# Small residential accounts (equipment?)



## WilliamThomas (Oct 13, 2011)

I have owned a small landscape maintenance company now for about 8 years. I Decided to ask a few clients if they would be interested in snow removal. About 90% of those I asked jumped on it. I have about 14-15 driveways / walks that I will be clearing this winter. 

For Equipment I was thinking about either purchasing a  new Toro 726oe, or putting a plow onto one of the Bobcat Ztr's. 

Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Thank you


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## bdlawncare (Oct 1, 2011)

2 years ago i did 15-20 residentials with a snowblower... they are great because you can put the snow wherever you want... I have an pickup with a 8ft plow and still use the blowers on many sites just because space and no place to push the snow.. if you are doing it by yourself have a backup blower incase you suck a newspaper and cant get it out... trust me this sucks! anyway good luck and i would recommend the blower


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## WilliamThomas (Oct 13, 2011)

Thanks for the quick reply, I was thinking the blower would be a little easier. Im glad to hear that it worked for you.


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## cold_and_tired (Dec 18, 2008)

Depending on how much snow you let accumulate on the driveway, I would recommend a single stage snow blower.

They are very light, quick and easy to use. My guys like them because they can easily load them in and out of the trucks without having to use ramps. They don't throw snow as far as a big two stage but you also won't have to wrestle them around all night either.


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## bdlawncare (Oct 1, 2011)

np make sure you tell your customers to pick up the paper if its snowing... or just in general ( hate people that just leave them in piles for me to suck up) and inform them if you suck one up there will be a fee! works good and you can avoid the hassle... good luck


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## jhall22guitar (Dec 11, 2011)

I use blowers. Normally have a 2 man crew for it at each job, in and out quick and on to the next one. I did a small apartment building last year fairly quick, until some big storm hit, then called in a favor from a friend. haha


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## WilliamThomas (Oct 13, 2011)

thanks for all the replys, sounds like everyone has had good experiences using blowers. Also , thanks for the heads up on the newspaper issue, it's the little details such as that, which could really cause some problems. Thanks again !


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## A.M.Canfora (Nov 2, 2011)

yea I'm with cold and tired on the single stage blower, or at least a small dual stage.I had a friend who bought a Aries professional 32" to put in the back of his Ford Ranger so he could do sidewalks. He found out the hard way that icy and wet wooden ramps and a heavy thrower don't mix well.


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## bdlawncare (Oct 1, 2011)

Yeah well if you have the right ramps theres no issue I love my ariens 2 stage and wouldn't trade it for a single especially when doing whole driveways with them


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## jklawn&Plow (Jan 8, 2011)

I put wooden tracks on the wooden ramps and works better now. Not ideal yet but thats another project.


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## WilliamThomas (Oct 13, 2011)

I currently have a single stage which I will be bringing out for every snow event. We will also be utiliizing one of the landscape trailers. That should prevent any problems with slippery, steep ramps. 

This is great information, thanks for everything. Please continue to post a reply if you can give me any other helpful suggestions I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks again


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## jklawn&Plow (Jan 8, 2011)

I don't bring the blowers out during storms because then I'm just plowing, might be good for the blower not being in the thick of storm. Small single stage I lift into back of truck and tie to a short cut 2x4 t-nutted and bolted onto stake pocket. Never know when you may want to plow so no trailers allowed.


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## 32vld (Feb 4, 2011)

WilliamThomas;1378789 said:


> I have owned a small landscape maintenance company now for about 8 years. I Decided to ask a few clients if they would be interested in snow removal. About 90% of those I asked jumped on it. I have about 14-15 driveways / walks that I will be clearing this winter.
> 
> For Equipment I was thinking about either purchasing a new Toro 726oe, or putting a plow onto one of the Bobcat Ztr's.
> 
> Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Thank you


I do residential with a 24" and 28" two stages.

I would definitely get a second blower in case as pointed out you suck up a newspaper. Customers may not care if your mower breaks down and you can't get to them for a day or two. Doesn't work that way with snow removal.

Also I would bring out a second man with you. One guy is always on the blower. The other guy to run the second blower and shovel work when needed.

And at 15 customers to do you will take to long going solo.

If I had the money right now I would go out and by a 36" Ariens WB or 38" JD WB because time is money. Maybe even a 44" for the front of my JD 170 mower. At this point we get more people call us then we can get to in time. Were up front and tell them where they are on the list when they call. What happens sometimes before we can get there someone knocks on their door and they go with them. But these are first time callers so I don't worry about them.

This year a person was referred to me to do their commercial property. A private home used for a professional practice. 80' drive with a 50' x 50' lot in the back of the house.

Not much room to plow and no place to push. This can turn out to be a nice niche market but without a larger blower I'm reluctant to seek out more of this type of work. Maybe next year.


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## svaleko (Dec 15, 2011)

For 14 - 15 driveways - single stage would be good
I personally like toro ccr 3650 the older model with a manual crank to turn the spout
they are light, very easy to maintain, last long time - the only thing you would have to replace occasionally - scraper, paddles and maybe the housing (sometimes it could get busted when you hit a piece of ice or a rock). You could easily do all this maintenance yourself
They don't make them anymore but you could still buy them used online
there is a model called toro power clear 221 QR that they make instead - it is a good blower as well but i think the older model was better
I've used them for more then 10 years, can't complain


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## bdlawncare (Oct 1, 2011)

IMHO if you are doing 14-15 resi's you want a 2 stage... if you get alot of snow have fun blowing that with a single stage... the 2 stages are a little bigger but they peform much better and nvm they are wider than the single stages... idk just my opinion.. wouldnt want to do my 15 resi's that i cant plow with only single stages just my 2Cents its not that im biased toward 2 stages as i have both single stages are great when you only have to do a couple areas and do them every couple inches... if you have 2 larger 2 stages then you would struggle less... just a thought


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## svaleko (Dec 15, 2011)

I guess with 14 - 15 residential accounts you could do with what you got or could get at less expanse and then go from there. Have to consider some factors of course - the size of the driveways, if you are planning to work by yourself or with some help - loading - unloading. You will see how it goes first year. The most important thing is to make sure you are charging enough for it and it is definitely worth doing - the rest will be fine - you will figure the best and most efficient way to do it as you go
It is good that these accounts are your lawn accounts as well - it is definitely to your advantage
It does matter how you do it - but the most important what you make out of it $$$$ - whatever works


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## White Gardens (Oct 29, 2008)

cold_and_tired;1378878 said:


> They don't throw snow as far as a big two stage but you also won't have to wrestle them around all night either.


My Toro I picked up last year would say otherwise. I've never had a single stage blower that potentially could throw a rock through a window, 40 feet away!

...


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## WilliamThomas (Oct 13, 2011)

Excellent advice everyone, thank you very much. It looks as though I'm going to purchase a 2 stage blower and bring along the single stage every time we go out. 

I also have an employee who can go out with me if needed, 7 of the 15 customers are on a block together (side by side) as 6 are lawn clients. The remaining accounts are also mostly grouped together. I'm also expecting some 1 timers as well, most likely more than I would want. (Neighbor sees me blowing and asks to do theirs as well) 

THanks again for all of your input, as I expected, everyone is bringing up issues that I would not have anticipated on my own. 

Although I've been in the grren business for awhile now, the snow removal business is entirely new to me, starting small and seeing how this year goes. 


If anyone has additional advice or input, I would greatly appreciate it.


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## greatdanenick (Oct 17, 2011)

I use snowblowers and shovels myself and four other guys works great and only do residential.


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## JTVLandscaping (Jan 1, 2010)

Look out for welcome mats...I get one caught in my single stage at least twice every storm


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## KEC Maintaince (Jan 1, 2011)

dont forget landscape light cable that home owners did but never buried the cable correctly..
i like to shovel around the front door just incase


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## JTVLandscaping (Jan 1, 2010)

Late at night, you're in your rythym...shoveling the sidewalk, making record time until WHAM! When you get that joint that sticks up just a little higher than the last one...man that hurts everything.


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## jbell36 (Feb 21, 2008)

this is really apples to oranges...if it's a wet snow you simply can't use a single stage, but if it's a dry snow the single stage will run cirlces around the dual stage, unless it's 12" deep


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## jklawn&Plow (Jan 8, 2011)

jbell36;1385362 said:


> this is really apples to oranges...if it's a wet snow you simply can't use a single stage, but if it's a dry snow the single stage will run cirlces around the dual stage, unless it's 12" deep


What he said.


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## perrysee (Jul 30, 2009)

hi ,i use my john Deere snow blowers and my Polaris 4 wheeler to do all my accounts. works fine and less overhead then when i had all plow trucks on ,passed trucks on to my son, 4 wheeler was my best investment for plowing snow good for sidewalks and drive-ways .


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## foso130 (Nov 23, 2011)

so are single stage blowers useless in wet snow? I can buy two used stage 1's for the price of a dual stage. I'm in KC and wonder which would be best for my small business? When it snows around here it's usually less than a foot.


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## jklawn&Plow (Jan 8, 2011)

Here in Feb and March the street plows through chunks and heavy snow onto sidewalks that are only 4 feet from road edge. The single stage doen't cut there. So I have a small dual stage to pick up the slack, other wise I'm shoveling the heavy stuff- no thanks.


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## WilliamThomas (Oct 13, 2011)

Purchased a dual and also have the single, now it just needs to quit raining and start snowing. 
We are at an all time record for rain, and also setting a record for the lack of snow in December. 

It has to snow at some point!!!


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## foso130 (Nov 23, 2011)

No kidding! I just bought two Toro S-200's off craigslist that have been re conditioned for 300 bucks for the pair, found a decent priced MTD 22 inch dual stage im going to look at also, granted MTD yard machine is kinda cheap I just need it to get me through this winter.


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## daniel1132 (Dec 15, 2010)

I researched single v two stage snowblowers last year and heard good things about the toro snow commander. it's the biggest single stage snowblower in existence, 7hp and a 24" path, and it can clear up to a foot of snow. and it's still light enough for me to lift in and out of the back of my truck. I liked it so much I bought another one this year to handle the growth. I also bought a toro 1028 powershift two stage for the big plowed in piles. last year I had a snapper 523 two stage. I got it out once, and shut it off after 5 min. it couldn't do anything that the snow commander couldn't do lighter and quicker.


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## locallawncare.c (Oct 22, 2012)

Im in the same boat as you daniel1132, I just started ou in snow, I'm gonna use a toro single stage and an ariens 24" 2 stage, the two of them fit perfectly in the back of my truck. I also have a frame built around the wheel wells to hold some bags of salt and sand in a couple of large bins. The tailgate shuts and everything is secure, no straps, no nothing. I also have a wooden ramp which is purpose built for the 2 stage, has tracks on the ramps for traction and side rails so it cant slip off, very light and good. All the best of luck this year, hope it snows soon.


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## ScubaSteve728 (Jan 17, 2012)

a quad or atv as some call it would be perfect with a 50 inch blade its big enough but small enough quick enough to put it on the trailer and if you get a small storm you can be in and out quick


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## kg26 (Feb 5, 2013)

Anyone know of any good 2stage loaders?


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## Triton2286 (Dec 29, 2011)

If your asking about a "blower" then no...go with a single stage, 2 stages are terribleThumbs Up


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## perrysee (Jul 30, 2009)

i use areins snowblowers ,which are very dependable .but have a back up snowblowers in case of breakdoown or sucking newspapers in, which does happen from time to time. i handle 22 accounts with snowblowers and a snowsport plow on front of truck to push snow from end of drive-way from city plows.


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