Snow Power Sweeper in Snow!

smartguyz · Jan 2, 2004

Hi Guys,

Just spent the last couple of days using the 48" power sweeper to sweep away about 6" worth of snow (which for Portland, OR is a LOT). It worked extremely well, and gives the Power Sweeper an outstanding amount of utility for me. Spring/Summer/Fall - general cleanup and sweeping duties. Winter - light snow removal.

It does a really great job. The sweeping action is so powerful that it throws the snow several feet (in any direction you wish, as you can control the angle of the sweeper from the driver's seat). My neighbor was using an old tractor (An old Farmall, I think), with a rear blade, and his eyebrows definitely went up when I arrived with the PT425 and the Power Sweeper. The sweeper really gets the snow off the asphalt, unlike a blade, which leaves a thin layer. You can throw the snow to either side, and there is so little snow left that black ice isn't a problem.

Just wanted to let you guys know - it really works well. My storage idea with just tilting it up and back and resting it on its caster wheels in 'float' works welll, too. If we have any more snow, I'll just drive it out of the garage, and it will be instantly ready to rock!

Sincerely,

Rob /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

MossRoad · Jan 2, 2004

Great to hear! Sound like you really get good use out of that particular attachment. /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

bubenberg · Jan 3, 2004

i saw the guys in Tazwell move around some six inches of wet snow, when i went to order my green beasty ... was very impressed

thanks for the info

Schultz · Jan 4, 2004

Our town (Dexter, MI) school sytem or city works has a sweeper on their Ford front mower/tractor that they use all winter to clear the sidewalks. They have been doing it that way for at least 15 years. It seems to work great since it does clear right down to the pavement or concreate and it won't catch a high lip on the side walks like a blade.

But I bet it takes them a while to switch between the sweeper and mower.

Tim

smartguyz · Jan 4, 2004

Install time is a great point! When storing the Power Sweeper in the basement, I sometimes need to disconnect it and push it around by hand (which is easier than you might think, since it sits on the bristles and the caster wheels. Connecting and disconnecting only takes a few seconds. I tried disconnecting the hydraulic scoop on my JD318 a couple of months ago. Frankly, I gave up after heaving on it for 20 minutes. Augh! Swapping implements on the PT is just a treat.

The big deal this year is my lovely wife now says that the Power Sweeper was worth the price! She used to live in Edmonton, Alberta Canada, and she remembers hours-and-hours worth of shovelling and moving of snow as a child. When she sees how much time I save (which is usually spent with her, or in snowball fights with the kids) using this device, she is now completely sold on it. It was a bit questionable purchase when I first got it, since its primary purpose was to sweep the road and courtyard. Now that its utility has been greatly expanded, I've made a great decision! Hooray!

BTW, BIG thanks to MossRoad for suggesting the forks during my initial purchase. It has bailed me out yet again. When moving the PT out of the basement, I foolishly decided to also move the JD318 out to the yard to have more maneuvering room for the PT. Well... you might imagine, I got stuck! Eep! It required the use of the PT and the forks to actually lift the JD back up the yard, in order to get it back to storage. I ripped up the yard a bit, but nothing that won't grow back!

-Rob /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

JackIL · Jan 4, 2004

Just wanted to chime in to say that I too like to use the Power Broom for snow removal--just a different brand thats all. (See attached photo of my Ventrac tractor and broom.) Over the years I have used front and rear blades and scoops as well as a great front snowblower on a JD 955. Each type has strengths and weaknesses that have been discussed at length on this forum.

Here are the 2 things I like best about the broom. (1) It is totally forgiving of cracks and abrupt changes in level of concrete and asphalt drives and sidewalks. Scoops and blades seem to find every slight change in level causing abrupt decelerations and / or blade tripping. (2) The broom acts very much in snow like a power box rake acts in soil. This means it somewhat tosses the material but not so far as to be an endangerment to nearby people, cars, or buildings. When using a blower I found I had to be very careful not to let it sling the small gravel that seems to be on every paved roadway and driveway into something valuable. I think the front blower would be great if I had long open expanses of driveway to clear. However, for the close quarters I have to operate in, the broom is a nice compromise.

On the other hand, the broom is most effective if the snow is only 8 inches or less and really works best when it is around 4-6 inches. Therefore, you have to be able to start sweeping relatively soon after the snow begins or it might get ahead of you. If it does I can always fall back and use the front blade.

Although clearing snow with a power broom is not seen as often as with blades or blowers, there are certain commercial applications where they are preferred. The major one is clearing sidewalks around shopping malls and similar campus type layouts where there are often pedestrians present right where you need to clear the snow. I first learned of this from a dealer near Minneapolis-St. Paul who has sold hundreds of power brooms over the years for just this type of application.

JackIL

duane · Jan 5, 2004

Hi Rob,

Great post. Love to hear the experiences with PT attachments. Any chance you can post some pictures, I would especially like to see the back of the power broom where the quick attach plate and caster wheels are.

thanks again
Duane

jfh230 · Jan 5, 2004

Is that gravel I see the Ventrac sitting on and if so how well does the power broom work on that?

Thanks
Jack

JackIL · Jan 5, 2004

Yes, that is gravel, and the photo was taken during the summer. In the winter, I use the broom on this gravel when it is covered with snow by just slightly lifting it. In other words, I just try to sweep away all but an inch or so of the snow. On gravel that much residual snow doesn't make any difference.

The Ventrac has an adjustable weight transfer system that allows very little down force of the bristles and the gauge wheels on the ground. This allows the bristles to just "flick" the snow or whatever you are sweeping without putting much down pressure on the surface. As a result, if you are sweeping along the edge of a sidewalk or drive and get the broom out over the turf, it does not pull the turf up or damage it. It just gets "combed."

JackIL

pajoube · Jan 5, 2004

Having worked around airports most of my career, I noticed that brooms used for clearing snow (all areas) would require bristle changes every 3 or 4 years depending on use. With these smaller brooms do you expect to change out the bristles very soon due to wearing?
PJ

ernemats · Jan 5, 2004

How do you think the rotary broom would work to take gravel out of the lawn and put back on the driveway, would it tear the grass out?? Just wondering as I use a back blade on my big tractor to plow the driveway for deep snow and I end up with a lot of gravel in the yard.

smartguyz · Jan 5, 2004

Hmm. I suspect that if you have a PT with draft control, it may be do-able. The trick would be to be able to adjust the amount of down pressure on the bristles. I suppose it would also depend on the sensitivity of the draft controls. As the PT425 has no draft controls, I can't really say. I suppose you could experiment with the tilt control, since that would shift the 'weight' from the casters to the tips of the bristles. I would experiment, but the grass is so beaten-up that I hesitate to subject it to anything right now. There has been a LOT of rain, and the grass is really soggy. You should see the patch of grass where I lifted the JD318 with the PT425. It's pretty muddy. I'm just glad grass grows back so quickly - I'll still have to wait until spring for things to look right again.

-Rob /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

JackIL · Jan 5, 2004

I haven't worn one out yet so I really don't know what wear life to expect. I would consider 3-4 years of life in a very heavy use environment like clearing snow at airports to be quite reasonable.

JackIL

JackIL · Jan 5, 2004

I can sweep gravel off of turf without damage to the turf so long as the ground is absolutely level. I have the weight transfer (or draft control to use the PT terms) set to max. It is also necessary for the soil to be relatively solid and dry--if the ground is soft, turf damage will occur.

These brooms can also be used to dethatch lawns, but it takes another attachment to set the gauge wheels on the outside of the broom and exactly in line with the contact patch of the broom. This is to prevent the broom from gouging the turf on uneven areas. If the wheels are behind the contact patch they are not effective in preventing gouging.

See photo of sidemount gauge wheels here Side Mount gauge wheels for dethatching

JackIL

smartguyz · Jan 5, 2004

Hi Duane,

Here's photo #1 - The Power Sweeper on the PT425 in the garage, arms in float, in 'rest position', fully tilted-up to put the weight on the gauge wheels only.

-Rob /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

smartguyz · Jan 5, 2004

The other side...

smartguyz · Jan 5, 2004

Closeup of the attach plate (sorry, it's like 15 degrees out, and I didn't want to 'untilt' it and lift it - which would give a better shot - we're expecting freezing snow and rain tonight!) /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

smartguyz · Jan 5, 2004

Final shot - other side of the quick mount plate, shows the angle cylinder...

-Rob /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

duane · Jan 6, 2004

Rob,

Thanks for the pictures. It's really got me thinking that having one would be nice.

I quess the PT had plenty of traction to pull your JD318 out of the mud.

thanks again
Duane