Snow Blowers

Red Five said:
Get an Ariens.  I have a what they probably call the Deluxe 28 now.  It's close to 10 years old and never had a problem.  It just cleared about 8" of wet, heavy slush with no problems (3 car wide driveway) a few weeks ago.  Has electric start, but always starts 1st pull.  Turns on a dime.

https://www.ariens.com/en-us/power-equipment/snow-products
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Forgive me for sounding dumb; this just takes regular gas, right? 

I only ask because the last gas snow blower I was around was the one my dad had when I was a kid and he had to make a gas/oil mixture to put in it. 

 
JJ Husker said:
JMO but I’m thinking a gas powered snowblower is probably worth it. We got about 6” of heavy wet sloppy stuff last night and I didn’t even use a quarter of the extremely small gas tank and finished my driveway, sidewalk and the neighbors sidewalk. Didn’t run out of anything  :P

Seriously, when it dumps I don’t want to be recharging or messing around. The reason I got a snowblower was the time we got 36” of snow. It only gets used maybe 4 or 5 times per year. 3” or less and I’ll usually just shovel by hand.

Edit- Sorry @BigRedBuster I made my post before you posted your “bad cell” issue. That sucks.
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Gas snow blowers have more maintenance issues than electric, so I'm not sure that's going to make it better.

Sorry about your issues @BigRedBuster. My EGO got through the snow but used all the battery for my sidewalks and 3-car wide driveway. I timed the charging today and took  35 minutes for the first battery and 25 minutes for the second one (probably the difference is because the second one had time to cool down). I'd get a second charger if I was running out before I finished.

 
RedDenver said:
Gas snow blowers have more maintenance issues than electric, so I'm not sure that's going to make it better.

Sorry about your issues @BigRedBuster. My EGO got through the snow but used all the battery for my sidewalks and 3-car wide driveway. I timed the charging today and took  35 minutes for the first battery and 25 minutes for the second one (probably the difference is because the second one had time to cool down). I'd get a second charger if I was running out before I finished.
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I’ve had a paddle style snow thrower and a large snowblower for a looong time and haven’t had any extraordinary maintenance costs except for the occasional oil change and maybe a new spark plug.  :dunno  But yeah the maintenance cost is probably less….unless you factor in an extra battery or possible charger replacement. I would think the possible mechanical stuff like wear plates, shafts, shear pins etc. would be the same either way.

I’ve got a battery powered mower and love it but I’d have to think long and hard before going battery on my snowblower. I could be wrong but it seems it might be a little lacking at the worst possible (huge snowstorm) time.

 
GSG said:
Forgive me for sounding dumb; this just takes regular gas, right? 

I only ask because the last gas snow blower I was around was the one my dad had when I was a kid and he had to make a gas/oil mixture to put in it. 
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Yes, just plain gas.  Not an oil mixture.  Had one of those and it sucked.

 
GSG said:
Talked to my dad earlier. He still has the oil/gas one. Wants to give it to me so he can get a new one lol
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JJ Husker said:
I’ve had a paddle style snow thrower and a large snowblower for a looong time and haven’t had any extraordinary maintenance costs except for the occasional oil change and maybe a new spark plug.  :dunno  But yeah the maintenance cost is probably less….unless you factor in an extra battery or possible charger replacement. I would think the possible mechanical stuff like wear plates, shafts, shear pins etc. would be the same either way.

I’ve got a battery powered mower and love it but I’d have to think long and hard before going battery on my snowblower. I could be wrong but it seems it might be a little lacking at the worst possible (huge snowstorm) time.
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I meant more frequent maintenance issues not necessarily cost. For example, one of my neighbors couldn't get his gas snowblower started yesterday. Another neighbor's gas snowblower had some engine problem last snow storm and it's still in the shop for this storm. Gas engines just have a lot more parts than batteries and motors, so more chances for failures.

That's not to say electric snowblowers won't have issues too. There's never going to be a perfect solution. But at least for me, not having to deal with the oil and gas in my garage is 100% worth it.

 
RedDenver said:
I meant more frequent maintenance issues not necessarily cost. For example, one of my neighbors couldn't get his gas snowblower started yesterday. Another neighbor's gas snowblower had some engine problem last snow storm and it's still in the shop for this storm. Gas engines just have a lot more parts than batteries and motors, so more chances for failures.

That's not to say electric snowblowers won't have issues too. There's never going to be a perfect solution. But at least for me, not having to deal with the oil and gas in my garage is 100% worth it.
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That’s fair. I just have never had engine troubles in any of my gas powered lawn mowers or snowblowers. But I do preventative maintenance every year. No real cost except my time to drain gas, put Sta-Bil in and change the oil every few years. I have a 30 year old Toro gas lawn mower (only use it now for dethatching and the first mow in spring) and it has always started first pull. Same with my Craftsman blower but it’s only 15-20 years old. I did have a 2 cycle (oil gas mix) snow thrower and it always started hard. Just getting it started made shoveling seem easy. But my favorite has been the Toro battery powered mower I got 2-3 years ago. It’s lite and it has the “personal pace” drive that makes it go as fast as I walk and it is very quiet.  I use it for all mowing after the first in spring. Sometimes late in the fall I’ll use my gas mower when there are a ton of leaves and acorns to pick up. It has much better suction pick up than the electric….but I hate the noise now.

 
JJ Husker said:
That’s fair. I just have never had engine troubles in any of my gas powered lawn mowers or snowblowers. But I do preventative maintenance every year. No real cost except my time to drain gas, put Sta-Bil in and change the oil every few years.
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Same with my Ariens snowblower and Toro mower.

At the end of the season I add some Sta-Bil and then run each out of gas.  For the mower I change the oil every spring and clean the air filter a few times a year.  For the blower it is a b!^@h to change the oil, so I take it into the shop every 3-4 years and they change oil and inspect everything (I think last time they put a new belt on it).

Also a tip (at least I think this is true) is that I bought my blower at a locally owned equipment shop (not a big box store). and I do think they give me better customer service when I do bring it in every few years since they know I bought it there.

 
Yep, you guys filling gas, adding fuel additives, performing oil changes, taking to the repair shop, etc. is why I so much prefer electric equipment. If you don't mind that stuff, then gas equipment is generally cheaper to purchase. Also, I can pick up my snowblower, which doesn't matter too often, but when it does it's really handy.

 
RedDenver said:
Yep, you guys filling gas, adding fuel additives, performing oil changes, taking to the repair shop, etc. is why I so much prefer electric equipment. If you don't mind that stuff, then gas equipment is generally cheaper to purchase. Also, I can pick up my snowblower, which doesn't matter too often, but when it does it's really handy.
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If filling gas with a gas can that has Sta-Bil in it is too much…. :lol:   I can appreciate avoiding the oil changes though. If a repair shop visit is required, I’m not sure it matters if it’s gas or electric unless it happens to be an engine problem (which I’ve never had).

I don’t know which is less costly to purchase originally. I bought mine when we had a 36” snow years ago. Myself and a few of the neighbors with blowers did our whole cul de sac and a good portion of the street. That was before electrics were available but they wouldn’t have got the job done. But that’s a rare extreme case.

I really wish Dewalt would come out with one that would take their 60V flex volt and/or 20V flex volt batteries. I always have 3 or 4 of those fully charged and ready to go.

 
knapplc said:
I'm looking at this one. $50 more, but two-stage. Only one battery, though. Second battery is another $280.

https://www.amazon.com/PowerSmart-24-Inch-Self-Propelled-Cordless-Included/dp/B0B9RWHYNM/ref=psdc_3043481_t4_B01MYURMK7?th=1
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2 1/2 months later, and I can finally say this was a good investment. Lincoln got between 10-11 inches of snow this morning. This guy cleaned up my driveway and almost halfway into the street, plus a good 15' on the street in either direction, plus a little down the sidewalk about three houses down, before the battery gave up. It took maybe 30-40 minutes.

The two-stage was a very smart idea @RedDenver. Now I just need practice moving the chute so I don't get a face full of snow when I change directions. :lol:

 
knapplc said:
2 1/2 months later, and I can finally say this was a good investment. Lincoln got between 10-11 inches of snow this morning. This guy cleaned up my driveway and almost halfway into the street, plus a good 15' on the street in either direction, plus a little down the sidewalk about three houses down, before the battery gave up. It took maybe 30-40 minutes.

The two-stage was a very smart idea @RedDenver. Now I just need practice moving the chute so I don't get a face full of snow when I change directions. :lol:
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Glad it's working out for you. Every snow storm I'm more glad I bit the bullet and bought a snow blower.

 
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