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If you’re thinking about getting a robot lawn mower like the Husqvarna Automower, the number one question is about the installation.
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In this hands-on how to video, I’ll look at what it’s like to install since I did it myself, what it’s like to set up and use. If you want to see how effective the overall mowing is, plus some of the special features that make it more than just a barber for your lawn-or how you keep it from getting stolen, make sure you watch the full review here on the channel.
While the installation may seem daunting, once I understood what to do, the task itself was relatively easy. You can also look up a Husqvarna dealer in your area and pay for professional installation. The quote for my yard which is about 7,000 square feet was about 2 hours of work and $500CAD. The pros would also have used a trencher to bury the wire a few inches down .
With the 415 X auto mower that I received, it came with a full installation kit. Husqvarna says this particular mower can be installed by consumers, so they include everything you need, including wire and pegs to hold it, as well as wire conenctors and all your power cables.
instead of using the pegs.
When it comes to the install, I first had to consider where to place the base and charging station and you do have several parameters here… it needs to be very close to an AC plug, since the cord it comes with is extremely short. The charging station must be in a very level area where the mower can easily come and go with no obstacles and it needs about 2 metres to back out of the base. It should also be out of direct sunlight if possible.
I decided to put it near an outlet by my garage on a flat, shady but open area of the yard.
Next you’ll need to consider where and how to run the boundary wire, and all boundary wire must start at and return to the base station, essentially forming a giant closed loop around your yard.
While it is possible in theory to cut and splice the wire, the ideal installation is to run it in one long loop. That takes some planning, since it needs to be 12-inches from any flower bed and about 6-inches from walls, fences and edges. To check the installation specifics for your property, contact Husqvarna.
I drew out my yard then made a simple map of where I wanted the wire to run, to make sure they’d be no surprises. My drafting skills are lacking, but the point is to think about it before you run it so you can anticipate any issues.
Then I went ahead and laid the wire and tacked it down using the included hooked pegs Husqvarna provides.
For the most part it went easily around the perimeter with few complications. I did need to run it under some of the stones of a walkway beside my house so we could also get it out to the front yard too. Husqvarna says runing it under brick or stone should not be a problem for getting a signal.
You’ll leave a bit of extra wire at the end then cut it from the spool.
The ends of the wires get clipped into special connectors then those are plugged into the back of the base station. A green light on the front means you’ve made a successful connection.
I will say I only used part of the first spool of wire so there’s lots here for larger properties.
While the wire is visible for now on my lawn, the grass will eventually grow up and over it and it will become invisible
If you have a particularly large space or you want to ensure your mower cuts both a front and back lawn, you need to install the Guidewire.
The guidewire essentially helps your Automower find its way to the farthest reaches of your property, and back to the base station again, and ideally runs through all sections of your yard.
You can see what it looks like on my Husqvarna map; the blue line in the middle of my space is the guide wire and everything in green is what’s enclosed by the boundary wire. The red line shows where the mower has been.
The Boundary Wire and the Guide wire are the same *type of wire (the spools you received are identical); what differentiates them is how and where they are connected into the back of the base station.
Once the Boundary Wire is installed, you run the Guidewire out the bottom of the base and through your yard, extending it all the way to the furthest corner; for me that means bringing it along a stone pathway, through a narrower walkway beside my house, and out through an opening in the fence to the very front of my yard. I placed the wire both under and between my patio stones.