OT: snow blowers anyone?

[Climb01742]

anyone have experiences/recommendations for snow blowers that work well on a peastone driveway? thank you in advance.

[William]

I've got mine tuned and ready to ROCK!! :cool:

http://elsmar.com/pdf_files/Weird%20Pictures/V8%20snow%20blower%20in%20use.jpeg






William ;)

[soulspinner]

How bigs the are? How much snow there in Concord, and how much $ ya wanna spend(how fast do ya want to get it done each time)?

[tele]

I just bought a Simplicity blower from a local dealer who I went to high school with. We sold our plow truck this summer so I needed something for this winter. Anyway, I live out here in Western Mass and I bought the equivalent of a 8hp blower. I have a medium size driveway but it is paved. My buddy has a stone driveway and he bought a cheap MTD blower ($500) about 3 years ago and has never had a problem. My brother in law has had a Toro for along time, maybe 10 years, and has never had a problem.
I had to buy a dual stage blower for the crap we get here in New England and around 8hp was the engine size I needed for my driveway. The only other thing you have to worry about are engines. The new Simplicity I bought uses A Briggs and Stratton engine, most other blowers use a Techumseh engine. I heard from some dealers that Techumseh is going out of business and most blowers are going to be switching to B&G engines. I dont know if this is fact or not, but food for thought.
The other factor is weight. If there is a chance your wife or significant other will be using the machine, make sure they can push/maneuver it. I would have gotten a bigger machine to satisfy my ego, but it was way to big for her.
Sorry for the long post, aks me any questions,
Kevin

[Blue Jays]

There are online plans for a small bicycle-driven snowplow.

[DfCas]

The peastone part complicates things. Most of the lower end ones under 1K are all pretty much the same.

You will need one that you can adjust to run an inch or 2 above the surface so you dont pick up the loose gravel, and I think most will do that. I've picked up 3/4 inch stones and done no harm, but I'd say its pretty bad for the impeller/blower thingy.

The local Craigslist is full of them as people buy them here and we go a few years without heavy snow and they sell them after walking around them and stumping their toes on them for a few years.

I'd say go bigger than the common 5-5.5 horse power ones, maybe go 8-9 horsepower if you need to throw across a driveway.

Confession: I've bought and sold 3. Currently have none.

[Hardlyrob]

DfCas makes some good points - you will need a "2-Stage" blower that breaks up the snow, and then throws it out of the way with an impeller. A "single stage" blower relies on a fast rotating impeller to grab the snow off the driveway and throw it in one shot. These are great on paved driveways because they clean all the way down to the pavement - not so good on peastone.

With a 2-stage blower, you can set the height above the stones.

I'm a fan of the Toro products - the easiest starting engines around ATMO. Stay away from the HD / Lowes "Yard Machines" products - generally these are lower quality / designed products specific to the big box stores. Go to the equivalent of your LBS - preferrably one that also handles commercial scale equipment. They'll prolly take care of you well.

Cheers!

Rob

[Climb01742]

thanks for everyone's help. yes, my wife may have to use it, since i sometimes have to travel for business. luckily, our driveway isn't big, maybe 30-35 yards long, with a 15 yard wide turn out near the barn. the challenging aspect of snow here is, usually it's just a few inches but once or twice a year, we'll get a foot or more.

the two-stage blower makes a lot of sense, as does the 8hp engine. would that configuration be useable for my wife? she's pretty strong and quite determined. :beer:

[tele]

the two-stage blower makes a lot of sense, as does the 8hp engine. would that configuration be useable for my wife? she's pretty strong and quite determined. :beer:[/QUOTE]

The Simplicity I bought was the smaller of the 2 machines I looked at. The frame is not as heavy duty--lighter and easier to manuver- so it is easier for my wife to use. The other thing to remember is that the engine drives 1 wheel. There is a cotter pin on the non-drive wheel you can remove to allow it to rotate easier. that is a good option for smaller people to manuever the blower.
Toro makes a really nice machine that rotates the wheels much like a commercial walk behind mower. The only issue I have with that model is the price, around $1500.
Kevin

[rwsaunders]

I had put off purchasing a single use piece of equipment like a snowblower, until we had three back-to-back 8" snow falls. Now it's a steady fixture in my workout program.

Depending upon the grade of your driveway, they can still be tough to handle, especially throwing in the gravel factor that you have described. Make sure that you have a headlight on the unit (it's dark before and after work in the Winter) and see if your wife can manage the machine....what a great Christmas or Anniversary gift. :cool:

A used unit might be the way to go as someone had indicated. Some years it seems like I ran the unit 2-3 times a week, and other years it seems like it gathered dust.

http://www.snowblowerguide.com

[OldDog]

Check out the Hondas with track drive. A buddy has one. A sweet machine. Cuts a 32" path. He is done in no time and back to living life. Expensive at about $2500, but, you will have it many years.

I have a Areins with two wheels. A beast to wrestle around and wheels slip coming back up my grade, even with chains. I moved to a plow on my pickup. Peastone gets raked out of the grass in the spring.

In the north, clearing snow is the worst part of winter. Get a machine that will get in done FAST and EASY.

[dogdriver]

I have a 9hp 2 stage Snapper brand that I bought used and has served without issue (knock on wood) for 12 years. Simple, strong, bomber. No complaints.

[thwart]

Our Honda single stage is in it's 19th year... and it does get regular use.

Especially last year... 25 inches over the previous record snowfall here.

Still starts on the first pull. If it ever fails, that would be the only brand I would buy.

[Ken Robb]

Oh Boy! Am I glad that I have zero experience with these things. It's 68F at the moment and we have no fires today either. :)

[Pete Serotta]

No snow blower in RALEIGH needed....even if I got the driveway clear, the roads would not be.....ugh. Luckily only snows about once every few years. Ken, I am coming out there in JAN> :D

[Blue Jays]

Rear-bladed bicycle snowplow with plans (http://www-bdnew.fnal.gov/pbar/organizationalchart/peterson/snowplow_files/Bike_Plow.html)

http://www.cyclelicio.us/uploaded_images/bike-snow-plow-764560.JPG

Front-bladed bicycle snowplow:

http://www.cyclelicio.us/uploaded_images/bikeplow-718946.jpg

[Bruce K]

Areins.

They are bullet-proof. I had my first (5hp) for 15 years and then traded up to an 8hp 2 stage model.

It does our paved, 350 foot X 7% grade driveway in about 45 minutes to 1 hour, including the turn-around and parking areas.

BK