Consumer Reports puts leaf blowers to the test

CLEVELAND - The leaves are not changing just yet, but they will be soon. Once they start to drop, you need a good way to get rid of them fast.

A power blower can be a quick way to clean up your yard, but your neighbors probably hate the noise. Many municipalities restrict when you can use blowers and how loud they can be. Consumer Reports tested dozens of blowers to see if you can find a good one that's relatively quiet.

To find out just how much noise your neighbors experience, Consumer Reports tested 32 blowers at a distance of 50 feet. Gas blowers are the loudest.

The electric blowers are nowhere near as noisy, and they cost a lot less. The problem is – it’s the gas blowers that are more powerful cleaning the yard.

Tests show some of the electric blowers, like the $30 Homelite blower, prove pretty wimpy.

Peter Sawchuk found some electrics from Toro that were almost as good at clearing leaves and debris as the best gas blowers.

“I like this Toro. It's powerful. It's lightweight, and the noise is easy on the neighbors," Sawchuk of Consumer Reports explained.

It's the Toro Ultra Blower Vac and at $70, it's a Consumer Reports top-rated electric blower.

“A big drawback of all electric power blowers is that you need an available outlet. And you're limited to the length of the power cord, which is about 100 feet," Sawchuk explained.

If you have a bigger yard, you'll have to go with a gas-powered blower. Consumer Reports says a good choice is this $140 Stihl. It does a great job cleaning up, and it isn't as noisy as some of the other gas blowers.

Consumer Reports says with just about any blower, even an electric one, you should wear hearing protection to prevent hearing damage.