FCPS Pilot Program on Electric Landscape Equipment
Feb 2025 update from Facilities Services and Capital Programs of Fairfax County Public Schools: Since the pilot program began, FCPS has successfully replaced 301 gas-powered units with electric alternatives, leaving 1,116 gas-powered pieces in use. However, due to funding constraints, FCPS could not secure dedicated resources for a full-scale, immediate conversion.
As a result, we are taking a phased approach, replacing gas-powered equipment through attrition—meaning each unit is replaced with a battery-powered alternative as it reaches the end of its useful life. This approach allows us to make steady progress while working within budget limitations.
FCPS Grounds Maintenance staff operate a mix of gas and battery-powered equipment. While we cannot provide an exact timeline for complete conversion, we remain committed to transitioning as efficiently as possible within available resources.
Background: Karl Frisch (Fairfax County School Board) shared this news on May 31st, 2023 on the Non-Gas-Powered Lawn Equipment pilot program at Fairfax County Public Schools:
Facilities and Transportation Services is moving forward with a full conversion, which should take about 2 years.
Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) is actively working to reduce our carbon footprint, decrease fossil fuel usage, and create better learning environments. Many local governments in the US are phasing out gasoline-powered blowers to mitigate air and noise pollution. The Office of Facilities Management’s Grounds Maintenance section has conducted a pilot of battery-based technologies in alignment with Fairfax County Government’s Energy and Climate Action Plan and the Joint Environmental Task Force (JET) goals.
CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT: In August 2021, Facilities staff met with Quiet Clean NOVA, a non-profit foundation focusing on the dangers of gas-powered leaf blowers, to discuss the transition from gas-powered to battery-powered grounds equipment. The pilot was designed to cover the three primary mowing seasons (spring, summer, and fall) and evaluate various equipment types, including mowers, trimmers, blowers, etc. The following criteria were considered during the pilot:
Expected Useful Life (EUL) of the batteries
Number of batteries required per property type
Durability of the selected units
Fuel savings per property type
Impact on noise pollution (feedback from end users and the community)
Several makes and models of battery-powered blowers were considered, and Stihl’s BGA200 was chosen as the most durable and best overall value. This model offered an increased air volume/speed rating of 553 cubic feet per minute (CFM) compared to the gas-operated unit’s rating of 436 CFM. Additionally, the battery-powered equipment reduced noise from 74 decibels to 59 decibels.
PILOT: Facilities purchased 24 battery-powered leaf blowers for the Fall 2021 season, distributing them across various schools (elementary, middle, and high schools). The equipment was procured through a county contract, costing around $45,000. Due to delays in the supply chain and battery-related issues, the Fall pilot had to be rescheduled to the spring-summer 2022 seasons.
Battery-powered blowers received positive feedback from schools and had minimal repair issues. As a result, Facilities expanded the pilot to assess the feasibility of using stick edgers, weed eaters, and hedge trimmers. They procured the Stihl Kombi System multi-task tools for each pilot school, enabling the use of one electric head with interchangeable attachments. The total cost of these systems for the pilot schools was approximately $80,000.
RESULTS: Following the successful pilot, Facilities has adopted the use of battery-powered equipment and will phase out gas-powered equipment at all FCPS schools as part of the equipment’s standard replacement cycle. Facilities have already begun replacing two-cycle equipment at the end of its useful life with battery-powered units. Replacing lawn equipment as part of the standard replacement cycle will take approximately two years.
An accelerated division-wide replacement of battery-powered mowing equipment is possible but would require dedicated funding. Facilities currently operate approximately 2,900 gas-powered blowers, trimmers, and walk-behind mowers throughout FCPS. The total cost for these system replacements would need to be determined based on equipment types but could range anywhere between $5 million and $9 million for an immediate division-wide replacement.