Tag Archive for: most

Pellenc maintains Scotland’s most exotic garden

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Pellenc maintains Scotland’s most exotic garden: The team responsible for maintaining the incredible Logan Botanic Garden have noticed several benefits since investing in a wide-range of Pellenc battery-powered equipment.

Regarded as Scotland’s most exotic garden, Logan Botanic Garden is located at the south-western tip of Scotland on the Rhins of Galloway. The Garden is warmed by the Gulf Stream which enables plants from Australia, New Zealand, South and Central America, Mediterranean and Southern Africa to thrive.

Pellenc maintains Scotland’s most exotic garden

Pellenc maintains Scotland’s most exotic garden

Garden Supervisor Colin Belton has been working at the Garden for 23 years and there are many reasons as to why he has stayed in the job for this amount of time.

“It is a great part of the world to be in,” he said. “It is very quiet, laid back, no rush to life and I’m part of a great team. We all work together as one unit.”

Colin revealed that plans were already in place to reduce carbon emissions after being encouraged to do so by the government. In fact, Logan Botanic Garden unveiled the first carbon neutral glasshouse in the UK. This was five years ago, and Colin’s attentions then turned to battery-powered equipment as an alternative to petrol machinery.

“I first became aware of the Pellenc equipment about 20 years ago,” he said. “I was at a horticultural show, and I saw the Pellenc chainsaw in action. I thought it was modern and different and so I took a brochure away with me. I still have that brochure to this day!

“A lot of other companies started bringing out battery-powered equipment, but to my knowledge, Pellenc has been around the longest and it was the one brand that really stuck with me.”

A forerunner when it comes to lithium-ion technology, Pellenc has established itself as the number one choice in the ‘zero emission’ professional power tools market for the maintenance of urban and green-spaces.

Light, odourless, noise-free, with no starting problems and enough power to enable professional users to work for a full day on a single charge, it’s no wonder more and more professional users are turning to Pellenc. It is an attractive alternative to those who have, for several years, been relying on fuel-based machinery.

Colin arranged for a demonstration of Pellenc equipment to be carried out at the Garden and he now boasts a fleet consisting of Airion blowers, Helion compact hedge-cutters as well as the Helion telescopic model, an Excelion strimmer and Excelion brushcutter, and the Selion T220/300 telescopic polesaw as well as the Selion C21 HD pruner – which were all supplied by Allan Wright of Agrovista Amenity.

“At the demonstration I think the light weight and the quietness impressed everyone the most,” said Colin. “We no longer have to endure an engine tucked under the ear droning away. Generally, it felt as though the petrol machinery was starting to take its toll on all of us.

The Pellenc equipment has certainly made our lives easier and safer.

“Take the Helion telescopic hedge cutter for example. The Helion enables us to reach the full height of the hedges, so we no longer have the hassle of assembling, moving, or relevelling our scaffolding tower. It’s a huge time saver and we can cut those hedges in half a day rather than a full day now.

“In fact, we can complete a lot of jobs much more quickly now and this is because we can work without disturbing our visitors. Previously we would get complaints about the noise from the petrol machines, and so we would be limited to a two-hour window to carry out jobs like hedge-cutting and strimming, before opening to the public. We can use the Pellenc equipment all day now because it is so quiet.

“There are just so many benefits to using this equipment,” continued Colin. “The Airion blowers, for example, have a huge advantage over the old petrol ones. Many of our paths are gravel based and trying to blow the leaves without taking the gravel with it was impossible with our old petrol blowers. However, the Pellenc Airion blowers have that low setting which is just enough to move the leaves along without interfering with the gravel.

“Then we have Excelion brushcutter with the City Cut head, and this enables us to work in the Garden without fear of debris flying towards visitors. In the past we have had to be extra careful and wait until no visitors were around.”

All the Pellenc tools at Logan Botanic Garden are powered by two ULiB 1500 batteries – the most powerful in the Pellenc range.

“We start work at 8am and we finish at 4.30pm and we get a whole day’s use out of them without the batteries being anywhere near flat. Some of the lighter pieces of kit we have run for days.

“To be honest, I think that initially, we were all sceptical as to whether the Pellenc products would be as powerful as a petrol engine – but they are.”

Pellenc is distributed exclusively in the UK by Etesia UK.

For further information, please contact Etesia UK on 01295 680120 or visit www.pellencuk.com

You can also follow Pellenc on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram @PellencUK for much more news, reviews and insightful views.

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The most destructive garden bugs

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The most destructive garden bugs: Green fingered homeowners falling victim to destructive garden bugs are being given advice on how to keep them away.

The team of outdoor experts at GardenBuildingsDirect.co.uk have provided some cheap and easy solutions on how to tackle these bugs.

The most destructive garden bugs

The most destructive garden bugs

As the sun starts to come out, Brits are making the most of their outdoor space and making them look as beautiful as possible.

Unfortunately, the likes of moths, slugs and snails also come out in the sun and can do a lot of damage to gardens.

A spokesperson for GardenBuildingsDirect.co.uk said: “It is inevitable that garden bugs will cause a bit of disruption, whether you’re out relaxing, planting your own veg or growing your own garden.

“This guide is full of some of the most destructive garden bugs and the top tips to help keep these at bay, so the outdoors can be stress-free.”

Slugs and Snails

Slugs and snails are some of the most common yet destructive garden pests. Not only do they leave a sticky trail behind them, but they also love to munch through leaves and vegetables. This can be particularly problematic on vegetable patches if you are growing plants like lettuce and cabbage.

Salt has always been a fool proof way of killing slugs and snails, but if you want to stop them in their tracks, copper tape acts as a great deterrent, giving them electric shocks.

Caterpillars

Caterpillars love to nibble their way through fruits, vegetables, and plants. They are also detrimental to some flowers too, with the buds and seeds often all destroyed.

One of the most natural and inexpensive ways to rid your plants of these pesky bugs, is to spray them with hot soapy water. This can then be poured into a spray bottle and used as many times as necessary.

Moths

This type of garden bug can be especially damaging in the summer months. They love cotton and wool fibres so homeowners need to be aware that leaving outdoor cushions and furniture in the garden could be targeted by moths.

An easy solution for deterring them is to use herbal sprays in the areas you want to protect. Herbs like lavender and rosemary are not loved by these bugs, and they also smell nice too.

May Bugs

Usually seen around May-time (up until July), which is how it earned its name, May Bugs can cause considerable damage to gardens. In their early years they live under the soil and feed off the roots of plants and flowers.

As there are not a lot of homemade options available to keep these bugs away, the best option is to use an insect killer.

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Get the most from your machine

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Get the most from your machine: Nothing is more important than keeping machines running, which is why the role of servicing and maintenance is key to the success of every business. From the correct way to tilt the mower, to the wrong way to clean spark plugs, Kawasaki Engines looks at how to get the most from your machine.

Martin Cook, parts and technical manager and Dave Dunwoody, technical and after sales specialist, both from Kawasaki Engines have decades of engineering experience and provide advice on common mistakes, tips and ideas for keeping your machinery, and your business, running.

Get the most from your machine

Get the most from your machine

No one knows a mower better than the person using it, so trust your instincts, says Dave: “We’ve been called out to a premiership football club to service a pedestrian mower because the operator could sense a change in the precision of the cutting through the vibrations of the machine. The mower was hesitating and the blade slightly slowing down. We found an issue with the carburettor and while it didn’t affect the mowing quality as such, it did affect cutting the pattern into the pitch.

“So, while it sounds simple, maybe even obvious, it’s important to use your senses to detect changes in the machine. Is there a new or unusual smell, noise or feeling such as vibrations? In the case of two-stroke engines, it could be that the fuel to oil ratio isn’t right. The ratio should be 50 to 1 (50 parts fuel to 1 part oil), so, for example, five litres of petrol will need 100ml of the correct two-stroke oil adding to it. We recommend using a two-stroke mixing bottle. Too little oil lubricating the engine, and it will dry and seize. Too much and there will be smoke, soot and fumes. It doesn’t take long for either to happen!

“We’ve seen cases where the fuel for a two-stroke engine was put in a four-stroke engine, and vice versa, an easy mistake to make when the job is busy and the day is long. Therefore, we strongly recommend marking up the cans and putting them in separate places to reduce the chances of this happening.”

When it comes to servicing we’ve seen some common mistakes. For example, it’s important not to delay routine servicing or skip the daily oil and air checks. Definitely don’t clean spark plugs with a steel wire brush as it leaves metal traces and will cause the plug to short out.

When it comes to maintenance these simple things will make sure you don’t incur problems later says Martin: “Check liquid levels on a flat surface, an incline will show more/less depending on which way it’s tilting. During normal deck inspection, tilting the mower the wrong way will lead to a flooding of fuel! The carburettor should always be uppermost. When jet-washing the machines after a hard day’s work, make sure to dry off excess water as pooling can easily damage the electricals. Using WD-40 is great post-wash as it displaces moisture and protects against electrical short circuits.

“Always consider where you put things – if you take off a jacket and pop it on the back of a zero-turn machine, make sure you don’t cover the engine fan as that will lead to overheating and can cause the engine to seize.

“Fuel has changed over the last few years, ethanol is now added to all petrol up to 10 percent, the reason for this is to decrease CO2 emissions. But ethanol is highly corrosive and hygroscopic (absorbs water), that’s why we are constantly telling people to drain and purge equipment for the winter months. Many people argue that they have a 40-year-old chainsaw and they have never had to drain it so why now? This is where we remind them about the ethanol content of fuel and due to recent RoHS directives, we are restricted to the materials we use in the carburettors. Older machines made use of chromium cadmium and lead, thankfully we no longer have these hazardous substances in our equipment, but it is now more important to drain and purge equipment before the winter shut down.”

The importance of genuine quality parts can never be underestimated, continues Martin: “It never pays to shop for the lowest cost parts to save money. We’ve seen an engine destroyed because an oil filter from a motorcycle was fitted. The filter looked the same, but because the fit wasn’t exact, the oil pressure built up and blew the filter apart, taking half the engine casing with it! All that damage, all for the sake of a few pence.”

Following these simple guidelines will not only ensure the utmost productivity from machines but will go a long way to increasing the life of the machine, giving you the most from your investment now and in the future.

To find out more about Kawasaki’s technical support or to learn more about their full engine range, visit https://www.kawasaki-engines.eu/en/

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Introducing the most productive pedestrian aerator

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Introducing the most productive pedestrian aerator: The new Air2G2 336 is the most productive pedestrian aerator on the market, with 36-inch probe centres allowing operators to cover ground quicker with the same industry-leading results.

Aeration has always been an integral aspect of sports turf maintenance, and the introduction of the original Air2G2 revolutionised the process. The principle of laterally injecting air using three probes up to 12-inches below the surface has de-compacted countless greens, pitches, and courts at prestigious sporting venues around the globe from Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Club to Emirates Golf Club, Dubai.

Introducing the most productive pedestrian aerator

Introducing the most productive pedestrian aerator

The factors of no surface disruption and the option to operate the machine in wet conditions have seen many rely on the Air2G2 as their go-to solution for game or course saving aeration across all levels of professional, semi and non-professional sport. The ability to aerate when needed rather than working at designated times, has also led to more regular aeration at locations such as Royal Selangor Golf Club, Kuala Lumpur, where the Air2G2 has become vital to their maintenance programme.

Consistent use of the machine is proven to create surfaces that are healthy, firm, and free draining. This happens over time because the pressurised air fractures the hardpan layers without disrupting roots while increasing pore space which promotes faster drainage and root development. In turn, this respiration forces oxygen in and pushes CO2 and other anaerobic gases out for root zone gas exchange.

Introducing the most productive pedestrian aerator

Introducing the most productive pedestrian aerator

Operators have used the Air2G2 to solve a variety of problems from simple decompaction to reducing salt build-up, increasing air exchange and to introduce winter aeration programmes. With the wider 336 model, the work needed to achieve these goals can be done in less time whilst always getting the same impressive results.

For more information on the Air2G2 336, visit www.campeyturfcare.com or contact your local Campey dealer.

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ECHO’s most powerful handheld blower

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ECHO’s most powerful handheld blower: ECHO have introduced their most powerful handheld power blower to date. The PB-2620 is part of the ECHO X Series of best-in-class products, designed to be industry-leading in terms of power and performance.

Featuring a 25.4cc two-stroke engine with an output of 0.91kW and producing a maximum airspeed of 80.5m/sec when using the flat nozzle, the PB-2620 is, say ECHO, the most powerful handheld blower in its class. More than enough for clearing wet leaves and heavier debris. The premium-grade ECHO engine and dry weight of 4.4kg combine to give an excellent power to weight ratio.

ECHO’s most powerful handheld blower

Along with the power comes precision and comfort in the way the blower is designed. A secondary handle improves manoeuvrability and the ergonomically grouped controls, including a throttle with ‘cruise control’, are easy to reach. The throttle can be locked at a variety of settings for ease of use and added operator comfort. The overall design reduces the gyro effect on the wrist, adding another factor in lessening operator fatigue.

This is a power blower designed for professionals who need to be able to rely on their tools day in, day out and achieve maximum productivity. To ensure this, all X Series products are tested in the most extreme conditions, say ECHO, and the PB-2620 is packed with the most advanced features. The rubber grip and counterweight are designed for increased comfort and reduced vibration. A tool-less air filter cover allows easy access for changing the air filter, making a further contribution to reduced downtime and increased productivity.

ECHO state their tools are hardworking, tough and dependable and they carry a two-year professional or five-year domestic warranty to support this. You can find out more from your local authorised ECHO dealer. You can also visit www.echo-tools.co.uk or call 01844 278800 for more information

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