Keeping the grass in good shape is a time-consuming and costly maintenance task in both commercial and residential properties. Should cutting-edge property managers now be considering using robot lawnmowers as an alternative to manual cutting by gardeners? Manual lawn mowing costs thousands of pounds every year to residents in blocks of flats or commercial buildings with landscaped areas. Gardeners will still be needed but substantial cost savings could be generated by reducing the time needed for much of the year.
Advantages of the automower
Here are some of the benefits of an automatic robot lawnmower in commercial or residential block management:
- Cost savings. There’s an initial capital outlay– landlords can spend anywhere between £500 and £3,500 on a programmable robot mower. However, if you do your calculations you’ll probably find that your investment is soon recouped in the savings.
- Your lawn management can be controlled on your terms so that the grass is cut to your timetable and requirements. Unlike a human being, they’re happy to operate after dark or in the rain. It’s possible to program a robot lawnmower using GPS, so you can do it wherever you are some now have smart phone apps to control them.
- Hassle-free maintenance. When so many property maintenance tasks require your physical presence, it’s refreshing to find one job that can take care of itself, with minimal input from you. The robots self-charge in a docking station, so you don’t need to worry about them running out of energy.
- Better gardens. With the money saved on mowing, you may choose to spend the gardening budget in other areas such as improving the planting or within the building itself.
Issues to consider
For some property owners, lawn management using robots is the most efficient way to maintain the grounds. But for some properties, a robot lawnmower may not be suitable:
Not all robotic lawnmowers will suit all lawn types. While these machines are generally good at navigating irregularly shaped areas of grass, you might need to invest in a more expensive model that can cope with separate areas of lawn or down narrow passageways.- If you’re particular about your lawn stripes, a robot lawnmower may not meet your high standards: automowers can’t create that classic look as they don’t operate straight up and down and do not have rollers.
- Although you’ll save on human labour in terms of keeping the grass trim, you will still require the services of a gardener for other jobs, such as lawn edges, hedge trimming, tree care and flowerbeds.
- Security is a concern considering the potential cost of the mower. Some are electronically security coded or have locating devices built within them but you should check with your insurers before buying one. In the winter months they should be stored inside.
- Safety may be an issue, especially if there are children or pets living in the property. However, most robotic lawnmowers have addressed such concerns with built-in sensors that should prevent them from colliding with any obstacles.
At David Charles Property consultants, we’re always looking for innovative ways to tackle maintenance tasks, so that you can tick them off efficiently. Let us take care of your commercial or residential property, with a full range of property management services.