Snow Snow Blower Vs FEL Mounted Snow Plow

[JWR]

To respond to your inquiry: I do not live where there is frequent deep snow. However, every winter I go to my vacation property several times where the annual snowfall is often 200 inches and where many times the snow has been deep, hardpacked, drifted, wind packed, etc. before I ever get there. I do not have accurate statistics but there have been many times when the cars got hung, people with or without 4WD got hung, and when the packed snow was 2 or 3 feet deep. I use a Kubota B2150 4WD tractor. Eventually I evolved into using a front end loader and a rear mounted 5ft blower. In less challenging cases I use a rear blade . Then when the Kubota won't work with the rear blade (See below) I use something else.

I could have added chains but that was not the solution. I added a 5ft blower which is the right tool if/when the snow greets you feet deep, hardpacked or partly packed and you cannot get in with the car or the truck. You really need to know the whole context to decide what tools are best.

 

[Fallon]

Here in the Denver area we get a decent bit of snow, up to 2' at a time (ocassionally 4' drifts), but it rarely sticks around for more than a few weeks.

I built a SSQA plow for my L3200 (32hp, 3,500lbs loaded) out of a light plow for a jeep or something. It did most of what I needed. I ended up getting a blower as well. Still used the plow 80% of the time as it was faster & caused less snow to blow on me. But when I hit big drifts or really wet heavy snow I needed to flip around & blow.

I tossed chains on the fronts as I couldnt fit chains on the rear R4s without wheel spacers. It worked wthout chains, but really didnt steer while plowing. Chains increased my push by about 20%.

I got a Snow Dawg SSQA plow for my new L4060hstc. No snow worth plowing last year so I have yet to see how it works. It doesnt have lateral float like my previous home made unit did, so that concerns me a bit. Most SSQA plows seem to be solid mount that way, unlike truck plows, which have lateral float. Might be reingineering my brand new plow a bit to get float, but I knew that when I got it. Was a decent enough deal to do it anyway.

 

[diesel85]

I prefer a rear mount blower along with one of the following up front (in that order):

1. Snow mover (attaches to the bucket).
2. The bucket alone.
3. A hydraulic plow blade.

When I get my bigger tractor, I am going to order a snow mover for the front bucket.

 

[Coolerat]

Just wrapping up first winter with my BX1870.

I never even considered the FEL as a serious snow tool. It is very useful in the summer and may be useful for snow in milder areas.

That left me with needing a snow blower. Rear mount is pretty cheap but these days my neck can't handle much of that. So I bit the bullet and got the front mount.

Ag tires loaded and no chins and no extra weight. Wasn't sure how all would go but after a fairly average winter I have all the results I need.

Treated fuel and a battery tender but no heater. ZERO starting problems down to about -20ish.

ZERO traction problems.

ZERO weight problems. Of coarse with me in the seat it would take some load to make the rear light.

We get alot of lake effect snow here which gives us big numbers but that stuff blows easy and can even be pushed if you have several acres to push the snow from a single car driveway. Thats the biggest reason I hate pushing snow. Takes 3 hours to plow in November, 2 hours in December and an hour in January. By February your house bound cause no place left to push the snow. Better have enough food to hold out til April.

Test I was waiting for was the big Nor'Easters of March. Came home to 3 foot on March 1st ( drive home was a barrel of laughs). Wet heavy nasty stuff. With a blade I'd have not even been able to get out of the garage. Using the loader I would have had to move it one scoop at a time. The front blower played with that storm (and the several that followed it). The full width first cut wasn't super fast but ok and it went quickly after that.

Cannot say enough good about the BX1870 with front blower. Thats in heavy snow country. For lighter use or people who like spending forever pushing snow its alot of money for little gain. For tuff or R4 tires I would prolly add chains but with the ag tires I never spun a wheel.

 

[flingwing1969]

I've been moving snow for many years here in northeast PA. I clear 1.25 miles of private gravel road and several driveways. I've had rear mount snowblowers and FEL plows on all of my Kubotas but do most of the work with the FEL plow. I can move 5 times as much snow in half the time than I can with the blower. There are some seasons where the blower isn't used at all and I just keep it mounted for ballast. The blower is used mostly in deep snow when the banks get too high or in tight quarters where places to pile snow are limited.

Since FEL plows are a bit cheaper, have fewer moving parts and do a better job on unpaved surfaces, I'm curious why blowers seem to be so popular here. I'd appreciate comments as to your preference and why.

I like my blower simply because it throws the snow into the woods on either side of the driveways instead of creating banks along the driveway edge. I can't get very far off the edge of the driveway due to trees and brush so I can't push the snow very far off the edge. If we have several heavy snows in quick succession, there is never an issue with where to put the snow using the blower.

On the other hand, I have two driveways, one paved and one gravel. The blower always works nicely on the paved one but is a bit of a pain to keep adjusted so as to not dig into the gravel and make a mess on the unpaved one.

 

[sixdogs]

Plows are faster. Once you get over 3 feet of snow on the ground and snow plow banks are over 6 feet tall you are SOL with a plow.

Snow Plow
Pros
1. fast
2. cheaper capital cost - don't need a PTO or second engine to drive impellers on snow blowers
Cons
1. snow banks
2. limited snow disposal area - you are looking at moving all the snow and dumping it in a swarf zone about 6 feet from your plow
3. the more snow you need to move the heavier it is and you need bigger machines to do it
4. deep snow banks makes it more susceptible to flooding/damming and turns your driveway/parking lot into an ice rink during thaw/freeze
5. can't get into tight areas - you end up with a long machine and you need speed to push snow farther away
6. deep snow banks impact visibility - if you get 6 foot deep snow drifts piled at the end/sides of your driveway you can't see anything pulling out onto the road
7. deep snow banks cause more snow drift problems - rule of thumb every 4 inches of snow can create 12 inches of drifts. If you have a 3 foot snow bank on the sides of your driveway you end up with 3 foot deep snow drifts blocking your driveway and your driveway is impassible to cars and tough to push away
8. snow plowing compacts the snow, compacted snow turns into ice
9. wet snow getting plowed followed by freeze up = guaranteed ice rink for a driveway

Snow Blower
Pros
1. Throws snow 50+ feet away - almost no snow banks because it has a very large swarf zone
2. cuts deep snow easily and requires less machine weight and HP to move it
3. cuts deep impacted snow like snow banks and snow drifts no problem
4. allows melt water to flow away easier because you don't form ice dams from compacted snow
5. less snow drifting issues - your cars don't get stuck as quickly
6. you can clear tight areas easily
7. compacted snow turns your gravel driveway into an ice rink in spring
8. wet snow followed by freeze up? blower throws wet snow away, you get less compaction and less likely to get ice rink
Cons
1. higher capital cost - need PTO or second engine to drive impellers
2. takes longer time than plowing - at least initially at the start of the season
3. if you have a gravel driveway you have to leave a skim layer of snow or you throw stone/rocks all over your lawn
4. newspapers. rural newspapers get delivered onto your driveway the night before a heavy snowfall in plastic baggies that look like newspaper sausages. These are guaranteed to jamb your secondary impeller and break shear bolts
5. finding rocks/branches/recycling with your snow blower

Bottom line - if you live in a snow belt area you will eventually buy a snow blower because it makes the most sense and save you time and frustration in the long run. If you live in a banana belt area and only get occasional snow then a snow plow will probably work out fine for you.

I have a neighbour with a 1 ton truck and a plow that he uses for his snow clearing business. By mid to end of season he has to ask me to clear away his snow banks because he runs out of room to push the snow. He also complains about flooding in spring even though his house is on a hill. My gravel driveway turns into an ice rink for a couple weeks every spring but I never have flooding issues.

Great post. It answered all the questions I had about snowblowers and plows, especially for our marginal snow area.

 

[sixdogs]

Let me ask a question on using a PTO snowblower on a gravel drive. Even if they have skid shoes, I presume they will make a mess of the gravel as Mikester suggests. So what do you do? Do you leave the implement off the ground maybe an inch or two so it doesn't even hit the gravel?

 

[Coolerat]

Let me ask a question on using a PTO snowblower on a gravel drive. Even if they have skid shoes, I presume they will make a mess of the gravel as Mikester suggests. So what do you do? Do you leave the implement off the ground maybe an inch or two so it doesn't even hit the gravel?

Well...................

Paved is the way to go in a perfect world.

Meanwhile for us mere mortals gravel and a blower isn't that bad. I go leave an inch or so. These blowers are pretty wide and do find levelness. I got this one spot thats allows the blower to dig in and grab and slug of dirt and shear a bolt. I know right where it is yet still manage to get it every time. Luckily I bought a bunch of bolts. That spot won't be there next year.

Also gonna have some gravel on the lawn when the snow melts.

 

[sixdogs]

So the answer is to just not lower it all the way to the ground?

 

[Coolerat]

The skid shoes help on gravel but I leave it a little high also.

I do several driveways and some are paved, god those are nice, and on those I actually lift the front tires off the ground until I need to steer.

If I was in the middle of a 1000 foot drive I just wouldn't worry about it. Its a very small amount of gravel it digs up.