Using a backpack blower to clear debris always is tough when you’re blowing in the rain. Leaves, twigs, cones – everything sticks to wet pavement; it’s even harder in the winter when you’ve got debris that gets blown into snow and ice and gets stuck. But this Echo PB-9010T backpack blower has the guts to really move heavy, wet debris – even if it’s layers deep.
The power of this machine is very impressive, but even with all that power, it is not a noticeably larger machine than other blowers we’ve used. It still fits easily in the truck.
In addition, this machine is easy to start. It has the primer bubble on the carburetor, which not all blowers do, so this one starts pretty nicely. It also has different throttle settings on the handle – low and full throttle as well as stop – which is a really handy feature and something not all blowers have.
We like the contoured shoulder straps, which make working large jobs much more comfortable. They are padded as well as contoured to fit your body. The back rest is also padded. These little details make a big difference when carrying a 26-pound machine around. We also were impressed with the cooling system that draws cool air across your back to keep you more comfortable in hot weather.
The fuel tank is generous. We can work four, five, six jobs without having to refuel. If you had to just go all out in one go, we figure you would have more than an hour of blowing before having to fill up again. A neat feature is that the tank itself is a translucent plastic, so you can see where the fuel level is at a glance and not have to stop and open the cap.
Our only minor disappointment was the nozzle-extension tubes. We would have liked a better sort of snap system to connect the sections together so you would know they were secure. It seems like blower tips and nozzle extensions can be difficult to fasten reliably without the end piece flying off during mid-sweep. Even though this blower has Echo’s Posi-
loc connector method, it still can be difficult to fasten the screw on with little tabs and grooves. This seems to be sort of a general thing with all blowers. We don’t know what the solution would be.
But one thing that turns that lemon into lemonade is the metal “scrape ring” around the nozzle tip to reduce wear on the plastic. That really is a great feature that keeps the nozzle looking good and not ratty.
We couldn’t think of any other improvements to recommend. We really like the design. Overall, the blower works well and does a good job.
Seacoast Tree Care, LLC, is an accredited, 14-year TCIA member company based in Stratham, New Hampshire. Its ground crews field tested the blower and provided the content for this review.
TCI Magazine product reviews reflect the opinions of the reviewer and not the position of the magazine or the staff of TCIA.
