Photo courtesy of teksomolika/AdobeStock.

Two tree care companies offer very different perspectives on the shift toward quieter, lower-emission equipment.

Tree care companies increasingly are navigating a patchwork of local ordinances and equipment rules. One municipality may prohibit a gas-powered blower, while it’s allowed in the next. Another may limit when certain equipment can be used, changing how a crew is scheduled or a job is priced.

Jack Harder, CTSP, vice president of sales and operations for Harder Tree and Landscape Service in Hempstead, New York, says that’s already part of how they’re doing business. Seasonal restrictions on gas-powered leaf blowers in two municipalities affect a significant share of the company’s maintenance work, requiring crews to arrive with different equipment, depending on where they’re working.

Across the country in Niwot, Colorado, We Love Trees faces no comparable ordinance. Yet, after more than a decade of using battery-powered tools, founder and CEO Josh Morin says the company now is almost entirely battery powered when it comes to handheld equipment.

TCI Magazine’s August 2025 article, “How Legislation and Incentives Are Driving Battery-Equipment Adoption,” examined the forces accelerating the shift. A year later, two member companies discuss what these pressures mean for equipment purchases, production and pricing.

When the rule decides

Harder says seasonal blower restrictions have added another layer to planning work. “So far, only two municipalities where we work have these seasonal restrictions, but a majority of our maintenance customers are in those communities.”

The company has internal measures to identify jobs in those municipalities so crews know which equipment to bring. On days when a maintenance crew will work entirely within one of the affected areas, gas-powered blowers stay behind.

The company also carries battery-powered blowers, string trimmers and lawn mowers for certain New York City properties where residents or tenants do not want gasoline-powered equipment transported through buildings or elevators. In other words, the issue is addressed before a crew ever arrives. “When we discuss the requested work and prepare the contract,” he says, “we ask about those restrictions and price and plan the work accordingly.”

Photo courtesy of Calliehazelphotography/iStock.

“As soon as the seasonal restriction period ends, we return to our gas-powered equipment.”
–Jack Harder

For Harder, compliance is not simply a matter of swapping one tool for another – they are not interchangeable. “The battery-powered tools work adequately for the maintenance accounts in New York City, but their performance does not come close to that of the gas-powered versions. It takes longer to complete the work with battery-powered lawn mowers and string trimmers, and longer to clean up with battery-powered blowers.”

Through several years of trial and error, the company has found that handheld battery-powered blowers do not provide the power needed for its heavy commercial landscape-maintenance work. Battery-powered backpack blowers perform better, Harder says, but still do not match their gas-powered counterparts.

That difference can affect productivity and cleanup. Harder says the company occasionally receives complaints about small wood chips, leaves or debris left after crews finish their work – and has to send employees back to improve the cleanup.

“We explain to the homeowner that we do the best we can with the equipment the municipality requires us to use.”

Unless the company is explicitly restricted from using gas-powered equipment, Harder says gas remains the default because of performance and runtime. “As soon as the seasonal restriction period ends, we return to our gas-powered equipment.”

What’s in a Rule

Equipment policies can take several forms:

Emissions standards regulate new engines or equipment entering the market. California’s Small Off-Road Engine regulations, for example, establish emissions requirements for new engines but do not prohibit the possession, use or repair of existing CARB-compliant equipment.

Equipment-use restrictions determine where or when particular equipment can be operated. In Portland, Oregon, for example, gas-powered leaf blowers may be used only from October through December in 2026 and 2027; beginning in 2028, they will be prohibited year-round.

Noise ordinances can apply regardless of power source. New York City, for example, limits the hours when lawn-care equipment, including wood chippers, may be operated. Battery-powered equipment generally is quieter than comparable gas-powered equipment, but it is not automatically exempt from local noise rules.

Government or contract requirements can add another layer. Colorado restricts state agencies from using certain gasoline-powered lawn and garden equipment from June through August, and applies the same restrictions to contractors providing those services for the state.

Before purchasing equipment or bidding on work, determine what equipment is covered, where and when the rule applies and whether the work qualifies for an exemption.

When the company decides

Morin’s experience is different. “We have had zero ordinance issues. We work in Boulder County, and we do not really have any noise restrictions affecting us.”

Customer expectations still enter the equation. Citing one example from about 13 years ago, Morin says he was sitting in an idling diesel truck in a neighborhood on a hot day when a homeowner came outside and asked him to shut it off because it was loud and smelled bad. “I said, ‘Sure.’ There was no ordinance involved; the homeowner simply did not want to hear or smell it.”

Morin says clients now leave Google reviews noting that they appreciate how quiet the company’s crews are because of their use of battery-powered equipment. “That can be especially important now that so many people work from home.”

Morin began using battery-powered chain saws more than a decade ago. After an equipment representative sent him a new battery-powered model in 2015, he gave it a try. “I sent it out with my crew, and they loved it, so we bought one for everyone.”

Today, Morin says the company is almost entirely battery powered for handheld equipment. Employees like the tools because they start with the push of a button, are quieter and reduce exposure to two-stroke exhaust.

But there are limits. “Having enough power and runtime to complete a large removal with a battery-powered saw can be difficult.”

Morin also believes companies should look beyond individual pieces of equipment and consider whether the work itself can be done differently. Instead of operating a chipper on-site, for example, a company could use a grapple truck to collect brush and process it elsewhere.

“People become accustomed to the cacophony of noise our industry creates – when a crew operates a chipper in front of someone’s house, it is almost like setting up a factory in a residential neighborhood,” he says. “We still use hand rakes and push brooms. They’re quiet, and they work fine.”

The cost of compliance

For Harder Tree and Landscape Service, local restrictions have required additional equipment investment.

When the restrictions were enacted, the company purchased several battery-powered backpack blowers for maintenance crews and handheld models for tree crews. The batteries did not last through a full day’s work, Harder says, so the company also had to purchase additional batteries and chargers. “Compliance has cost us a lot and continues to do so.”

Photo courtesy of Sally Wallis/AdobeStock.

“The interesting question is how you get change to happen. You can legislate it through an ordinance, or you can encourage it through an incentive program. I think there is an important difference between the two.”
–Josh Morin

The company developed a routine in which crews plug chargers into exterior outlets at customers’ properties while they work.

Harder also says the company has had to replace parts or entire pieces of battery-powered equipment more frequently, and has found some electronic problems difficult to diagnose or repair in-house.

Those costs extend beyond equipment. “We knew the first ban was coming, so we were able to increase our prices for affected seasonal customers,” says Harder. “We contacted each customer and explained the reason for the increase. Many understood and stayed with us, but we lost some customers who did not want to pay more.”

There is another business concern: competitors who do not appear to be following the same rules.

“We also continue to observe competitors using gas-powered equipment during the restricted periods,” adds Harder. “We have contacted municipal offices and local police to report violations and have been told that enforcement was not a priority. Enforcement appears to depend largely on residents filing complaints.”

Still, for Harder, the risk of ignoring an ordinance outweighs the advantage of continuing to use gas equipment.

“For us, it is not worth risking a fine or losing the ability to work in a municipality where a substantial number of our customers live. We continue to follow the rules, even when we see competitors who do not appear to be making the same investments.”

Field Test the Cost, Not Just the Tool

A purchase price and an advertised runtime will not tell you what battery-powered equipment does to a job. Test it on work your crews regularly perform and compare the result with your current equipment. Record:

• Job type, crew size and working conditions.
• Task time and total paid crew hours.
• Batteries used, charging time and any production delay.
• Clean-up passes, customer callbacks and other rework.
• Fuel and two-stroke oil avoided.
• Repair downtime and expected equipment and battery life.
• Added transport, storage and charging requirements.

Estimate the added cost per job: Added labor + allocated equipment and battery cost + charging and logistics + rework – fuel and maintenance savings.

Use the result to adjust production assumptions and pricing for affected work. If quieter operation helps win an account or retain a customer, track that value as well!

Incentive instead of mandate

Morin’s equipment transition has been supported by a very different approach: financial incentive rather than regulation.

We Love Trees participated in a grant offered through Boulder County’s Partners for a Clean Environment (PACE) program, in partnership with the American Green Zone Alliance (AGZA). Morin says the grant covered up to 80% of the cost of approved battery-electric equipment at the time the company participated.

That kind of support can significantly change the calculation for a small business. Morin sees a clear difference between requiring companies to make a transition and helping make that transition financially feasible.

“The interesting question is how you get change to happen,” he says. “You can legislate it through an ordinance, or you can encourage it through an incentive program. I think there is an important difference between the two. Whenever you legislate something and tell people they have to do it, you create resistance. If you say, ‘Here is an incentive to use quieter equipment,’ it creates a completely different dynamic.”

For municipalities considering how to encourage quieter or lower-emission equipment, an incentive can reduce the upfront cost of trying new equipment and give businesses room to determine where it works in real production conditions before a mandate takes effect.

Conclusion

The experiences of Harder and Morin show that the transition to quieter, lower-emission equipment is not simply an equipment question. It can affect pricing, productivity and customer expectations, while the way change is introduced can shape how readily businesses are able to respond.

For municipalities, incentive programs may offer companies room to test new equipment and adapt before restrictions take effect. For tree care businesses, the lesson is equally practical; understand the rules where you work, test equipment under real production conditions and know what the change will cost before it reaches the crew.

Power-equipment technology will continue to evolve, and so will the regulations around it. Companies that understand both gas and battery power will be in a better position to decide what works for their crews and their business. “This is business,” says Morin. “Business is about creative problem solving and being profitable. If I have to spend money on new equipment, I need to ask how I can promote that investment and make money from it.”

Stay up to date: Regulations affecting tree care businesses continue to change. Visit advocacy.tcia.org for TCIA advocacy updates and information on regulatory issues affecting the industry.

Esther de Hollander is a freelance writer and editor with more than 20 years of experience in publishing and communications. She formerly served as editorial director of TCI Magazine. Harder Tree and Landscape Service is a 62-year TCIA member company. We Love Trees is a six-year TCIA member company.