Abby’s Guide > Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) > Discussions > Snowblower impeller drive belt life
Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) Discussions |
|
royster
" It is the use of power tools that separates man from animals"
Location: New Brunswick, Canada
Joined: Feb 11, 2011
Points: 284
|
|
Snowblower impeller drive belt life
Original Message Feb 25, 2011 1:53 pm |
|
Impeller drive belts wear out mostly when you are engaging the impeller. You will hear the belt slip a little until your impeller gets up to speed. Doing this over and over again wears out the impeller drive belt. I only engage my impeller once for each snow blowing job. I squeeze down the lever and hold it in place with a plastic cable tie (set at a size so I can easily remove it and use it again ) until I am done the particular snow blowing job . Of course if anyone (particularly children) come to the area where I am snowblowing I slide off the cable tie to release the lever. I CANNOT RECOMMEND THIS TO ANYONE DUE TO SAFETY CONCERNS A few years ago, on my old Murray snow blower , the cable operating the impeller broke on the end where it attached to the idler pulley under that belt cover. It was in mid winter , and snowing nearly every day, and with no garage, I wasn't in a position to replace the cable. I used a strong wire attached to the bracket on the idler pulley and fastened it securly to to a bolt nearby engaging the impeller. Of course when I started the snow blower the impeller and auger turned as well, but it started as easy as usual. If anyone came near, I shut of the snowblower. When the weather got better I replaced the impeller drive cable.
|
JohnWI
Joined: Nov 15, 2010
Points: 38
|
|
Re: Snowblower impeller drive belt life
Reply #2 Feb 26, 2011 1:11 pm |
|
Must disagree on the main logic. I'll agree that a bit of slippage or chirping occurs upon engagement and is indicative of slight wear. But there's no way that will compare with tossing a full load of heavy snow against the tension of the mechanism. Most wear must happen with poor adjustment combined with a load. Just my opinion.
2011 Ariens Pro 28; Toro 210R, older Powerlite and a generic single stage w/ Tec. engine. God Bless America!
|
|
|