Orchard Grass & Branch Shredder: The Site Care Helper

Today there are a large number of mechanisms and equipment that can facilitate the hard and painstaking work of the summer resident. One of these reliable helpers is a garden grass and branch shredder, which in a matter of minutes processes dry leaves, grass and branches into shavings, which can serve as high-quality mulch, the basis for the production of humus or a useful fertilizer. This article will tell you how to choose the right device.

Grass and branch shredder: how it works

Garden shredder or a shredder for wood and grass resembles a meat grinder in its internal structure. All kinds of garbage that gardeners encounter at their summer cottage goes into the grinding system, where it is ground to a state of chips. Thanks to the powerful motor with which some types of shredders are equipped, even the heaviest materials are refined.

A standard garden shredder for branches, leaves and grass consists of three main elements: hopper, shredder and motor.

The most significant element is the bunker. This is a kind of filter that prevents foreign objects such as cloth, rubber, metal parts from entering the grinder. Another function of the bunker is to directly pass recycled waste.

According to the grinding system, there are milling and knife shredders... The knife shredder recycles garden debris up to 3 cm.Milling devices handle larger debris up to 8 cm.

The shredder powers the engine, which can be powered by electricity or gasoline. The type of engine is determined by the composition of the waste that will be recycled. Every garden shredder is equipped with a control device that can speed up or slow down the shredding process. An integral part of the garden device is the reverse, with which you can clean clogged knives.

How to choose a garden shredder

Before you start choosing a garden shredder, you need to evaluate all the work on the site and highlight the most difficult waste, as a result of which they are generated. The amount and composition of the processed raw materials will directly depend on the type of device. Next, you should consider the weight of the shredder, brand name, equipment cost.

When choosing a shredder, you should be guided by its main characteristics:

1. Grinding system.
2. Device class.
3. Engine's type.

Distinguish between knife and milling grinders. The most popular are milling machines, which grind garden debris with a steel gear. This type of shredder can process both soft materials and hard wood. Knife shredders are suitable for shredding small branches and soft materials.

The device class of the equipment affects its power, performance and cost. For simple summer cottage needs, you can use amateur or middle-class equipment, which will help you choose which numerous reviews will help. The 1.8-2.2 kW hobbyist garden grass and branch shredder can handle soft materials with ease.

Medium-class machinery with a capacity of 2.5 kW processes larger, rigid branches. The most professional devices are those with gasoline engines and noise cancellation. They are able to process hard materials and thick branches. They are more powerful and more expensive. They are not suitable for ordinary garden plots, since they will not be able to pay for themselves.

By engine type, shredders can be electric or gasoline. High power professional shredders are usually equipped with gasoline engines. They are mobile and have high performance. Budget models run on electricity. They are rarely used for working in large areas, since their radius of movement is limited by the length of the cord.

Before you buy a garden shredder for twigs and grass, estimate the size of your plot, which determines the length of the cord. If the area is very large, then it will be advisable to purchase a gasoline shredder. Pay attention to the noise level, which should not exceed 84 dB. The highest noise canceling performance is professional devices.

Useful advice! Please note that the less noisy the device is, the lower its performance. This applies to mid-range and hobbyist models.

When choosing the type of device, check the list of those materials that it can recycle. This model must be certified and warranted. Give preference to well-known manufacturers who have service centers in our country.

The rating of garden shredders of branches and grass will help determine the choice of device. Reviews of professional gardeners are based on many years of experience using each shredder model. Here you can find out all the detailed information about each specific unit, evaluating the advantages and disadvantages of each model.

A shredder can be purchased as a separate device or you can buy a wood chipper for a walk-behind tractor, which is an additional equipment for agricultural machinery. The principle of operation and the rules for choosing this mechanism are the same as for an independent technique. The main advantage of a branch chipper for a walk-behind tractor is that it is ideal for any models of motor-cultivators and motoblockswhich are equipped with a belt drive from the motor to the gearbox.

Device motor types

Gasoline and electric shredders are distinguished by engine type. Before deciding on the type of equipment, it is worth examining the advantages and disadvantages of each of them.

Electric shredder

It is a compact, low-noise shredder with power up to 2.6 kW. It easily grinds fallen leaves, dry grass and branches up to 2.5 cm in diameter. However, its movement is limited by the length of the electric cord. He is very responsive to voltage drops in the network, which is not uncommon for suburban areas.

Useful advice! If the site has a voltage drop problem, you can use a garden generator.

Main advantages:

• the devices have a low noise level, unlike gasoline grinders;
• environmentally friendly;
• due to its compact design, simple and easy to use;
• more economical. It has a low cost and excludes additional costs for fuel and lubricants.

Main disadvantages:

• cannot work without a constant source of electric current;
• sensitive to voltage drops;
• a low-power device that will not cope with large solid raw materials.

Gasoline shredder

This device is a powerful mobile device that can work in any garden. The petrol shredder of branches and grass is capable of processing hard wood with a diameter of up to 7 cm. The equipment is heavy, which limits the possibility of its easy movement around the garden area.

Due to the high power up to 8 kW, the device is quite noisy, but at the same time it is much more efficient. Therefore, the price of a garden gasoline chipper of branches and grass will be higher than an electric one.

As a result of their work, gasoline grinders emit harmful products into the atmosphere. Compared to electric counterparts, they require additional costs for equipment maintenance, namely, replacement of engine oil after a certain number of operating hours. However, such a timely action will eliminate the breakdown of the internal combustion engine and prolong its service life for a long time.

Shredder shredder mechanism

The type of shredder cutting mechanism should be selected depending on the structure and size of the raw material. Next, we will consider each system separately.

Knife shredders

This shredding mechanism consists of disc-shaped knives that rotate when the device is turned on, and recycle the waste entering them. They are ideal for chopping grass, foliage, small twigs, tops and semi-rotten roots. The knives can handle harder waste, but their blades quickly dull and the life of the shredder is significantly reduced.

Useful advice! To ensure continuous operation of the shredder, you should have a spare set of knives for the shredder, which can be purchased with the shredder.

Milling shredders

Shredders with a milling system are the most reliable. They are able to process dry solid raw materials up to 70 mm in diameter. This type of recycling system is used for powerful professional models. The grinding process is carried out using a monolithic gear, which rotates on a shaft, and a vertical anvil opposite. Garden waste passing between these elements is crushed.

These mechanisms are best used for hardwoods, as chopping grass and leaves clogs the space between the cutting parts, which shortens the life of the device. Many models are equipped with an auto-feed mechanism, which makes it possible for a person to do other things in parallel.

Useful advice! To meet all your needs for shredding garden waste of various sizes and hardness, you can buy a grass and branch shredder with a combined shredding system. However, its cost will be much higher than single devices.

Another significant advantage over knife grinders is the reverse function of milling devices. This makes it possible to remove the stuck element from the cavity of the grinder without affecting its further operation. A video of a branch shredder with this function clearly demonstrates this.In milling shredders, it is possible to adjust the recycling rate by changing the distance between the gear and anvil.

You can clearly see the level of operation of each system on the numerous videos of a garden shredder for grass and branches offered on the Internet.

Chopper power

In terms of power, garden shredders are divided into three classes:

1. Professional shredders.
2. Semi-professional shredders.
3. Amateur level shredders.

Professional shredders have a high power rating of up to 8 kW and are often equipped with gasoline engines. However, on the market you can find professional three-phase electric shredders that operate on 380V. The devices are equipped with a large grinding mechanism for crushing coarse solid materials, a receiving hopper and a retractor.

Due to their high productivity and power, such shredders are bulky and expensive. Therefore, the use of such devices in small summer cottages is impractical. They find their use in large-scale farming where there is a lot of waste.

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Semi-professional shredders can be equipped with a gasoline or electric engine. Most often they are produced with a milling cutter system, which allows you to grind large branches up to 45 mm in diameter. The power of such shredders ranges from 1.5 to 2.5 kW. The devices are equipped with shock-absorbing wheels, which makes them easy to move around the garden.

Useful advice! There are models equipped with a suction system for cut grass and fallen leaves, which, after shredding, enter a separate compartment for collecting mulch.

The devices, which belong to the amateur class, are equipped with an electric motor, have a knife chopping system. The power of such shredders does not exceed 1.5 kW. Due to their compact lightweight design, these shredders are simple and convenient to operate. This summer cottage grass and branch shredder, which can be purchased at a reasonable cost, is ideal for a small area.

Brand models of garden shredders

There are several models of garden grass and branch shredders that are very popular with professional gardeners. Below are some of them.

The Bosch AXT Rapid 2000 shredder is an amateur class. This shredder has a power of 2 kW and is equipped with an electric motor. It can process not only dry branches, but also wet grass. Such a device is equipped with comfortable wheels that allow you to move it around the garden area without much effort. You can buy a grass chopper of this model for 14 thousand rubles.

A mid-range shredder is the Viking GE 250, which has a 2.5 kW electric motor and an advanced double blade and dual pre-shredder blade disc. According to reviews, a garden shredder with this cutting structure allows you to grind both hard branches and soft leaves and stems. The price of a Viking garden shredder is 21 thousand rubles.

Quite powerful and at the same time simple in design, the Wolf-Garten SDL 2500 shredder is designed for a large amount of work. It reliably shreds hard branches up to 40 mm in diameter. The gear-like cutting system is a swath that grips and shreds branches between the base plate and the blades. This garden shredder of branches, which can be bought for 15 thousand rubles, is equipped with a function of protection against overheating and jamming, and has a reverse mode.

The choice of a garden shredder should be approached with great responsibility. First of all, it is necessary to objectively evaluate the entire volume of work that the unit must handle. Then, based on the characteristics of each model, choose the right option at an affordable price. However, if it is not possible to purchase a shredder at this time, many owners offer to rent a shredder of branches and grass at an agreed price.

In order for a reliable assistant to serve a long service, one should not forget about the proper care of the device specified in the instructions, and in order for its operation to be safe for everyone around, strictly follow the safety rules.