Hoping for a blizzard.

[TigerRaptor]

We got another week of 90 degree temperature and high humility. A blizzard definitely sounds good right about now.

Heck, I even bought my winter tires early.

[TheWhat]

After last year’s snow accumulation “4th most on record in Minnesota” I’ve opted for some mechanical assistance. I must be getting old because researching and purchasing my first snow blower was far more exciting than pornography.

Toro 39921

[Krom]

After last year’s snow accumulation “4th most on record in Minnesota” I’ve opted for some mechanical assistance. I must be getting old because researching and purchasing my first snow blower was far more exciting than pornography.

Toro 39921

My neighbor has a Toro single stage electric snowblower very similar to that, he really likes it and does all our sidewalks most times. The only time he doesn't is when we get a major snow or it is too warm/wet/heavy that is too much for a single stage to handle, then we take care of it with our much larger 2 stage electric.

[TheWhat]

This guy lives in Wisconsin I think and his whole channel is lawnmower/snowblower comparisons. This video is exactly the kind of snow I hate to shovel - I was especially concerned about the snow plow pack at the end of the driveway - it will destroy your body for the day, and if it freezes you're screwed. The Toro he is testing here is a model lower than the one I bought. If it can do this I'm happy because if it's a major storm the neighbor on the right has a 2 stage and the neighbor on the left has a tractor, but I don't like pulling favors if I don't have to. :]

[Neo]

Tiger, I think you mean high humidity. hehe

[Krom]

This guy lives in Wisconsin I think and his whole channel is lawnmower/snowblower comparisons. This video is exactly the kind of snow I hate to shovel - I was especially concerned about the snow plow pack at the end of the driveway - it will destroy your body for the day, and if it freezes you're screwed. The Toro he is testing here is a model lower than the one I bought. If it can do this I'm happy because if it's a major storm the neighbor on the right has a 2 stage and the neighbor on the left has a tractor, but I don't like pulling favors if I don't have to. :]

Yeah, our neighbors is just like that, the video doesn't quite give away how quiet they are, but you can barely hear it from inside compared to a gas one that is easily audible from a block away. He usually doesn't make it far in a snow storm that big though, I think he only has one battery that is around 325 Wh which limits how much snow he can really move when it is wet and heavy and putting a high load on the tool. Our 2 stage uses two batteries with a total capacity of just over 1.1 kWh which makes a big difference in endurance.

I use our snow blower almost exclusively in eco mode, even in that mode it is more powerful than our old 2 stage gas blower by a significant margin (same 24" size), in turbo mode it eats batteries in like 12 minutes flat but is insanely powerful and will chew through anything you can get into the auger and throw it a ridiculous distance.

[Isaac]

I just use one of these:

[Top Gun]

This thread amuses me considering that we didn't get so much as a flake of actual accumulation last year. Nothing wrong with the climate, no sir!

[TheWhat]

The model I purchased has 2 batteries: 7.5 and a 2.5 to make 10 “amp hours” whatever the hell that means. It requires 4 to run it - I think that means to start it you need 4Ah. It’s supposed to last an hour before a charge and requires 3 hours to recharge. Hand shoveling takes between 30-60 minutes.

For 4 years I’ve been doing it by hand and I think it’s good to get in physical activity, reps for my bag-o-bones but it’s too much sometimes. Also, it’s not uncommon for older people to have heart attacks shoveling (I don’t have hard data but meteorologists warn of people just up and croaking during snowstorms).

Hopefully it will be $1200 bux well spent. I think it will be if even to save my wrists so I can produce annoying, outdated rock music on weighted midi controllers and Fender Telecasters and Jazz basses.
:]

[Krom]

The model I purchased has 2 batteries: 7.5 and a 2.5 to make 10 “amp hours” whatever the hell that means. It requires 4 to run it - I think that means to start it you need 4Ah. It’s supposed to last an hour before a charge and requires 3 hours to recharge. Hand shoveling takes between 30-60 minutes.

For 4 years I’ve been doing it by hand and I think it’s good to get in physical activity, reps for my bag-o-bones but it’s too much sometimes. Also, it’s not uncommon for older people to have heart attacks shoveling (I don’t have hard data but meteorologists warn of people just up and croaking during snowstorms).

Hopefully it will be $1200 bux well spent. I think it will be if even to save my wrists so I can produce annoying, outdated rock music on weighted midi controllers and Fender Telecasters and Jazz basses.
:]

Amp hours a stupid term for battery capacity that is only relevant when comparing with batteries of exactly the same voltage/manufacturer. Fortunately you can convert it to watt hours which is a number that does make sense even across brands/types/voltages: multiply the amp hours by the voltage. In your case, 2.5+7.5 amp hours @ 60v = 600 watt hours. Ultimately the watt hours is the best measure of the amount of work over time a battery can perform which is why it is the chosen measure of battery capacity in electric vehicles. (For instance my Tesla Model 3 battery would be "208 amp hours" which doesn't really tell you anything useful, but the actual 75 kWh capacity number is useful because basically all EVs tell you consumption in watt-hours per mile.)

The two batteries I use in my snow blower are 56v and 10.0 amp hours, which means 560 watt hours each so they combine to 1120 watt hours.

[TigerRaptor]

Sweet X7, I do like this style. Anyway, Toro's quality control on many of their non-commercial lawn products has gone to ★■◆●. Their snow blower line on the other hand is still well built. The battery powered single stage is a lifesaver. It's powerful, light, and very easy to maneuver. You'll be quite happy with it. My single stage uses two 7.5 ah batteries, and like Krom's two stage, this machine on full power with powder snow was overkill; 50 to 60% power was enough to get the job done.

I did a upgrade to mine. It really blows.



By the way, the Briggs and Stratton snow blower I got for around $600 is now selling for $1099 at some places. Damn inflation. 

[TheWhat]

Since you guys know what you’re talking about and I don’t can you explain something to me? In some of the review videos I’ve noticed the person is just covered in snow. Is this due to laziness and stupidity? Like not taking wind direction in to consideration or adjusting the chute or is this normal? My neighbors who have snow blowers aren’t covered in snow head to toe, some of the reviews they even had ski goggles. Why?

El oh el

[TigerRaptor]

TheWhat where you living in Minnesota during the 1991 Halloween blizzard? I remember Minnetonka got hit really hard that day.

https://www.weather.gov/dlh/1991halloweenblizzard

[TheWhat]

Yes. Lagoon Ave S Minneapolis. My first apartment, I moved there a week after high school graduation. 3rd floor overlooking the street.

It was a wild week - the Twins won the WS and it was crazy honking underneath my window then a few days later was the Halloween blizzard. I didn’t have to shovel snow then. lol

I assembled and tested the snowblower this afternoon. We may get a whole inch tomorrow morning.

[TigerRaptor]

My dad couldn't go to work for a few days since his office was in Minneapolis. Highway 7 at the time was a complete mess with all the stranded cars.

[TigerRaptor]

It looks like it could be another mild winter. Normally I'd have the winter tires on by now, but not with these temperatures.