Tool Review: Cleaning up Leaves with Ryobi

What's a Leaf Vacuum / Mulcher?

4/7/2021

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Steph's backyard is small and is totally shaded by large oak trees thus no grass grows back there. The ground is covered with pea gravel in lieu of grass which creates a problem when you try to rake leaves.

Steph researched a solution and decided this Ryobi battery powered leaf vacuum/mulcher would be a good choice to deal with the leaf cleanup problem in the backyard.

Tool:

Ryobi 40-Volt Lithium-Ion Cordless Battery Leaf Vacuum/Mulcher (Home Depot)

The Ryobi cordless leaf vacuum on the shelf at the Home Depot.

Happy birthday Steph! This was Steph's 2020 birthday gift.

The Ryobi leaf mulcher put together and ready to use.

It's an odd looking machine. It features a long vacuum tube on wheels and a leaf collection bag.

The Ryobi battery powered leaf vacuum in use in Steph's backyard.

To use, pop in the battery and vacuum away!

It is the perfect tool to vacuum up leaves next to the temporary dog fence.

Once the Ryobi battery powered leaf vacuum bag is full, it's time to empty it.

Once the bag is full, remove the battery and bag, and unzip/velcro the bag.

The Ryobi leaf vacuum bag opens fully for easy disposal of leaves.

The side of the bag opens fully so it's really easy to move the leaves into a cart or yard bag.

The Ryobi leaf collection bag is really easy to empty.

Once the bag has been emptied, simply attach it back to the machine and you're ready to finish the job.

Sometimes you'll need to clear the Ryobi mulcher blades if a stick gets stuck.

Sometimes a stick will get stuck in the mulcher blades. Safety first, remove the battery then unscrew the two knobs that hold the vacuum tube in place.

With the blades exposed, reach in (again, remove the battery first) and clear out the stuck debris.

The leaf vacuum uses the same 40V lithium battery as the Expand-It system of outdoor tools.

The storage system for the Ryobi Expand-It system of outdoor gardening tools. One handle, many tools.

One of the downsides of the Ryobi leaf vacuum is it does not store nicely with the Expand-It Ryobi tools.

These two Ryobi tools, the leaf vacuum and battery powered mower are stored on this wall.

The vacuum is stored on the opposite wall along with the Ryobi battery powered mower.

If you have a lot of yard cleanup like Steph, this might be the perfect garden tool for you. She uses it all the time as it seems like leaves fall year round here in Florida!

What works for yard cleanup at your house?

Please note: This is not a sponsored post.

FYI: We are not professionals, and we don't claim to be. This is what we found worked for our project. Yours may need a little different approach. Safety first!

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