# Let there be light!



## chevyman_de (Oct 2, 2011)

If you have to clear snow it is usually when ambient light is on the low side.
A version of my snow blower with lights is not available in Germany, and I prefer LEDs over standard bulbs.

The following description should be easily adapted to other blowers and material at hand:

My snow blower has no alternator but 12V batteries from a cordless drill are already in the tool box. I also didn’t want to have another battery system only for seasonal use which ruled out bicycle lights that are either wimpy or expensive. So I bought a 10W LED flood wash light; it features a tough aluminum housing, IP65 protection and the wide beam angle is excellent for close-range illumination.

My 12V cordless drill is a DeWalt. To get a battery mount with the necessary contacts, an old Elu (= now DeWalt) 12V flashlight’s body was cut in half. It was the cheapest solution to get the parts.

To mount the remnant of the flashlight to the snow blower handle it has been glued into a piece of stainless steel tube. This was machined to also accept a small switch with rubber cap and a cable gland. The tube is closed with a plastic end cap. This gives a good seal, but is not as final as a metal plug.

I've machined two nylon blocks for a secure fit of the battery mount to the snow blower handle; to my amazement a hole in the handle for the necessary bolt has been kindly provided by the manufacturer. The hole in the battery mount for the long M6 bolt was tapped, there’s also an additional nut from the inside. The nut is turned slightly tapered in a lathe to conform better to the inside of the pipe.

The light itself is installed with two small pipe hangers. They may not be the best looking solution, but they do their job perfectly and inexpensive, so I could not resist.


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## Shryp (Jan 1, 2011)

Nice looking blower and a nice bright light.

Installation looks real professional.


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## chevyman_de (Oct 2, 2011)

Thanks for the kind words.
I have to admit that I'm some sort of a tool junkie.
At least I also try to bring them to good use.


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## bwdbrn1 (Nov 24, 2010)

There have been many people wondering how to add lighting to their snowblowers and snowthrowers that don't have their own charging systems, and I think you just provided the solution to their dilemma. It looks outstanding, and certainly throws out a lot of light! Thank you for sharing this with us.


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## chevyman_de (Oct 2, 2011)

Yes, that's what I thought.
I guess everyone who has a snowblower does have a cordless drill as well. The wash light is also available in a 12V-24V range version (even though at a significantly higher price), so compatability should not be a real problem. You just have to find the lower end of a corresponding cordless tool with the contact plate for the battery and attach it to the snow blower. Even a dead tool can donor those parts.


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## Shryp (Jan 1, 2011)

I have seen people use an old cordless drill for the chute rotate, but never for a light. And the ones that use it for the chute make it look more messy.


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## Ant2410 (Sep 20, 2011)

I had a similar idea, but i was going to use a dewault 18v pack and a 13watt LED flood light. Th eonl yissue i had with this setup was mounting the battery pack and the amountof light time i would get. I calculated it to be around 3.32 hours. 

The amp hours are very low on cordless drill batteries, hense the short usage time. The 12v and 18v dewault batteries both have a 2.4 amp hr rating which stinks for using a mounted light for prolonged periods of time. 


Great job though!! i really like the mount you came up with for the battery pack


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## chevyman_de (Oct 2, 2011)

Ant2410 said:


> I calculated it to be around 3.32 hours.
> .
> .
> .
> The 12v and 18v dewault batteries both have a 2.4 amp hr rating which stinks for using a mounted light for prolonged periods of time.


I think that most people have more than one battery for their cordless drill. And even when you have only one battery and it provides only 1.5 hours of light due to the cold temperature that's still a lot of time to move some snow. I know that I will never have to run my blower that long in the darkness at a time.

And if everything else fails you have an excellent reason to buy another battery for your drill.


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## Ant2410 (Sep 20, 2011)

chevyman_de said:


> I think that most people have more than one battery for their cordless drill. And even when you have only one battery and it provides only 1.5 hours of light due to the cold temperature that's still a lot of time to move some snow. I know that I will never have to run my blower that long in the darkness at a time.
> 
> And if everything else fails you have an excellent reason to buy another battery for your drill.


I hear ya on the 1.5hrs... I do driveways for extra cash, so an hour and a half would'nt really work for me, especially if im out for the night blowing snow. 

I myself have x6 18v and x4 12v Dewault Batteries in my arsnal  So powering a light for more than 2 hours would not be a problem for me at all.


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## chevyman_de (Oct 2, 2011)

Ant2410 said:


> I do driveways for extra cash, so an hour and a half would'nt really work for meering a light for more than 2 hours would not be a problem for me at all.


Agreed!


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