not drain the battery. I actually had power to spare. This is an impossible task for the B&D since it would be dead within 10 minutes. The down side to this blower is the price. I purchased it as part of a package that comes with the lithium string trimmer (another great product) which ends up being a better deal. One thing I do want to point out is that if you have an electric or gas powered blower, do not expect a cordless blower to have the same power. Cordless blowers are not currently capable of having the same power output as gas or electric however they are great for clearing a driveway, patios or light to medium duty jobs. A benefit to these blowers is the portability which is a huge plus. As for build quality, it is similar to the B&D which is durable and should last for years.

This blower arrived in two parts which easily snapped together. The instructions said to charge the battery before the 1st use. Using the furnished charger it took about 30 minutes for the charge light to turn from red to green, indicating fully charged. With the battery in place this blower is unbelievably light. I had accumulated some sawdust in my garage and this blower blew that out with ease. I then cleared the leaves from my sidewalk and cleaned debris off my patio as well. There was no loss of power as with the B & D that this unit replaced.

This item exceeded my expectations especially after reading the other review. However, for my purposes this blower is exactly right.

This product is awesome and I can't complain at all. I already have the trimmer and just take the battery off the trimmer and put it on this even though I have two batteries why, because I am saving the other for when this runs dead. I get both things done on one charge more than once. You get in the box the Blower, Rapid Charger, Battery, and Storage unit to snap it into.

What you also get is an awesome Product that is great and light weight. I am a woman and bought all the tools for my husband to use and he just doesn't use it. SO I had to get out and get myself some tools that were light weight and Worx is it. My lawn is Manicured so nice it took some time to get it right but I learned.

Please always wear eye protection I have caught myself a few times and had to go to the eye doctor. :(

So please be careful.

Lithium for Worx tools is the only way I'd go.

I had trouble with the batteries like the other reviewers but I went on the company website and chatted with a customer representative. I gave him the order information. I had bought both the blower and the trimmer/edger in March of 2010. They are sending me two new batteries and mailers to send the defective batteries back. They are also sending me extra spools for the edger. I think it is important to know when a company has great customer service. Before the batteries went bad, I loved using both the blower and the trimmer/edger. They are light and easy to hang up. I have the blower in my laundry room. Since this company responded to my complaint in this way, I will order other products from them.

After doing a lot of research and reading that lithium ion batteries were the way to go and reading a good review online of Worx products, I bought the blower and trimmer from Worx with the speedy battery charger in March 2010. I have had nothing but headaches ever since. The products are fine--when they work. But the batteries are so bad that had I known it within the first 30 days, there is no question that I would have returned them. It was a bad month to buy them, and I should have known better. And 30 days isn't much of a period to return them to begin with. The batteries don't last in the blower, for one thing. I'm lucky if I get 9-10 minutes out of a battery. You are supposed to wait 15 minutes before putting one in the charger, then 30 minutes to charge, then another 15 minutes before using it in the tool. That's an hour of waiting to get on with your work. I have three, but it is still not workable because the 2nd battery will fail before the other one is even ready to be charged! The second major problem with the batteries is that in only a few uses they die. They will not hold a charge. I got two replacement batteries in August. I used them once, charged them, then put them aside for later use. A month or so later, I went to use them: one lasted maybe 4-5 minutes, and the other died immediately after starting it up. They are awful, and the company is hard to deal with and falls short of taking full responsibility: they will send a new one or two if you absolutely talk your head off. But that isn't the answer. I would not spend one penny of my money buying another battery from Worx. I will say they last longer in the trimmer--maybe even 25 minutes--than they do in the blower. Something about the blower needing more power. The trimmer is heavier than I expected it to be and awkward and uncomfortable for me to use. But if the batteries worked, I could live with that. I have had several of these batteries since they've been replaced 2 or 3 times, so it's not just a bad batch. I just have to wonder how anyone can give these tools a good review--unless one has not had them very long. My recommendation is to stay away from Worx altogether.
They must be getting a lot of complaints because when I called to get yet another set of replacement batteries just now, they offered to send me a hedge trimmer free! I didn't want even more of a bad thing, so they offered to send me NiCad batteries and a new set of tools that use that kind of battery free except for shipping! You get the picture. I've dealt with NiCad batteries in the past and refuse to go that route again. They have "memory" issues and are heavier. And the literature claims lithium is much better. If Worx had confidence in its lithium ion batteries, it wouldn't be making such offers. But the rep balked when I asked Worx to replace all 3 of my dead batteries! That had to get approval from the higher ups. I could hardly believe my ears.
Oh and here is a nice touch. If you want to put a review on Worx's website, you have to send it to Worx. You cannot just post it. In other words, they have to approve the review! Another telling point.

The Worx Air Blower/sweeper is really handy for clean-up after cutting grass and edging. Really light weight too, for us older ladies...

I ordered from Amazon.com on 4/21/2010 Worx tools listed below:
1 WORX Air WG540.5 18-Volt Lithium-Ion Battery
1 WORX WG251.5 20-Inch 18 Volt Lithium-Ion Battery
Fist time I used blower it worked fine except there was no speed
control. Then used the WORX WG251.5 20-Inch 18 Volt Lithium-Ion
Battery hedger it cut OK but lacked the power of the electric.
The 2 each came with the same battery so they are interchangeable.
As i used both for minor yard work I noticed the batteries needed
charging more often.
I have owned these two cordless for only 2 months and the batteries
are already getting weak.
For what they cost I'm very dissatisfied with there performance.
These WORX's are not worthy of being sold at any price!
Stay away from this brand, nothing but a rip off!

Purchased 2 Worx l8 volt lithium blower/sweepers and one l8 volt lithium string trimmer. The batteries were guaranteed for one years. Each battrry failed after 3 months. Called and wrote firm. One battery was replaced in about 3 months. The other two defective batteries have not been replaced or even gotten a response from Worx in spite of four letters going back to the fall of 20l0. Have filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission and also the Better Business Bureau in both Charlotte, NC., and Pittsburgh, Pa. I have a 5 year-old B&D blower with nickel cadium batteries which are still chargeable. The Worx sweepeer is excellent but firm is unfair in failing to replace batteries or even answr my letters and honor their writen warranty.

I am quite pleased with my Worx Blower. It does a good job of cleaning off my driveway and patio. It is much lighter than my old corded blower.(Which I still have for blowing leaves off the grassy areas.)

My driveway is about 90 feet long and I found that I needed two battery charges to complete it. It takes about 40 minutes to fully charge a battery pack, so I purchased a second battery to be able to finish my driveway without "taking a break" for charging.

A very good tool that works as described.

For its size this is a very powerful sweeper. It is very light weight, easy to handle especially in tight spots. One drawback is that the battery didn't last as long as I expected. On the positive side the 18 volt lithium ion battery charges quite fast ' 30 minutes compared to hours with a NiCd battery. I wish it came with a spare battery, but the cost of a spare is excessive ($63.00 plus shipping) greater than half the cost of the WORX Blower/Sweeper. The battery issue is the only reason that it didn't get a five star rating.