Leaf vacuums are a good thought but unless you have a huge commercial one they are simply not fast enough collection wise. They are only good for a small amount of leaves with multiple cleaning sessions a week. I'm surprised nobody has made a better one yet.
They’re really should be a better middle ground between a 5k machine and a $250 machine, they have the lawn mower type vacuums but they’re not much better either
I just use a lawn mower with a bagger. Old Skool. Makes the pile smaller as well. That would have taken me about 5 minutes. Whole yard 20 minutes. Hope this helps.
I must need a different mower. Mine doesn't handle leaves well at all and it's only 2 years old. It was a cheap one though, so I'm not too surprised by that, LOL.
Thinking that the flexible hose is causing the leaves to become clogged. Notice that you didn’t have that issue with the stock hose that came with the blower/vac.
Seems like a rake and shovel would be faster and cheaper. But thank you for the video it definitely helped with my decision on getting the leaf pro. Have a blessed one.
@Xpl0rerX yeah, I wasn't impressed with this. I'm hoping when I get a chance to test it again this fall with the elbow pipe attachment that it works better. We shall see. Thanks!
I’ve used this attachment with a gas echo.I found leaving the blower on the ground and feeding it with a rake worked best.The biggest problem I had was large twigs getting stuck in the blower impeller.The only way to clear it was to remove the suction tube.
The LeafPro is great but that universal connector should be scrapped for one without the restriction. I used bungee cords to keep it on and vacuumed slowly to prevent clogs. Eventually, I bought a Worx blower/vacuum/mulcher which works well. The products shown can work well together with some creative adapting, IMO.
i was gonna leave a comment that i would have attached it to the curved tube echo provides since that would smooth out the flow of leaves coming out of the blower before they go through the adapter. but then at the end of the video you came to the same conclusion. looking forward to your video next season. i just picked up a sthll sh-86 and feel the same way about the bag that you do about the echo bag.
The biggest problem with any of these setups is that the hand held shredders cannot handle the volume that say a truck with a commercial debris collector can and the reduction ratio of that echo doesn't seem really good, meaning you are sucking up whole leafs and not stredding them. The truck based debris collector would be done with that pile in 5 seconds and this took you 10 -30 minutes.
Unless you're sponsored by Echo, you should try the same attachment made by Cub Cadet for a weed eater. It has a bag to catch the leaves the same way, but it shreds the leaves into tiny pieces so the bag holds about 10 times as many leaves.
@andrewsarahmcdonald8996 Nice! We got hit with snow the day after I recorded this video, so I'll have to wait until winter is over to give that a try. I might have enough leftover leaves in the corners of my yard to give it another shot once spring hits and everything thaws out. I'll be sure to do a follow-up video with the elbow pipe attached.
I would definitely try this with the factory elbow. I have a Craftsman leaf blower/vac. I have had to replace the bag because it would get a hole in it near the inlet. I have considered cutting up the old bag to try to make something like this.
Great video ... I would use it . But I use my lawn mower to chop it up and use that bag .. but I still would get this. Edited : I just seen a video a guy used the the curved arm and them put the adapter on .
With any kind the leaf vacuum the fewer bends in the discharge pipe the better. Since your vacuum discharges to your right you should place the trashcan to your right instead of behind you. I do fall cleanups professionally.
I expected a leaf vac to shred them too, but ok.. I would try to find a solid PVC adapter and connect the hose to that in an attempt to improve airflow. Yeah, that elbow probably would have helped lol, similar to what i said above lol
Yeah, I took the instruction manual too literally and didn't think about the elbow pipe until it was too late. It was only my 2nd time using the Echo ES-250, so I'm still getting used to it.
I’ve been doing lawn and landscape work for over 30 years. I’m telling you that system is designed all wrong. The easiest, fastest way to do what you have is to just keep shredding the leaves with your mower. Just leave them spread out where they are on your lawn and mow away. Turns them to nothing and it’s excellent for the grass/soil. If you have a tractor, even easier. Put on mulching blades, even faster and easier. Avoid blowing into piles. Overloads the mower. Unnecessary time/effort. Blow the leaves out of areas the mower can’t get into and shred away. Keep up weekly or more often till the leaves are done. I’m telling you. It’s actually very easy. More time and money are wasted on little equipment like that vac and collection system. It’s designed all wrong. That’s why it gets clogged so easily.
Agree. They are only good for a small amount of leaves and you have to be out there every day sometimes twice a day. They are completely inefficient on bigger jobs.
I have the exact same setup. First I connected the adapter to the curved outlet pipe on the vac shredder, secondly I attached the "bonnet" not a bag to a 96 gallon rolling dumpster. Thirdly, I do not use it to pick up large amounts of leaves. I use it to pick up trimmings after I trim bushes in plant beds so as to minimize disturbing the mulch. Using it to pick up tree leaves is like using a spoon to bail out your flooded basement.
The leaf vacuum also shreds the leaves. However, the leaves were slightly damp, and I feel like it caused them to not shred as well as they do when they are completely dry.
That small diameter flex hose isn't helping. I wouldn't spend all that time mulching with a 1 HP shredder vac. A stihl SH86 wouldn't be much faster. Best for nooks and crannies only. A 7 HP gas push mower with mulching blades like an Oregon G5 would be several times as fast. Blow a shallower pile of leaves then circle pile with mower. You can then bag by hand or try the echo again. Horsepower saves you time. If you have a place to compost leaves a tarp and rake will be very fast while the blower can blow leaves directly into a woodline if it is close. I also do leaf cleanups professionally and for my own properties.
I was about to buy that attachment im glad I seen your review of it first. Thanks!
Leaf vacuums are a good thought but unless you have a huge commercial one they are simply not fast enough collection wise. They are only good for a small amount of leaves with multiple cleaning sessions a week. I'm surprised nobody has made a better one yet.
They’re really should be a better middle ground between a 5k machine and a $250 machine, they have the lawn mower type vacuums but they’re not much better either
@@LivinNlaughing Yep for sure. Really surprised it hasn't been developed yet. Definitely a market for it.
I just use a lawn mower with a bagger. Old Skool.
Makes the pile smaller as well. That would have taken me about 5 minutes. Whole yard 20 minutes.
Hope this helps.
I must need a different mower. Mine doesn't handle leaves well at all and it's only 2 years old. It was a cheap one though, so I'm not too surprised by that, LOL.
Thinking that the flexible hose is causing the leaves to become clogged. Notice that you didn’t have that issue with the stock hose that came with the blower/vac.
Seems like a rake and shovel would be faster and cheaper. But thank you for the video it definitely helped with my decision on getting the leaf pro. Have a blessed one.
@Xpl0rerX yeah, I wasn't impressed with this. I'm hoping when I get a chance to test it again this fall with the elbow pipe attachment that it works better. We shall see. Thanks!
I’ve used this attachment with a gas echo.I found leaving the blower on the ground and feeding it with a rake worked best.The biggest problem I had was large twigs getting stuck in the blower impeller.The only way to clear it was to remove the suction tube.
The LeafPro is great but that universal connector should be scrapped for one without the restriction. I used bungee cords to keep it on and vacuumed slowly to prevent clogs. Eventually, I bought a Worx blower/vacuum/mulcher which works well. The products shown can work well together with some creative adapting, IMO.
i was gonna leave a comment that i would have attached it to the curved tube echo provides since that would smooth out the flow of leaves coming out of the blower before they go through the adapter. but then at the end of the video you came to the same conclusion. looking forward to your video next season. i just picked up a sthll sh-86 and feel the same way about the bag that you do about the echo bag.
The biggest problem with any of these setups is that the hand held shredders cannot handle the volume that say a truck with a commercial debris collector can and the reduction ratio of that echo doesn't seem really good, meaning you are sucking up whole leafs and not stredding them. The truck based debris collector would be done with that pile in 5 seconds and this took you 10 -30 minutes.
Unless you're sponsored by Echo, you should try the same attachment made by Cub Cadet for a weed eater. It has a bag to catch the leaves the same way, but it shreds the leaves into tiny pieces so the bag holds about 10 times as many leaves.
Oh nice! I am definitely not sponsored by anyone at this point in time.
I have the same set up. I have not had any problems using the elbow pipe. I think that will help with clogging.
Good to know! I wish I had thought of that earlier instead of just going by the illustrations in the instruction manual.
We have the same setup. Use the elbow and it works really well
@andrewsarahmcdonald8996 Nice! We got hit with snow the day after I recorded this video, so I'll have to wait until winter is over to give that a try. I might have enough leftover leaves in the corners of my yard to give it another shot once spring hits and everything thaws out. I'll be sure to do a follow-up video with the elbow pipe attached.
I would definitely try this with the factory elbow. I have a Craftsman leaf blower/vac. I have had to replace the bag because it would get a hole in it near the inlet. I have considered cutting up the old bag to try to make something like this.
Great video ... I would use it . But I use my lawn mower to chop it up and use that bag .. but I still would get this.
Edited : I just seen a video a guy used the the curved arm and them put the adapter on .
I found that if you have another person at the collection trash can to hold the trash can upright and the hose vertically is much better.
With any kind the leaf vacuum the fewer bends in the discharge pipe the better. Since your vacuum discharges to your right you should place the trashcan to your right instead of behind you. I do fall cleanups professionally.
Great suggestion! I'll definitely do a follow-up video implementing the best tips I get.
I expected a leaf vac to shred them too, but ok.. I would try to find a solid PVC adapter and connect the hose to that in an attempt to improve airflow.
Yeah, that elbow probably would have helped lol, similar to what i said above lol
Yeah, I took the instruction manual too literally and didn't think about the elbow pipe until it was too late. It was only my 2nd time using the Echo ES-250, so I'm still getting used to it.
Had a toro electric leaf vac, it would mulch up the leaves to dust preventing clogs
I’ve been doing lawn and landscape work for over 30 years. I’m telling you that system is designed all wrong. The easiest, fastest way to do what you have is to just keep shredding the leaves with your mower. Just leave them spread out where they are on your lawn and mow away. Turns them to nothing and it’s excellent for the grass/soil. If you have a tractor, even easier. Put on mulching blades, even faster and easier. Avoid blowing into piles. Overloads the mower. Unnecessary time/effort. Blow the leaves out of areas the mower can’t get into and shred away. Keep up weekly or more often till the leaves are done. I’m telling you. It’s actually very easy. More time and money are wasted on little equipment like that vac and collection system. It’s designed all wrong. That’s why it gets clogged so easily.
I appreciate the advice!
👍
Glad to help
Agree. They are only good for a small amount of leaves and you have to be out there every day sometimes twice a day. They are completely inefficient on bigger jobs.
I have the exact same setup. First I connected the adapter to the curved outlet pipe on the vac shredder, secondly I attached the "bonnet" not a bag to a 96 gallon rolling dumpster. Thirdly, I do not use it to pick up large amounts of leaves. I use it to pick up trimmings after I trim bushes in plant beds so as to minimize disturbing the mulch. Using it to pick up tree leaves is like using a spoon to bail out your flooded basement.
You may want to shred the leaves first to fit more per bag.
The leaf vacuum also shreds the leaves. However, the leaves were slightly damp, and I feel like it caused them to not shred as well as they do when they are completely dry.
That small diameter flex hose isn't helping. I wouldn't spend all that time mulching with a 1 HP shredder vac. A stihl SH86 wouldn't be much faster. Best for nooks and crannies only. A 7 HP gas push mower with mulching blades like an Oregon G5 would be several times as fast. Blow a shallower pile of leaves then circle pile with mower. You can then bag by hand or try the echo again. Horsepower saves you time. If you have a place to compost leaves a tarp and rake will be very fast while the blower can blow leaves directly into a woodline if it is close. I also do leaf cleanups professionally and for my own properties.
You could line the can with a trash bag and then just pull the bag out and replace.
A 4" dust collector hose would probably work better
I think it would have been easier for you if you mowed the lawn first.
But then I wouldn't have been able to fully test out the leaf blower, silly!
that blower does not have enough air flow to push out the leaves through that hose.
Did you have the same results I did?
Sorry I didn't watch the whole video before commenting
Do it by hand and you`ll be a lot faster🤣