Navimow or no
Hey folks,
We have 0.25 acres of more or less level tall fescue. Pretty normal Midwest HOA lot. I have always push mowed, usually at least once per week.
With a baby on the way and the busiest work schedule I have ever had, this year I decided to pay someone else to do it for the first time on a weekly schedule.
The convenience of not having to do it myself has been great, although, I'm at the mercy of their schedule and if they don't get to us before the rain the grass gets super tall by the time they get to us again. Even weekly the grass gets pretty tall in between cuts
They're also tearing up parts of the yard with their zero turn. I've watched them cut it, full speed is the only speed they know. It is what it is.
I'm already in it for over $1000 this year, I wouldn't be surprised if this season costs me $1500 or more. So, we're obviously getting into robot mower territory if you think about adding in next season.
The idea of having a robot cut the yard 2, 3, or 4 times a week and keep it nice and level instead of the jungle it's currently turning into between weekly cuttings sounds pretty great, but for ~$3000, I have my reservations. That's getting into box store zero turn territory which in terms of maintenance and reliability is a much more comfortable idea to me. That said, I would probably not go the box store route and would probably end up spending significantly more than $3000 on a zero turn. Growing up dad had a commercial mower that he used for probably 15 years. I would probably look for something on the lower end of prosumer.
I guess what I'm looking for is have robot mowers reached a level of reliability and durability that justify the price point, or am I realistically looking at needing to buy another one in a couple years?
We also have a fenced backyard and a large dog so I think handling the front yard would be a manual intervention.