There is a secret conspiracy by machines to do this at the worst possible times.

sadly, I had to do it by hand. I am getting to an age where maybe I shouldn't be shoveling.

You can scoop up large amounts of snow and slide it forward or back to put the snow where you want it. The hardest thing is getting the snow out of it, but usually I push it off a "cliff" or only fill it halfway and tip it out.

It is SO much easier than shoveling. With a small farm, after every major storm I have to clear about 200 feet of paths (to utilities, to garage, to barn, front and back doors of barn). The snow scooper makes it all possible!

When you get to the edge and it's time to deposit the scooper full of snow you wind up with your foot and kick underneath with all your might, and the snow goes flying up and over to the pile where it belongs. No bending or anything. I had to do the kick-lift when the piles on the edge of our walk and driveway were higher than my armpits.

Or, I can recommend the easier way. Have a teenage child do their chores.

- If you have enough snow that you think that's a good idea, you will soon find out it is too heavy when full.

About 200 feet of paths with snowfalls of a couple of feet. This beats a snow shovel any day of the week. The trick is to not overfill it and not try to lift it. There is no reason to lift.

Or the snow is very heavy? They don't work for every situation.

As to 4' piles by side of my driveway, I'm in Maine. After my plower finish, it's not uncommon to have 8-10' piles. As much as possible, I push the snow off "cliffs" or downhills. However, when necessary, I can slide the snow up onto his smaller piles and I also make my own piles (eg I pull loads of snow out of my 2 front doors and and push the snow onto my island pushing up the plowers driveway edge piles. It packs down into a nice ramp and I just keep pulling loads of snow out of my front steps and shoving them up and over on the island).

When the snow is very heavy, I just take smaller amounts.

Believe me, I've become an expert at it. It is *so* much easier than a snow shovel, and I can adjust the amount to the wetness/heaviness of the snow. I've occasionally done my entire 100' driveway as well as all the paths, when I was between plowers.

Heh! This year my neighbor across the street got a 4-wheeler with chains and a tiny little blade on it and thought he was done with hiring an outside plower. First big snow of the season took him all day to clear his driveway.

Today's little dusting (6" last time I measured&quot and he had someone come plow it half way through the storm!

and the snow flies off where I want it to. The point is, though, that they work quite well and take the heart-attack out of moving large amounts of snow.

if you have a horse

Erie Pa.

Holy Cow!

Oh wait, I'm confused ... it says 93.6. Does that mean *inches* Holy Crap.

That's what youth is for. Back breaking labor that us old people no longer care to do.

I hated it when he said that. He made us do all the shit work, lol. Thankfully I was a girl and he was sexist so I didn't have to shovel snow (just scrub toilets and floors).

It's NOT what I had kids for...but I'll tell you what...they sure come in handy when they are teenagers.

And now I can't shovel the snow around my car without it tipping to the side. The heavyweight snow, along with the ice above it, must have caused the shovel to give out. Now I have to go out and pick up another shovel--after the snow emergency is lifted.

But I'm rural and have a LOT of snow to clear every day.

My snow removal job is clearing the walkway from the front door to the car and the small bit off the mud room entrance with a shovel. Otherwise its the tractor everywhere else.

I've been trying to convince my husband to buy a snowplow for the truck - much faster and heated! But he resists. So I've stopped feeling sorry for him and let him do all the plowing with the (too small) tractor.

I say get a new snowblower asap!

I really don't want another gas powered blower - but I am scared of electric cord type. I looked at a battery powered but it seems kind of weak - i don't know.

Thinking about waiting til summer and getting a riding mower with a blade attachment...........

Our little 25hp 855 JD with the bucket and the blade does an extraordinary job of clearing the snow. Its also my "throne" all summer for the lawn mowing. And we mow a LOT of grass.

It does take some practice but you will not regret it.

I had a friend with a JD lawn mower/tractor who used it for 25 years doing all sorts of light hobby farm work. He sold it used for MORE than what he paid for it.

You cannot go wrong with this imho.

and it is there.

In fact, we gave the old blower to the father-in-law and he did the same thing. Had it plugged in for the electric start and was cranking and cranking with me standing there watching. Until we remembered the switch.

I did the same thing at the beginning of this season. Doh!

Once the fuel absorbs enough water, ice crystals can form in the gas line and carburetor. Try warming the thing up and draining the gas out of it. Wash the gas tank, fuel line and carburetor out with some isopropyl alcohol (drain out as much of the alcohol as you can) and refill with new gasoline.

And then again, there is always diethyl ether starting fluid. I can hear my dad to this day saying "You're gonna blow the head off the engine with that stuff!"

used to scare the crap out of me.
Now the starter won't even turn. I was planning on getting a new one next fall

that is so cool.
You ought to start a new thread to let everybody see it.

I would really like to see one in real life and put my hands on it before I spent some money. They were listed @ $180

I'd suggest that it needs 2 lightweight wheels, about 5 inches apart for stability, studded tires, driven by a small gas motor in the center. Maybe also a bigger shovel shaped like a bucket, and a small hydraulic system to dump the bucket.