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4 Stroke 173cc Self-Propelled Petrol Lawn Mower $299, Honeywell Safe $139 @ ALDI

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Upcoming deals from Aldi catalogue. Original upload image

173 cc 4 stroke self-propelled petrol lawnmower $299

Honeywell built-in safe with programmable digital lock $139 ($60 lower than last year)

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ALDI
ALDI

closed Comments

  • Pretty good price for a safe with some level of fire protection

    • +3

      I own this safe and personally it's probably ok for documents but it wouldn't take much to bust it open. The outer shell is made of a fire retardant hard plastic polymer material

      • +3

        I'd agree I wouldn't store anything of value in there

      • I bought the safe knowing it's extremely low end and doesn't offer much security, as it's cheap and a convenient place to store various items that are non valuable but relatively important. Anything critically important should probably be stored in a bank deposit box.

        The safe is made of plastic and I imagine would take maybe 10 seconds to bust open with a crowbar at the hinges.

        It provides only 30 minutes of fire protection. What's worse, they used the lower standard (843 not 943C), and they had a modifier in the testing: furnace door was opened after 30 minutes. This is NOT the way testing is usually done.

        The safe is not suitable for digital data, despite what it says on the box. 175C internal temperature isn't enough to char paper, but all your discs and data will be long gone past 100C.

        The product has Honeywell plastered all over it and the manuals, but it's not a Honeywell product. On the back of the manual it states the product was made by a third party and Honeywell has absolutely nothing to do with it. Deceptive.

        On the plus side it has a 7 year warranty.

        • Interesting, I purchased this safe with the hopes that I could put some documents and a couple of backed up HDDs

  • That exact same safe was at Kmart's black Friday sales. I think it was $149. But stuck just disappeared after the sale

  • What engine would be on the lawnmower? Do Aldi mowers use known brand engines?

    • +10

      No, they use a Chinese engine, quality/performance can be hit and miss.

      MULTIPLE posts here on OB that its difficult to source simple things like blades, air filters, wheels etc, they don't seem to bother with spare parts

      A throw away item really

      • +5

        yep - ALDI have form for chonda based trash mowers

      • +1

        They don't have spare parts

        • +3

          ^This 100%. My blade got damaged, and I cannot source a compatible replacement anywhere. Going to have to modify another branded blade and hope it is safe.

          • @Ge3ks: Yep. had a $99 aldis mower. It actually wasnt bad… light as hell being all alloy but the first sign of an issue the store deemed them unrepairable so they have a guy regularly come in a tipper and bring all the refunded unrepairable shit to… the tip???

          • @Ge3ks: Thanks for this, I glossed over the first comment as I thought fair enough, but completely missed the blades commment

      • +3

        Probably an asbestos gasket too

        • +1

          That sounds healthy

  • It should be noted that this is a self propelled mower. I thought it was a bit expensive for a normal Aldi mower.

    • +2

      Expensive if you can't source parts

      • use it under warranty then break it when its close to warranty end and return it

        ????

        profit

        • +2

          That sounds sustainable

        • I've literally abused mine for 2 yrs, even manually increased the rpm by bending the one metal arm.. blanked on the name.. I'm hoping it breaks soon 🤣

      • 3-year warranty.

  • +10

    I bought one of these a few years ago…. thought cheap, 3 year warranty, what could go wrong.
    The welds on the front axle fell apart one week after the 60 day return period. So I put a warranty claim in. These mowers are not a specific model with available spares. Each part is sourced from different factories for that production run and Aldi don't keep the best track of what parts came from where. It took them 11 months to get the parts for my Warranty claim. Dozens of emails and phone calls. If I had of known that Warranty would be an issue I would have dumped the thing back at them when it first broke.
    Some Aldi things may be OK, but I'm staying away from anything mechanical with many parts that may have come from whichever random factory tendered the lowest price on the day.

    • +1

      Should the 3 year warranty allow you to return the mower to them and get a new one?

      • +1

        steve54321 is definitely entitled to it. Manufacturer and supplier have legal obligations to support the product they sell both with spare parts and against manufacturing defects, for a reasonable time.

        • +1

          Problem is, as with all ALDI replacement goods, they can't/won't source you a replacement. They'll offer you a refund and wash their hands of the problem.

          Manufacturer and supplier have legal obligations

          Correct, as per ACL - major faults entitle you to a replacement OR refund

          to support the product they sell both with spare parts

          Nope, not correct. They only have to fulfil their ACL obligations, not provide a repair service. ALDI has calculated that it is cheaper and easier to provide refunds instead of repairing faults.

          for a reasonable time

          i.e. they will continue to offer refunds until the 'warranty' period expires.

          • +1

            @Switchblade88: Yes ALDI's warranty process is bad once you go past the quick fix or replacement options. It's all outsourced to some other company and they have to pick through the pieces to try and figure out where the product was made and get parts, so they are just a middle man anyway. In the case of this mower, it was made by half a dozen different companies just supplying some parts to spec with no real "Mower Model". They are made for a production run only and there are no spares or replacement options. I didn't know any of this at the start and was just getting strung along by the warranty people. My Axle came from one company, the bracket that held it in another and then they sent wheels from another.
            If I had of known it was going to be 11 months at the start, I would have just taken the mower back to a store and not left until I had my money back.

            Basically only buy Aldi if you expect to use it for landfill when it has any sort of problem. Once fixed, the mower did work for about another year and then it went to the dumps recycling pile.

    • +1

      Nightmare, What a waste of time for you.

      Anything that might need spare parts will have the same issue.

      Or it will be a throw away and end up in landfill

    • +3

      How tall was your lawn after 11 months?

      • +1

        'effin tall! thats how tall!

  • +2

    Hopefully bunnings matches

    • +1

      That'd be nice considering aldi don't allow dogs inside

    • +1

      Bunnings wouldn't allow anything this bad into their range…

  • +1

    The safe would barely keep the kids out.

  • +2

    Honeywell sounds like the name a porn star would have.

    • Have the right code and you can access the honey pot

    • +6

      It’s actually quite a large famous brand back in the day.

      • They're mainly into Safety devices/items and ppe now.

    • +1

      Honeywell has been a brand in existence for decades. I guess you never used the Honeywell computer keyboards in the 1980s. Maybe you weren't around at that time. Yes you got that right they used to produce PC peripherals. I guess they are into making safes now.

      • Honeywell is massive ,has been around for nearly 90 yrs and has many business units. I wouldn't think it's possible to not have heard of them

  • Aldi special buys shouldn't be allowed to be posted as deals due to limited to no ability. Any decent item they have sells within minutes and is unobtainable.

  • They used to be Sanli mowers like the Kmart ones were, weren't they? Parts are easy for those. I guess thats changed.

  • +2

    Don’t spend more than $100 for an ALDI mower.

  • I got the lawn mower @$179 and whipper snipper @$99 from the special buys last year and Imao that's the most money you can spend on these tools at Aldi, considering their warranty could be a hit and miss.

  • There is nothing to understand about ALDI warranty, if it breaks walk into an ALDI with it and a receipt and get your money back.

    • no. 60 days in store returns/refund
      after that it goes to the manufacturer for the remainder of the warranty

  • +3

    Victa 18" classic cut with a mulch plug, Briggs 500 engine (possibly made in USA), 5 year warranty for domestic use (from memory). $399 Bunnings.

    That was suggested to me and I think it's a better value proposition than the ALDI. Despite costing an additional $100.

    From a former ALDI cult member…

    • Is this self propelled or push? The ALDI is a self propelled.

      • +3

        For how long

    • Absolutely love the Victa 18" classic cut with a mulch plug. You cannot go wrong with it. Surely, its not the top end stuff, but for medium sized jobs, it works like a charm. Aldi on the other hand …. like someone said, its a hit and miss. Plus you get to take your dog +++

  • +2

    Question about the safe, I have a suitcase type of Honeywell safe from earlier aldi deal, fire retardent and all.

    The problem I've come across is the moisture build up inside, eventually leading to mold on everything which is pain. Looking closely at the instructions, it states to air the safe weekly and not keep it closed for prolonged periods of time. WTF?! It's a safe, I'm not going to leave it open to air

    Anyone else come across this issue and have any ideas how to solve it? I imagine it'll be the same issue with this safe, being plastic and fireretardant

    • +3

      Grab some silica gel sachets from your old shoe boxes and chuck them in the safe :)

      • +1

        Better yet, use a closet dehumidifier. It's not reusable, but you can at least see when it has absorbed water to full capacity and needs to be replaced. Silica gel balls look the same whether they're empty or full.

  • In terms of the engine on the mower it’s a knock off copy that resembles the Honda one. So some parts of the engine can be obtained on eBay etc.

    The frame and self propel function would be my concern.

  • So if it breaks any time in 3 years, is it basically a free mower with a refundable 299 deposit?

    • +3

      Yes, sadly.

      You've distilled capitalist 'disposalism' down to its root cause, congratulations.

    • They reply on customers losing their receipts or the receipt fading and becoming illegible.

      Take a pic and upload to the cloud.

      • +3

        Or just lasting long enough that it is out of warranty.

        Or customers not taking it back in time. Or not feeling like dealing with the hassle if they are time poor.

        A lot of customers do not want to deal with conflict, confrontation or get anxiety when having to return an item.

        It is a pretty big ordeal to logistically organise to return a bulky item like a mower for a lot of people. Then to bring an old dirty mower into a store is embarrassing. Then line up at a register and talk to a cashier with no product knowledge, who really doesn't believe you or care if you are telling the truth. Who then has to call for a manager on duty, that you have to explain the problem to again. The manager also looks at you like they don't believe you and you are an inconvenience.
        All the while the customer line is held up and it isn't a pleasant experience. Or geared towards a customer not feeling welcome to exercise their right to have product support and return an item.

        A lot is banking on that a customer will not feel like it is worth the effort or being made to feel like an inconvenience to return an item. To just make a better, more educated purchase next time around and to take the aldi product to the tip.

        Or to spend 11 months on trying to get it repaired under warranty through aldi like mentioned earlier on in this thread.
        Which aldi is not set up to actually deal with repairing faulty items under warranty. Even though there are warranty hotline numbers on the products sold which you can call and will not get an answer.

        • +1

          a customer will not feel like it is worth the effort

          I'd definately be returning it for $300! I guessing those who can afford to forget about $300 would probably be shopping elsewhere.

          Often with these items they'll direct you to call the distributor of the item first. They often handle trouble shooting and or replacement first.

          Then line up at a register and talk to a cashier with no product knowledge, who really doesn't believe you or care if you are telling the truth

          Ive never had an issue returning things within their 60 day period. Even once a giant piece of flat packed furniture which remained assembled as I wheeled it in precariously balanced on a trolley!

          My main hurdle with aldi returns is my poor receipt management. 😔

        • +2

          The idea of pushing an old mower into Aldi, lining up at the register with it and dealing with the rest of the experience you describe, somehow appeals to me. Possibly it would be best to push it around the store for a while first while doing your normal shopping.

          • @cannibal: If anyone asks what you are doing.
            Just say you are looking for Aldi's dedicated returns desk.
            Did you forget to empty the catcher as well?
            And last mowed in the rain..

  • Full catalogue anywhere? I asked in the other thread but nobody seems to have it

  • Hey OP does the catalog have a petrol line trimmer this time as well?

  • Think of it a leasing a lawn mower for free for 2 years and 11 months…

    • +1

      Minus petrol money.

  • +2

    I've had my Aldi self propelled mower for about 8 years. The original pull start cord broke a couple of years in. I called the warranty line and left a message explaining what happened. The replacement part turned up in a week or two despite no one calling me back. A spring fell off causing the self propulsion to fail after about 4 years. I've never changed the oil, but it's still working and does the job despite not running at 100%.

    • +1

      lol. Somehow I like this review

    • Yep, did the spring mod and my old ALDI mower revs to 11ty million RPM, admittedly I did put a decent gapped spark plug into it and use quality oil and fuel so it doesn’t ping, but 👌🏼 value.

  • +1

    Had a cheap self propelled mower a few years back. It was great when it was working, but at least once per mow the drive belt would slip off, which was an absolute pain to put back on. And when the belt wore out, which didn't take very long, it was impossible to find the correct size replacement. I ended up buying a rover ride on, which is amazing.

  • +1

    My petrol tanks leaking on the selfpropelled, it has a crack somewhere and its not that old, does hardly any work as I mow 7x15m worth of grass. Cant replace or get repaired reasonably, so have to home job and plastic weld (fingers crossed) as I cant find the aldi reciept to even make a claim that may take a year to sort. Bin material for an otherwise awesome mower. ebay have basic 4s mowers for $200 delivered, best to beat one of these to death for half the cost.

    • It was years ago, but I don't think I was asked for any proof of purchase when I called the hotline. I just called the number and left a message saying that the cord had snapped. No one called me back, but it wasn't long before a replacement mechanism was delivered.

  • +1

    I have an aldi mower received as a gift. Looks ok. Massive piece of crap. Doesn't turn off, throttle stuffed, self propel belt came off pulley and impossible to access to put back on without pulling basically the whole thing apart (i tried). Never again!!

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