Precision, Power, and Performance: The Etesia Hydro 80 at St Marylebone Crematorium

Tucked away in the green spaces of North London, St Marylebone Crematorium has been a place of remembrance and reflection since 1937. Its peaceful gardens and neatly kept lawns are maintained with care and precision by a dedicated grounds team, who rely on the Etesia Hydro 80 ride-on mower to help meet the site’s demanding requirements.

With large expanses of grass, tight access areas, lots of trees, and numerous formal memorial plots, the grounds pose a variety of challenges. But for Head Gardener Alan Wilkins and gardener Lee Harris, the Hydro 80 has proven to be more than up to the task.

“This will be coming up to my second year here,” says Lee. “The Hydro 80 is a great machine, especially for the tight areas where you’re getting in between flower beds. It’s a great height if you need to get under trees, and access is fantastic. It’s a powerful mower—very fast—and it picks up really
well.”

Designed for versatility and efficiency, the Etesia Hydro 80 cuts and collects both long and short grass without clogging, even in wet conditions. “Even in the wet, it picks up very well,” Lee adds. “It just makes the job easier—emptying it is simple, and it’s perfect for getting into smaller gaps. I’d recommend it to anyone with big lawns or tight access.”

The machine’s compact size—just 0.82m wide—makes it ideal for a site like St Marylebone, where space between memorials is limited. But compact doesn’t mean compromise. With its 15hp Kawasaki twin-cylinder engine, hydrostatic transmission, and specially contoured deck, the Hydro 80 delivers the power and performance expected from a much larger machine.

Alan, who joined the crematorium just over a year ago, was so impressed with the mower’s longstanding performance that he had no hesitation in ordering a new one. “We actually had this exact mower previously. It had been here for five or six years, and it was so good that we just ordered the same machine again—but the updated version.”

That replacement was supplied by RT Machinery, a supplier long associated with the site. “Purchasing this machine was actually the first time I dealt with RT Machinery directly,” says Alan. “The customer service was excellent, and communication with the rep was really good. They made the whole process very straightforward and easy.”

What impressed Alan most, though, was the quality of the cut. “From my perspective, the finish is very, very good. It’s comparable to a rotary pedestrian mower in terms of the fine quality of cut—and that’s quite rare for a ride-on. Anyone working in formal gardens would appreciate that. For us, the appearance of the grass is very important.”

With an 80cm cutting width, electromagnetic blade clutch, and an integrated 240-litre grassbox that can be emptied from the seat, the Hydro 80 is built for operator convenience as well as performance. Features like anti-scalp rollers for uneven ground, fingertip controls, and a comfortable high-backed suspension seat ensure that mowing is not just effective—but also smooth and enjoyable.

“The machine is just built well,” Lee concludes. “It’s solid, reliable, easy to use, and perfect for the work we do here.”

For a site where respect, appearance, and accessibility are all key, the Etesia Hydro 80 has proven to be the ideal partner—efficient, compact, and a cut above.