Greetings all;
My current single stage Yard Machine snow blower clogs excessively when the snow is greater that 4-5 inches or is soaking wet heart attack snow. Works fine when the snow is just fluffy powder.
I am thinking that I ought to add a 2nd unit to cope with heavier snowfalls, likely a smaller 2 stage. I have a corner lot with a double width driveway and need to accomadate 10-12 inch drifts and that real heavy wet snow.
Any suggestions for brand and size? I need a smaller size width to wiggle past the cars in my garage. I don’t think I want another Yard Machine product, seems like a real cheepie brand.
Thanx to all for your thoughts.
Replies
Toro or Ariens 2 stage with at least 8 to 10 horse. Sell your big box store thing to some guy in Florida who might be able to use it.
I've got a 25-year-old Ariens that's still doing the job. Though I'd like to upgrade to something a little more modern, I can't justify it since the old unit keeps chugging along.
Lube the guts of the snow blower with pam, or silicone, or teflon lube.
2 stage Toro. 24"
Edited 12/19/2008 1:08 pm by peteshlagor
I bought an Ariens 4 years ago, and it is a beast. My only complaint is that the only way to control which wheel gets power is to remove a pin from the selected wheel. Turning would be a whole lot easier with the ability to control which wheel gets the power. I understand newer models might have addressed this with levers for each wheel, although maybe that was a different brand.
"I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul." Invictus, by Henley.
2nd vote for either Ariens or Toro 2 stage. I have a 9 horse, 2 stage and it works
blows heavy wet snow with no issues. I don't think I'd go any smaller than 8 hp.
-d
Best thing to look for is one with a cast iron gear box. That might be tough to find.
Buy the biggest 2 stage machine you can fit in your garage. I have a 24 year old Ariens 8 hp electric start that just keeps on going. Nothing has stopped it yet. My neighbor has a "yard" machine and it won't do the end of his driveway where the plows have packed it in. I use butchers wax on all the parts that touch snow and it will move slush ! Also, buy it from an Ariens dealer and not the big box stores. Their machinesV (HD, Lowes) use smaller frames for any given HP. I also recommend getting the chains.
I used to know answers to questions like these. Then I solved the problem. I moved south!
I recommend it highly.
Stop shopping at the big box store and pay the extra bucks for a good Toro.
You get out of life what you put into it......minus taxes.
Marv
I bought myself a John Deere 1130 this season and love it. The blower cleares a 30" path and has a 11 hp Briggs & Stratton engine. It doesn't even take a full pull on the rope and the engine fires up, I cant say the same about Tecumseh engines that I've used in the past. It has no plastic parts on the chute which is very important to me. I have seen to may blowers with cracked chutes or rotating gears once it gets down to -35 Celsius.
One feature that sold me was: it is built on the same continent were I live and not off shore!!!
Nothing runs like a deere
Just finished blowing my driveway with my 5 yr old Ariens, 24" 8hp. Starts every time and runs like a top. You get what you pay for with snow blowers.
I'm thinking about getting a Michigan.
Beat it to fit / Paint it to match
Snowblowersdirect.com has a decent guide that can suggest what kind of machine is best for you.
I think a two-stage one makes sense, and I suggest one that supports multiple speeds, so you can go fast with light snow and slow with the heavy stuff.
Electric start is also nice. This isn't an electric start like a car (with battery, alternator, etc.), but a place to hook an extension cord.
I have an ariens that works well for me.
Get yourself a Toro single stage. There is no comparison between the junker you have and the Toros.
I have a commercial Ariens 2 stage that I haven't used in the 6 years since I bought this Toro. It will handle 8" of snow and throw it 35 feet away with no problem.
I have the 2 cycle engine. Very powerful, but very noisy. I think it's 61/2 h.p.
I've talked a lot of my friends into buying them and they all love um!
I just bought the 9hp Arien from HD and it was very fast and unstoppable. It threw 5 inches of slushy snow at least twelve feet. It is not the professional model but there is nothing cheap about it.
I'm surprised no one has mentioned Simplicity. They have all the features of the other brands mentioned, but just seem to be built beefier and better. Not cheap, but as with all tools, you get what you pay for.
Three years ago, I bought the biggest 2 stage they had at our local large ace hardware. I cannot remember the brand it was sold under, but it was clear that it was an assembly company. Th motor is what is important, and actually came with a separate guide book an d warantee from the manufacturer. I imagine that most of the mid priced 2 stage blowers will be the same.
The motor is what will equal reliablity in the long run. I put mine away last winter with an inch or two of gas in the tank and maybe I rememberered to put some stablizer in over the summer.
I plugged it in, hit the button and cleared our first six incher without any problems.
I would be sure to get an electric start, and the most important feature that seems to differentiate the middle from the top end of the big box machines is the joystick style controller to adjust the output shaft. This makes the machine a joy to use. I live in northeastern IL and must've cleared several feet of snow over the course of last winter, on a 150 ft drive with a cul-de-sac. In other words, a h*ll of a lot of snow.
good luck,
ar
Our blower has an electric start but I haven't used it in 2-3 years. Most times it starts on the first pull.
The mark of the immature man is that he wants to die nobly for a cause, while the mark of a mature man is that he wants to live humbly for one. --Wilhelm Stekel
I'm surprised that the Honda line of machines hasn't been mentioned. They're real snow eating machines, and start on the first or second pull. A friend with two tracked Hondas said that he wished he'd bought the wheeled blower for easier maneuverability. No mickey mouse belts and pulleys, hydrostatic drive. Or check out the BCS machines, single stage, but gear drive and you can mount different tools, like the old Ariens and Gravelys. I'm still using a Yardman and every time I hit packed snow and the wheels stop moving.
Before I moved out here, I had a 30-something year old 2-stage Ariens that was an animal. Nothing stopped it...3-4' frozen plow wash, tunnel through drifts, gravel, small children...you get the idea. IFAIK, they're still workhorses.
My brother also loved his Honda tracked unit...elec start and canopy made his 400' driveway a breeze.
I live in northern NY so I deal with a lot of snow. I now have a 10 yr old Toy Built with a 10HP Tecumseh engine. It's OK, but not great. Doesn't come close to moving snow like my old Gravely. See pic.
Buy the biggest machine you can find.