Frequently left of the list of wonderful things about owning a home is lawn maintenance.  Even the worst crabgrass invested, sand pit, of a lot (like mine for example), requires mowing, pruning, and of course, the dreaded fall cleanup.

As I’ve mentioned in the past, my house is situated on roughly .8, largely wooded acres.  The privacy is nice, but it comes at a cost.  The heavy shade keeps my house a little on the dark side, keeps the grass from growing over a healthy percentage of my “lawn”, and come fall those wonderful privacy trees manage to cover that an entire .8 acres with a few inches worth of leaves.

My backyard is a sea of leaves, and this is only about half of it.

Last year, my first in the house, I used the rake, tarp, and drag method.  My lawn is basically divided up into 3 sections, which I call the front, the middle-front, and the back.  I am fortunate in that I have a wooded swampy area in the front, and nothing but woods in the back.  Both are ideal for dumping leaves cleaned from the yard.   Even without the need to bag leaves, I estimate it took my 12+ hours to clean my entire lawn last year, and truth be told, I don’t recall enjoying so much as a second of it.

This year I wasn’t about to go it alone.  With the days getting cooler and the leaves piling up, I suggested to my wife that it might be time we went to Home Depot and picked her out a rake.  Lucky for her, our visiting friends suggested we skip raking in altogether and use a blower instead.

I had considered a blower in the past, but bigger models tend to be on the expensive side, and was raking really all that bad?  My friends argued that the value of my time would easily offset the cost of the blower (given how much time I waste, that seems unlikely).  My wife for her part was pretty much in favor of anything that keeps a rake out of her hand, so, yeah, we decided that instead of a rake for her, the smarter money would be spent on a blower for me.

Why Choose Stihl

There are plenty of quality blowers available.  High end, commercial grade products are made by the likes of Stihl, Husqvarna, Echo, and Redmax to name just a few.  I could have easily found a suitable blower from any of them, and very likely would have been satisfied with whatever I bought.

After doing research on several models from several manufacturers, I settled on Stihl.  Interestingly, my decisions had very little to do with any particular Stihl advantage per se.  Again, all of the companies I’ve listed make excellent equipment (especially in their mid-range to professional grade offerings).  Instead my decision came down largely to convenience and familiarity.  The nearest Echo, Husqvarna, and Redmax dealers are all a minimum of a 20 minute drive from house.  I have two Stihl dealers within 10 minutes of my house, another 2 within 20, and 2 more less than 5 miles from my office.  Factor that with the fact that I already own a Stihl FS 55 trimmer (all of the Stihl stuff works pretty much the same way), and Stihl’s reputation for quality, and it was a very easy decision.

It’s worth mentioning that the Lowe’s and Home Depots of the world have their place, but I don’t recommend them when purchasing powered lawn and garden equipment.  You’ll notice that you can’t buy Stihl or Redmax at any big box store.  Husqvarna and Echo only offer a small selection of what is generally their lower end equipment at the chain stores.  Finally, we’re talking about a piece of equipment that, if maintained properly, you’ll have for years.  It makes sense to build a relationship with an authorized dealer who provides repairs and maintenance on site.

Why the BR 550

Having been, in what seems another lifetime ago, a professional landscaper, I can attest that if you’re going to be using a blower for more than a few minutes at a time, a backpack blower is the way to go.  While handhelds have come a long way, they don’t have nearly the power of most backpack models, and of course, even with their reduced weight, prolonged use can get to be a bit of a pain in the arm.

The current Stihl lineup features 5 backpack models.  Initially I hadn’t ruled any of them out, but after comparing things like Air Volume, Sound Rating, and Weight, I narrowed it down to the “entry level” BR 380, the higher-end BR 550, and the top of the line BR 600.  Now I seldom purchase anything on the low end, even if it is a quality piece of equipment in its own right.  So while chances are the BR 380 would have been powerful enough for my needs (leaves, wet leaves, grass clippings, miscellaneous debris), I wasn’t going to risk being wrong.

When making decisions of this sort I tend to draw what are admittedly very arbitrary lines.  I was willing to pay an extra $100 to move up from the 380 to the 550, but not another $80 to move up from the 550 to the 600.  To be sure,  I thought about it, but the 600 would have been extreme overkill for my needs (I’ll settle for regular overkill), and the 2db difference in noise level was all the excuse I needed to pass up the BR 600 for the slightly less powerful (and less expensive) BR 550.

I don’t live in an area with noise restrictions, so in truth, overall noise level wasn’t a huge issue for me (you think my neighbor with his 3 dogs that bark non-stop is going to say anything to me about a leaf blower?), but for those of you who live in an area where noise is a concern, consider the BR 500, which offers backpack blower performance that’s quieter than any other backpack or handheld in the Stihl lineup.

BR 550 Specs and Features

Volage/Displacement: 64.8 cc (3.95 cu. in.)
Motor Output/Engine Power: 3.0 kW (4.0 bhp)
Powerhead Weight: 9.9 kg (21.8 Ibs.)
Fuel Capacity: 1400 cc (47.3 oz.)
Air Velocity: 89 m/sec (199 mph)
Air Volume (with Tubes): 900 m3/h (530 cfm)
Sound Rating: 73 dB(A)

The Stihl BR 550 (like the BR 500 and BR 600) features the patented Stihl 4-mix engine, which although it used a 50:1 mixed gas, otherwise operates on the 4-stroke engine principle.

The two-way adjustable straps and the generously padded back rest make the 21.8 lbs Stihl BR 550 very comfortable to wear. Even after 2 hours of near continuous use, the weight was not an issue.

Other features include an adjustable, padded harness, tube-mounted blower controls, and a winter setting switch for those times when you need to run your blower in temperatures below 50° Fahrenheit (20° Celsius).

Gasing and Starting

The BR 550 requires a minimum of 89 octane gas, which needs to be mixed 50:1 with 2 stroke engine oil.  Basically you need to mix 2.6 oz. of engine oil with every gallon of gas.  To simplify things a bit (not that it’s all that difficult), your Stihl dealer likely carries individual-sized servings of Stihl-brand engine oil.

The BR 550's gas tank features a twist and snap cap locking mechanism, instead of the more common screw-on. It works very well, although I wasn't paying attention the first time I refilled, and ended up spilling an entire tank of gas in my driveway.

Once you’ve mixed your gas and poured into the tank, give the primer ball 3-5 pumps, set your choke knob to the full choke position, put one foot on the base of the blower, stabilize the blower with one hand, and give the starter grip a tug.

So far my BR 550 has started up in no more than 3 pulls.  If it does take you more than 3 pulls, make sure you move the choke knob to the partial position before attempting to start the blower again.

The convenientally located primer ball and choke switch are both easily accessible and easy to use.

For what it’s worth, my wife, who has never proven to be adept at pull starting anything, was able to start the BR 550 on only her 3rd pull.

Blowing Leaves (and whatever else gets in your way)

The Stihl BR 550 blows like a champ.  The short version of this story is that I was able to clear my entire yard in about 2 hours.  I probably could have done it faster, but there’s a learning curve to properly corralling leaves.  There are also a couple of common sense things I could have done to reduce my time investment; like for instance, I could have blown off my deck before cleaning the areas on either side of it.  Next time I’ll also make sure not to pile leaves in those areas of my lawn which have no direct point of entry into the woods.

Without a doubt, the BR 550 is powerful enough to move leaves (both dry and wet).  My “tests” have also shown that it can easily move soda cans, golf balls, small sticks and branches, as well as larger, soggy debris piles, that someone was too lazy to clean up last month.  Even when idling, it’s powerful enough to move the Stihl hearing protectors I bought with the blower (as my wife found out while starting it up for the first time).

Granted, it’s a matter of personal preference, but I like the tube-mounted, locking, throttle controls (standard on all Stihl backback blowers) over the left-handed controls on Echo blowers; although there are plenty who prefer that style as well.

The tube-mounted throttle control features both an off switch, and a throttle lock, which eliminates the need to keep the trigger depressed at all times.

The Flora Test

True story…I had planned to pick up the blower on Friday afternoon, but because of what I’ll simply call “circumstances beyond my wildest control”, I wasn’t going to get to the Stihl dealer before closing time.  So instead of waiting until Saturday morning, I sent my wife to the dealer, with specific instructions to purchase a BR 550.  While I can’t be certain, I’m willing to guess it’s the first time they’ve ever had a woman with 3″ heals walk through the door with the intent of purchasing a $400 blower.

It never fails.  Anytime I bring home a new piece of equipment, my wife says “I want to try it”.  Invariably she’ll spend anywhere between 3 and 5 minutes pretending to do whatever it is the tool is supposed to do, before she decides she’s bored, or simply doesn’t like it.  Last year she spent two minutes blowing snow.  She mowed the lawn for almost 3 minutes.  She tried the pole pruner for about 12 seconds.  I can’t remember if she used the string trimmer or not, but if she didn’t she certainly didn’t stick with it for very long.

Flora has fun testing out our new Stihl BR 550

So although I wasn’t the least bit surprised when Flora wanted to try the blower, I was nearly in state of shock when after 10 minutes of use, she showed no signs of slowing down.  In fact, if not for a previously scheduled hair appointment, she may very well have cleared the rest of the yard.

What all of that should mean to you is that the Stihl BR 550 is incredibly easy to start up, and to use.  What’s more, it makes clearing leaves as enjoyable as it possibly can be (which granted, isn’t a whole lot).  I thought for sure I was going to catch hell for spending $400 on a blower, instead, my wife thinks it’s one of the best things we’ve ever bought.  Considering the alternative was picking her up her very own rake, that’s not really surprising either.

By the time Flora took over, the leaves had been pushed to the very edge of the woods, but the larger piles didn't stop the BR 550 from pushing them the rest of the way.

Final Thoughts

I’ll be honest, I had real doubts about spending $400 on a blower (actually about spending $400 on anything, given the state of the economy).  I put it off, debated, and actually went so far as to have my wife go the the store and pick it up (so I could buy it, without actually buying it myself).  If the BR 550 did anything less than exceed my expectations I’d be disappointed.

After round 1 of cleanup I can honestly say I’m more than satisfied with my purchase.  I have a couple of trees on my property that are late droppers, so I figure I’ve got about another 30-45 minutes of work to do, which means that in less than 3 hours I’ll be able to accomplish what took me 12 hours to do last year (that’s money well spent).  Of course, I’ll also be able to clean up things a bit better now after I mow, weed whack, or rip up planting beds along my sidewalk.

Again, $400 is a fair amount of money, so those of you with smaller, or less leafy lots, might want to think about either a handheld, or a smaller model, like the BR 380.  That said, if a blower makes any sense at all for you, I encourage you to get one.  They can be real time time savers.  When you consider that a friend of mine is paying someone $400 to clean his yard (granted, he doesn’t have the “blow it into the woods” option that I do), over time, a good blower can be a real money saver too.

One final note… blowers are loud, very loud.  Be smart, and make sure to wear hearing protection anytime you’re operating your blower.

The Sthil BR 550 Backpack Blower retails for $399.95.  Stihl prohibits the online sale of any of its power equipment, so you’ll have to purchase from a local authorized Stihl dealer, which for any type of power equipment, is what I’d recommend anyway.

You can view the complete Stihl product line on the company’s website (www.stihlusa.com).