Snowplowing

[LukeDawg11]

I'm trying to determine what time is reasonable to have my driveway plowed. In other words, if it snows overnight, by what time the next morning should I reasonably expect a clear driveway?

Assume that it has stopped snowing by 6AM (no immediate threat of additional snowfall) and the plowing contractor has other customers (both residential and commercial).

Thanks in advance.

 

[quads]

Depends on what your occupation is and how many other customers your snowplow guy has. Around here, the nurses, cops, firefighters, businesses, etc. all get plowed out first.

 

[JustWood]

Whatever time you say or what time you agreed upon.

 

[Deere10]

Wouldnt it be easier to get a snowblower to have on hand ? And do your drive way as needed yourself?? All depends on where all of the driveways he plows are. When we did them before all businesses got done first then whent from farthest drivewat n work way back home(or to nearest diner for breakfast).Good luck and happy holidays

 

[billb3]

It rather depends where he has you on his list / route, I should think.
He could have ten hours or two days worth of customers, for all we know.

 

[mayhem]

I'm trying to determine what time is reasonable to have my driveway plowed. In other words, if it snows overnight, by what time the next morning should I reasonably expect a clear driveway?

Assume that it has stopped snowing by 6AM (no immediate threat of additional snowfall) and the plowing contractor has other customers (both residential and commercial).

Thanks in advance.

The answer is totally up to you and your plow guy. The question is, if your house isn't on the route at the right time of day for you, whats it worth to you?

If you're looking at SLA's with your plow guy, I hope you're using a professional who's actually in business and is insured and not some lowballing uninsured dude with a pickup and a rusty plow who does it for extra beer money. You stand a much better chance of getting the schedule you want out of a guy who does this for a living than a guy who does it for extra money.

 

[LukeDawg11]

Thanks for the responses. In a nutshell, my sister's boyfriend decided this year to start plowing on the side. He has a few businesses that he does and a number of residential driveways. He offered to do ours at no charge.

When we woke up Sunday morning, we had about 7 inches of snow. My father-in-law had to leave to get back to upstate NY. I waited until 10AM -- when the boyfriend didn't arrive to plow, I shoveled myself. I got a call from my sister about an hour after I finished: "Why did you shovel?? My boyfriend was going to plow for you! He's upset, I'm upset" and so on.

We'll see what happens after the next storm. Lesson learned: at the end of the season this year, we're investing in a snow-blower. If you want something done, do it yourself.

Merry Xmas Eve.

 

[firefighterjake]

Hmmm . . . it's kind of hard to get too upset when someone is willing to plow your driveway for free . . . but on the otherhand most folks kind of expect to have the driveway plowed out in the mornings (every morning) so they can go to work, school, church, shopping, etc. . . . and waiting until 11 a.m. is rather late.

 

[daveswoodhauler]

Thanks for the responses. In a nutshell, my sister's boyfriend decided this year to start plowing on the side. He has a few businesses that he does and a number of residential driveways. He offered to do ours at no charge.

When we woke up Sunday morning, we had about 7 inches of snow. My father-in-law had to leave to get back to upstate NY. I waited until 10AM -- when the boyfriend didn't arrive to plow, I shoveled myself. I got a call from my sister about an hour after I finished: "Why did you shovel?? My boyfriend was going to plow for you! He's upset, I'm upset" and so on.

We'll see what happens after the next storm. Lesson learned: at the end of the season this year, we're investing in a snow-blower. If you want something done, do it yourself.

Merry Xmas Eve.

My opinion...and don't take this the wrong way.
I guess I wouldn't be complaining if my driveway was being plowed for free. Put yourself in his shoes...he finishes his route and drives to your house and your driveway is already clear. Did you have an agreement on what time it would be plowed by? Why don't you pay him what he charges his other customers, but ask that you get on the top of the list.
Just sounds like sour grapes to me.

 

[Shari]

In this particular instance, did he know you had to have your driveway cleared by a certain time?

In our instance here we had to keep our driveway cleared immediately, at all times, to keep access available in case we needed ambulance access for my hubby. After searching for many months and not finding anyone to do this I just had to suck it up and figure out how to do our double wide 125' drive myself. Last year we had a couple of snow dumps that were a little much for the equipment we have so our drive ended up looking like a snake path - but we had road access!

Shari

 

[quads]

Next time, just pick up the phone and give him/her a friendly call and see what's up. Since it's free and he can't get to it right away, and you need it cleared out now, just lightheartedly mention that you will do a little shoveling until he gets there.

 

[LukeDawg11]

I agree (reluctantly) with all responses. I wasn't upset that he didn't plow by the time I had to shovel -- I don't really mind shoveling (at least fluffy snow like we had). We didn't agree on a time to have the driveway plowed by. Since it was the first time it snowed after we had casually discussed plowing with him, my wife and I weren't even sure if he remembered talking to us about it, let alone whether he was actually going to come out. Yes, I should have called (in hindsight, I realize this would have avoided all of these issues, but I'm a little stubborn).

In any event -- can anyone recommend a good snow-blower? I don't want to get one of these dinky plastic Toro jobs that has a rotating paddle and is only good for a few inches.

 

[daveswoodhauler]

Snowblower eh....you are going get lots of responses here....but have had good luck with Ariens, and my buddy buys all Honda stuff (if you have the $$$)
A few questions: How long is your driveway, appx? and how wide?

 

[Shari]

No brand recommendation but we did have an Airens that was a workhorse until reformulated gas killed it.

7hp minimum, more is better IMO
2 stage
shear pins on the auger
self-propelled
electric start
multiple forward speeds
reverse gear
Chains are good if you have a cement drive, no chains if you have an asphalt drive (chains work very well but scarf up asphalt)
enclosures are nice so you don't get the snow blown back in your face

Shari

 

[Gooserider]

Snowblower eh....you are going get lots of responses here....but have had good luck with Ariens, and my buddy buys all Honda stuff (if you have the $$$)
A few questions: How long is your driveway, appx? and how wide?

I would tend to say look at an older Ariens or Toro two stage blower - the old units were built like tanks, and have fewer of the "safety-features" that mainly serve to keep you from getting the job done... Given that most locations don't get all that much snow, a blower doesn't get that many hours on it, so a late 70's or 80's unit can be a real bargain - I have a circa 1978 10hp 32" cut unit that I paid $500 for, the equivalent model today would cost about $2500 - I have the original engine that uses a bit of oil, but otherwise starts like new, and does a great job... Note that it is also no big deal to repower a unit with a dead engine, snow blowers mostly use very generic engines so it's pretty much of a bolt-up swap...

The other big thing that I recommend on any two stage machine is a "Clarence Kit" (do the search for where I've discussed it in the past) - greatly improves blowing ability, especially the slushy heavy stuff that's like trying to move concrete.... IMHO it's one of the best "performance improvements" I have ever done on a piece of equipment that I own.

Gooserider

 

[festerw]

The small single stage Toro's actually work really well for up to about 6 inches of snow.

My preference is Honda, my dad has a 20ish year old track drive HS55 that will run circles around the 10 HP Ariens I'm using at work. The Honda has needed 2 new belts and is due for a friction disk, those will be the only repairs besides normal maintenance.

 

[flyingcow]

I agree (reluctantly) with all responses. I wasn't upset that he didn't plow by the time I had to shovel -- I don't really mind shoveling (at least fluffy snow like we had). We didn't agree on a time to have the driveway plowed by. Since it was the first time it snowed after we had casually discussed plowing with him, my wife and I weren't even sure if he remembered talking to us about it, let alone whether he was actually going to come out. Yes, I should have called (in hindsight, I realize this would have avoided all of these issues, but I'm a little stubborn).

In any event -- can anyone recommend a good snow-blower? I don't want to get one of these dinky plastic Toro jobs that has a rotating paddle and is only good for a few inches.

I'm selling my snowblower.. good set up. 140hp tractor w/ 9ftx4ft rear mounted blower, will deliver for the right price. :coolsmile:

 

[SolarAndWood]

I'm selling my snowblower.. good set up. 140hp tractor w/ 9ftx4ft rear mounted blower

Not big enough for you?

I have been happy with the 10hp MTD. It goes through the plow drifts without a problem. Keeping a snowblower in a non-frozen garage and getting one with electric start gets you around a lot of the problems you have with equipment that doesn't get used very often.

If you are looking used, we have an older Toro that is nice as well. Its a 5hp and wont go through the big plow drifts without a fight but is much better made than the MTD and the auqer is bomb proof. I don't think I've ever replaced a shear pin where I always have a half dozen on hand for the MTD and often have to tweak the blades back into shape.

 

[SPED]

Here's something I just learned about new blowers this weekend. My dad bought a new ariens a couple years ago, I believe it was the 27 inch, somewhere around 1000 at home cheapo. He replaced a 30 yr old ariens with it. He absolutely loves his new one.

Now my brother just bought a house, and went to buy the same one. He applies for the credit card for the 10% off and while he is just about to have the 27" loaded, he notices something. On the new ariens unless you upgrade to 30"(1300) none of the lower models have chute height adjustment via a handle anymore It's all manual and requires you to stop and walk around to the chute to do it. You still have control of direction of snow being thrown but not height. My dads 27" still has the adjustment.

Ok, so I'm in TSC today and I notice the same thing on all but cub cadets. I am floored!! Now maybe I am just crazy(it's been suggested) but this is a HUGE feature for me. On my driveway one side of the yard is the same height and the other is 8 feet up. So every time I hit the end of the driveway and turn around I adjust the height. Anyway please keep an eye on the small stuff when you buy, no matter the brand, some things I just can't live without and probably wouldn't have thought to check if i was buying a new one. For now the mid 70's sears one I have lives on(barely).

 

[mayhem]

I have two two stage 24" blowers...neither one has a remote height adjustment, but on both its a very easy reach over the handlebars to get at it.

To be fair, both of mine are smaller than the ones your mentioning and neither is new...the Ariens is probably a late 80's vintage and the Simplicity sat unused for 5 years after the original owner used it for at least 2-3 years.

Also worth mentioing that you're probably seeing big box store versions of major brands. It is my understanding that the Ariens sold by HD are not the same as Ariens sold by regular dealers. They tend to be cheaper, lighter, have oddball parts and are low on features...but alot less expensive than at the Ariens dealer. I think the 24" Ariens normally sells in the $1000 range.

 

[SPED]

Mayhem, excellent point on the big box store vs dealer. Maybe I'll see if I can find my local ariens dealer, as that would be the brand i'd like to go with.

Good to know you can reach over and change the height on yours, I didn't think to see if that was possible when I was looking. Maybe I'm just spoiled from having the remote adjustment on mine, but dang I like that feature.

 

[Gooserider]

On my OLD Ariens, the height adjuster was a handle on the top section of the chute - just reach forward over the engine and hit it with your hand or yank on the handle - assuming you ever wanted anything other than maximum height and distance (I like trying to nail the overhead wires.... :coolgrin: ) To me a remote adjustment would be a negative, as it is just another point of possible failure... I have been very unimpressed with the recent machines I've seen in the stores that have the "joystick" chute control - I tried it and found that they barely worked on the store floor - and they expect it to work in my driveway? I have the old crank handle, which is almost totally reliable - nothing to jam, nothing to freeze, nothing to go out of adjustment, all metal... (I had a roll-pin come out of one of the U-joints once - replaced with a cotter pin, took about 2 minutes to fix...)

I wouldn't mind doing something to electrify the crank motor - but wouldn't put a lot of effort into it, and would insist that I could still manually crank it if the electric failed...

Gooserider

 

[mayhem]

Looking at my old Ariens, the chute directional adjuster is a nice, METAL worm drive with a reasonably fine toothed receiver on the base of the chute. A little grease and it turns incredibly smoothly because it has alot of teeth biting at the same time and the maching is done to a good, tight tolerance. The much newer Simplicity also uses a worm drive, but rather than a gear that looks like it came out of a car's transmission, its more like a 5" long spring...the teeth on the chute are bigger and alot further apart and the whole mechanism works alot less smoothly. Again, a bit of grease works wonders, but even properly lubed up it squeaks like crazy and has a tendency to bind a bit and you have to back off a quarter turn and hit it again. The 9hp, 28" Craftsman we have at work uses a 100% plastic chute and adjustment. Its a looser worm drive than my Simplicity and no matter what you do to it, it will never operate smoothly.

Good to know you can reach over and change the height on yours, I didn’t think to see if that was possible when I was looking.

I'm new his year to snowblowers and am fortunate that in the past 9 months I've been given a pair of really nice, heavy duty snowblowers that I got working with very little effort...it might be that since I've never used a modern premium blower before that I'm just looking at it differently than you. It also may be that its just alot easier on my blowers simply because they're smaller than yours and he reach is shorter. Seems unreasnable that there would not be a way for you to reach confortably across the bars and just flip the thing...it has a huge handgrip right on top for (I presume) exactly this reason. Haven't really used the Simplicity yet, but it too has a handle on top of the chute, but I notice that it also has a large hand screw to keep it in place, so I'm going to venture that its nowhere near as easy to change the distance settings on the fly like I was able to do with the Ariens.

Maybe I’ll see if I can find my local ariens dealer, as that would be the brand i’d like to go with.

Check with your local dealer to see if they'll service the one he got from HD. Frequently they won't because they box stores sell crap and they don't often take the standard parts from the manufacturer. If they'll service it then its very pssible that he got a good deal on a eral Ariens and not some oddball Chinese thing thats not going to last you more than a few years.

A good snowblower will be something you give to your kids. A cheap one that you got at a savings of about $200 or so will be something you toss out in 5 years.

 

[Gooserider]

There has been a fair bit of discussion about whether or not the Ariens equipment sold via HD and the big-boxes is the same as that sold via small dealers - so far, the evidence has been that it IS the same stuff - at least there is no difference visible in any of the parts lists on the Ariens website, or confirmed reports of parts not fitting on either type of machine. In addition, Ariens claims there is no difference.

However it seems that ALL of the Ariens machines have been cheapened up over the past few years - dealer and big-box alike.

One difference you might see is that the dealers may have more of the higher end, "feature rich" machines than the big boxes... The other thing to keep in mind is the dealer knows who his loyal customers are - so in that rush to get everything fixed the day before the big storm, guess who's going to get priority, but there may be "political" reasons not to put it that bluntly...

Bottom line, the "dealer machines are better than big box machines" seems to be somewhat of a myth - presumably put out by dealers and their customers for marketing reasons...

Gooserider

 

[mayhem]

Good info. To be honest I've never actually experienced it one way or another, simply regurgitating information I've gotten here and on other sites.

Only way to tell for sure is to do a side by side comparison. You could check model numbers I suppose...if an Ariens Deluxe 27 at HD has a different part number than one sold at a regular independant dealer, it may be a different machine in some way. using Ariens here as a generalization...same applies to Husqvarna, John Deere, etc. Of course a special part number can also just mean it is a special HD line that, despite being the same physical machine, comes with a more restrictive warranty r whatever. A $200 difference on a $1k snowblwer seems like too high of a percentage cost differenctial for it to be a truly identical product.

I just chatted with HD, warranty is a 3 year and the spec sheet looks identical, (they offered me 10% off if I ordered then and there, so any of you guys opting to grab one it wouldn't hurt to go online and ask a couple questions. You can probably order it online and do local pickup and save $100 for 10 minutes on the computer). Maybe truly the same product. Now I have to find out what thata going for locally...there is a dealer up he street from me and I need a sandwich for lunch anyways.