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

I'm taking delivery of a new ariens 1130 DLE tomorrow that I purchased from a local dealer in Portsmouth, NH.

Long story short, I bought a used 8hp craftsman from an upstate snow thrower repairman for $175 which I thought was an incredible deal. We had about 1 1/2 inches drop last week, and sure enough with only 4 passes on the driveway, the engine blew. Luckily the guy was a man of honor and gave me my money back.

Have been looking at Sears and Home Depot for a few months now, so up to speed on the prices. And the local dealer was a bit higher in price, but actually knew all the ins and outs of the machines, including some maintenance tips. So that value add, plus the good feeling of supporting a local business, I decided to buy at the local dealer.

Plus, I also bought a Cub Cadet lawnmower with electric start from HD last summer and it had problems from day 1. So the local authorized CC dealer I took it to for repairs was also the guy I bought the new ariens from. Another long story short, the CC never worked as advertised and the authorized dealer suggested I take it back to HD, which I did to exchange for a Toro.

Anyway, I've read the new owners manual on the ariens already and can't wait until it comes tomorrow. We are looking forward to snow 5 out of the next 7 days.

Aside from changing the oil after the first 2 hours of use, can anyone offer any good maintenance tips? I've already stocked up on Pam cooking spray as I've read that it really helps in keeping clogs from building up.

Any advice is appreciated.

goofienewfie wrote:
I can't remember.  I know the attachment brake did but that doesn't mean anything.
There's been a change of plans and I won't get to it until after Christmas (and I'll
probably face about 3' of snow, with a layer or two of ice mixed in, should be fun.
At least the main part of the driveway is taken care of by a local guy with a tractor-
mounted blower).

Paul

pvrp wrote:
Shucks! Yes, the attachment brakes and a few other things do, but wondering about the friction plate, next time in take a glance :)  Oh no, sounds like a bad recipe for fustration. Hope its not to bad to clear, no neighbor to help clean things up while away?

I as wondering if some one could awnser a question i got the same snow blower yesturday, and we got about 12inches and the blower just pushed the snow  to the side did very little throw throwing.I called the dealer back and he said to adjust the cable and put more tension on it, i did it and it did very little. I was wondering if any oner had any advice or what i can do.

Did you take off the plastic cover over the pulleys to see if the belts are on the pulleys? Did you adjust the clutch/brake cable as per the manual? It sounds like the brake/clutch adjustment still isn't right.

yes i checked the belts, like the manuel said.

snowking63 wrote:
Start up the machine, turn off fuel valve and run carb dry until the unit shuts off. Remove the belt cover look at the belt space between the bracket that goes over the top and the belt. Check as per the manual, then flip the unit up in service position and remove the bottom cover pan and look in at the brake arm. Check it vs the specs in the manual. But a quick check would be to push down the auger lever to put it in engage position and watch the little brake arm release. Arm with a roller on it. Make sure its pushing up against the brake pad and moving it slightly off the belts. If the belts were set right in step one and the arm is pushing the brake pad off the belts, It should turned the impeller and auger when started.  Keep the cover off and put in back down into standard position and turn the fuel back on and start it up.  Engage the auger again and watch the belts to see if they are moving. If they are moving your impeller and auger should be as well.  Put a cable tie or band around the auger lever to keep it down and walk around front to watch the auger and impeller, they should be spinning. Be carefull, don't be foolish and get close.  If they are spinning everything should be fine if you set the belts right like the manual.  If you try it out again and its still not working right, the belt must be slipping, go over the adjustments again.  If they are not spinning, then shut the unit off, remove spark plug cap and check out the shear pins in the auger rod that goes through the center into the gear box. Remove them completely and inspect to see if they are cracked/broken off.

Its more and likely something to do with the belt slipping, the brake pad not being released or shear pins broken.  Make sure you are adjusting the right cable as the one on the left in operating position is for adjusting the friction plate for the wheels and disc.  The cable on the right is for the belt and brake arm release.  The one on the right is the one to focus on.

That doesn't make sense. That machine is beastly. Are the augers on backwards? If the left auger is on the right side, and vice versa, it'll push the snow away from the impeller.

you know i think that thats the case with the augers.Because i was using my grandmothers airens 524 and it wasnt leaving piles like mine and it was throwing father, and by the way i checked the belts and made thos adjustments and it did make a little diference.

thanks snowman because you were right they put the augers in the wrong way.i will bring it to be fixed on monday

       

Is PAM really good for increasing the throw distance?  I used to use auto wax on the interior, but I'm out of paste wax and the liquid wax I have doesn't seem to last very long.  On the other hand, I've given up using PAM on my nonstick cookware (it leaves a residue), and would love a good excuse to use it up in some other way.

Also, is it really safe to put the snow blower into the service position with gas in the tank (even with the valve closed and the carb run dry)?  I'm used to running it dry in the spring, then dealing with the lube at the start of the new season before refueling.  We didn't bother doing anything with our new 924DLE, having had good experiences with our dealer in the past.

Thanks,
Gary