A new category for us are yard tools. We’ve lived in a city for so long that we never thought about reviewing them but the truth is that our readers are pretty diverse and many of you have second homes and not just in the United States. It’s useful to know about great products that will save you time on and off the road. (think summer homes or even those you rent for a season). The prices for the Worx tools are reasonable enough to consider regardless of whether you can use them all year around or only parts of the year.
Worx 3-in-1 Trivac Blower Mulcher VAC
The WORX 3-in-1 TRIVAC Blower/Mulcher/Vac has been redesigned with a patented articulating motor that allows one-touch, tool-free conversion from blower to vacuum. What we loved about it and why we wanted to review this useful combo is that it combines leaf blowing capabilities with mulcher and vac.
The yard vac generates a higher-capacity air volume than standard products in its category due to its motor and air siphon design. With TRIVAC, all blowing, mulching, and vacuuming applications are completed using a single tube. How cool is that? It saves both time and money. It converts from blower to mulcher/vac quickly — you simply turn a switch and connect the 1.2 bushel collection bag. We love the design.
The wide-mouth, unobstructed circular tube design makes it ideal for vacuuming leaves and other yard debris throughout the property, even in hard-to-reach areas, such as under decks, between shrubs and fence lines. We tested it out on our deck and it worked flawlessly. There are essentially two speeds: at low speed, the blower’s sweeping action is ideal for sidewalks, driveways, patios and decks, while high speed drives movement of large volumes of leaves.
The 12-amp blower/mulcher/vac has a single-stage metal impeller to shred leaves and twigs to a 16:1 ratio. Simply stated, if you are filling recyclable bags by hand with leaves and twigs, you would easily fill nearly 16 bags versus a single bag with the WORX TRIVAC. This is a huge feature that we feel would be a godsend for anyone doing yard work.
The other thing we love about it is that it weighs only 8.8 pounds in blower mode and only 9.5 pounds in vac mode due to weight of collection bag. You can also add an optional accessory for the TRIVAC: a WORX LeafPro Universal Collection System with Turbine Adapter. This enables you to extend the 8 foot hose to around 16 feet. With this optional accessory, yard debris is contained and simply put, you can handle larger volumes of leaves.
The WORX TRIVAC 3-in-1 Blower/Mulcher/Vac is priced at around $99.99) is available at worx.com and Amazon.
Worx Axis
WORX Axis is two saws in one (jig saw and recipricating saw) and at four pounds, it’s compact, lightweight and highly maneuverable. We love its size, its lightweight feature so I can use it easily as well and its design. This fabulous combo saw uses standard reciprocating saw blades and T-shank jig saw blades, which are widely available from hardware stores and home centers. Not only does it cut wood, but choose from a variety of blade types to cut PVC pipe, plastic, fiberglass, ceramic tile, aluminum, copper, and thin steel not to mention tree limbs and roots. Super handy and useful for a variety of projects right?
What sets this 20V combination saw apart is its motor, which is located on the side and not the rear of the tool’s body, like most other power tools. The advantage of this design is that the motor and gearing rotate simultaneously, which reduces the likelihood of slippage or misalignment in the tool’s drive train.
Axis is great for making quick cuts both indoors and out, including rough-in work; molding and drywall cutouts, craft projects and stereo installation, as well as other automotive, marine, electrical, plumbing and HVAC applications. It also is an ideal pruning and root cutting tool for gardeners, which we will definitely use it for when spring starts.
In addition to its jig saw mode and reciprocating saw (you can change between the two by pushing a red release button), it also features an integrated dust blower to keep sight lines clear while cutting. Bottom line, it needs to be easy to use and safe.
Changing blades is quite easy with something they refer to as a tool-less blade changing system. At the top of the saw, there’s an orange-colored switch, which allows you to choose reciprocating or orbital action. Orbital is for more aggressive cutting, while reciprocating is for more controlled cutting.
You get quite a bit in the box as well. They include a 1.5 Ah MAX battery, a 5 hour charger, one reciprocating saw blade (wood) and three jig saw blades (wood, metal and sheet metal blades). Axis is compatible with all WORX 20V MaxLithium batteries from the company’s 20V PowerShare program, which includes lawn and garden and DIY tools.
The WORX Axis is around $99 and you can find it at worx.com, and online retailers including Home Depot, Walmart and Amazon.
WORX 20 Volt GT Revolution Trimmer/Edger/Mini-Mower & Turbine Blower Combo
The WORX 20V Power Share GT Revolution Trimmer/Edger/Mini-Mower and TURBINE Blower Combo makes a great gift for landscape maintenance. The WORX trimmer has a longer shaft to accommodate taller folks — the adjustable telescoping shaft extends an extra four inches.
The GT Revolution also features Command Feed that advances trimmer line instantly. When it’s time to change spools, there’s a pre-wound replacement cartridge spool which you can easily access. The GT trimmer’s shaft ratchets from 0 to 90° which allows you to trim in hard-to-reach areas, such as beneath decks, picnic tables, shrubs and other obstructed areas.
The 3-in-1 trimmer/edger/mini-mower combines grass trimming, a precision edger, and a mini-mower – all in one. Switching to the mini-mower is quick and easy and it’s a “nice-to-have” when trimming between bushes, narrow strips of grass between houses, berms, ditches and other hard-to-reach areas. When the wheels are not in use, they are removable as well. There’s also an adjustable metal spacer guard to help keep the trimmer’s line from cutting into flower beds, tree trunks, lawn ornaments and other sensitive areas.
To get rid of the grass and leaves, you switch over to the WORX 20V Power Share TURBINE Blower. There are two speeds and the maximum air volume ranges from 270 to 360 cubic feet per minute with air speeds from 55 to 75 mph. It’s the combination of air volume and air speed that gives the blower the ability to drive leaves, grass clippings and other yard debris on their way. They recommend that you select low speed when blowing in sensitive areas such as flower beds and vegetable gardens. And, they recommend high speed for clearing or herding yard debris.
The WORX 20V Power Share GT Revolution Trimmer/Edger/Mini-Mower TURBINE Blower Combo is priced around $149.99 and comes with two, 20V MAX Lithium 2.0 Ah batteries, a dual charger and 3 total spools of line. It’s available at worx.com and on Amazon.
About WORX
WORX is based in Charlotte NC and focuses on outdoor power equipment, offering a complete range of electric powered lawn and garden equipment, DIY tools, accessories and work support products. More information is available on their website including how to order.
Renee Blodgett is the founder of We Blog the World. The site combines the magic of an online culture and travel magazine with a global blog network and has contributors from every continent in the world. Having lived in 10 countries and explored nearly 80, she is an avid traveler, and a lover, observer and participant in cultural diversity.
She is also the CEO and founder of Magic Sauce Media, a new media services consultancy focused on viral marketing, social media, branding, events and PR. For over 20 years, she has helped companies from 12 countries get traction in the market. Known for her global and organic approach to product and corporate launches, Renee practices what she pitches and as an active user of social media, she helps clients navigate digital waters from around the world. Renee has been blogging for over 16 years and regularly writes on her personal blog Down the Avenue, Huffington Post, BlogHer, We Blog the World and other sites. She was ranked #12 Social Media Influencer by Forbes Magazine and is listed as a new media influencer and game changer on various sites and books on the new media revolution. In 2013, she was listed as the 6th most influential woman in social media by Forbes Magazine on a Top 20 List.
Her passion for art, storytelling and photography led to the launch of Magic Sauce Photography, which is a visual extension of her writing, the result of which has led to producing six photo books: Galapagos Islands, London, South Africa, Rome, Urbanization and Ecuador.
Renee is also the co-founder of Traveling Geeks, an initiative that brings entrepreneurs, thought leaders, bloggers, creators, curators and influencers to other countries to share and learn from peers, governments, corporations, and the general public in order to educate, share, evaluate, and promote innovative technologies.
