Probably was gas powered. I’m not concerned about a fire at the battery end , but mainly about contact at the weed/brush level. Thanks for responding!

I have a gas powered line trimmer. The muffler is enclosed in a cage.

What is your concern about gas powered tools? If a lithium battery ignites, one does not put out the fire.

Electric is often easier to maintain.

A string trimmer may not clear brush.

"Can a battery powered, no gasoline, string trimmer cause a fire?"

Yes, by striking a spark against a rock, or throwing rock bits against other rocks, causing sparks. The worry is a bit esoteric, however, as is the gas-powered weed whacker causing a fire, which it generally won't unless one is terribly careless with it.

Similarly, piled weeds shouldn't be left out as the composting process itself can (and does) cause fires, although generally in extremely large compost bins. I've seen mine hit 170, however, and that's only the average that I can measure over the metal rod. Thermal spikes are certainly more than likely if the pile dries out in one spot.

Really, proper care is required at all times, but I think we're not all that clear on the question. Which one's safer? It kind of depends. Improperly used, stored, or treated, both are a risk, actually. Lithium batteries can be...finicky...if the company's control board is less than stellar. By finicky, I mean "burst into unstoppable flame."

Whereas gasoline fires are actually difficult to start in properly designed gas tanks and engines. However, see the design of the Pinto.

If you are concerned about contact at the weed/brush area, avoid a metal blade. If you want to cut brush with a string trimmer tool, it will not work.

Do you mind disclosing your age, sex, physical condition?

Are goats a possibility in your area?

I live in an area that requires maintenance.

dechall can you explain goats? do you have a reason for recommending goats, any experience?

maybe the OP should list the sq footage of the area?

The Park Service uses goats. They are very effective for controlling vegetation in places that are difficult for humans to maintain. So around here, they are mostly used on hillsides that are too steep to mow. A local farm rents them out.

YouTube does a great job explaining goats. Basically you contact someone who raises and rents out their goats. The bring the goats in the morning and take them away at night leaving you with much less brush and a significant amount of fresh goat dung fertilizer.

Until you get a bad goat who carries a lighter. Then you get fires.

Using goats requires goats, fencing, caretaking....someone who may be considering a battery string trimmer may not be up to goats.

what is your agenda? Is this spam, do you know the location of the property in discussion?

Not spam. Wish we could have goats. We are in Arizona on two acres of desert. There is currently a 1,500 acre fire not far from here, reportedly ignited by a weed whacker, although I don’t have details. We have tried to create a defensible space around our home, but would like to get rid of invasive horehound plants. That’s it.

The spam comment was to the goat herder...

I would like to help you, are you able to post pictures of the “stuff” you want to control. Do you have budget concerns? Can you physically do the work?

Herbicide. Love the stuff. I have 4.25 acres with lots and lots of fencing.

Got it about the goat herder.

The “stuff” is definitely horehound. I can do the work.

You’re a nice guy, Jim.

Right now I’m just concerned about the approaching wildfire. Guess if it comes, that patch of horehound won’t make much difference.

How is the property adjacent to yours? Has it been cleared yet?

Hokay someone's feeling testy. My agenda was to enlighten the OP and other readers to an alternative to herbicides and heavy labor. Mother Nature is replete with wonderful workers willing to work for peanuts. Goats will clear acres of brush including poison oak/ivy without blinking. Your agenda seems to be to read the word, goats, become inflamed, stop reading the context, and remain ignorant of alternatives. Here's a little agricultural history for you if you haven't already reignited at my insolence.

When the Spanish decided to colonize the New World, the first thing they brought was goats. Why? Because the brush was too dense for grass to grow. The goats ate the brush and cleared the land for grasses. The next year they brought cattle to match the goats in number. They had goats and cattle roaming, without fencing, side by side to control the brush and create better soil for the grasses. They used shepherds and dogs to control the livestock. Note that the Spanish did not land in the Great Plains where other forms of browsers had already cleared the land for the grazing bison. The Spanish colonized the hotter regions where it was still brushy.

Renting goats to clear land is a time honored tradition in farming. I would refer you again to YouTube, but you've already ignored that suggestion once. Hogs are also good, but more trouble (they're much smarter). The rental goat owner knows his/her herd and will provide appropriate fencing for the task. Goats are used all over the western US to control brushy fuel in forests. They are not used everywhere, but they are used over a wide area. Usually the land owner sits back and watches with amusement.

"... which was apparently started by use of a weed wacker."

If that's actually true, which is suspect because rumors and stories are spread, well, like wildfire, what is the likelihood of it ever happening again?? Probably almost nil. If a neighbor's house burns down, we don't remove our stoves, furnaces and electrical systems. We try to make sure those things are in good working order and we practice safe handling of them. I've used a lot of gas powered equipment in my life and have been around a lot of it being used, have an awareness of the landscape maintenance industry, and never had or heard of any fire occurring on account of it. This seems like an overblown concern. Starting a fire usually takes much more than "a spark." Spreading stories just takes a little hot air.

With a sigh of relief....the fire appears to be under control.

@Yardvaark- Not exactly. Lots of documentation, as below:https://supervisorkuehl.com/weedwhacker/

Not a common occurrence, to be sure, but it does happen. Only takes one time to result in disaster.

Your link was a first responder in CA commenting...

I am in CA, goats are common, and I have seen the damage goats caused to islands in the east Pacific. Goats were left on islands by sailors, to be harvested later...goats survived and changed the environment..the goats ate most of the plants.

why the strong support for goats...in a response to mechanical tools...seems like spam, not support.

A couple of weeks ago, goats got loose in my area....San Jose, CA

I have two goats and they do eat the weeds. I had to spray their pen and am now feeding them hay until the grass grows back!!

So far it looks like morpheuspa is the only one here who read my entire first post on goats.

I actually pay attention and synthesize information in the manner in which it was intended.