# Yearly snow removal dilema?



## fbc1967 (Sep 23, 2007)

Hi All

I live in SE BC in a ski town and get a lot of snow in the winter. For the past few years I have paid for snow removal and it costs around $1200 per year and is unreliable at best. Maybe I should be doing it myself.

What is the right equipment for me to do snow removal for my house. I have 2 double driveways, and the ski hill nearby averages 30' per year. My one driveway gets plowed in by the city plow when it comes by

I am thinking of the following:

quad with plow. Do they work well? what size does a person need?

plow for my half ton. best option except for the fact I have a half ton...

high quality snow blower. problem is that I travel a fair bit and snow can get backed up a little on my driveways. Can take more time than with a plow or atv...

small tractor with a snow plow or thrower on the front.

I know that this is a bit of a tough nut to solve, but I am really looking for convenience, ability to remove alot of snow, cost ( under 10k).

any ideas or thoughts??


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## grandview (Oct 9, 2005)

Couple of ways to do this. You could pony up more money for better service. For what you want to spend for snow equipment that's a lot of snow seasons. Since you do have a truck you could put a plow on it and be done with it,and you can plow when ever you want. I think you all ready made a decision with what your going to buy.


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## JD Dave (Mar 20, 2007)

$1200 sounds pretty good for 30' of snow. An Atv won't cut it IMO and a plow on your halfer might if you have lots of room to push the snow. I think you need a blower of some sort. What does the guy use that plowed it before?


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## SuperPlow Guy (Jul 8, 2007)

if you have plenty of space to push it consider our SuperPlow for your truck. It will py for itself in two seasons....


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## SnoFarmer (Oct 15, 2004)

fbc1967;406448 said:


> Hi All
> 
> plow for my half ton. best option except for the fact I have a half ton...
> 
> ...


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## Camden (Mar 10, 2007)

Throw a 7.5' Boss straight blade steel plow on your 1/2 ton and your worries are over. I see them on Craig's List quite often for $2-$4K (depending on age and condition) and if you're thrifty you could probably even get a better deal than that. 

I would love to live in a place that gets 30' of snow each year but my wife would never go for it...you're a lucky man!


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## RipT (Dec 6, 2004)

FBC, Welcome to the Forum....Sounds like you may be in Ferni??

Like others have said, I would not recommend an ATV or garden tractor. The 1/2 ton should work if you could plow with the storm(s) and never let the snow get ahead of your capabilities.

A good quality (Hondas are great) 10+ hp blower should be able to handle pretty much whatever you are faced with, but it will take time and you will be out in the weather. May be a bit much if you come home some night to a couple storms-worth of snow and have to spend an hour + behind a blower just to get to your house.

Finding a better service may be your best bet yet. A good blower would be a good back-up to a service however, and you could "clean up" at your leisure after they do their "quick & dirty" runs through your driveway.

Good Luck


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## REAPER (Nov 23, 2004)

Is the half ton a 4x4?

If you are looking to stay under $10k then you can find plenty of truck and plow setup's already out there used. For $10k you could find a pretty reliable one at that. 

I would not use any thing but a 4x4 and if you get a rear mounted plow you have to have something on the front to push it after it has been dragged out.


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## fbc1967 (Sep 23, 2007)

*how about a john deere 2305 series??*

http://www.deere.com/en_US/ProductC...iew.servlets.ProdCatProduct?pNbr=0140LV&tM=GC

can get a great deal on one of these...does anyone use these to move snow? i assume they would work pretty good for that???

appreciate everyones advice so far....is really helping.


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## JD Dave (Mar 20, 2007)

What did the guy use to plow your driveway last year? 30 feet is alot of snow!


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## REAPER (Nov 23, 2004)

fbc1967;407682 said:


> http://www.deere.com/en_US/ProductC...iew.servlets.ProdCatProduct?pNbr=0140LV&tM=GC
> 
> can get a great deal on one of these...does anyone use these to move snow? i assume they would work pretty good for that???
> 
> appreciate everyones advice so far....is really helping.


I would hope that thing has a heck of a heater with a high power blower on it.


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## mayhem (Aug 25, 2006)

> the ski hill nearby averages 30' per year.


How much do you actually get at your house though and how far away is the ski area? I find ski areas around me tend to over-exaggerate their snowfall claims...borderline outright lies frankly, but they usually measure snowfall in low ares where the snow naturally accumulates or drifts. In my region of the country we average about 100" a year...but the ski areas around here usually claim at least 100% over that...we get a dusting thats barely worth hooking up the plow and the ski area supposedly got 8"...this is a 500' hill smack in the middle of the town. Long story short, if the ski area claims 30' of annual snowfall, you're probably not even getting half that. Still alot of snow, but you're likely well under 180" a year. Then again I could be wrong.

How big are your typical storms and how often in the winter? Do you get alot of 4-8" storms or are you in a blizzard zone where you frequently have to deal with 15-20" accumulations in less than a day?

Were you paying for snow removal, or snow plowing (aka snow moval)? If its just plowing you might as well either upgrade your service to a better vendor or get yourself a decent 7.5 foot plow for your existing truck. If your typical storms are in the 4-8" range you're in great shape with the half ton...make sure to push it way the hell farther onto the lawn than you think you need to and you'll be fine.


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## Mick (May 19, 2001)

fbc1967;407682 said:


> http://www.deere.com/en_US/ProductC...iew.servlets.ProdCatProduct?pNbr=0140LV&tM=GC
> 
> can get a great deal on one of these...does anyone use these to move snow? i assume they would work pretty good for that???
> 
> appreciate everyones advice so far....is really helping.


I wouldn't recommend it as a means to plow snow unless you get a snowblower or plow as an option and a cab. I've used a tractor/loader about twice that size (41hp) on a road of about 1/2 mile. No choice as the snow was way too deep for the truck/plow. Took about five hours to do what usually took about ten minutes and didn't do nearly as good a job. If you're going to use a tractor, get a snowblower or plow with it. There are blowers that go on the rear pto or front and hook to the Quik Tach. They're are also snowplows to hook to the Quik Tach or you could get a 3ph rear blade. If you use the 3ph rear blade (least expensive option) you'll need to "plow with the storm" every 3-4".


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## DareDog (Oct 22, 2007)

30' per yr omg if I saw that much snow i would die,

put a plow onyour 1/2 ton, it wont hurt it that much if your only dooing your drive way


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