Garden tools

How we test leaf blowers and blower vacs

CHOICE reviews leaf blowers and blower vacs in real-life situations to see which ones perform best.
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Last updated: 13 May 2024
person using a leaf blower on brown fallen leaves in a yard

If the leaves are starting to pile up in your yard, you may be considering buying a leaf blower or a blower vac with a built-in vacuum. But how do you know which model will do the best job?

Our expert tester

Our tester, James Thomson, knows how to find out which blowers are worth buying and which are just blowing hot air. When testing performance and ease of use, he uses the leaf blowers in a real-life situation to see how they compare when it comes to clearing leaves and twigs from lawns and, in the case of blower vacs, vacuuming up the pile.

How we choose what to test

Leaf blowers come in electric, petrol and battery-powered cordless varieties, while some also have a vacuum function. Our leaf blower reviews include electric  and cordless models, and some with a vacuum function. Petrol models continue to be available but the latest offerings are of the battery powered cordless variety and increases in battery capacity and power allow these devices to perform stronger for longer. 

Our product researchers survey manufacturers to find out what the latest models are, as well as specifications. We try to include a range of brands and models found in both mainstream and specialist hardware stores.

Once a list featuring a range of brands and price points is chosen, our buyers then go through the arduous process of ordering the leaf blowers and blower vacs just as a consumer would, to ensure the manufacturer hasn’t tampered with the unit in any way.

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How we test leaf blowers and blower vacs

Performance

The blowing test is conducted by spreading 3.5kg of dry leaves and small twigs on a 5 x 3.5-metre grassed area to closely replicate a home lawn environment. Our tester times how long it takes for each blower to blow all the leaves out of the marked area. He penalises the battery-powered models that run out of power before completing the job. 

To test the performance of the blower vacs with a vacuuming function, James times how long it takes to convert from blower to vacuum mode and suck up a 1kg pile of leaves and twigs. He then repeats the test with a 2kg pile of leaves only. The fastest times are used as the basis of the blowing and vacuuming performance scores.

James also measures the noise produced by each blower and we publish the highest noise level in our blower vac reviews.

Ease of use

James looks at how easy it is to manoeuvre the leaf blower, taking into account the absence or presence of a power cord and the weight of the blower, as well as what it’s like to use the leaf blower, including how easily the machine becomes blocked, intensity of vibrations, trigger comfort and ease of switching between modes for blower vacs.

Test criteria explained

The CHOICE Expert Rating, our overall score that determines which products we recommend, is made up of:

  • blowing performance (65%)
  • ease of use (35%).

As not all models have a vacuum, the vacuum scores for blower vacs are not included in the CHOICE Expert Rating but shown for comparison with other blower vac models.

James

I work in the digital home team at CHOICE testing things like TVs, speakers, fitness bands and other household digital gadgets. I also work with some outdoor products like pressure cleaners, line trimmers and pool cleaners (it's nice to have a bit of variety). I have a Bachelor of Science from the University of Sydney, where I majored in computer science. Prior to CHOICE, I worked for an insurance company for 20 years as a programmer and analyst. I was looking for work when I came across the role at CHOICE and the idea of testing products was very appealing to me. I currently represent consumers on two Australian Standards committees: TE-021 – Energy performance for Audio/Video, Information and Communication Technology and Associated Equipment EL-041 – Lamps and Related Equipment. CHOICE operates as an independent assessor of goods and services and we're almost exclusively funded by our members. We provide them with clear, unbiased reports on the goods and services they're buying, and when we purchase goods for testing, we do it independently and anonymously and test them using objective criteria. As such, we're keenly aware that we must produce high quality, unbiased assessments on the things people want to buy. I'm passionate about individual rights and think individuals working together to advance their mutual interests is the cause of all the progress that has been made in raising living standards and alleviating the suffering of the underprivileged. Monopolies produce terrible outcomes for consumers. In my spare time I enjoy reading (mainly military history), watching rugby, and skiing when I can get overseas. I'm also partial to Asian food, wine and a strong cup of tea (Assam is the best).

I work in the digital home team at CHOICE testing things like TVs, speakers, fitness bands and other household digital gadgets. I also work with some outdoor products like pressure cleaners, line trimmers and pool cleaners (it's nice to have a bit of variety). I have a Bachelor of Science from the University of Sydney, where I majored in computer science. Prior to CHOICE, I worked for an insurance company for 20 years as a programmer and analyst. I was looking for work when I came across the role at CHOICE and the idea of testing products was very appealing to me. I currently represent consumers on two Australian Standards committees: TE-021 – Energy performance for Audio/Video, Information and Communication Technology and Associated Equipment EL-041 – Lamps and Related Equipment. CHOICE operates as an independent assessor of goods and services and we're almost exclusively funded by our members. We provide them with clear, unbiased reports on the goods and services they're buying, and when we purchase goods for testing, we do it independently and anonymously and test them using objective criteria. As such, we're keenly aware that we must produce high quality, unbiased assessments on the things people want to buy. I'm passionate about individual rights and think individuals working together to advance their mutual interests is the cause of all the progress that has been made in raising living standards and alleviating the suffering of the underprivileged. Monopolies produce terrible outcomes for consumers. In my spare time I enjoy reading (mainly military history), watching rugby, and skiing when I can get overseas. I'm also partial to Asian food, wine and a strong cup of tea (Assam is the best).

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