Abby’s Guide > Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) > Discussions > Snow at last!

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

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jrtrebor

Location: Michigan - 3 hours north of Chicago on the lake
Joined: Feb 10, 2010
Points: 539

Snow at last!
Original Message Dec 31, 2011 10:34 pm

Happy New Year to everyone

"Hooray"
Snows on it's way to central western Michigan.

Winter Storm Warning
Statement as of 9:42 PM EST on December 31, 2011

... Winter Storm Warning remains in effect from 10 am Sunday to
8 PM EST Monday...

Hazardous weather...

* rain and snow will transition to all snow by noon Sunday. The
   snow will continue through Monday.

* Potential for snow accumulations of at least 8 inches across
   portions of the warning area by Monday evening. Localized
   heavier snow bands near little and big Sable points along
   with much of Van Buren and Allegan counties could lead to
   amounts over a foot.

* It will become very windy late Sunday morning with wind gusts
   expected to reach 50 to 60 mph through Sunday night. This
   will cause considerable blowing snow.

Impacts...

* near blizzard conditions possible.

* Snow covered to icy Road conditions developing by mid
   afternoon Sunday and lasting through Monday due to snow...
   blowing snow and falling temperatures.

* Power outages and downed tree limbs likely Sunday and Sunday
   night due to very strong winds.

This message was modified Dec 31, 2011 by jrtrebor

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RedOctobyr

Location: Lowell area, MA
Joined: Nov 5, 2011
Points: 282

Re: Snow at last!
Reply #49 Jan 13, 2012 12:31 pm

aa335, it's a little Ariens SS322. 3 hp, 98cc Tecumseh 2-stroke, 22" cut.

aa335

Joined: Nov 29, 2008
Points: 2434

Re: Snow at last!
Reply #50 Jan 13, 2012 6:27 pm

RedOctobyr wrote:

aa335, it's a little Ariens SS322. 3 hp, 98cc Tecumseh 2-stroke, 22" cut.

That's the same engine on a 16" Toro Powerlite. Underpowered when used on a 22" wide snowblower. Not sure why such a small engine was used on that Ariens, seems to perform more like a snow broom than a snowblower.

This message was modified Jan 13, 2012 by aa335

RedOctobyr

Location: Lowell area, MA
Joined: Nov 5, 2011
Points: 282

Re: Snow at last!
Reply #51 Jan 13, 2012 6:41 pm

There was also a SS522, with a 5hp Tecumseh, mounted in the same machine. Alas, this has the smaller engine. But for free, it's 3hp more than a shovel

It will still have more power than the electric I was using for the deck (Toro Powercurve 1800, 18", which did surprisingly well in the big storms last winter). And if I need more oomph out of it, I can try revving it higher.

Edit- That said, it is admittedly kind of funny that my 8 hp 24" 2-stage has 4 hp/ft, while the little SS only has 1.6 hp/ft. Only 40% of the power of the 2-stage, but 90% of the clearing width. Something tells me it will bog down a little more easily. That's OK, bigger storms will get the bigger machine.

This message was modified Jan 13, 2012 by RedOctobyr

MN_Runner

Location: St. Paul, Minnesota
Joined: Dec 5, 2010
Points: 622

Re: Snow at last!
Reply #52 Jan 14, 2012 9:12 am

I should be jealous about snow but it is nice not having to blow the snow. No major snow for another few weeks and we got lucky this week.

RedOctobyr

Location: Lowell area, MA
Joined: Nov 5, 2011
Points: 282

Re: Snow at last!
Reply #53 Jan 20, 2012 1:09 pm

We got maybe 1-2" of light fluffy stuff overnight. Gave me an excuse to try the little SS again. Granted, this storm played right to its strong suit (a mild storm, with very lightweight snow). But it was really nice. It was quicker than using the 2-stage (or a pusher shovel), not to mention easier. It was blowing as quickly as I wanted to walk with it, so it was actually really fast (my legs have a faster forward speed than my 2-stage does). This was the kind of storm where a 6hp, 30" machine would do great. You didn't need much power, just speed. So it was perfect. I can see why people like having 1 of each, if it's practical.

aa335

Joined: Nov 29, 2008
Points: 2434

Re: Snow at last!
Reply #54 Jan 20, 2012 1:19 pm

I'm in Chicago suburbs. Snow is coming down steadily, expecting 5-8" inches total by midnight. It's the heavy, easy to pack type of snow. Good thing it's snowing like this on Friday. No rush to snowblow and the kids can play outside tomorrow.

Now the big question is which snowblower to use tomorrow. :) I also have a 30" wide poly show pusher bought last winter that hasn't seen much action.

This message was modified Jan 20, 2012 by aa335

RedOctobyr

Location: Lowell area, MA
Joined: Nov 5, 2011
Points: 282

Re: Snow at last!
Reply #55 Jan 20, 2012 2:04 pm

aa335 wrote:

I also have a 30" wide poly show pusher bought last winter that hasn't seen much action.

Given the topics of this forum, if you decide to use the pusher instead of one of the snowblowers, you may want to keep it to yourself. OPE is Outdoor Power Equipment, not Outdated Push Exercise

aa335

Joined: Nov 29, 2008
Points: 2434

Re: Snow at last!
Reply #56 Jan 20, 2012 2:59 pm

I didn't say I was going to use just the snow pusher. Snow is golden at this time of the year, especially since we haven't seen much of it this winter. I'm sure to get my OPE fix, even if I have to snowblow the neighbor's sidewalks. :) There's about 250 feet of it and those teenage boys aren't doing it by themselves.

I have 3 snowblowers but I still enjoy the exercise of shoveling by hand. :) Nothing to be ashamed of that.

This message was modified Jan 20, 2012 by aa335

FrankMA

Location: Merrimack Valley/Northeastern Mass
Joined: Jul 1, 2010
Points: 587

Re: Snow at last!
Reply #57 Jan 20, 2012 3:27 pm

Finally got some snow like RedOctobyr was saying, about 3" total. Finally got a chance to use the venerable Honda HS621 Single Stage and was not very impressed to be honest. I think I'll have to take a look at tightening the tension on the belt or getting a new belt altogether. It threw the snow but not as robust as I would have expected and got clogged at the base of the chute several times. The snow was very light and fluffy so I did not expect the issues I encountered. It has to be a stretched belt that warrants an adjustment or replacement. Any other thoughts or suggestions???

Toro Wheel Horse 522xi GT, Honda HS928TA, Honda HS621AS, Honda HS520A, Toro CCR3000 (work in progress), Honda HS624WA (sold 08/23/2010), Stihl BR550 Backpack Blower, Stihl MS250, McCulloch MS1635, Honda EM6500SX Generator

aa335

Joined: Nov 29, 2008
Points: 2434

Re: Snow at last!
Reply #58 Jan 20, 2012 4:21 pm

I think you're on the right track, it's either belt slip or low belt tension when bail is engaged that would cause clogging. Check to make sure that the pulleys or belt are not coated with some kind of lubricant. I've pushed my HS621 full bucket height into heavy snow and concrete mix at the EOD and never had clogging issues. The engine will likely stall out under heavy load before clogging. 3" is light fluffy snow should not cause any clogging, in any machine.

This message was modified Jan 20, 2012 by aa335

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