An Easy to Use Hedge Trimmer

by Doris Donnerman
(last updated September 15, 2017)

Since I had a few hedges and shrubs around the home that needed a little trimming, I was extremely excited to receive the WeedEater HT2400 for review. This doesn't even begin to touch on the excitement that my children (aged 9 and 12) felt when they saw the "cool looking tool" that I got to try out. Needless to say, they were just a tad disappointed to find out that they would have to wait a few years before using it themselves.

(To see the specifications of the HT2400, you can go to: http://www.poulanpro.com/node4029.aspx?nid=166649.)

Since I have used WeedEater products before, I had a pretty good idea of how the unit would work and handle. The HT2400 hedge trimmer didn't let me down in any of my expectations. After getting my work clothes on and leather gloves, I proceeded to get the extension cord, and hooked it up to the trimmer. The trimmer has something called a cord retainer that is located at the bottom of the handle. This works great because in other electric outdoor appliances I have had to "tie" the cord around the connection so it would not come loose during operation. Here are a few of my other experiences with the WeedEater HT2400.

  • Ease of Use. I took the hedge trimmer out of the box and immediately had a pretty good idea on how to use it according to its design. Even if I had never used one before, I believe that it would have been very easy to figure out the proper way to use this hedge trimmer. In addition, the built-in cord retainer helps keep the cord in place and the cords connected without having to tie the cords together.
  • Maintenance. Though I have used many electric tools, I usually take the time to look at the instruction manual before using the device to look for manufacturer suggestions of use, care, and safety. After each use it is recommended to place oil on the blades to protect and lubricate the blades for the next use. This is a great way to keep the unit ready to go for the next use and the oil keeps the blades from rusting.
  • Pros. The WeedEater HT2400 is ready to go right out of the box. No messy fuel and mix to deal with, just plug into your outdoor extension cord and it is ready to go. Also, this hedge trimmer is lightweight, which means no straining of muscles because of excess weight from the engine that is found on gas-powered models.
  • Cons. Being an electric power tool, the HT2400 probably is not as powerful as a gas-powered trimmer, and the largest trimming width is 3/8 inch. Some shrubs may have a larger diameter of branches to cut, so either you would need to have loppers or other manual trimming shears to do additional trimming as needed. Also, there were a few places on the shrub that I was trimming that I had to go over a few times to get the right cut or shape I wanted.
  • Overall experience. Because of the ease of use, light weight, and intuitive design of the HT2400, I would recommend it to just about any homeowner. The HT2400 hedge trimmer did a good job for the size of shrubs I had, which were about 6 feet long by 3 feet wide by 3 feet high. After use, it didn't take much time to wrap up the outdoor electric cord, oil the blades (I used WD40, but household oil would work great, too) and then put the tool in its place in the shed. Remember to keep other people about six feet away from you while using this product, for safety reasons . Clean up with rake, broom, and dustpan (depending upon your shrubs being around grass or cement) is also needed, though not that big of a deal with the amount of work that this garden hedge trimmer saves you in manual clipping.

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Author Bio

Doris Donnerman

Doris is a jack of all trades, writing on a variety of topics. Her articles have helped enlighten and entertain thousands over the years. ...

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