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First, I would like to thank everyone for being patient this weekend . I went to Chicago for my daughter’s baby shower. It is my first grandchild and it’s a girl! Yay! I will get to answering all the comments over the next 24 hours. I moderate all the comments so yours will not show up on MovingSnow until I answer it.
Toro SnowMaster Update:
It appears everyone loves their new Toro SnowMaster Snow Throwers. The 724 series works well and the new owners who spent the extra $100 for the 824 series just love them. The Snow Thrower is listed to handle up to 18 inches but is handling the 20-30 inches from this storm better than “my neighbor’s 2-stage”
Update Dec 2016:
Husqvarna Impeller Belt:
The only casualty of the storm so far has been the impeller belt that came with your new Husqvarna ST224, ST224P, ST227P and ST230P. It appears that about 5% of those OEM belts are breaking within the first hour of use. It does not appear there is a mechanical problem or a pulley alignment problem with the snow blower. The belt is just not strong enough to handle this snow. Once you change the belt the problem goes away.
I’ll check with Husqvarna this week but at this point I’m sure this is not a design flaw with the snow blower itself. I have a feeling this will be a problem with how the specifications were written to the supplier of the belt or the manufacture of the belt itself. I personally know of over 2000 of these snow blowers and there are less than 15 owners have stated the belt has broke. Just to be safe, go get a spare belt.
UpDate, 1/27/15: I haven’t talked to Husqvarna yet but I did more thinking about the belt issue and here is what I think. The vast majority of the belt breaking issues has happened when you tried to clear these really deep snows like the east coast got this weekend. So… There are two basic types of 2-stage snow blowers, residential and heavy-duty. Heavy-duty snow blowers ($1200-$2400) are designed to handle heavy snow, wet snow, lake effect snow, the snow Boston got last year and the “snowman snow” the east coast got last weekend. Residential snow blowers ($600-$1100) are designed to clear the normal snow the rest of us get. Snow that doesn’t pack well, 14-16 inches of light, fluffy snow, 8-10 inches of heavy, wet snow. The residential snow blowers will clear the end-of-driveway snow but are not designed to handle hours of clearing that heavy-wet stuff all at once. If you overwork the residential grade you will break belts, etc.
The snow the east coast got was some of the worst we have gotten in a long time. 20-40 inches of heavy wet stuff. Trying to clear that with a residential grade snow blower is like trying to mow a field of waist-high prairie grass with your lawn tractor. It works for a while but eventually something will break. It’s like buying a $50 electric mixer for your home and then taking it to your restaurant to use everyday to make 20 loaves of bread. It will work for a day or two…….
So, if you have a residential grade snow blower don’t try to get that much snow moved as quickly as possible. Don’t try to take a full width pass. Instead take 1/2 or 1/4 passes. Keep the snow blower in 1st gear and if the engine is working very hard stop your forward motion and let the snow blower clear itself of snow. Use the snow blower for 1/2 hour or so and then take a 1/2 hour break. That allows bearings, belts and gearboxes to cool down and gives you a chance not overwork yourself.
It’s also a very good idea to keep a spare auger belt, drive belt, spark plug and 2-4 extra shear pins on-hand and learn how to change them. Yes, even if you have a brand new snow blower you should have those parts on hand. It will save you a lot of frustration if you do break a belt, hit something or get a vapor lock from over working the engine.
I’ll list the part number below for the auger belt so you don’t have to go searching for it.
Changing the belt is not THAT hard of a job if you have a set of combination wrenches or a 3/8 inch socket set. Read the manual twice before you start. Here is a video for changing the belt. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dCqdqkYioYU
If you are not sure about changing the belt but decide to tackle it I suggest taking pictures of the steps as you do them with your cell phone. That way if you get confused you can see what you did.
Belts are not covered under the defects warranty that comes with snow blowers so if by chance your local dealer gives you one thank them profusely.
Husqvarna ST224 Impeller belt. 581 83 24-01. The new 24 inch Husqvarna, Poulan Pro, Jonsered and some Craftsman Canada all use the same belt. Husqvarna does not list the size but some aftermarket shops are listing it as 4LX35 or 4LX35.4 If you can’t get a belt from a dealer you can try a sized belt but I won’t guarantee this is the right size. If you do buy an aftermarket belt BUY a “horsepower” belt. The power belts are usually a different color than black or if it’s black the belt is rough – it’s wrapped like the fabric on your cotton t-shirt. Don’t buy a fraction horsepower belt. These belts you can see strands on the sides of the belts. A good belt will cost you $15 to $30.
Husqvarna ST224P Impeller belt. 581 83 24-01. The new 24 inch Husqvarna, Poulan Pro, Jonsered and some Craftsman Canada with power steering all use the same belt and it is the same as the 24 inch without power steering. Husqvarna does not list the size but some aftermarket shops are listing it as 4LX35 or 4LX35.4 If you can’t get a belt from a dealer you can try a sized belt but I won’t guarantee this is the right size. If you do buy an aftermarket belt BUY a “horsepower” belt. The power belts are usually a different color than black or if it’s black the belt is rough – it’s wrapped like the fabric on your cotton t-shirt. Don’t buy a fraction horsepower belt. These belts you can see strands on the sides of the belts. A good belt will cost you $15 to $30.
Husqvarna ST227P Impeller belt. 581 83 24-01. The new 27 inch Husqvarna, Poulan Pro, Jonsered and some Craftsman Canada with power steering all use the same belt and it is the same as the 24 inch without power steering. Husqvarna does not list the size but some aftermarket shops are listing it as 4LX35 or 4LX35.4 If you can’t get a belt from a dealer you can try a sized belt but I won’t guarantee this is the right size. If you do buy an aftermarket belt BUY a “horsepower” belt. The power belts are usually a different color than black or if it’s black the belt is rough – it’s wrapped like the fabric on your cotton t-shirt. Don’t buy a fraction horsepower belt. These belts you can see strands on the sides of the belts. A good belt will cost you $15 to $30.
Husqvarna ST230P Impeller belt. 587 20 90-01. The new 30 inch Husqvarna, Poulan Pro, Jonsered and some Craftsman Canada with power steering all use the same belt. Husqvarna does not list the size. If you can’t get a belt from a dealer you can try a 587209001 belt but I won’t guarantee this is the right size. If you do buy an aftermarket belt BUY a “horsepower” belt. The power belts are usually a different color than black or if it’s black the belt is rough – it’s wrapped like the fabric on your cotton t-shirt. Don’t buy a fraction horsepower belt. These belts you can see strands on the sides of the belts. A good belt will cost you $15 to $30.
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Steve Carter
Blizzard of 2016 hit cntr DE and left aprox. 14″ of wet snow. Unable to contact any of neighbors or relatives with tractors to dig out, I was shoveling snow from around our vehicles when I heard a snow blower out front. Neighbor across the street borrowed a snow blower just to clear our driveway! Yep, that’s right, just to clear ours!
Now I am interested in purchasing a snow blower so I never have to rely on others.
He used a Troy Built, but leaning towards the Husqvarna ST230P. Driveway is aprox. 200′, open fields two sides so possible drifting, parking area for 4 vehicles & 2 utility trailers, 2 car garage, detached shop.
Both in our late 60s, but fairly active! Rather be diving in the islands than dealing with the snow but figure if I have a snow blower it won’t snow again! LOL
Any suggestions are welcome!
OH, and I plan on my good neighbor clearing his drive as well!
Steve
Paul
Hi Steve, I’m not real happy with the ST230P right now. There is a rough pulley, idler, belt alignment issue with it. The problem was identified and the service bulletin was developed Feb 2015 but the ST230P snow blowers made this summer still have the same possible problem. Husqvarna is fixing them for free as they break but are not proactive and contacting registered owners to get the problem inspected/fixed before it breaks.
So, you have quite a bit of area to clear so the ST230P is really not the best choice anyways. Yes, Like the Troy-Bilt it will do the job but it won’t hold up like a heavy duty unit will.
For your size area to clear and amount of snow you usually get these snow blowers will last 5-7 years. (My opinion) They cost about the same as the Husqvarna ST230P
Troy-Bilt 28-30 inch 2-stage snow blowers.
Craftsman 30 inch 2-stage snow blower
Cub Cadet 28 inch 2-stage
These snow blowers cost $100-$400 more and I expect them to last 10-20 years.
Ariens Deluxe 28.
Ariens Deluxe 28 SHO
Ariens Deluxe 30
Toro PowerMax HD 928 OHXE
Toro PowerMax HD 1028 OHXE
These Husqvarna snow blowers are on the pulley issue list but once repaired are good heavy-duty units.
Husqvarna ST327P
Husqvarna ST330P
Mike
Hi Paul
Well I went with the Ariens deluxe 28 sho, I liked your demo and pics/reviews and I read lots more online.My local John Deere dealer said he can’t keep them in stock ,thanks for all your input and reccomdations .
Paul
Hi Mike, Great! Yes, the Ariens Deluxe 28 SHO is on my short list for value, quality and how well it throws snow. I hope you get just enough snow so that you can put your new toy to a good test. Take a video so you can prove to your friends how far it really throws 🙂
Mike
The Troy-Bilt looks good to,I was also reading your reviews and online reviews about Ariens ,any suggestions about a model ,maybe something similar to the cub cadet or Troy Bilt one you did the demo with .Thanks for your help.
Paul
Hi Mike, The Ariens Deluxe 24 will handle snow as well or better as the Cub Cadet or Troy-Bilt. You will love to watch the Ariens throw a big plume of snow 50 feet or more.
The 24 is very similar to the 2015 Ariens Deluxe 28 SHO. Only the engine and width are different. You can read that review here: 2015 Ariens Deluxe 28 SHO
Mike
Hi Paul
I have a 6car driveway and the end gets hit pretty hard with the wall of winter being I live right around the corner from the town dpw building ,it seems like my street gets plowed every 10 minutes.I was doing a lot of research on the cub cadet 3x 24 hd and it seems most reviews it is very well liked.I have no sidewalks or patios to do or any lawn for the dogs,just tired of shoveling and espically the end of the driveway. How would do it deal with heavy wet sloppy snow we get a lot of in nw NJ in the mountains.Last week we got the blizzard of 2016 Jonas and it was just powdery snow and I would think it would go through that like butter.Thanks ….
Paul
Hi Mike, Yes, the 3X24 likes snow and the 3X24 is getting good reviews this year. Consumer Reports likes it. I have a review of it’s fraternal twin – the Troy-Bilt Vortex here: Is a 3-stage Better Than a 2-Stage?
I get to play in some snow plow snow and near the end of the video 4 inches of heavy, wet snow.
Brian Lager
Hi Paul
I have a ST330p that became a casualty of the winter. Entirely my fault. I managed to entangle a plant wire cage and, as a consequence, bent both augers. The shear bolts did their job but I didn’t not paying attention. My local dealer picked it up right away. Ordered a new LH auger ( the right only had a small bend easily repaired) and delivered it back to me within a week. Can’t ask for better service. My experience so far this winter has been very positive. The machine has ample power and carves through the bottom of the driveway very smoothly. My only gripe is that it is a heavy machine and does require a bit of strength to operate. As my wife said, it is not for the faint of heart.
I just love the hydrostatic transmission with no gears to shift and the hand warmers are a nice touch. Once you get used to the power steering system driving it is a breeze. Like all blowers there is a learning curve but it is not too difficult to get going. At 79 years old I imagine this last me for the foreseeable future. I live in Nova Scotia and chose this because of the crappy winters we get and I need a reliable product. So far this year we have had a couple of biggies but nothing out of the ordinary. We dodged the bullet last weekend and didn’t get a single flake.
Thanks for all the information you provide. You do a great service for all of us.
Paul
Brian, You are very welcome. Tell your wife women drive semi’s, airplanes and aircraft carriers. The 30 inch snow blowers like the ST330P fit into the same category 🙂