Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) Discussions

hi all i am newbee i have a thought using  my sears 9hp snowblower for a temporary small plow.. sometimes here in buuffalo ny we have very wet snow and slush accumulation maybe just a 1-3 inchs but very wet it can not be thrown with the snowblower.. what i am thinking of doing is to put a small plow blade in front of it mounted with an easy to put on and take off connection and use the blower just to push the wet slushy snow my concern is if i could damage the traction system or the belts making them slip excessivily or some other damage any body try this? why it would not work? cause any damage? thanks pie48

Great minds & all that. . . .   I pushed a bunch of last night's slush storm around- a plow would have been nice.   For a 2-3" snowfall a plow would be nice to create wind-rows that can be picked up by the blower.

I've been mulling the same thing over in my head for a couple months.   I *think* the biggest hurdle will be weight- enough on the blade to keep it down- but still some on the wheels for traction.    It's a balancing act.

My old Bolens has a pretty sturdy bucket- and I think some strap iron welded on should give enough strength for some sort of mounting .  

I've been surprised that I haven't been able to find one already done on the web.   glad I'm not alone.

Jim

Im a little off topic and realize that so please forgive me.

The little single strokes do a heck of a job on slush. The rubber on the augers cant be worn or they churn, splatter and don't throw well. They are pricy but second hand units are around at a good price.

Ive picked up 4 so had a chance to test them. There are two types Ive used, the straight across augers and the standard shape augers. The straight across units had veins in the front which direct the snow instead of a shoot. The auger types have shoots and work better funneling the slush and give flexability at directing the discharge. The vein type can only set the veins left, right or forward so you have to "steer" the slush output.

The standard auger shaped ones worked the best for me. The straight across not so well.

The bigger the hp the better but the qualifier for the auger type is a full auger rubber. The 4.5hp CR2000E would not toss as well as a 3hp PowerLite but the PowerLite had a new auger fitted. The disadvantage is the small width of these units. The PowerLite is only 16 inches but given the amount of slush outside of Boston it won't get much slush service per season. Another disadvantage is they splatter backwards under the blower especially if the ground is not level so your feet and ankles get a sprat at times.

The price is the good part. All 4 rigs cost $85. New augers are $40 and do make a huge difference comparied to a worn auger. People use them for several years and dump them when they wont start. Ive bought two from a guy who gets them from the local dump. The were fine with just carb dirt and worn augers.

The Toro's have pretty good engines so an old unit will have plenty of power provided the owner had the oil levels right.

A single stage screamer might be a cheap alternative for slush plus they are good for cleanup and light snow levels.
trouts2

I've had to use mine as a plow before, not because I wanted to, but because I had no choice. The front end on mine wasn't engaged, and wouldn't. I had to be at work, so I poked a hole at the end of my driveway with the snowblower. Didn't hurt a thing, but my old machine is built like a brick sh*thouse with extra mortar.

Well, I wouldn't recommend it. The machines were not made for it and you can damage the trannys. The manufacturers didn't have that in mind for your machine when it was designed and built. Only tractors with real trannys use plows as well as snowblowers like a Gravely or BCS or John Deere. You could do it and may or may not get away with damaging something.  It's up to you but I don't recommend doing it. - Kris

I've seen snowblower manuals that showed factory plows as standard attachments.

Here is patent with drawings for one:

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/4023287.html

As the patient explains the base snowblower is for heavy snows and does not handle light snow or slush well. The plow covers those so not for driving down the length of a driveway after a 10 inch snow.
trouts2

put a impeller kit on,i did that to mine and i can blow slush and wet heavy snow almost 20 feet.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tF2ZPRmocs4

Yep! I'm thinking of doing this thing in my shop, taking a piece of 45 gallon barrell of steel, the one they use  for oil, cutting the good size add an handle to lift with a locking system on the side whatever It would look likje this

This is what you guys want.

- Kris

That Gravely is some machine! Must be worth a bundle.

I would guess that the main problem is traction. I regularly spin the tires on my snowblower, especially if I forget to engage the auger/impeller so a straight across plow won't do much for you. If you angle it so the snow goes off to the side it might work better but I'm guessing it won't be that good.

I'm with Nibbler on this one.  A fixed angled blade attached with a couple of clamps onto the auger housing is what I'd use. 

I'd also use a stout plastic or rubber skirt on the bottom of the blade to reduce jarring if the blade hits a ridge or uneven crack. 

Start plowing in the middle and the angle would feed the snow to the sides in each direction.  Once it's rounded up, take the plow off and throw it.