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I leave near Boston and the blizzards last year were a huge pain in the rear end. In particular shoveling over 1700 square feet of driveway out from under multiple feet of snow sometimes multiple times per week. OK I shoveled less and less as the winter wore on since I got lazier and grumpier. So this year I'm gonna get a snow blower. One friend recommended Ariens http://www.ariens.com/en-us/snow-blowers snowblowers. Any other recommendations? Also what features should I be looking for? My instinct with machinery is to get over engineered stuff since it's less likely to break and tends to do the job better but I'd like to avoid overpaying for stuff I don't need. I've also been told to "get the best one I can afford", which is pretty useless advice since I don't really know what's important on a snowblower and it's not like any single (non-professional) snowblower is going to bankrupt me. But more expensive ones would mean less cash I can spend on other stuff. So I'm guessing important features are (in no particular order): powerful engine high opening small turn radius powered wheels adjustable blower nozzle strong snow chopping blades plug in heater for the starter What sizes are reasonable for a driveway like that? Also, I would have to be able to get the snow blower up 3 small steps to get from where I can reasonably store it to the driveway.
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Oct 15, 2015 00:45
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| # ? Apr 16, 2024 10:42 |
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I've also been shopping for snow blowers. I've heard Cub Cadet makes the best ones, you probably want a two-stage for the amount of snow you'll get. I've had my eye on this one but I haven't quite made the decision to pull the trigger on that much money. The advice I got from pretty much everyone I asked is that you should buy one from a dealer, not some big box store like Home Depot since if it breaks or needs maintenance you know can just take it back to where you bought it for service.
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Oct 15, 2015 03:10
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Buy used, get a two stage blower unless you're dealing with small amounts of snow. It may still be early enough in the year to get a decent deal on one, but ideally you buy one in the spring. They are all pretty drat simple machines, and even if one really has problems a local small engine place can fix them up pretty cheaply.
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Oct 15, 2015 07:31
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Don't know about snowblowers specifically but a lot of American brands are using Chinese engines these days and the quality control on them is total poo poo.
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Oct 15, 2015 08:25
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Is that when the lady (or the feller) puts ice and your dong in her mouth at the same time?
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Oct 15, 2015 11:22
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Beats shoveling snow by hand, I will tell you that.
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Oct 15, 2015 11:54
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Simplicity is a great brand as well. Definitely get a 2-stage, self-propelled machine. Get spare belts as it's really hard to find one local when there's a big storm. Snowblowers can last decades if you take good care of them. Get one that has a local dealer so you can get parts easily in the future.
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Oct 21, 2015 16:06
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Bought a new place in Vermont with a 150ft driveway last year and knew I didn't want to rely on a plow service. I splurged and ordered this from Home Depot: http://www.cubcadet.com/equipment/cubcadet/snow-throwers/3X-three-stage-power/features Worked like a charm even though we didn't get the kind of snow Massachusetts did. At one point one of the pins broke and I didn't even know, figuring it out when I flushed the oil in the spring. Is there a way to tell if this happens without having someone else look at the augers from the front you're running it from the front?
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Oct 21, 2015 16:39
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Cheesus posted:At one point one of the pins broke and I didn't even know, figuring it out when I flushed the oil in the spring. Is there a way to tell if this happens without having someone else look at the augers from the front you're running it from the front? Not that I've found. Usually they don't intake quite as well on the broken side, but you don't always notice in lighter snow.
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Oct 21, 2015 23:07
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| # ? Apr 16, 2024 10:42 |
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If you're at all tall, but one with a loving joystick chute control. Bending over to manually turn the chute sucks if you have to move it often.
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Oct 21, 2015 23:44
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