Leaf Blower. Toro Ultra 51599 Leaf Blowers in Review
Toro-Leaf-Blower
Don't Blow it with the Wrong Leaf Blower
If ever there was a ratings contest for the greatest lazy-man's inventions, the Leaf Blower has gotta rank right up there with the best. The leaf blower was obviously invented when some lazy guy with a sore back was raking and picking up leaves, and a major gust of wind came along and conveniently blew all of his debris into his neighbor's yard. Thinking that was a heckuva lot easier (and faster), then doing it the old fashioned way with a rake and a broom, he decided he'd like that gust of wind to be always available where and when he wanted it. It's this kind of laziness that made America the great, inventive and industrialist nation that it is.
Not only would a portable wind storm make it easier to pick up leaves, but it would also solve the problem of having to bag them. Let the neighbor with his own sore back and rake, learn like you did to appreciate a good gust of wind. Before he knew it, every neighbor on the block of every neighborhood was taking turns blowing leaves into each other's yard until finally, somebody decided we needed a way to suck them up, mulch them and put them in our compost bins. Thus we have the invention of the leaf blower, leaf vacuum, leaf mulchers which are sold at your local hardware store, today. At any rate, this is not meant to be a historical account of leaf blowing inventions, so lets get on with the review. From the consumer opinions I looked at, Toro Leaf Vacuums equipped with an electrical extension cord seem to be preferred over gas-powered or rechargable ones. I did not see a great deal of leaf blower reviews, but, overall, the Toro leaf vacuums seemed to have some very positive consumer reports. I took my chance on the Toro Leaf Blower Model 51599 for $70 at Home Depot because it had what I wanted: Leaf Blower, Leaf Vacuum, mulcher, Variable speed and good electric horsepower at a budget price. My decision to use electrical power instead of gas or rechargable was assited by my previous experience with weed-eaters. My gas weed eater was too heavy and difficult to start. My current, 18-volt rechargable weed-eater just doesn't have enough lasting power to finish a job. I was willing to go back to the inconvenience of extension cords in exchange for the reliability and light-weight power of an electrical leaf blower.
Judging the Toro Ultra 51599 Leaf Blower
Pros
- Powerful, variable speed motor
- Reasonable Price
- Great Leaf Mulching
Cons
Features of the Toro 51599 Leaf Blower
The Toro Model # 51599 is an electric leaf blower and vacuum with 16-to-1 mulching impeller and leaf bag. The Toro 51599 has a powerful, 12-Amp motor with variable speed adjustment which provides a 235MPH continuous gust of user-directed wind at full speed. The Toro 51599 weighs 7.5 pounds. The toro leaf blower and vacuum includes 5 removable parts:
- Motor with 4-inch power cord
- 3.5-ft plastic vacuum attachment
- 2.5-ft plastic blower attachment
- Leaf Bag
- Impeller Blade Guard
Toro 51599 Leaf Blower Operation and performance
If I have any complaints at all with this product, it's that setting it up is a bit clunky and cumbersome and the plastic snap connections make me a bit nervous. You will need to switch between the vacuum or blower attachment depending on whether you want to blow or vacuum the leaves. When using the vacuum, you will also want to snap on the bag. When using the blower, you must attach the impeller blade guard over the blade where the vacuum attachment is otherwise used. It is a bit difficult holding onto the different components while making connections and disconnections with the plastic. It makes me wonder how easy they might break off over time, and render them useless. Fortunately, the Toro 51599 does have a 2 year warranty, so the manufacturer must feel feel it will hold up for at least two years. The other thing to realize is that you will need a standard extension cord with a standard 3-prong plug. The included 4-inch power plug has a guarded cylinder surrounding it, so only a standard extension cord female end will fit inside. My first job came on the heels of a major hail and windstorm that left debris and leaves scattered all over my yard. The impeller shredder, so warn the instructions, is not made for shredding sticks, so be careful what you vacuum up. I took a good look at the impeller and it certainly seemed solid enough for little twigs, so I was not overly concerned. Here's the cool part. After Vacuuming up a pretty large portion of my yard, I decided to check the bag. I had a total of 2 cups of ground leaves. This would have certainly amounted to at least a half a bag without the handy shredder. Anyway, with no trouble, I removed the bag, unzipped it and emptied the 2 cups of leaves into my wife's compost bin. Very nice!. The variable speed power, by the way, worked great and will really come in handy for vacuuming up leaves around small rocks and other objects you don't want to suck up. For my next test, I dissassembled the leave vacuum attachment and bag, and installed the blower and impeller guard. The cement deck around my pool was smothered with leaves. Fortunately, there is a drop off around the pool where the leaves can be conveniently discarded into the soil and mulch, making it a perfect candidate for blowing instead of vacuuming. Boy was I surprised. Blowing the leaves off the pool deck was a breeze, both literally and figuratively. In a matter of about 7 minutes, I had completed a job that used to take me an hour.
Conlusions on the Toro 51599 Leaf Blower
I would not hesitate to recommend this Leaf Blower-Vacuum-Mulcher for any home owner with either a small or large yard. It works as advertised and the leaf-shredder even exceeded my expectations for a leaf vacuum in the $70 price range. My only concern is with the plastic connection fittings which make me wonder about its long-term durability. The 2-year warranty does offer some reassurance. I would also describe the vacuuming ergonomics as being a bit unfriendly. The placement of the bag over the shoulder and the grip while using the unit did put a bit of a strain on my back. Otherwise, the unit performs quite well.
Toro 51599 Final Ratings
Give us your Own Rating on the Toro Ultra 51599 Leaf Blower
You may leave comments or your own review at bottom of the page.
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Toro Leaf Blowers on Sale
Spend more time blowing leaves and less time shopping for the Best Leaf Blower. Product Review Ratings (PRR) has located the best deals for you on Toro Leaf Blowers.
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 NEW Toro 12 Amp 2-Speed Electric Leaf Blower/Vacuum  US $55.99
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 TORO SUPER BLOWER / VAC LEAF ELECTRIC 12A 76924 NIB US $75.04
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 L@@K TORO 322-D WITH OLATHE 67 LEAF BLOWER DIESEL IN NJ US $2,700.00
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 NEW Toro 12 Amp 2-Speed Electric Leaf Blower/Vacuum US $77.79
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 Toro Leaf Blower! US $75.00
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 Toro Leaf Blower/Vac Replacement Canvas Bag US $14.99
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 Toro Electric Power Sweep Leaf Blower + Box model 51586 US $9.99
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 Toro 7 amp 2-Speed Electric Blower Lawn Leaf Grass Yard US $48.99
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 NEW Toro 12 Amp 2-Speed Electric Leaf Blower/Vacuum US $55.99
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Looking Specifically for Toro 51599 in this Review?
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 Toro Electric Ultra Blower/Vac - 12 Amp, Model# 51599 US $79.99
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 Toro 51599 Ultra Electric Blower/Vac Leaf Yard Tool US $35.99
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 Toro 51599 Ultra 12 amp Variable-Speed Electric Blower/ US $69.99
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 Toro 51599 Ultra 12 Amp Electric Blower/VACUUM IMPELLER US $69.99
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 NEW Toro 51599 Ultra Electric Blower/Vacuum + Impeller US $77.99
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 NEW Toro 51599 Ultra Electric Blower/Vacuum + Impeller US $77.99
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 TORO ELECTRIC ULTRA BLOWER VAC MODEL# 51599 NEW US $84.95
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 Toro 51599 Ultra Electric Blower/Vacuum + Impeller US $81.99
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 Toro 51599 12A Electric 235MPH Ultra Leaf Blower Vac US $84.99
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Tagged with: Toro Leaf Blower • Toro Leaf Shredder • Toro Leaf Vacuum
Filed under: Home Improvement
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I am on my second TORO 51599 leaf blower. The first only lasted two months before the motor burned out. The second lasted for five months before the same thing hapened to it. We only used them around the house when needed. Itlooks like a home owner will need two of these blowers each season.
These leaf blowers from TORO are a bad investment for the average home owner.
(4-17-2010) We’ve owned two Toro model 51599 leaf blowers. The first caught fire in the 2nd year of use. We assumed we had been using the wrong electrical cord. We purchased a new Toro model 51599 leaf blower. We also purchased a recommened 14 amp 50 foot heavy duty power cord. The 2nd Toro model 51599 leaf blower caught fire within the first two months of use. When I say it caught fire I mean that the electrical connection between the blower & the cord literally caught fire. In my opinion this blower pulls too many amps for residential use. I wonder how long it will be before someone gets hurt. I live in Kansas City if anyone wants to contact me.
That’s the last thing you want to hear is that your in danger of starting a fire everytime you use a product. Strange. strange..I’ve used ours quite a bit now and have not had a problem, yet. Could it be your altitude, humidity, temperature or something to do with that? I’ll keep you posted about any fires that might flare up.