The purchase of a robotic mower is in most cases a sensible but also expensive investment. It is therefore very understandable that the robotic mower should perform its service as long as possible. Regular care and maintenance should help to minimise the wear and tear of the robot. But what about external influences such as storms or hail? In the following article we will address many questions that you may have already asked yourself.
Contents
How Can I Protect the Robotic Mower from Thunderstorms?
Of all environmental influences, a thunderstorm is probably the most dangerous weather for the robotic mower. Because even if the lightning does not strike your own house but one of the buildings in the neighbourhood, the surge voltage reaches electronic devices such as the robotic mower through the power supply system and can then destroy it. Most manufacturers therefore recommend disconnecting all connections to the charging station (power supply, boundary wire and guide wire) if there is a risk of thunderstorms. To be absolutely certain that both the charging unit and the robotic mower are protected against thunderstorms, you can also bring both to dry ground during a thunderstorm.
What if You’re Not Home?
Unfortunately, it happens more often that you are not at home during storms and therefore cannot disconnect the connections to the charging station. In this case we recommend buying a socket with integrated surge protection. Although this does not provide 100% protection, it drastically increases the survival chances of the robotic mower in the event of a surge. To be on the safe side, you should ask your insurance company whether the robotic mower is also insured under such conditions.
Should I Let the Robotic Mower Mow in the Midday Heat in the Middle of Summer?
Robotic mowers are designed to mow the lawn in almost any weather condition. However, to protect your lawn and your robot, we advise you not to let it mow for hours every day in the blazing sun. Change the mowing times to late afternoon / early evening when temperatures are more moderate. This not only protects the lawn, but also prevents the lithium-ion battery, which is used in most models, from aging and breaking down more quickly due to the high temperatures.
Can the Robotic Mower Do Its Work Even in Rain and Hail?
Light to heavy rain is no problem for robotic mowers and therefore they can do their work without any issues. Nevertheless, you should regularly check the underside of the robotic mower for grass clippings. Regular use in the rain can cause grass to settle on the underside and dry out. In this case, however, it is perfectly sufficient to spray the underside briefly with a hose.
However, the situation is different with hail. If the robotic mower drives over the hailstones and then tries to cut them with the blades, this can damage both the blades and the engine. Depending on how large the hailstones are, they can also damage the cover of the robotic mower. As soon as small cracks form on the top, moisture can get into the robotic mower and destroy the electronics there.
Therefore, we do not only recommend that you do not let the robotic mower mow in hail, but also that you take it to a safe place in case of hail. Alternatively, we recommend as a permanent solution the construction or purchase of a robotic mower garage. This not only protects the robotic mower from rain and hail, but also prevents the robotic mower from overheating and being damaged in the midday sun. The robotic mower garage also ensures that the charging station is protected from wind and weather.
For this purpose many of the well-known manufacturers already offer their own robotic mower garages. Above that, there are also many other manufacturers and brands of robotic lawn mower garages, that are often times cheaper and have more advantages over the “official” garages by the established robotic lawn mower manufacturers. If you want to have an overview over different models for different budgets and purposes, check out this article.
What is a Weather Timer and Does It Protect the Robotic Mower from Rain and Hail?
Unfortunately, the term “weather timer” was chosen rather inaccurately. A much better description for this feature would be the term “growth timer.” This is because the robotic mower uses the programming of the weather timer to decide for itself whether to mow the grass at the selected mowing times or to skip the current mowing time.
This is an advantage in Summer / Autumn when it rains little and therefore the lawn hardly grows. For this purpose, the robotic mower uses measured values from the blade motor and recognizes how high the resistance is during mowing. If the resistance is not sufficient, the robot recognizes that no trimming is necessary and then automatically returns to the charging station until the next mowing time. This feature is particularly beneficial for small areas, as continuous mowing can otherwise lead to the formation of tracks and yellowing, among other things.
Therefore the weather timer is unsuitable for protecting the robotic mower from rain and hail.
Can a Rain Sensor Help in Bad Weather?
Some robotic mower models have a built-in rain sensor that sends a signal to the robotic mower when it rains. The robot then stops mowing and drives back to the charging station. If the robotic mower is already in the charging station when it starts to rain, it stays there until the rain sensor gives the all-clear signal. This serves the purpose of protecting both the blades of the robotic mower from wear and tear and the lawn from ruts. The latter occurs more often when the robotic mower has to cope with inclines in the yard during longer periods of rain.
The rain sensor is a useful function to protect the robot from moisture damage. However, this feature is only of limited use in the event of hail or thunderstorms, as the rain sensor does not detect them.
What Are the Advantages of Using a Rain Sensor?
- The robotic mower is exposed to less moisture and therefore there is less risk of damage to the electronics.
- Prevents robotic mowers from slipping off slopes when wet and damaging the lawn.
- Prevents robotic mowers from getting stuck in soft, wet ground.
What’s the Downside to Using a Rain Sensor?
- For a clean cut, the robotic mower should mow 2-3 times per week, which is not possible in case of prolonged rain.
- During longer breaks, the length of the lawn can cause matting.
- Most manufacturers advertise their robotic mowers as rain resistant, meaning they can perform their work in moderate rain.
Is My Robotic Mower Insured Against External Influences?
Whether the robotic mower is protected against external influences depends on your household insurance. Especially with such an expensive purchase like a robotic mower, you should pay attention to whether the insurance also includes protection against damage caused by overvoltage. If this is not included, you should get it urgently.
Older contracts in particular do not cover “simple theft”, i.e. objects that are easy to steal because they are not in the house under lock and key. In more recent contracts, lawn furniture and the like are often also insured, but robotic mowers are usually not explicitly mentioned in the contract. Here you should specifically get it in writing that your robotic mower is also insured. If this is not the case, this can be included in the contract, sometimes even without having to increase the insurance sum.
You should take out a household insurance policy that covers damages up to at least $10,000. To be on the safe side, you should contact your insurance company to check whether the robotic mower is actually included in the insurance plan.
Conclusion
As you can see, there is no universal solution to counter all weather influences. For most problems such as Summer heat, rain, or hail, it is quite sufficient to either install the charging station of the robotic mower under a shelter or, if this is not possible, to buy or build a robotic mower garage.
However, this solution does not prevent the problem of overvoltage caused by a lightning strike. For this reason, it is best to disconnect all cables from the charging station during storms and, if possible, move the robotic mower to a safe place. As a further precaution, you should also check whether your robotic mower is covered by your household insurance. This includes protection against damage caused by overvoltage as well as theft.
Related Questions
Does a robotic mower need a rain sensor? A robotic mower does not necessarily need a rain sensor. At this time, all robotic mowers are now weatherproof. However, particularly heavy robotic mowers can dig up the ground more when it rains. Even if the yard has large inclines, it makes sense to have a robotic mower with a rain sensor, because when the grass is wet the robotic mower can slip off of inclines or damage the turf with its spinning wheels.
Also interesting: Does a robotic mower need a rain sensor?
08/20/2020
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