Snow blowing with a Toolcat - 1500' gravel driveway

[theoshin]

i have a 1300 ft paved drive in Northern Wi and another few hundred ft of gravel roads to and from barns.

i have a blower and broom. i use the broom the most. under 5 inches and the broom works unless really wet. if it snows 10 inches i can do the broom 2x faster than the blower 1x. i only use the blower to clear out the sides or when the snow gets too deep - i dont think you will have that problem with your open driveway. the blower is a lot slower than the broom or a plow would be.

personally i would try a plow first. problem with the broom or blower is that until the gravel freezes you are going to be moving a lot of it off the driveway.

my 2 cents.

 

[BLES]

I'd vote for the TC without question. I have a 100hp tractor with front dozer blade, a 50hp tractor with various attachments, and a first gen TC 5600. After trying to convince myself a blower for TC was too expensive attachment and too slow to use, I finally bought one. Never use anything else now. Yes, it's much slower than a blade, but I handle it once and snow is GONE. No ridges (which undoubtedly catch more snow and drifts by tomorrow!!), no piles to deal with later. Snow is GONE. And the TC cab beats the rest hands down if you have anyone else that might want to ride (I have 3 kids that have spent hours in the TC). Plus, once you have the TC you'll find a million other jobs for it and will wonder how you lived without it.

I still use the tractor occasionally for certain things, but if I have to choose just one... easily the TC. (BTW - I have 1250 hours and am looking to trade to a new one now.)

BLES

 

[MetroX]

I have a 2004 Model B Toolcat with a power angle snow blade which I use for my 1000' of gravel driveway, plus about 1500 sq ft. of parking area. The plow is very fast for most snow, especially on the drive where one or two passes will clear everything to the sides. When clearing the parking area it is a little less efficient, as I have to push the snow up to 100' to get it to the edge of the parking lot. I think a blower might be better for a large open area like that, but it is not in my budget.

The Toolcat's cab, heat, and radio all make it much more enjoyable to get out in the really crummy winter weather and clear the snow. I never use my tractor for snow anymore.

 

[samtip]

If you do get a tool cat I would recommend you put a load of firewood in the back bed for the winter. The extra weight really helps in traction and lifting. I have use a 74 an 100 inch snow bucket with the wood in the back of my TC.

Still waiting for it to snow to use my blower for the first time. Will use the buckets utill we get the big snows. Then out comes the blower.

 

[1965tontruck]

I add approximately 800 pounds of sand bags to the back of my tool cat. The added weight is essential for traction. The first year I had the snow blower and plow were hard because I did not use any ballast. After that year I found sand bags were my best bet.