How To Determine If The DeWalt 60V String Trimmer Will Work For Your Lawn

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When you want the landscaping work in your yard to look as good as possible, you can't stop after mowing the lawn. You need a battery-powered string trimmer to complete the finishing touches at your property. Most people who have a large property would prefer a reliable string trimmer brand that can do everything on one battery charge.

DeWalt is one of the best power tool brands, and it offers both traditional and outdoor battery-powered tools that offer excellent quality for residential and professional users. For those interested in a heavy-duty string trimmer, DeWalt has a 60V Cordless String Trimmer that's priced at $349. It has a 17-inch diameter cutting area, although you can adjust it to 15 inches for more precise work and to gain better battery performance.

 A few different reviewers claim to receive about 45 minutes of run time from the 60V battery. However, one reviewer estimated receiving 13 to 25 minutes of run time when operating the DeWalt trimmer at the highest rotational speeds. Of course, if you're cutting a large section of out-of-control weeds, your battery will run out of juice faster than if you're only cleaning areas around garden beds and sidewalks that the mower did not reach. Learn more about how to determine if the DeWalt trimmer will be a good fit for your lawn.

The 60-volt DeWalt battery is a significant upgrade over its 20-volt batteries for string trimmers when you have a big property. You might only be able to use a 20V or 40V trimmer over a 1/2-acre property or less, while a 40V or 80V trimmer can handle larger properties of more than 1/2 acre in size. If you own some of the other 60V DeWalt tools that are good for garden, yard, and landscaping projects, you can share the 60V battery among all the tools. Some 60V batteries are compatible with 20V tools, giving you additional flexibility for using them with your older DeWalt tools. The more powerful 60V battery was a key benefit for YouTube reviewer Yak Motley. "I ran it for 10 to 15 minutes and did my yard, Kevin's yard, [and] part of the alley. ... It never slowed down. It didn't bog down. It operates just like a gas [trimmer]."

Because of the extra power from the 60V battery, you should be able to use a thicker diameter trimming line of up to 0.095 inches. If you have tougher and thicker weeds on your property, being able to use larger-diameter trimmer line is a significant advantage. One of the best features of this DeWalt trimmer is its 17-inch diameter cutting swath and larger debris guard to protect your shins from flying debris. Being able to cut down a couple of extra inches of weeds during each pass doesn't sound like much, but it adds up over dozens and hundreds of passes during a weed trimming job.

If you have a yard that's smaller than a half acre or if you only need to run the trimmer for a little bit of time because you don't have overgrown areas, the DeWalt 60V string trimmer might be overkill for you. Instead, you may want to save quite a bit of money and consider the DeWalt 20V MAX String Trimmer, priced at $238.99 for the tool with a battery and charger.

You may also dislike the extra weight found with the 60V trimmer compared to DeWalt's 20V trimmer. The trimmer with the lower voltage battery weighs 8.5 pounds with the battery attached, while the 60V trimmer weighs 12 pounds. Although the 3.5-pound difference doesn't sound like much, each pound of extra weight in a string trimmer is magnified by the pressure it generates on your spine as you use it. The 60V machine will contribute to greater muscle fatigue when using the machine over a long period compared to the lighter 20V machine. Unfortunately, the 60V DeWalt string trimmer doesn't ship with a shoulder strap, which could have helped to support the weight of the machine and alleviate some muscle fatigue and back pain. One older Amazon reviewer said the 60V string trimmer simply weighed too much for successful use. It was "too heavy for me. I'm 84 years old; just couldn't handle it. ... Sorry, I had to return it."