Reddit reviews Red Dragon VT 3-30 C 500,000 BTU Heavy Duty Propane Vapor Torch Kit

So you've selected some intense elbow grease as the trade off. That's honestly my preferred route. What I suggest in that case, is to get a weedeater or a mower and take the whole yard down as low as you can get it. Probably not all in one pass. Then I would dispose of as much material as possible via a green waste bin. Then you have a couple options. You can either keep cutting it back, and it will eventually end up kinda-sorta lawn-ish after enough consistent cuttings. Second option is to "sheet" the area with cardboard and some weights. Bricks, rocks, paint cans, whatever is handy. If you let that sit a week or two, it will mostly shade out the plants, they'll wilt, and die. Third option is to solarize the area. You get some rolls of painter's plastic, and essentially plastic wrap the entire ground like it's a casserole dish of leftovers. The idea there is that the plastic creates a greenhouse effect and cooks off all of the plants underneath.

Regardless of your choice, you'll probably still have some pretty serious grow-back from whatever roots survive, and any dormant seeds that sprout after the fact. You can then either repeat the process later, which will produce fewer and fewer survivors, or you can just cut and/or hand pull whatever manages to return.

I strongly advise against the use of any herbicides like Roundup, as the chemicals in them do a lot of damage to the ecosystem beyond your yard. It's pretty selfish and petty to broadly apply such damaging chemicals over some inconvenient-at-worst weeds in a backyard.

Edit: As an alternative to spraying, a solution for the touch up work after using one of the above methods, is to use a propane torch (example). You can get them at home improvement stores, and they do a pretty decent job of toasting weeds into submission. Just read the directions thoroughly, watch some youtube videos about how to do it, and have a hose on standby in case things get exciting.

Got it covered.

I was dinking around on her here and that made me laugh out loud. I never really thought about this before. Honest. You just blew my mind...like a 18 year old taking their first philosophy class.

I'm a fire ecologist who grew up in the true middle of nowhere on a ranch. I love welding, but I'm not that good at it. My dad is. I also LOVE glassblowing. I learned how to do it during my masters and took to it like a duck in water. I'll never get to do it again as it's too expensive (like $80 an hour). I'm too much of a tight ass. I'm in my early 30's.

I pretty much light shit on fire for work and fun. I'm a complete pyro. One of my proudest achievements is a 10,000 acre prescribed burn I planned and was in charge of. This spring, my girlfriend bought me this for my birthday. I wanted it to light cedars on fire. Plus I can melt a beer can in seconds.

https://www.amazon.com/Red-Dragon-VT-3-30-Propane/dp/B00004Z2FQ/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1498565976&sr=8-3&keywords=red+dragon+torch

My brother bought me a JATO rocket for the same birthday.

I don't think I could be more of pyro if I tried. I never realized this. No one ever pointed this out to me...

I just spent 5k getting 3 phase power into a shed my dad owns. Why? Because I bought a super nice and fancy plasma cutter at an auction. I didn't need it. My dad didn't need it. It was just cheap and awesome. Plus I wanted to be able to run a good welder in that shop.

My masters is literally about plant responses to lighting shit on fire after it got chainsawed.

There is a video of me starting a campfire with 5 gallons of white gas. It was zesty.

Random person...you just gave me an existential crisis. My name is probably on federal watchlists. Hello government worker! I never realized I was a pyro before.....

Essentially the same thing, no paperwork required

red dragon

Wait a second...
http://astore.amazon.com/wwwpropanefla-20/detail/B00004Z2FQ

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00004Z2FQ/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?qid=1462376270&sr=1-3&pi=SX200_QL40&keywords=Dragon+torch&dpPl=1&dpID=313Db7iqdWL&ref=plSrch

http://www.amazon.com/Red-Dragon-VT-3-30-Propane/dp/B00004Z2FQ/

Flamethrower and some good dry wood splits and you'll be cruisin.

So you don't need a concealed carry permit for a flamethrower?

Cool.

This one is a half million BTU per hour. Propane, not jellied gasoline. I guess I can't have everything.

Wait. One of the recommended uses is "starting charcoal". I think I'm gonna need a video camera, too.

Don't you think that fire would be a more effective and quicker option than the one you are using?