Really dumb snowblower question

[Fanatical Meat]

I need a new snow blower, I like the Ariens models I’ll likely get the 24” or 28” of this

https://www.ariens.com/en-us/snow-products/snow-blowers/deluxe/deluxe-28

I store this in a shed without power, I know the battery will ultimately go dead. Electric start has no value to me.
If the battery is dead will I still be able to pull start?

 

[bbhaag]

I beleive it has a manual pull start option. If you watch this video the guy has the same snow blower you are interested in and he is able to pull start it at the 1:12 mark.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

I beleive it has a manual pull start option. If you watch this video the guy has the same snow blower you are interested in and he is able to pull start it at the 1:12 mark.

Cool thank you

 

[herm0016]

small solar panel trickle charger on the shed maybe?

 

[Fanatical Meat]

small solar panel trickle charger on the shed maybe?

Fun nerd project but it’s completely not needed.
Shed has bad facing too. Solar on roof is perfectly positioned, shed is at a 90 degree angle to house roof plus it’s partially shaded.

 

[snoopy7548]

All snowblowers should have a manual start in addition to the electric start. I have the Ariens Deluxe 24" and it has both.

The snowblower doesn't have a battery. It hooks up to a regular 120Vac electrical socket with an extension cord for the electric start.

 

[cardiac]

If it has a battery, pick up a small jump box from Amazon or harbor Freight.

 

[mindless1]

Yes they all have pull start, at least in this smaller homeowner size. I think I ONCE used the power start right after I got mine, just to make sure it worked, but ever since then I just pull started it, even though there is a wall outlet right next it to.

That's just less of a bother than hooking an extension cord up... maybe if I had a bad back I'd use the electric start, but if I had a bad back then I'd probably just pay someone to clear my driveway and not worry about the other areas.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

All snowblowers should have a manual start in addition to the electric start. I have the Ariens Deluxe 24" and it has both.

The snowblower doesn't have a battery. It hooks up to a regular 120Vac electrical socket with an extension cord for the electric start.

I’m trying to decide between the 24” & 28”.
Space is a major concern, particularly the width.
How do you like the 24” version?

 

[Sukhoi]

How wet & heavy is your snow vs the hp of the snowblower? Wider may be pointless if you don't have the power to throw it.

Edit: Someone needs to tell Ariens that cc is not a unit of measure for power, and neither is ft-lb.

If you live in the snow belt I'd probably get the 24". When I was a kid in the snow belt east of Cleveland we had a fairly beefy MTD, I think 8 hp, and the limiting factor was always throwing the wet snow. I'd much rather have a narrower blower I can go nonstop with than the never ending stop-and-go waiting for the thrower to catch up when tossing wet snow.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

How wet & heavy is your snow vs the hp of the snowblower? Wider may be pointless if you don't have the power to throw it.

Edit: Someone needs to tell Ariens that cc is not a unit of measure for power, and neither is ft-lb.

If you live in the snow belt I'd probably get the 24". When I was a kid in the snow belt east of Cleveland we had a fairly beefy MTD, I think 8 hp, and the limiting factor was always throwing the wet snow. I'd much rather have a narrower blower I can go nonstop with than the never ending stop-and-go waiting for the thrower to catch up when tossing wet snow.

I’ve seen 8 horse & 11 horse listed
Decided I’m going with the 24” space is limited in the shed, space between cars is around 33” plus I do my neighbors walkway which my 22 inch mtd is perfect for.
I think the 28” will be more of a pain in the ass than a time saver

 

[snoopy7548]

I’ve seen 8 horse & 11 horse listed
Decided I’m going with the 24” space is limited in the shed, space between cars is around 33” plus I do my neighbors walkway which my 22 inch mtd is perfect for.
I think the 28” will be more of a pain in the ass than a time saver

You'll be happy with the 24". Unless you have a massive driveway, the 24" is probably the sweet spot. I love mine.

EDIT: The auto-turn steering thing they have is awesome. I'm always thankful for it whenever I see my neighbors wrestling with their snowblowers.

 

[NutBucket]

Edit: Someone needs to tell Ariens that cc is not a unit of measure for power, and neither is ft-lb.

Agreed on your first point l. As for the second:
https://www.briggsandstratton.com/n...browse/engine-horsepower-or-torque-value.html

 

[mindless1]

Wasn't there some lawsuit years ago where a manufacturer was sued because they rated equipment based on HP possible by the engine, rather than the real HP delivered at the lower RPM the equipment was set to use?

I don't know about all snowblowers but that would seem to apply to my Cub Cadet because its engine runs nowhere near full throttle the engine should be capable of, I mean since new and it never seemed to lack power.

For some reason I thought that was why the small engine industry moved to stating cc instead of HP.

 

[Sukhoi]

Interesting, that could be. Torque is quite relevant for throwing heavy snow, but it's still not a unit of power. They should just state hp and torque since they certainly know the full throttle RPM of the engines they are selling.

 

[NutBucket]

Well, also remember no engine makes peak torque at WOT.

 

[Red Squirrel]

Should be fine over the summer, just make sure you store it at full charge.

I also like to start mine up around this time of year just to make sure it's in working order and to cycle it a bit so I'm ready for winter. Not really needed but it does not hurt.

Mine has no battery though, it's either pull start or 120v start with an extension cord.

 

[mindless1]

Interesting, that could be. Torque is quite relevant for throwing heavy snow, but it's still not a unit of power. They should just state hp and torque since they certainly know the full throttle RPM of the engines they are selling.

I don't see the relevance, in that normally a wider blower has a larger engine, suited to the width so the larger engine is doing more work. Do you know of particular brands that use undersized (from industry average) engines?

On the other hand I don't feel a larger engine than average is needed. I have plenty of wet snows and only have a problem at the bottom of my driveway on the street (with an incline) where a creek forms along the curb from snow melting so I'm not blowing snow, rather slush and then the engine doesn't bog down, it just clogs the chute.

A few times I've put cooking spray on the augers and housing which does seem to help reduce snow sticking but I've never gone to the trouble of trying to spray the chute... it just isn't that hard to unclog the few times it happens.

 

[Micrornd]

Well, also remember no engine makes peak torque at WOT.

Well, yes and no.
In this case, and most small engines of the same type, WOT is generally peak torque because their WOT setting is regulated by a governor set to peak torque rpm.
Thus higher HP = higher torque in these cases.
Now in the case of a car, or similar engine usage, peak torque and peak HP are absolutely at different RPMs as you stated.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

Okay so I ordered the 24” Deluxe Ariens.

Now I’m having second thoughts.....
Ariens pushes using pure gas - no ethanol gas at all, they say the extra moisture ethanol gas attracts wears the carburetor & corrodes the fuel line.
Damages caused by this will not be covered by warranty
Personally I think this is just to cause fear and pressure me to buy special gas.

Side note the only place I can buy this special gas is two towns away and it costs $7.99 PER QUART.
If anyone is confused that is $32.00 per gallon.

Is this a normal thing to be asked to do regarding modern small engines?
Should I just add some stay-bil at fill up?

 

[Red Squirrel]

This is true you should use ethanol free gas. I fill a 10 litre jerry can with premium ethanol free and use that for the snowblower and lawnmower and it's good for the year. Don't want to get any more than that since it goes bad. Premium will last longer though which is why I get it, what essentially happens is premium just breaks down into regular over time.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

This is true you should use ethanol free gas. I fill a 10 litre jerry can with premium ethanol free and use that for the snowblower and lawnmower and it's good for the year. Don't want to get any more than that since it goes bad. Premium will last longer though which is why I get it, what essentially happens is premium just breaks down into regular over time.

Grrrr
No “by the gallon” places near me.

What are your thoughts on using something like stay-bil 360 on regular gas

https://www.goldeagle.com/product/sta-bil-360-protection/

 

[mindless1]

Can you link the warranty statement that states using E10 will void the warranty? I think the owners manual only specified no more than 10% ethanol in the past.

Frankly, I would just use E10 and if they asked what gas you used if a problem arises, I'd LIE and tell them ethanol free because they have no business selling equipment in this day and age that can't handle E10. I got my current blower, at least 6 years ago and have ran nothing but E10 every season, have never had to do anything to the engine (including carb) except tighten the carb mounting bolt back down a couple years ago when it vibrated loose.

It is very doubtful there is anything *special* (craptacularly poor) about their LCT engines that they can't handle ethanol as well as any other ~half-dozen HP blower on the market. Medium sized outdoor equipment engines are far more tolerance of E10 than the tiny ~30cc size you find on handheld equipment.

Stay-bil, not really needed unless you intend to store it over summer without draining the fuel or use fuel you leave sitting around more than a couple months if E10. Ethanol or not, you're best off draining the tank and running the engine till the fuel line is empty at the end of the season.

Anyway, here is what LCT, the engine manufacturer has to say about it:

http://lctusa.com/product/stormforce-208/

Engine Fuel
Minimum – Regular Unleaded 87 Octane Gasoline (max. 10% Ethanol blend can be used with LCT engines). E15 to E-85 can NOT be used.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

Can you link the warranty statement that states using E10 will void the warranty? I think the owners manual only specified no more than 10% ethanol in the past.

Frankly, I would just use E10 and if they asked what gas you used if a problem arises, I'd LIE and tell them ethanol free because they have no business selling equipment in this day and age that can't handle E10. I got my current blower, at least 6 years ago and have ran nothing but E10 every season, have never had to do anything to the engine (including carb) except tighten the carb mounting bolt back down a couple years ago when it vibrated loose.

It is very doubtful there is anything *special* (craptacularly poor) about their LCT engines that they can't handle ethanol as well as any other ~half-dozen HP blower on the market. Medium sized outdoor equipment engines are far more tolerance of E10 than the tiny ~30cc size you find on handheld equipment.

Stay-bil, not really needed unless you intend to store it over summer without draining the fuel or use fuel you leave sitting around more than a couple months if E10. Ethanol or not, you're best off draining the tank and running the engine till the fuel line is empty at the end of the season.

Not same article but similar to this blog post

https://www.ariens.com/en-us/company/blog/importance-of-using-pure-gasoline

 

[Micrornd]

Are you sure there are no gas stations local that sell ethanol free gas?
Maybe marinas?
I live in a town of less than 30,000 and I can think of 5 gas stations that sell it off the top of my head and there may be more.