# Best option to clear 3' sidewalks?



## odd1or2even (Mar 25, 2007)

Here in/near Philadelphia we received a pounding this past winter for snow in 3 large snow storms each having 18-22 inches at each time. We then ended up having 2 storms back to back 4 days apart. 

My question is: in the event we have another winter like this, what would you recommend to clear 3 foot sidewalks? Friends have used Ariens 13HP 36" blowers and they just can't do it if the snow is wet/clumpy from the plow trucks. What would surely be able to go through the snow effectively, and efficiently without costing a ton of money and labor?

I have a 03 Honda Rancher and I've seen snow blowers that can be mounted on the front of the ATV, but would that be worth while if we ever get snow again. I have an ATV plow for a small snow storm of 6" or below (give or take).

A local development near me ended up assessing the local homes an additional $200 per house on top of their HOA fees and there are about 125 homes! I figured since I have my foot in the door and I plow a third of the homes I could try for the mile and a half sidewalk. 

Any ideas besides workers and shovels which can be unreliable?


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## cold_and_tired (Dec 18, 2008)

How about a Bobcat 463 or even a Dingo?


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## ajslands (Sep 3, 2009)

They make a 3' snowblower, maybe it's 4',


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## MIDTOWNPC (Feb 17, 2007)

Well the problem with having such a large blower like 36 is that you cant take a small bite it the sidewalk is 36 wide. You might want to look at something like a 28 or 22 but something strong with a larger engine like the snow king engine. that way you can chew thru one pass and then take a smaller bite.

ideally if you want to cut down on the man hours and do it with a single man you want something like what we use. blade on the front, blower on the back.

i love sidewalksxysportpayup


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## leon (Nov 18, 2008)

*snow blower*

Any small motorised snow blower will be crawling even the Berco units as you need a lot of ballast because the snow will weigh more than 21 pounds oer cubic foot

the smallest pronovost sidewalk snow blower with a quick attach kit and a number 6 PTO requires 50-75 horse power and is something that will grow your business for sure.

The problem is the width is 54 inches which is standard for municipal walks normally from what I remember.

The Pronovost Puma 48 is 48 inches wide (built heavy for canadian winters) and needs a 16-25 horsepower compact utility tractor.

The Hardy/ Pronovst front PTO kit could probabaly be used to have the Puma 48 up front as well as having three point hitch on the rear of the kubota tractor

The Kubota 2660 with a cab and a front end loader with the Puma will do this for you nicely with one person and avoid having any build ups of snow as it will clear a wider cut and allow you to keep it open with no issues because you have the width already broken.

And unless you want to buy the new 32 inch yamaha snow blower from a dealer in Nova Scotia $7000 give or take + taxes and import fees plus it will be considered gray market with no warranty coverage. The little monster removes a lot of snow according to the folks that bought them and run them up there.

It has hydraulic chute rotation as standard equipment and a manual adjusted spout as standard equipment.

my thoughts anyway

leon


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## mayhem (Aug 25, 2006)

Contact that guy with the SBC powered snowblower.

I'd say whatever it is you decide is your best bet, make damn sure that you cna use it for your business all the time. The storms we saw in the mid atlantic states this year may or may not be freak events. Right now I'm inclined to think last winter was a 25-30 year event and many of us may never see another series of events like that in our careers...on the other hand, we're seeing weird climactic patterns emerging over time and this may very well be the beginning of a new pattern we're going to have to deal with.

I like the idea of a smaller blower with a powerful motor and doing multiple passes since its a very useful device and you can more easily absorb the costs. The PTO powered blowers are more likely to do what you need though if you ever wind up in a situation like this again...cities use those municipal sidewalk blowers, I've never seen one et bogged down, even when its cutting through the snowbanks the plows leave on the corners of major intersections...maybe you could find one at a municipal auction.

My local town uses a couple of these to clear sidewalks...they use blower attachments, but I've seen then use the small plows too. Very cool, very strong.


























The last one is a 44" from Holder. Thats not much bigger than 36", maybe a smaller model is available.


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## JohnnyRoyale (Jun 18, 2006)

Look for previous threads from Triple L or Neige...they both have great sidewalk units.


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## yardsmith (Jan 3, 2000)

get a used steiner or ventrac-they have blowers, straight or v-blades, & rotary broom attachments. then you can use it in the summer to mow, rototill, scoop, etc. also
<IMG SRC=http://www.steinerturf.com/products/tractors/430_max/images/430action.jpg>


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## leon (Nov 18, 2008)

*sidewalks etc*

We unfotunately have to wait in the grandstand

of the cricket field as we are no further than we

were yesterday.

We have no idea how much operating capital

this man has to spend(if any) on his sidewalk

problem/snowblower if any.

As always the devil is in the details and having no knowledge

if a sidewalk snow clearer is somethiing he can

afford to purchase and be able to pay for with

adequate income during the time he owns it on

the off season which in his case.

We are left to a game of "Nerf" darts wearing a blindfold,

earplugs, heavy gloves, dust mask for exhast fumes,

and a hard hat with safety screen in a room with no

windows and no lights on. :crying::yow!:

leon


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## 2005_Sierra (Aug 7, 2009)

how about a gravely with either a plow or a blower?


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## Cutter1 (Jul 28, 2000)

how bout a shovel?? I couldn't resist.


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## leon (Nov 18, 2008)

leon;1042655 said:


> Any small motorised snow blower will be crawling even the Berco units as you need a lot of ballast because the snow will weigh more than 21 pounds oer cubic foot
> 
> the smallest pronovost sidewalk snow blower with a quick attach kit and a number 6 PTO requires 50-75 horse power and is something that will grow your business for sure.
> 
> ...


Adding a little more information for the benefit of the original poster another option
using a BCS 2 wheel tractor with a gas or diesel engine to power the 28 or 32 inch Berta snow blower and you can use the BCS the year round with other attachments.

The BCS 2 wheel tractor allows you to attach a sulky behind it to save on walking behind it and it will have the speed and power to handle any snow as the Berta brand blower attachment was designed to remove heavy snow in the Alps with the BCS as a power unit.

If you go to the earth tools home page they have a full description of the single and two stage snow blowers for the BCS two wheel tractor.

They are gear driven like the Yamaha snow blower so they have lots of power.

leon


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## JohnnyRoyale (Jun 18, 2006)

Good suggestion Leon. There are many other italian manufacturers of the same idea and they are quite popular in Italy. My grandfather had one that turned into a riding tractor with dumper. He had all kinds of attachments for it too (flail mower,roto tiller etc) Problem is, I think they run on pasta fagiolli and vino.


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## leon (Nov 18, 2008)

*sidewalk saga*



JohnnyRoyale;1042983 said:


> Good suggestion Leon. There are many other italian manufacturers of the same idea and they are quite popular in Italy. My grandfather had one that turned into a riding tractor with dumper. He had all kinds of attachments for it too (flail mower, roto tiller etc) Problem is, I think they run on pasta fagiolli and vino.


Yup, your grand pa pa probably owned a big 2 wheel Ferrari, Grillo or a Lombardini
maybe?

Tying a bottle of Chianti in the wicker caraffes on a pole and holding the pole in front of it while working is always good bait these little beasts of burden.

The great thing about them is they have power and more power due to the final drive being gears to the implements which eliminates belt slippage to the final drive and the diesels have huge power for the job too.

The Palladino flail mowers for the BCS are narrow too and the tractors dont have a as much ground pressure per square inch and can work on wet lawns and do not tear up the turf too.

The Grillo and others can bale hay and straw too with a Wolagri Mini Baler.

I did not see a wind screen cab for the BCS on the earth tools web site for use in the winter though.

leon:yow!:


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## Brad3403 (Sep 8, 2008)

I'm considering a Japanese mini truck with a blade for sidewalks. The great thing is, where I'm located, you can drive it from site to site.


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## leon (Nov 18, 2008)

*Sidewalk saga*

Good Morning Brad,

You will probably want to put chains and rim guard ballast in the tires as well as ballast in the rear of the mini as the blade will be pushing snow that will weigh more than 21 pounds per cubic foot as you are plowing.

If nokia has a winter tire that size I would buy them for the mini truck if you can afford them.

leon


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## Triple L (Nov 1, 2005)

JohnnyRoyale;1042707 said:


> Look for previous threads from Triple L or Neige...they both have great sidewalk units.


a video of myn....


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## MIDTOWNPC (Feb 17, 2007)

Those steiners are powerfull machines. There is a person in town that does walks with one and he has a vblade and blower. Nice unit but no cab


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## Triple L (Nov 1, 2005)

and the transport speed is soooo slow...


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## odd1or2even (Mar 25, 2007)

I love the little sidewalk blowing Kubota! I didn't know they made something that small but that can be used for small jobs putting in sidewalks and patios. I'll look into getting prices for these, but I wish I could take my 29.5HP Kubota down the sidewalks with my 5 foot blower, but I'd be replacing $500 dollars mailboxes, and replacing lawn all spring long!


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## leon (Nov 18, 2008)

*sidewalk*

I mentioned the 48 inch pronovost puma snow blower to you in my postings, did you read it? you need at least a 48 inch unit to be as wide as the rear wheels or they will not be able to use them.

leon


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