# Pushing vs. throwing snow



## samert111 (Nov 18, 2014)

First snow of the year. I was ready (I thought) and had everything gassed up with fresh fuel and started them both last weekend. Anyway I get the little Toro out to clear up by the garage then bust out the Sno-TeK 24" to clear the driveway (750 ft long) and all it wanted to do was plow (push) the snow in front of the blower, it wasn't gathering it in the front at all. All the augers are turning as is the 2nd stage. There was about 5" of snow and the first inch or so was a little slushy and it would just pile up at the front scraper and then start sliding in front of the machine. The auger was all packed with snow and nothing was getting past it to the 2nd stage. 

Normally I spray the entire auger area and chute with silicone to help keep it from plugging up in real wet heavy snow conditions but I forgot to do that last weekend. It's 17° here the snow is really fluffy.

It's in the shop getting thawed out now and hopefully the silicone spray will solve the problem when I get home tonight.

Thoughts or suggestions?


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## sscotsman (Dec 8, 2010)

When you say "The auger was all packed with snow and nothing was getting past it to the 2nd stage" were the augers still spinning at that stage?

My first thought was that you have broken shear pins..which will allow the augers to spin at first, appearing to be "normal", but then not have the strength to bite into the snow and move it toward the impeller.

Its also possible the chute was clogged up with slush.

Scot


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## samert111 (Nov 18, 2014)

sscotsman said:


> When you say "The auger was all packed with snow and nothing was getting past it to the 2nd stage" were the augers still spinning at that stage?
> 
> My first thought was that you have broken shear pins..which will allow the augers to spin at first, appearing to be "normal", but then not have the strength to bite into the snow and move it toward the impeller.
> 
> ...


The augers were spinning and the sheer pins are still in place. When it was off I grabbed the augers and they will not spin freely at all. No clog in the chute. Just snow packed around the main auger. In the first few feet it seemed to work fine then the snow just started piling up in front and started sliding down the pavement.


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## wdb (Dec 15, 2013)

Heated garage? Maybe it was melting/freezing on contact? 

I've had problems in the past with wet heavy snow just being pushed instead of blown, but that was with an antique machine. I also silicone everything but I question its effectiveness. Some folks here use cooking spray, which I may try next time.


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## samert111 (Nov 18, 2014)

wdb said:


> Heated garage? Maybe it was melting/freezing on contact?
> 
> I've had problems in the past with wet heavy snow just being pushed instead of blown, but that was with an antique machine. I also silicone everything but I question its effectiveness. Some folks here use cooking spray, which I may try next time.


Garage where the machine normally sits is not heated. Workshop is tho and it's in there now to melt all the snow then I'll spray it down with silicone when I get home.


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## detdrbuzzard (Jan 20, 2012)

go slow when trying to blow wet heavy snow


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## samert111 (Nov 18, 2014)

detdrbuzzard said:


> go slow when trying to blow wet heavy snow


Tried going in the lowest speed setting. Problem is that it's not wet heavy snow. Light and fluffy but the bottom inch or so has slushed up from the retained heat in the blacktop from 3-4 days ago. It snowed 8 inches in the last 2 days but my driveway never had more than a couple inches in it, retained heat melted it. I think it's a combination of this and not spraying it down with some silicone yet.


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## micah68kj (Oct 8, 2011)

I duunno... Something just ain't soundng right. Even under the most adverse conditions *something* should be coming out of the chute. Something is wrong that somehow is being overlooked.


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## Grunt (Nov 11, 2013)

Have you checked the belt tension\condition? Possibly slipping when placed under a load and fine when standing still. A functioning impeller would as least push the snow out the chute like cookie dough.


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## samert111 (Nov 18, 2014)

micah68kj said:


> I duunno... Something just ain't soundng right. Even under the most adverse conditions *something* should be coming out of the chute. Something is wrong that somehow is being overlooked.


I know what you mean. When I get home tonight I'll spray it with some silicone, put it in low speed and put a zip tie on the controls so I can walk around front and watch it. Maybe the shear pin for the 2nd stage is broken and I just can't see that. It was dark out.


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## Normex (Feb 21, 2014)

You may have rolled pins instead of shear pins but not sure with a Sno TEk as they both have the same vocation and Grunt is correct to assume the belt may be a problem.


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## micah68kj (Oct 8, 2011)

samert111 said:


> I know what you mean. When I get home tonight I'll spray it with some silicone, put it in low speed and put a zip tie on the controls so I can walk around front and watch it. Maybe the shear pin for the 2nd stage is broken and I just can't see that. It was dark out.


I think myou may want to check your belt tension, as grunt suggested. *PLEASE* be carefil when working on it. The very last thing we want to hear is missing digits or limbs. Not trying to be a smart alek. Just concern. Before doing anything take the plug wire off and really look at your shear pins. They may appear to be all there but double check them. After that try to give those augers a spin again by hand. Then I'd be checking my belts. I don't care what the snow condition is. That machine, if everything is in order, should be pushing something out the chute. Lastly, check the condition of your impeller. Maybe it sheared. Check the gap between your impeller and the housing. That gap should be minimal. Maybe 1/4" or less. Check your impeller blades. They should all look the same and straight..
Keep us informed.


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## lclement (Jun 23, 2014)

after you confirm that the machine is mechanically working properly try going slower next time... if the impeller slows down to much it wont expel the snow faster then your taking it in. I have only had this issue with very wet watery snow and only a few times with a small 5hp toro 521. The bigger SB (8HP or more) seem to not bog down as bad in my experience.


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## Normex (Feb 21, 2014)

samert111 said:


> The augers were spinning and the sheer pins are still in place. When it was off I grabbed the augers and they will not spin freely at all. No clog in the chute. Just snow packed around the main auger. In the first few feet it seemed to work fine then the snow just started piling up in front and started sliding down the pavement.





samert111 said:


> Tried going in the lowest speed setting. Problem is that it's not wet heavy snow. Light and fluffy but the bottom inch or so has slushed up from the retained heat in the blacktop from 3-4 days ago. It snowed 8 inches in the last 2 days but my driveway never had more than a couple inches in it, retained heat melted it. I think it's a combination of this and not spraying it down with some silicone yet.


Iclement and Micah, he had already tried both suggestions. 
Take care All


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## Koenig041 (Dec 18, 2013)

Were the augers ever taken out for service. Is this a symptom of the augers being put in backwards? Something is missing in the equation. Do you have a second person that can operate the blower while you *OBSERVE* (not touch) what is going on with the auger engaged? Can you peak into the chute to see if the impeller is spinning? I'm with the others and improper belt tension. Or your machine does not have enough HP to push the bottom slush.


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## detdrbuzzard (Jan 20, 2012)

can you tell if the augers are on correctly? if not post a pic of the augers


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## samert111 (Nov 18, 2014)

Koenig041 said:


> Were the augers ever taken out for service. Is this a symptom of the augers being put in backwards? Something is missing in the equation. Do you have a second person that can operate the blower while you *OBSERVE* (not touch) what is going on with the auger engaged? Can you peak into the chute to see if the impeller is spinning? I'm with the others and improper belt tension. Or your machine does not have enough HP to push the bottom slush.


Machine is only 2 years old with limited use, never been apart. Used once 2 years ago but quite a bit last year by my wife as I had shoulder surgery in January and couldn't do anything with my shoulder for 3 months. Anyway my son would plow the driveway and she would go along the edges to throw the snow up over the banks because we had a record snowfall last year here and the plow could only get it pushed back so far. She never complained that it wasn't working well but I suppose she could have sheared one of the auger pins and then it rusted up over the summer and is turning under no load. It was dark this morning and everything was spinning but I suppose I could have missed a broken shear pin. I know when I put it up for the summer and lubed everything it all seemed to be in good shape. Once I get home I'll confirm they are all still good and go from there.


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## Koenig041 (Dec 18, 2013)

If you can make a video of its operation, I'm sure some of the more knowledgeable folks can help diagnose the problem. Let us know how you make out.


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## bdog (Nov 14, 2014)

Funny this came up. I was trying out the new machine yesterday on a few inches of slush and I had to keep up a decent speed for enough slush to get to the second stage before it would actually throw it. Wouldn't do the same with 8" of slush obviously, but with a few inches it worked fine.


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## samert111 (Nov 18, 2014)

I checked and all the shear bolts are in place and OK. I sprayed everything down with silicone and tried using the machine again but same issue. I think what is happening is that the ground is not frozen yet and any snow that falls on the blacktop the bottom 1" quickly turns to a semi frozen slush and initially will get picked up but quickly coats the inside of the auger housing with packed slushy ice and creates a 2" lip of packed slush above the scraper blade and this acts as a plow and just starts pushing the snow in front of the machine. Attached is a photo of what the auger looks like after just a few feet of trying to throw snow. It's like a blanket that wraps around the auger.

I also took a short video but didn't have the correct settings for it to be attached. It's like 25mb in size. I first cleaned out the auger housing and put a zip tie on the controls and on the lowest speed it immediately started plowing snow, just pushing it along on the layer of slush on the pavement. 

I have the scraper blade set up off the pavement about 1/8" which is where's been set from day one. 

My son plowed last night and since then we got another 4" of fluffy snow so I'll try again tonight now that the original layer of slush has been removed.


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## Shryp (Jan 1, 2011)

Something seems off to be getting that much snow stuck to the bucket.


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## Koenig041 (Dec 18, 2013)

For whatever reason your impeller is getting packed and not throwing the snow. You can see it is packed in there. The impeller not spinning could be a loose belt (worn or not enough tension). I know you have a new machine but they may have used an inferior belt. An impeller kit helps with clogging issues and heavy snow. But if everything is functioning as it should, not enough power to move that type of snow.


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## sscotsman (Dec 8, 2010)

I agree..something is definitely wrong with the impeller.
either a loose belt, or a broken impeller shear pin (if the machine has one)
but for some reason the impeller clearly isnt working normally.

Scot


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## Koenig041 (Dec 18, 2013)

Here is a video of a Sno-Tek 24 with 208cc engine. Very challenging conditions but the snow looks dry. You will see that the operator has to stop, wait for the machine to clear the snow from the bucket, before being able to move forward. WIth a larger engine the machine can stay in its lowest gear and creep forward without stopping. The machine does throw well but is under powered in my opinion for the challenging conditions. I'm sure it would have had an issue with end of driveway plow pack.


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## jtclays (Sep 24, 2010)

The parts manual calls out 2 roll pins on the impeller. 
http://apache.ariens.com/manuals/04335300A.pdf
It also shows a full length auger shaft instead of the stubs used on many of the newer blowers today. Possible you lost both auger shaft shear pins and rust is keeping it there as well as the heads and nuts "looking" like they're still there. Under no load, they still turn, or catch and release. Did you try waiting until it's all packed up like your picture and then zip tying the auger engagement to observe impeller and auger movement? I have an insulated, finished garage, but no heat. Once you come home at night and both cars parked inside after running, doors shut it's still well above freezing by morning. We had 10" overnight on Sunday to Monday. Similar to what you describe as the lower 1" was slush. My youngest and I ran the Honda 621 and his little CCR Powerlite and experienced a lot of build up in the chutes and auger area as the outside temp was in the low teens. We brought them back up and cleaned them out let 'em melt, blew them off with the air compressor and then let them sit outside the garage for a 1/2 hour. Went back to blowing and all was well. We were even getting icing and accumulation of slush on the wheels prior to leaving them outside. Just an oddball condition of the ground a little too warm and the ambient temp getting cold fast.


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## jtclays (Sep 24, 2010)

Koenig, The guy in the video doesn't look to be in the lowest gear, or his disc is a little out of adjustment IMO. It sure seems to lurch forward like he's in a 3 or so to me. Nice stream of snow for thigh high snow, though


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## samert111 (Nov 18, 2014)

sscotsman said:


> I agree..something is definitely wrong with the impeller.
> either a loose belt, or a broken impeller shear pin (if the machine has one)
> but for some reason the impeller clearly isnt working normally.
> 
> Scot


The impeller has 2 roll pins, 1 for the impeller itself and a 2nd one for the driveshaft to the auger gearbox. Both are intact and the impeller is spinning just fine. In the video I took the snow never even started to get pulled in by the auger, it just immediately started pushing (sliding) on the pavement in front of the machine. 

I just talked with a couple other guys here at work and they are having similar problems as me. The ground is not frozen yet and the combination of the slushy snow at the bottom and then several inches of fluffy stuff on top of that is apparently a combination my machine doesn't handle well. We actually set a record yesterday on how much snow we got this early in the season.


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## samert111 (Nov 18, 2014)

jtclays said:


> The parts manual calls out 2 roll pins on the impeller.
> http://apache.ariens.com/manuals/04335300A.pdf
> It also shows a full length auger shaft instead of the stubs used on many of the newer blowers today. Possible you lost both auger shaft shear pins and rust is keeping it there as well as the heads and nuts "looking" like they're still there. Under no load, they still turn, or catch and release. Did you try waiting until it's all packed up like your picture and then zip tying the auger engagement to observe impeller and auger movement? I have an insulated, finished garage, but no heat. Once you come home at night and both cars parked inside after running, doors shut it's still well above freezing by morning. We had 10" overnight on Sunday to Monday. Similar to what you describe as the lower 1" was slush. My youngest and I ran the Honda 621 and his little CCR Powerlite and experienced a lot of build up in the chutes and auger area as the outside temp was in the low teens. We brought them back up and cleaned them out let 'em melt, blew them off with the air compressor and then let them sit outside the garage for a 1/2 hour. Went back to blowing and all was well. We were even getting icing and accumulation of slush on the wheels prior to leaving them outside. Just an oddball condition of the ground a little too warm and the ambient temp getting cold fast.


Yep, same thing here. I'm in Grand Rapids area.


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## pwm (Jun 12, 2014)

I've never seen snow like that. It looks like cookie dough.


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## samert111 (Nov 18, 2014)

pwm said:


> I've never seen snow like that. It looks like cookie dough.


That is a really good description of what it acts like.


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## jtclays (Sep 24, 2010)

Samert111, We're in Caledonia Second snow day of the year for kids and it's not even Thanksgiving


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## samert111 (Nov 18, 2014)

jtclays said:


> Samert111, We're in Caledonia Second snow day of the year for kids and it's not even Thanksgiving


Yep. Actually I'm in Rockford. They are off today also.


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## samert111 (Nov 18, 2014)

jtclays said:


> Samert111, We're in Caledonia Second snow day of the year for kids and it's not even Thanksgiving


BTW, Great football team this year. You guys spanked us real bad.


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## Spectrum (Jan 6, 2013)

Any chance you has this apart in the off season and swapped the L & R augers?


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## SlowRider22 (Oct 17, 2013)

I've read through this thread multiple times trying to figure out what's going on here. I don't want to seem redundant here, but there are only some many things that can cause this issue and all of which have already been mentioned:

-The belt is either loose, too stretched out, or isn't adjusted properly to provide the correct tension
- The augers are not spinning when under load thereby causing them to pack with snow; however this is unlikely the sole causation because the impeller is also packed with snow, leading to the next possibility...
-The impeller is merely spinning as the driveshaft spins, but it actually has broken shear pins and will cease to spin when it's put under load

It would be my understanding that there's a disconnect somewhere in the transfer of power from the motor, to the pulley via belt, to the driveshaft, to the gearbox/augers, and to the impeller. I know you stated that you checked the shear pins, but I'd say it's worth another check. Unplug the spark plug, attempt to move the augers by hand; hold the auger in place and attempt to move the impeller with your other hand; tie down the control for the auger and check the tension of the belt (again, keep the wire off the spark plug); and even do a quick visual inspection of the shear pins and roll pins to see if they are still there.

You seem adamant about the snow, which very well may be the underlying cause, however there should be at least some legitimate discharge of snow at the lowest speed setting before it clogs up and begins to plow the snow. This is why many of us think it to be a mechanical issue.
Back in the day, my pops had a very weak craftsman with a tired out 4 hp motor. Even that blower would toss the heavy snow. I simply cannot imagine that your Sno Tek not being able to throw the snow somewhat


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## samert111 (Nov 18, 2014)

Spectrum said:


> Any chance you has this apart in the off season and swapped the L & R augers?


Nope, never been apart to that extent. Only thing I've done is when I first bought it I ordered a couple of the bushings that go on the ends of the Auger shaft and drilled them out for a grease zerk and then swapped them out with the OEM ones. I figured these were high wear parts and I always buy extra of these items because they always seem break at the worst time. So I have extra Auger shaft bushings, belts, lots of shear bolts, etc. So far haven't needed to replace anything.

I confirmed again all shear & roll pins are not broken. The augers or impeller are not spinning freely on the shafts. I then tried again last night after work as we had gotten another 4"-5" of powder and I mean really fine powder on top of a layer of ice. With the Sno-Tek all it would do is push the real fine snow in front of the machine. it looked like a little avalanche 3-4 ft out in front of it and then it spills around the ends of the auger housing.

With my little Toro CCR2000 it would gather up the snow and throw it about 3 ft it was so light. It's like trying to blow feathers. Anyway I would keep moving it over with the Toro until I had a 20'x20' area of snow that had all been moved once or twice already so it was a little packed then. I then took the Sno-Tek and it worked fine. It would throw the packed snow 15-20 ft and when I ran it up into the bank it would really grab it and throw it even further. So I'm convinced that mechanically the machine it fine and this frickin snow is just sooooo light and with the layer of ice below it just wants to slide along in front of the machine.


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## Kielbasa (Dec 21, 2013)

This is exactly how I had to throw the snow with the original 7 HP Tecumseh. Stop and go, stop and go, stop and go. It was just a royal PITA! 

To all of the older Ariens (orange and white) machine owners, I can only say one thing. REPOWER........... and you will be amazed.......... on what your older machine can really be like. 



Koenig041 said:


> Here is a video of a Sno-Tek 24 with 208cc engine. Very challenging conditions but the snow looks dry. You will see that the operator has to stop, wait for the machine to clear the snow from the bucket, before being able to move forward. WIth a larger engine the machine can stay in its lowest gear and creep forward without stopping. The machine does throw well but is under powered in my opinion for the challenging conditions. I'm sure it would have had an issue with end of driveway plow pack.
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6FOrjqqXzs


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## nt40lanman (Dec 31, 2012)

What I've found with my machine is in slushy muck, I need to keep the engine speed up AND feed it lots of slush. Keeping the engine low or trying to go through slush slow just clogs things up, although I've never seen a fan clogged like that. I vote for a belt issue.


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## samert111 (Nov 18, 2014)

So last night on the way home the neighbor was out blowing his driveway and his machine was working just fine. So I tried it again and still had the same problem with it plowing the snow. Frustrated I put the blower in the shop to thaw out and this morning it was completely dried off. I looked it over real good again checking the shear bolts and impeller roll pins and everything looked fine. So I sprayed it down real good with the silicone spray and let it sit for a few minutes then wiped it down with clean dry towel. Took it out and with the Temp at 10 degrees I knew the snow would still be very light and fluffy and it threw the snow like it was a brand new machine. The snow never packed around the auger and I was able to clear the entire driveway without any problems. So I guess the problem was it just needed a good spray down of the silicone.


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## Normex (Feb 21, 2014)

Glad you found a solution but your case must be a first on this forum!


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## Shryp (Jan 1, 2011)

Wonder if once you had some stuff frozen in there it just kept attracting more snow.


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## pckeen (Nov 13, 2014)

Ummmmmmm......I think your maintenance caused the problem......

Your blower may have started working because of a slight change in snow conditions. 

You SHOULD NOT spray the augurs, nor the impeller with silicone. It's OK to lubricate the housing, but not the augurs themselves. Literally, what you are doing is making them slippery which will REDUCE, not increase their ability to move snow. If the slow is slushy, the augur's ability to move the snow will be reduced.

I come from the boating world, where boaters occasionally make the mistake of waxing both their motors.....and the propeller. The result? Boat don't move. Fine to wax a motor. Absolutely not fine to wax a propeller. Literally, this reduces friction between the surface of the prop and the water, which significantly reduces the propeller's ability to move a boat forward. The same theory should apply to moving snow. A slippery augur surface will have a significantly reduced ability to move snow. If snow is slushy - and less inclined to be shoved by the mechanical action of the augur, it will be less likely to move - just like a waxed prop which spins, but due to the lack of friction, is unable to move the water.

From reading through this thread, I suspect that the problem was caused by the maintenance (spraying the augurs with silicone), and the solution was a slight change in weather conditions which permitted slightly harder or fluffier (ie. more solid) snow to move. It's fine to lubricate the augur shaft (you would usually use grease), but not fine to lubricate the surface of the augurs themselves.

Clean off the augurs and impeller with gas - leave the silicone spray on the housing....and my guess is you'll see a real improvement in performance.


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## Normex (Feb 21, 2014)

Pckeen I beg to differ with snow it's ok to be more slippery and as he posted earlier his snow blower before had the problem of pushing the snow but it changed for the better as soon as he applied the silicone. Very different than in water applications.


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## pckeen (Nov 13, 2014)

His post indicated that he siliconed it first, then resiliconed it later. It's exactly the same theory. If you think of how an augur works, it will work by pushing the snow to the side - but at the same time as it pushes, it will slide past the snow. The slippier it is, the less friction,the less ability to push. The softer the snow - (ie the slushier) the more like water.....

The principle is identical.


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## Normex (Feb 21, 2014)

samert111 said:


> So last night on the way home the neighbor was out blowing his driveway and his machine was working just fine. So I tried it again and still had the same problem with it plowing the snow. Frustrated I put the blower in the shop to thaw out and this morning it was completely dried off. I looked it over real good again checking the shear bolts and impeller roll pins and everything looked fine. So I sprayed it down real good with the silicone spray and let it sit for a few minutes then wiped it down with clean dry towel. Took it out and with the Temp at 10 degrees I knew the snow would still be very light and fluffy and it threw the snow like it was a brand new machine. The snow never packed around the auger and I was able to clear the entire driveway without any problems. So I guess the problem was it just needed a good spray down of the silicone.


pckeen you should reread his post and furthermore I and many members here wax the whole auger housing to reduce friction, you can check by doing a search where many and I mean members here silicone or wax the inside chute to reduce friction not to increase it as a rusted chute would operate poorly. Start a new thread and ask you will see how many will respond like I did and many are very experienced.


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## Marty013 (Mar 14, 2014)

I wonder if the auger and impeller of that machine are rusty? or pitted.. something causing the snow to stick to it like that.. THAT is the problem.. sprays.. waxing.. is the band aid.. I partially agree with whoever said waxing or spraying the augers being a bad idea.. you need some friction to transfer power.. I.E. move that snow! just like you NEED friction to make your car move forwards.. `lubing`the chute puts less friction once the snow has been propelled.. `lubing`the auger or impeller just means your trying to keep snow from sticking to it.. which can `snowball`(intended pun) into bigger problems like the OP sees.. your augers and impellers are there to transfer power from the engine, VIA pulleys and belts.. to the snow.. the engine does the work FOR you.. it`s shovel is an auger and impeller.. try shovelling with pam in your shovel.. time yourself.. really.. do it


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## Normex (Feb 21, 2014)

Marty013 said:


> I wonder if the auger and impeller of that machine are rusty? or pitted.. something causing the snow to stick to it like that.. THAT is the problem.. sprays.. waxing.. is the band aid.. I partially agree with whoever said waxing or spraying the augers being a bad idea.. you need some friction to transfer power.. I.E. move that snow! just like you NEED friction to make your car move forwards.. `lubing`the chute puts less friction once the snow has been propelled.. `lubing`the auger or impeller just means your trying to keep snow from sticking to it.. which can `snowball`(intended pun) into bigger problems like the OP sees.. your augers and impellers are there to transfer power from the engine, VIA pulleys and belts.. to the snow.. the engine does the work FOR you.. it`s shovel is an auger and impeller.. try shovelling with pam in your shovel.. time yourself.. really.. do it


 Your initial logic seems to contradict itself by saying waxing is only a band aid and then you mention that you need more friction than waxing or silicone spray. Even waxed or sprayed surfaces still have friction and does not impede the functionality of a snow blower. I rest my case.


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## Big Ed (Feb 10, 2013)

He did say his blower is only 2 years old with limited use, I don't think it is all rusty?

I never heard of anyone waxing their prop on a boat.
But I doubt that it would affect the movement of the boat.
A propeller works like a screw in the water it still would put out the thrust and torque to propel the vessel forward.

I always have used a stainless steel prop and especially when it was new it looked just like polished chrome. Even with years of use on it it still looks like it is polished.

I never knew or heard of anyone who polished their props, but even if someone did, I think it would have very little if no affect on motoring the boat.

I wax everything on my blower and use cooking pam spray all over the insides.
My blower blows snow fine.

Edit,
I do spray my shovels with Pam too, works great as the snow doesn't stick to them.


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## Big Ed (Feb 10, 2013)

My prop looks like this,like I said even after many years of use. 
Cick on me,








Now you want some prop tips?
Notice read the large letters. 

A copy and paste,

Tips on propping your boat:

A larger prop isn't always better. Many boaters think they will go a little faster with a bigger prop but most generally a larger prop may go a faster but the engine(s) will not be running according to manufacturer specifications, causing decreased fuel economy and increased wear and tear, which will shorten the life of your engine.
Cupping a prop. The way a prop is cupped can effect the prop and vessel performance greatly. Sometimes a cup can cause a vessel to suck the transom lower in the water when accelerating and even on plane.
Four blade pops can increase mid range performance ( where most engines cruise ) with a loss of top end speed. These props are usually smoother with less vibration than a three blade prop.
Placement of transducers in hull. Care should be taken when placing transducers on the bottom of a hull, especially when installing some of the larger low frequency and Tri-transducers. Placing a larger transducer in front of a prop can cause increased turbulence and cavitaion.
Strut and Prop hubs. Streamlining edges of struts and even propeller hubs can reduce turbulence and cavitation. On single screw displacement keel boats stream lining the back edge of the keel can also help performance. - Keeping shafts and props clean. Polishing prop and shafts and coating with a wax or speed coat can help reduce barnacle growth and slime. A smooth clean prop has much less drag and turns easier through the water with increased efficient.
Shaft alignment and bearing wear. Shafts and struts should always be aligned and run true. A bent strut causing increased friction on the shaft at the bearing surface can reduce propeller rpm.

Just as I stated, it won't affect a propeller on a boat motor at all.
If anything it enhances performance.
Even though I don't polish mine maybe I will from now on.


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