# "March Nor'easter could be 'biggest snow' of season for Northeast"



## 524SWE (Jan 20, 2017)

It was in March of 1993 we had "the big one", 48" in one continuous storm, started on Friday night, the 12th. Biggest storm since 1966 in CNY (Syracuse). Probably not that big this time but here's what they're predicting for the Northeast.

Nor'easter early next week could be 'biggest snow' of season for Northeast | syracuse.com


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## orangputeh (Nov 24, 2016)

524SWE said:


> It was in March of 1993 we had "the big one", 48" in one continuous storm, started on Friday night, the 12th. Biggest storm since 1966 in CNY (Syracuse). Probably not that big this time but here's what they're predicting for the Northeast.
> 
> Nor'easter early next week could be 'biggest snow' of season for Northeast | syracuse.com


what about the blizzard of 78 ? I was there. shut down the whole northeast.


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## skutflut (Oct 16, 2015)

ahh, it will probably just be rain, especially if your machine is tuned to the teeth and ready for anything. 

If you want to ensure show, go out and break a part that will take a couple of weeks to get. 

:huh:


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## ELaw (Feb 4, 2015)

Does anyone have a link to that "winter's over" thread that was started a few days ago? :icon-hgtg:


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## YSHSfan (Jun 25, 2014)

ELaw said:


> Does anyone have a link to that "winter's over" thread that was started a few days ago? :icon-hgtg:


http://www.snowblowerforum.com/foru...on/112338-thats-wrap-see-you-next-winter.html
Is it this one.....:smiley-confused013:


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## Dauntae (Nov 10, 2016)

I'm in deep regret with this snow right now, I didn't do the impeller mod when I put it together intending to pull it apart again when it warms up for paint, Well when I got home from work I had to clear the slushy snow before the temps dropped and it turned to ice, Holy clogging batman, Was NOT a good time with constant clogging.


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## 524SWE (Jan 20, 2017)

orangputeh said:


> what about the blizzard of 78 ? I was there. shut down the whole northeast.


Don't know about Syracuse, I wasn't living here in '78.


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## micah68kj (Oct 8, 2011)

I was living in Cleve, Oh. in 78. Man what a time we had. 
Living in eastern West Va in 93 and we got 29". 
Last year here in S.C. Pa. we got 33" if I remember correctly. Maybe it was 36".
Just found this pic. We live between the "A" and "J" in the word, major...
Hoping we don't get hit.


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## drmerdp (Feb 9, 2014)

Whoa I'm in the crippling zone. I'm excited.


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## Tony P. (Jan 9, 2017)

Unfortunately storms are named in alphabetical order so this one's Stella, coming after Reggie. I'd prefer Big Kahuna.


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## JLawrence08648 (Jan 15, 2017)

Philadelphia 6-12 inches with upwards of 24".


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## micah68kj (Oct 8, 2011)

'Nother update.. Looks like we're in for something.


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## RIT333 (Feb 6, 2014)

Local weather -people in NY Capital District are hyping it up. Anything for a bigger viewing audience. Probably end up with flurries, at most.


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## Tomatillo (Nov 11, 2016)

_*You're welcome!*_


The equivalent of a tribal rain dance, my steps to snow success follow.


1) Purchase $3.5K snow blower: Ensuring no snow in Va for the winter.


2) Post that I winterized the unit and bid winter farewell: Nor'easter!


Looks like we cracked the code, my snow-covered compadres.


Now, let's put this technique to work ....


I will _NOT _win the lottery next week and I will _NOT_ receive dashing good looks. I will NOT be smarter and more well endowed, and I will nnnNOT lose this sssstutter and limp!




ELaw said:


> Does anyone have a link to that "winter's over" thread that was started a few days ago? :icon-hgtg:


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## dhazelton (Dec 8, 2014)

I'm originally from Chautauqua County and the winters in the late 70s were pretty epic. Usually the only time we see snow storms in the Hudson Valley are when they are Noreasters and they are almost always the wet heavy stuff. 

I have to make sure the driveway is cleared of all sticks before Tuesday because the winds we had here really blew a lot of crap around and a stick could take out a shear pin at the worst time. In fact I think I'll have my shear pins and wrenches in the house just in case.


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## skutflut (Oct 16, 2015)

dhazelton said:


> I'm originally from Chautauqua County and the winters in the late 70s were pretty epic. Usually the only time we see snow storms in the Hudson Valley are when they are Noreasters and they are almost always the wet heavy stuff.
> 
> I have to make sure the driveway is cleared of all sticks before Tuesday because the winds we had here really blew a lot of crap around and a stick could take out a shear pin at the worst time. In fact I think I'll have my shear pins and wrenches in the house just in case.


Nothing beats a nice warm wrench and shear pin.


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## uberT (Dec 29, 2013)

I'm VERY excited about this!! Fuel tanks are all fueled up. Gonna buy some more gasoline tomorrow.


*GO, STELLA !!!!!!!!!* :10::10::10:


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## 69ariens (Jan 29, 2011)

So is stella getting her groove back.


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## drmerdp (Feb 9, 2014)

Tomatillo said:


> _*You're welcome!*_
> 
> 
> The equivalent of a tribal rain dance, my steps to snow success follow.
> ...


You nailed it! Thanks! Might even have an opertunity to use my generator finally.


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## Tomatillo (Nov 11, 2016)

Bite your tongue, Skutflut. Yer bummin me out!

That's what I'm thinking, though. I'd gladly be repentant about predicting end of snow!



skutflut said:


> ahh, it will probably just be rain, especially if your machine is tuned to the teeth and ready for anything.
> 
> If you want to ensure show, go out and break a part that will take a couple of weeks to get.
> 
> :huh:


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## luteplayers (Feb 11, 2017)

I've had two storms over 2 feet this winter here in Southern Maine, so this probably won't be my biggest storm. That said I will be tickled to get the foot they are predicting. Still using my Troy Bilt Storm 3090 XP with the busted remote chute control. Can't wait til next winter when I will be using an Ariens.


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## tpenfield (Feb 24, 2015)

Yesterday the weather.com forecast for my area on Tuesday was 13-20" of snow :icon_smile_shock: :eeek:

Today, that forecast looks a bit downgraded . . . now being 9-15" of snow :huh:

Weather.gov (NOAA) has the forecast at 'at least' 6" . . . 'most likely' 12-18" . . . 'potential for as much as' 20" . . . for my area. (Boston suburbs) :smiley-confused009:

The local news stations are being a bit vague at this point . . . talking about 12" +/-

Regardless, I guess it is going to snow in the northeast USA on Tuesday


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## slybarman (Nov 28, 2016)

I keep checking the forecast for my area. Forecasters are 100% sure we are either getting the snowpocalypse or a light rain shower. Great job if you can get it.

Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk


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## Spectrum (Jan 6, 2013)

We're looking at a foot or so but the storm track could change.


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## uberT (Dec 29, 2013)

Seems like there's general agreement on 10" - 20", some very tough conditions. Storm to affect very large area.


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## JLawrence08648 (Jan 15, 2017)

Central NJ across from Philadelphia was upgraded from 6"-12" with on the border of 12" to 12"-18" still on the border of 12".


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## RedOctobyr (Mar 2, 2014)

Just saw a summary of local forecasts for the Boston area. Yeah, a lot of them are talking about 12-18" for my area. Now, of course, for one of the last storms, they predicted significantly more than we actually got, so who knows. But the blower and generator are fueled up, if it really hits.


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## skutflut (Oct 16, 2015)

The way I look at it, a week from now this storm will be just a memory of how Mother Nature can kick our *** without so much as a how do you do. 

It kind of sounds like quite a few people are hoping for a big event to get that "I wanna play with my show blower" urge satisfied. 

Let's hope it doesn't fizzle out and turn into rain. On the other hand, be careful out there so nobody gets hurt or sick...


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## NJHonda (Feb 8, 2013)

We are slated to get 9.5" and I just had my right elbow operated on last week for tendon damage so Ill be out of commission to do it. Looks like our Son will be doing the neighborhood by himself


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## dhazelton (Dec 8, 2014)

skutflut said:


> Nothing beats a nice warm wrench and shear pin.


My garage is a couple hundred feet away and I keep the blower by the front door when these event happen. I've had to wade through the snow to get pins and wrenches from there before I even got a path cleared to it.


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## JnC (Feb 21, 2014)

I left for a 3 week long vacation to Dubai on the 14th of last month, enjoyed the 80+ degree dry weather there for the entirety of the trip, noticed the 2~3 feet high snow piles dwindle down to nothing back home on the security cameras and was excited to come back home to nice warm weather. 

I guess I should have stayed there for another week or so , oh well, non of my machines are winterized just yet so we'll deal with what ever is thrown our way.


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## RedOctobyr (Mar 2, 2014)

Wow, how was Dubai? 

And do you really "winterize" blowers before putting them away at the end of the season?


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## sscotsman (Dec 8, 2010)

Since "next week" is about to turn into "this week"  
I just updated the subject line of this thread from:

*"Nor'easter early next week could be 'biggest snow' of season for Northeast"

to

**"March Nor'easter could be 'biggest snow' of season for Northeast"

thanks,
Scot
*


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## JnC (Feb 21, 2014)

RedOctobyr said:


> Wow, how was Dubai?
> 
> And do you really "winterize" blowers before putting them away at the end of the season?


Dubai was great, got used to the 80+ weather real quick. Even though its a concrete jungle but we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. I still would have preferred going to Italy rather as that was the initial plan till the SO decided she wants to visit Dubai. 

I usually do just the basic when winterizing my machines i.e. top off the fuel tanks with treated fuel, empty out the carb, throw a few squirts of oil in the cylinder.


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## sscotsman (Dec 8, 2010)

Update for central and western NY:

http://flxweather.com/2017/03/12/sunday-noreaster-updates-latest-details-first-snow-map/

Ive moved up inyo the 16" to 24" range!
I have so-far used the snowblower only twice this winter! And each time on only 4 or 5 inches of snow..this storm is far more typical of an average winter. 

I will definately be firing up the snowblower Tuesday after work!

Scot


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## RedOctobyr (Mar 2, 2014)

JnC said:


> Dubai was great, got used to the 80+ weather real quick. Even though its a concrete jungle but we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. I still would have preferred going to Italy rather as that was the initial plan till the SO decided she wants to visit Dubai.
> 
> I usually do just the basic when winterizing my machines i.e. top off the fuel tanks with treated fuel, empty out the carb, throw a few squirts of oil in the cylinder.


That's great that you enjoyed Dubai! From the tiny bit that I know, it sounds like quite a different place & experience. 

And I was just joking with the offseason stuff. That you'd summarize a blower for the off-season rather than winterizing it, etc.


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## skutflut (Oct 16, 2015)

And I was just joking with the offseason stuff. That you'd summarize a blower for the off-season rather than winterizing it said:


> I wonder if they sell Sand Blowers there, to deal with the cleanup after a sandstorm??


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## jej826 (Sep 13, 2016)

I'm in the 12-18" area. Bring it on.. I stopped at my dealer today, to pick up a couple shear bolts, just in case. They were all out. A couple guys bought all of them yesterday. Oh well, I still have my two spares.


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## bearman49709 (Apr 27, 2015)

orangputeh said:


> what about the blizzard of 78 ? I was there. shut down the whole northeast.


I remember hearing about, think I was laying on a beach in central america with a young local girl when I heard it.


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## 69ariens (Jan 29, 2011)

Still saying 12-18'' here but they added a blizzard warning out to worc now. Finally a storm that my toro was made for.


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## Dauntae (Nov 10, 2016)

They seem to be down grading it here in the last few hours, Now they stopped giving how many inches and saying a mix of snow and rain.... BOOOOOOOO


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## tpenfield (Feb 24, 2015)

Dauntae said:


> They seem to be down grading it here in the last few hours, Now they stopped giving how many inches and saying a mix of snow and rain.... BOOOOOOOO



SE Mass / Cape Cod ??? :smiley-char060:


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## Dauntae (Nov 10, 2016)

yup, New Bedford area. I want the snow LOL But I'll at least have the snow you shoot this direction with your troy bilt LOL


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## YSHSfan (Jun 25, 2014)

In my area they where predicting 8-12" for the past two days, but within the past few hours they've changed it to "_*a foot or more*_", we'll see what happens in the end......


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## drmerdp (Feb 9, 2014)

Forget inch amounts, I got verbage. Crippling... Which happens to be 18-24".


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## GoBlowSnow (Sep 4, 2015)

this storm should get those little ski hills out there back up and running for a few weeks.


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## sscotsman (Dec 8, 2010)

18" to 24" is "crippling"?
that's a bit over the top..but that's the media for you..

I suppose in Virginia 2-feet would be crippling..
but in Buffalo, Rochester & Syracuse, 2-feet slows down the morning rush hour a bit, but by Noon everything is back to normal..

Scot


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## 69ariens (Jan 29, 2011)

Dauntae said:


> yup, New Bedford area. I want the snow LOL But I'll at least have the snow you shoot this direction with your troy bilt LOL


There is nothing worse than snow turning to rain. Back breaking.


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## Prime (Jan 11, 2014)

69ariens said:


> There is nothing worse than snow turning to rain. Back breaking.


Totally agree. Change over storms are a beast. Especially when the rain isnt enough to clean it up and freezing temps to follow. Great stuff. Out blowing in the rain, and often high winds to boot to get it cleaned up before the temperature drops too far. Can sure be a challange. Current forcast for us is heavy snow with high winds up to 90 km changing to rain.


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## sscotsman (Dec 8, 2010)

Prime said:


> Totally agree. Change over storms are a beast. Especially when the rain isnt enough to clean it up and freezing temps to follow. Great stuff. Out blowing in the rain, and often high winds to boot to get it cleaned up before the temperature drops too far. Can sure be a challange. Current forcast for us is heavy snow with high winds up to 90 km changing to rain.


Doesn't look like that should be a problem in this case..
i just checked the forecast for NY city, and they say 34 degrees while the snow falls tomorrow, which *will* be a wet and heavy snow!
but..then there is no actual rain in the forecast for the immediate days following..
Wednesday's high says 29...so, it will stay cold enough to keep it mostly snow, and little, if any, actual rain.

Scot


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## tpenfield (Feb 24, 2015)

drmerdp said:


> Forget inch amounts, I got verbage. Crippling... Which happens to be 18-24".



Looks the NOAA has NYC Northern NJ area at around 20" as the most likely totals. In my area, west of Boston, NOAA has us at about 16" most likely . . . the local stations have us at 18+" 

Last big storm, it was warm and that held the depth totals down, but the snow was fairly dense. Had it been colder, probably would have been double the depth . . .


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## fixer5000 (Nov 3, 2013)

RedOctobyr said:


> Just saw a summary of local forecasts for the Boston area. Yeah, a lot of them are talking about 12-18" for my area. Now, of course, for one of the last storms, they predicted significantly more than we actually got, so who knows. But the blower and generator are fueled up, if it really hits.


im with red...prepared for anything!! also a standby generator is in my near future.. screw keeping a lot of gas on hand...no more


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## wow08816 (Feb 2, 2017)

*Anybody buying Snowblowers*

I have not witnessed much snowblower sale activity despite the impending winter storm. About 4-5 years ago (? memory fails me) when we had the back to back Noreasters there was significant sale activity for the second storm.


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## sscotsman (Dec 8, 2010)

wow08816 said:


> I have not witnessed much snowblower sale activity despite the impending winter storm. About 4-5 years ago (? memory fails me) when we had the back to back Noreasters there was significant sale activity for the second storm.


Its a bit late now..
people who dont have snowblowers already probably arent going to bother just for this one spring storm.
also, all the Big Boxes have already removed the snowblowers from the floor!
riding mowers have been out for weeks.
they might have one or two out back, but supply overall is going to be low..

If it was mid-October and this big storm was coming, I could see a run on snowblowers, because people might see it as a sign of "a bad winter coming"..
but mid-March? nah..people will shrug it off, everyone knows it's the last real snow for this winter.
no need to think about getting a snowblower until the end of the year! 

Scot


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## Tony P. (Jan 9, 2017)

*Handling tomorrows snow, rain, sleet, wind combo.*

The current (10:01 AM) NWS forecast for my area predicts snow until 2 PM tomorrow (8-12" accumulation), followed by rain, snow, sleet from 2-4 PM, followed by rain and sleet after 4 PM for several hours. During this period winds will be 30-40 MPH with gusts to 55. Temps after dark will be around 20F.

The simple question is when would you plow - assuming for this discussion that the prediction is accurate?

Here's the issues I see:

If I clear the snow after 2PM, rain and sleet will freeze and I'll have 2" of ice in the morning.
If I wait until late the snow will almost certainly crust with the sleet and freezing rain plus the additional rain may make my work extremely difficult or even impossible.

This seems to be an issue of how I want my poison.


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## sscotsman (Dec 8, 2010)

Im still not seeing freezing rain, or any rain really, for anyone..
although different agencies will have different temp estimates of course.

weather channel says the temp will top-out at 34:

http://www.snowblowerforum.com/foru...ing-tomorrows-snow-rain-sleet-wind-combo.html

and thats only for a few hours tomorrow afternoon..the majority of this storm will be below-freezing, which means only snow..
yes, wet and heavy snow! but im seeing little rain impact in the forecasts..

National Weather service says a high of 30 for coastal Connecticut on Tuesday, never above freezing at all:

National Weather Service


yes, freezing rain is caused by warmer temps higher in the atmosphere, then cold at the surface..
but the NWS mentions no freezing rain for Conn at all..only snow:



> Tonight
> Snow, mainly after 10pm. Low around 22. Wind chill values between 15 and 20. Light and variable wind becoming northeast 5 to 9 mph after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 20 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New snow accumulation of 1 to 3 inches possible.
> 
> Tuesday
> ...


source: http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClic...=41.1863&textField2=-73.1962&e=0#.WMazuVUrJD8
Last update	13 Mar 10:52 am EDT

so where are people seeing all the potential rain or freezing rain issues?

Scot


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## skutflut (Oct 16, 2015)

I have the luxury of being retired, so I can watch the storm from the comfort of my living room window. If the snow starts to get crazy, (with the help of the wind) I will go clear it in mid storm if there is a possibility of rain or freezing rain landing on it. That way, I only have half as much wet slop to deal with. Otherwise, if there is not threat of rain or sleet, I am inclined to wait and blow it once and be done with it. 

Always try and get to the EOD pile as soon as the plow goes by, just because no matter what fell out of the sky, that pile is full of salt and chunks that rapidly become closely related to concrete.


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## Snowbelt_subie (Dec 20, 2016)

you guys in the N.E are going to get some serious stuff it looks like.

we are forecasting 10-12" but they are saying lake effect enhanced possibility. so what that means they have no idea when and where and how much we will get :smiley-char060:


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## sscotsman (Dec 8, 2010)

ah ok, now im seeing some "mix" in the forecast..
its on the far eastern fringes of this system, for tomorrow.
I was looking at Bridgeport CT..not far enough east! 

Map:

https://s.w-x.co/staticmaps/map_wkpln_day2_3usne_enus_800x450.jpg

Scot


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## uberT (Dec 29, 2013)

They are suggesting some pockets of 30". They're looking at widespread 18" - 24" for much of the area. Combine that with big wind and we'll all need drift cutters !!


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## RattlerGUNZ (Nov 3, 2013)

* Winter Storm Watch	*

Issued at 11:02 Monday 13 March 2017	
Heavy snow and blowing snow on tap beginning Tuesday morning...

A low pressure system developing over the Central United States will track toward the coast of New England on Tuesday as it intensifies. According to the latest analyses, this system will hit much of Southern, Central and Eastern Quebec with snow beginning Tuesday morning. Snowfall amounts expected through Wednesday evening could exceed 15 and even 30 centimetres over a number of areas, especially from the Eastern Townships to the Gaspe Peninsula.

In addition, strong northeasterly winds will develop resulting in widespread blowing snow.

Visibility may be suddenly reduced at times in heavy snow. There may be a significant impact on rush hour traffic in urban areas.


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## RedOctobyr (Mar 2, 2014)

fixer5000 said:


> im with red...prepared for anything!! also a standby generator is in my near future.. screw keeping a lot of gas on hand...no more


Nice  A standby generator would be sweet. I'm just happy to now have the house wired for the generator, making it much easier to actually *use* the power that I can provide. 

We used to typically lose power for at least a full day per year. The longest was 3 days, after the big ice storm in '08 (and we hadn't bought the generator yet, so it was a challenge). Of course, since having the house wired ~3-4 years ago, we've lost power once, for a few hours


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## chrisexv6 (Feb 4, 2014)

RedOctobyr said:


> Nice  A standby generator would be sweet. I'm just happy to now have the house wired for the generator, making it much easier to actually *use* the power that I can provide.
> 
> *We used to typically lose power for at least a full day per year. The longest was 3 days, after the big ice storm in '08 (and we hadn't bought the generator yet, so it was a challenge). Of course, since having the house wired ~3-4 years ago, we've lost power once, for a few hours*


Same here....I think Ive only used our fancy transfer panel for actually testing our generator more than for power outages.

But, its nice to have just in case. Beats stringing extension cords all over the place (but even that beats having no generator at all). I just rolled my genset out to the center of my garage (right behind my Ariens!) so I can move it into action if need be...hopefully I wont need it.


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## uberT (Dec 29, 2013)

The guy on the Weather Channel just used the word "gargantuan" ! :yahoo:


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## drmerdp (Feb 9, 2014)

I'd love to finally use my generator(s). I invested a bunch of time and money in my setup.

Electric start champion 7000/9000w, converted to trifuel running propane from my 500g underground tank.
Housed in a sound insulated gen shed with an automotive muffler and exhaust fan with a high temp safety shutoff.
Wired to my main panel through a safety interlock.

I turn on my gas valve, hit the remote start button, let it run for a minute then flip my breakers. And I needed to use it once for 30 seconds :frown:


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## nastorino (Jan 28, 2016)

drmerdp said:


> I'd love to finally use my generator(s). I invested a bunch of time and money in my setup.
> 
> Electric start champion 7000/9000w, converted to trifuel running propane from my 500g underground tank.
> Housed in a sound insulated gen shed with an automotive muffler and exhaust fan with a high temp safety shutoff.
> ...


:bowing:


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## skutflut (Oct 16, 2015)

I put in a 14KW whole house generator in 2014, after the big ice storm in December 2013. Better late than never. It automatically starts, and transfers on loss of power and runs pretty much the whole house, up to 60 amps per leg. Runs on natural gas, so no fuel worries. It starts by itself every monday at 11:00AM to exercise for 12 minutes, and then sits patiently waiting. Now that I have it, its like insurance that we won't have another 3 day outage ever. At least I have another engine to look after. This one has a 992 CC V Twin rated at about 40ish horsepower, I was thinking of taking the engine and building a motorcycle around it for summer time just to give it some real world use, but that hose for the nat gas supply would probably get in the way after a few miles.

Of course, since then it's only covered about 4 hours of power outage, over three occasions, not including the night at 2:30AM when high winds were causing multiple short outages, under a minute each, during which the generator started and stopped 3 times in 20 minutes. Next day, I changed the start delay to 5 minutes to take into account the reaction time of the local hydro power company in closing tripped breakers. I was working for the power company as a system operator at the time, and the policy is to wait 1 minute after a breaker lockout, then try a reclose, and there is still a fault causing another lockout, then roll the trouble truck.


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## CarlB (Jan 2, 2011)

here is my listeroid backup generator I installed it back in 2005 and have used it quite a few times. It is setup as as diesel/natural gas hybrid and uses very little diesel as its pilot ignition. It will power our entire house except for the central air conditioning. If central air is needed i use a 10kw natural gas generator. The engine only runs at 650 rpms and is almost hypnotic. 

Both generators are connected to the main panel box using a safety interlock so all circuits are available to the generators .


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## Blosumsno (Dec 7, 2016)

I guess If you don't want to lose power then buy a generator and let it sit in the garage! lol. I have a small one that could probably run the pellet stove but not much else. On the plus side the 2 gal tank will run all day or so at half-load. So far hadn't had to use it.


I hope the power stays on but at least it won't be crazy cold overnight, upper 20's to 30 or so. But they upgraded the winter storm warning to a blizzard warning for all of eastern Pa except Phila. county. Also the worst of the wind for my town is forecast to be from about 8am to 11am maybe noon and tapering in the afternoon and the forecast total about 17".


This will be the first real test of the Toro Snowmaster I got this past fall so this will be exciting.


The Meteorologist on one of the local news channels calls it "12 hours of fury" lol and I'll be holed out at mom's overnight so I can do the first pass with the blower after breakfast and then one more in the afternoon or evening, then will try to get to my house in the afternoon to blow it out if the borough streets dept. has it plowed by then. 


My mom lives along a main road so there's a better chance of getting out if we need to leave the house for some reason whereas my house is in a borough neighborhood and when we get such snowfall sometimes they don't get to plowing until the next day.


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## vern7000 (Jan 1, 2017)

In 78 South Bend had a few roads where the snow had drifted 2 feet under the traffic lights.


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## 69ariens (Jan 29, 2011)

Great, now they are saying we could get a mix here. I don't want it now.


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## NVA4370 (Sep 12, 2016)

Here in Northern Virginia they are starting to back off of the big numbers they were throwing around earlier. It's warm enough here that the roads and paved areas won't see the snow start piling up for quite a while. It's starting to look more like we're going to have a wintry mix for the most part and may not even end up with enough to use the new Ariens.


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## tpenfield (Feb 24, 2015)

It's funny how the forecast of these storms start high and go low as the storm approaches . . . We will just have to wait and see. I think NY/NJ is going to get whacked with this one. Boston metro, maybe/maybe not . . .


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## RedOctobyr (Mar 2, 2014)

I admit I hope we get a bunch of snow. Though preferably just snow, not a messy mix. Kinda hoping it's not another case of the weather reports really talking it up, then having the storm be much less than anticipated. 

Stay safe everyone!


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## tpenfield (Feb 24, 2015)

OK, bring on the snow


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## drmerdp (Feb 9, 2014)

Sooo... I'm in the 2-3 feet range. S**t may get real.


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## Dauntae (Nov 10, 2016)

Now I am seeing 4-8 and then turn to rain around 1????I better be out there at 12 with a snow blower while I can have some fun in it LOL


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## Ariens hydro pro (Jan 24, 2014)

Well I'm in the 24" range. On the way home from my awesome job, it was snowing, but nothing on the ground. 
I backed the truck in, and angled it so Big Burtha can drive on thru. I stepped on the tires to gauge the air pressure, topped off the fuel and checked the oil.

Bring it! I'll throw it back where it came from.


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## fixer5000 (Nov 3, 2013)

just got word that work is cancelled so soon ill take the wifey out to breakfast then come back and watch it fly. batten down the hatches boys here it comes!! stay safe all


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## NVA4370 (Sep 12, 2016)

We were in the 8 to 10 inch area, but woke up to about an inch so far with mixed rain and snow falling. 

A plow went by just as I was getting up and did something I've never seen in the 30 years we've been here. He plowed the street gutter to gutter, so know I've got a 28" pile of concrete (frozen slush) at the EOD.

We had a lot of sleet at times overnight, so it's a real mess out there. I'm going to go out and clean out the EOD before it gets more frozen. That will be the Ariens initiation.


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## RIT333 (Feb 6, 2014)

NVA4370 said:


> I've never seen in the 30 years we've been here. He plowed the street gutter to gutter, so know I've got a 28" pile of concrete (frozen slush) at the EOD.


Sounds like an angry snow plow driver who would rather have been home in bed.


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## jtclays (Sep 24, 2010)

tpenfield said:


> OK, bring on the snow
> 
> View attachment 102258











Now you went and did it. Running clean blowers all ready........definitely getting rain:wavetowel2:


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## JLawrence08648 (Jan 15, 2017)

*Where's the snow?*

I'm in NJ, just north of Philadelphia. Prior to the snow hitting, it was 12" expected, then upgraded to 18", with 20 miles north getting 24". When the snow hit, we were suppose to get a confirmed 12", then downgraded to 8". We now have a collapsing 3" of wet slushy snow and ice, wondering if any of my blowers can move it without clogging the chute and seeing a continuous stream of turd wedges coming out. This is the type of snow I really wish when the warm weather was here the past couple of weeks I had installed impeller rubber on one of my machines not anticipating anymore snow! Whoops


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## uberT (Dec 29, 2013)

It's about 11AM and I'm disappointed in what I see so far. 31.5F  Probably 5" snow. Wind is picking up. Snow plow has been by 2X so far.


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## Dave C (Jan 26, 2015)

6" plus in CT, wind is kicking up big time. Plows won't be around until it stops. Won't be fun with the wind blowing, not looking forward to this at all.


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## sscotsman (Dec 8, 2010)

For those of wondering "where is all the snow?", the storm isn't even half-over yet! 
Its maybe only 1/3 over..still plenty to come.

Here in Western NY, the forecast has been, for days now, calling for 12" to 18"..but..spread out slowly over two solid days..

Snow begins overnight Monday into Tuesday morning. (it has)
It will snow *all day* Tuesday.
Snow continues Tuesday night into Wednesday.
Event finally ends mid-day Wednesday.

At 11am Tuesday we only have 4" on the ground in Rochester NY..
but there is lots more promised..
looks like some forecasts have been downgraded though..
New York City has been downgraded to "only" 16 inches..
looks like the rain/sleet/snow line is shifting, which could bring less snow to some areas along the coast.

Here in Western NY, we are still in the 12" to 18" range over the next 24 hours..

Some areas might get less than predicted..but the "main event" is still to come..
Its almost over for Washington DC and Philly, but for NY City and New England, Tuesday morning is still very early, its just the start.

Scot


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## sscotsman (Dec 8, 2010)

Update! My last post was based on internet data..I thought it was fairly recent, but this is changing fast!

The storm track has shifted slightly, which has put New York City into the warmer sleet zone, and out of the main "snow only" zone..NY city is going to top out at only 4 inches! Same for Long Island, coastal Conn and RI...Boston downgraded too..

Hudson Valley of NY and interior New England is still in the "full snow" zone though..they are still in line for 12 to 24"..same with Western NY, we haven't changed at all, because that snow/sleet/rain line wont get anywhere near us..our forecast is unchanged..

So, along the coast from DC-Philly-NY City- Boston: much less than predicted, because the warm zone shifted..

Everyone else away from the coast: mostly unchanged, still decent snow on the way.

Scot


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## Biketrax (Jan 28, 2015)

*Rain Mix just hit us!! 11:45*

So been watching the radar And The rain mix hit me well ahead of the radar indication. I think we got about a foot of pretty light stuff. but its getting wet. So I am heading out there to take care of business !!


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## tpenfield (Feb 24, 2015)

A whole walloping 2" of snow outside my window as we approach the noon hour. The weather.com forecast for my area has backed down to 8-12" (was 12-18"). The storm track is inland and will go right over Boston (rain) rather than staying offshore. We are supposed to see rain toward 5:00PM. 

Inland and more northern areas (Western MA, CT, NH) will still get a bunch of snow . . . but . . . It seems that this storm has been a bit over-hyped . . .


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## drmerdp (Feb 9, 2014)

I just finished clearing 16-18 inches. Started nice and dry but turned wetter as I was wrapping up. I still have snow coming down, but its a lightly falling now and will continue like this till 3-4pm.

The 928 Honda was a joy as usual. It's a wonderful thing to use my big snowblower to clear my tiered walk with a set of 6 stairs. Tracks  . Snow conditions were good for a 40-50 foot rooster tail. Love it. I keep thinking about how much of a monster it would be with a gx390.


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## uberT (Dec 29, 2013)

We're up to 32F at noon. Storm is picking up now. Probably 8". I can see the end of drive deposit is already bad. I'll probably go out and do a few passes...


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## sscotsman (Dec 8, 2010)

tpenfield said:


> It seems that this storm has been a bit over-hyped . . .


Well no, I wouldnt say it was over hyped at all..this storm could have easily dumped two feet of snow on NY city and Boston..the fact that it now isnt going to is just a fluke of nature..the storm simply moved 50 miles further north!  the storm is still very much strong and alive though, its just in a very slightly different location that it could have been..Albany NY, Western Mass and other areas are still getting that promised 2 feet today!  the physical storm itself is unchanged, only its location is slightly different than it might have been. The forecasters got the main story right, its just those tiny shifts that cant be fully predicted.

Scot


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## Boosted3g (Oct 9, 2016)

First real test for my platinum 24. Had 2 neighbors comment to me how far it throws and how the engine don't chug even with a full bucket of end of driveway crud. It's a thirty machine for sure but it's effortless to operate with the auto turn. We are over a foot here in central pa and it's still hammering outside


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## Tomatillo (Nov 11, 2016)

Awesome!




Boosted3g said:


> First real test for my platinum 24. Had 2 neighbors comment to me how far it throws and how the engine don't chug even with a full bucket of end of driveway crud. It's a thirty machine for sure but it's effortless to operate with the auto turn. We are over a foot here in central pa and it's still hammering outside


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## classiccat (Mar 1, 2014)

sscotsman said:


> Well no, I wouldnt say it was over hyped at all..this storm could have easily dumped two feet of snow on NY city and Boston..the fact that it now isnt going to is just a fluke of nature..the storm simply moved 50 miles further north!  the storm is still very much strong and alive though, its just in a very slightly different location that it could have been..Albany NY, Western Mass and other areas are still getting that promised 2 feet today!  the physical storm itself is unchanged, only its location is slightly different than it might have been. The forecasters got the main story right, its just those tiny shifts that cant be fully predicted.
> 
> Scot


Under-hyped if anything here in Albany, NY. Still 20deg outside and near white-out...12" and counting. :t09015:


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## Tomatillo (Nov 11, 2016)

Depends on where you live as to whether you feel it was hyped. If they're calling for a foot and you get an inch, and your doctor's appointments are canceled, and schools are closed, and this sort of frenzy happens more often than not, with big urgent flash screens on the television, etc., you might look at things a tad cynically!


Point taken, however.




sscotsman said:


> Well no, I wouldnt say it was over hyped at all..this storm could have easily dumped two feet of snow on NY city and Boston..the fact that it now isnt going to is just a fluke of nature..the storm simply moved 50 miles further north!  the storm is still very much strong and alive though, its just in a very slightly different location that it could have been..Albany NY, Western Mass and other areas are still getting that promised 2 feet today!  the physical storm itself is unchanged, only its location is slightly different than it might have been. The forecasters got the main story right, its just those tiny shifts that cant be fully predicted.
> 
> Scot


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## RIT333 (Feb 6, 2014)

classiccat said:


> Under-hyped if anything here in Albany, NY. Still 20deg outside and near white-out...12" and counting. :t09015:


In an hour, look out at your driveway, I'll be shooting some snow over from Rotterdam. We also have a foot plus, with another foot coming.


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## Tomatillo (Nov 11, 2016)

:bowing:




RIT333 said:


> In an hour, look out at your driveway, I'll be shooting some snow over from Rotterdam. We also have a foot plus, with another foot coming.


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## 524SWE (Jan 20, 2017)

*Reporting from CNY...*

This is 524SWE reporting from CNY at 12 noon 15 miles east of the city of Syracuse. We've got just a few inches on the ground as you can see, really nothing my single stage can't handle, used it to clear the deck and sidewalk, now just making a "spot" for our dog. She was dragging her belly in the snow already. They're predicting another 12-18 inches. We'll see!


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## uberT (Dec 29, 2013)

I've been watching my neighbor run his big Ariens for the past hour. Trying to decide when to go out for the first time. We're in the huge wind. Supposed to be raining by 4:30pm. Still at 32F.


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## Prime (Jan 11, 2014)

2:40 pm snow just starting in Yarmouth NS Giving about 4 hrs snow then heavy rain with wind gusting 100 Km


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## Jackmels (Feb 18, 2013)

Went Out to see how much was out there, and found a foot or More of the Wet Heavy Stuff. So I decided to do a Preliminary Sweep. I had just Yesterday installed a tall chute on my 1976 10-32 Ariens, and I'll say it was a good move. This Machine is a "Keeper" as it Performed Great, Throwing it High and Far. I must say the EOD plies were taller than the auger, and I Had to go Slow, but All is Cleared for the Moment. It's Very Windy Here in Hudson Ma. Should be Interesting to see How much More We Get. I pity anyone who has to shovel this....


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## Ariens hydro pro (Jan 24, 2014)

We got about 18" so far. I've just got back in and it over the bucket by the road by several inches. Changing over to rain. I was out for 1 1/2 hours and I'm soaked down to my back. I thru the jacket in the dryer getting ready for round 2. I burned a tank of gas on my pro. The snow is wet and heavy.


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## classiccat (Mar 1, 2014)

RIT333 said:


> In an hour, look out at your driveway, I'll be shooting some snow over from Rotterdam. We also have a foot plus, with another foot coming.


Rotterdam! if you shout loud enough I may here you over here in Guilderland. :icon-cheers:

I'll be firing-up old Alice in ~ 2hrs... so if pictures start falling off of your walls around that time, you'll know why.


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## uberT (Dec 29, 2013)

I've been out for 2 hrs. It's 33F and raining with sleet mixed in for good measure. Probably around 12" of snow.


I am not fond of my Armorskids after an intense work out today. They just ride up and over the dense snow, they're too long. They won't cut through. 


I see my SHO is leaking something golden-colored. I assume it's an oil. I don't think it's gasoline. That was a brutal session with the snow and I'm quite dis-pleased with this machine...just two weeks after getting it back from another warranty repair. :smiley-think001:


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## Dave C (Jan 26, 2015)

Ariens hydro pro said:


> We got about 18" so far. I've just got back in and it over the bucket by the road by several inches. Changing over to rain. I was out for 1 1/2 hours and I'm soaked down to my back. I thru the jacket in the dryer getting ready for round 2. I burned a tank of gas on my pro. The snow is wet and heavy.


Where in CT? I'm in Wallingford and it seems to be done (drizzle now). Had about a foot of heavy wet stuff.


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## Dave C (Jan 26, 2015)

uberT said:


> I am not fond of my Armorskids after an intense work out today. They just ride up and over the dense snow, they're too long. They won't cut through.


Ditto. They get swapped for poly skids next year.



> I see my SHO is leaking something golden-colored. I assume it's an oil. I don't think it's gasoline. That was a brutal session with the snow and I'm quite dis-pleased with this machine...just two weeks after getting it back from another warranty repair. :smiley-think001:


Bummer. My brand new Deluxe 28 left a dark spot that I'll have to investigate too.


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## uberT (Dec 29, 2013)

Dave, I'm hoping it's just the breather tube off the carb. None of the machines mark they're spot when they're off - - I notice that kind of stuff.


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## Prime (Jan 11, 2014)

Raining in Nova Scotia now. Got 3-4 cm total. Works for me.


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## Ariens hydro pro (Jan 24, 2014)

Southington


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## Prime (Jan 11, 2014)

uberT said:


> I've been out for 2 hrs. It's 33F and raining with sleet mixed in for good measure. Probably around 12" of snow.
> 
> 
> I am not fond of my Armorskids after an intense work out today. They just ride up and over the dense snow, they're too long. They won't cut through.
> ...


I have changed over to poly skids. Sure track better!


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## chargin (Mar 29, 2015)

Around 6-8" here south of Boston, then rain to make it a slushy ****.
Still waiting for a decent March snow event.


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## RedOctobyr (Mar 2, 2014)

I think we have about a foot here, north of Boston. Now it's changed over to sleet/rain. Trying to decide whether to go clear now, or try to wait for the rain to stop  I'd rather wait until the mess stops, though that means the snow will get even a bit heavier. At least I hopefully won't be shoveling. 

The wind has really been howling all afternoon. The lights flickered once, but have stayed on, fortunately.


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## 524SWE (Jan 20, 2017)

*some blowing and drifting near houses...*

looks like this out back...my 'ol lady won't touch the snowblowers, allergic to anything with a motor, even hates driving her car but I got her out there today on a shovel, she works a mean shovel let me tell you, that snow was flyin'!


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## merdody1 (Jan 30, 2017)

I'm about 11 miles south of Boston and this storm stunk. At 1:00 we a had about 8-9 inches and I started then because I knew it was going to change to rain at 2:00 My Ariens st824 924039 did fine and then I noticed I was plowing on one side of the bucket and sure enough broken shear pin. Then I went with my newly acquired Toro 521. For a little machine it did great and really threw the snow. Then the rain came and I went to my 9hp29" Craftsman as it has an impeller kit. It did great but after about 3 more hours of rain it started to struggle at the end. But the mission was accomplished.


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## fixer5000 (Nov 3, 2013)

im gonna guess about a foot here in westford.heavy stuff at that.. all cleaned up for the moment. i didnt want it to get any heavier. this turned into a pretty long thread lol i think we are all obsessed !! i should add the eod was like concrete here too... ariens to the rescue once again. im jonesin for the one with the bigger motor...maybe next year


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## RAYAR (Mar 7, 2015)

Started in Memramcook, NB around 6:30pm. It's coming down quite heavy and quick at this time.


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## Smolenski7 (Nov 24, 2010)

> I see my SHO is leaking something golden-colored. I assume it's an oil. I don't think it's gasoline.


Happened to me too. I have a 24" Ariens Deluxe that's about 6 years old. I noticed in a couple of different spots a golden puddle, almost like a dog did his business in the middle of my driveway. One spot was fairly large, about 6" in diameter. I stopped blowing, took a look at my machine all around, but couldn't find any where that was leaking. I also noticed a few very small dark spots after that.

The snowblower worked very hard today, I'm in central CT (Hi, Dave C.) and I'm guessing we got somewhere around 9"-10" of very heavy snow. This was some of the heaviest stuff I can recall, however, the snowblower did a great job. Whatever was leaking didn't effect performance. After I was done, I checked the oil and it was fine.

What could this golden spot be? Is it something to be concerned about?


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## uberT (Dec 29, 2013)

I'm going to spend some more time searching for the source. Mine is nothing more than drips, no puddles or anything close to that. However, when the engine is running under heavy load, there's a long line of drips following the machine.


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## flash4o (Feb 3, 2017)

20"-24" here in the Hudson Valley in NY.

My new-this-season 24" Briggs dual stage 208cc was unbelievable. I went out three separate times to keep up with it, and it just rocked. When town plow left 25" deep and 10' into the driveway, the SB handled it amazingly well. Even the wife is impressed.

Looking forward to cleaning in up tomorrow, using FF everywhere, and its first 5 hour oil change with synthetic.


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## skutflut (Oct 16, 2015)

Smolenski7 said:


> Happened to me too. I have a 24" Ariens Deluxe that's about 6 years old. I noticed in a couple of different spots a golden puddle, almost like a dog did his business in the middle of my driveway. One spot was fairly large, about 6" in diameter. I stopped blowing, took a look at my machine all around, but couldn't find any where that was leaking. I also noticed a few very small dark spots after that.
> 
> The snowblower worked very hard today, I'm in central CT (Hi, Dave C.) and I'm guessing we got somewhere around 9"-10" of very heavy snow. This was some of the heaviest stuff I can recall, however, the snowblower did a great job. Whatever was leaking didn't effect performance. After I was done, I checked the oil and it was fine.
> 
> What could this golden spot be? Is it something to be concerned about?


Did you check the gearbox to see if its leaking? If not the engine that would be the only other thing with oil in it unless you have a hydrostatic transmission


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## Smolenski7 (Nov 24, 2010)

skutflut said:


> Did you check the gearbox to see if its leaking? If not the engine that would be the only other thing with oil in it unless you have a hydrostatic transmission



Yes, I took a quick look, but it was hard to tell because everything was covered with snow. Like I said earlier though, the machine rocked! It was definitely showing signs of stress, but the snow was very deep in spots, especially the EOD stuff. Plus, it was crazy heavy. Definitely heart attack snow.

I just came in from blowing again, and boy was that difficult. I can't every remember having such a tough time blowing snow. The town plow came by about 4 hours ago and left an amazing amount of snow at the EOD and along the 200' of sidewalk that I have. My neighbor was awesome and cleared about 75" of it for me, but that sill left a lot for me to tackle. It was about 18"- 24" of snow blocks, if that makes sense, about 125' long and 3' wide. The blower did great though. I definitely had to push it along because the tires just kept skidding along the top 2" of ice and slush, but I sure am happy that I bought an Ariens.

I didn't notice anything out of the ordinary, I was looking, however, it was dark so I could have easily missed something. I still have no idea what that golden stuff on the ground could have been. :icon-shrug: Maybe I will notice something on the garage floor tomorrow?


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## montclair2525 (Sep 26, 2015)

*Ariens Platinum SHO 30*

I bought my Ariens Platinum SHO 30 in September '15 and this is the first real test it's had. I have a 200ft driveway with a circle in front of the house and a deep turning area into the garage. If they made a 28" Platinum SHO, that would have been fine, but I thought 24" was a bit too narrow. 

I'm in Northern Westchester County, NY and we got about 12 to 16 inches of medium heavy snow. No rain.. I waited until it tapered off to a flurry and set out around 6pm. 

This thing is an absolute beast. The 414 engine never complained even with a full width bucket 16" high, although I ran it in 1st or 2nd gear most of the time as not to over tax it. I was concerned when I got to the EOD pile that completely filled the 21" high bucket, but it chewed through that heavy, heavy stuff without even a whimper. I am so impressed!

The only problem is that it throws snow too far. My neighbor that is down wind (it was blowing a good 20-25 mph) ran out to tell me that I was filling up his driveway and front walk. I had to pitch down the deflector almost horizontal to keep the snow closer.

Auto-steer works great. I have a very old and uneven blacktop driveway (really needs to be repaved), so I swapped in poly shoes and set the scraper bar at about 1" to clear the high points and I have no problems.

I also broke out the Cab for the first time. I was concerned that it would cause the bucket to ride up (I don't have a counterweight installed), but it did not. So nice being protected from the spindrift blowing around. It's warmer in there, too!

I just hit 5 hours run time (I installed one of those cheapo hour meters), so time to drain the oil and go synthetic.


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## SnowG (Dec 5, 2014)

I'm in SW CT and we got a lot of hail mixed with powder, but mostly hail. It was super heavy and dense, about 8-10" overall but hard to judge with the high winds and drifting. 

I LOVED HAVING A SNOW CAB TODAY. There were a few times the wind reversed, and I really appreciated it while hearing the ice pellets from my blow-back hitting at about 50mph against the cab window.


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## luteplayers (Feb 11, 2017)

Not over hyped here. Took me two hours to drive the 30 miles from work to home. Glad they let me leave an hour and a half early. 

I got home to 18" and an EOD up to my waist. Parked in the road and waded to the Troy Bilt, primed 3 times, half choke and yanked on the starter handle, which came off in my hand when the rope broke. That gave me a chance to change out of my work clothes and put on my real boots when I went to get the extension cord.

Took me about an hour and a half to clear it. The Mrs was running the shovel and cleaning off cars. It is supposed to continue until 7am, but it has slowed down. It is only 26 degrees so hopefully there won't be any rain.

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk


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## YSHSfan (Jun 25, 2014)

I got about 6-8" of snow followed by freezing rain and plain rain, ended up with ~3 of wet/heavy/slushy/watery snow.
Went out and cleaned the EOD of my house and my neighbors house + a pile that I had made near my main door as I needed a path to go from my house to the garage.
I started with the Yamaha YS828T, it did ok but seemed to struggle, while cleaning the pile near my door the Yamaha clogged twice (kind of like the issues with the new HSS), I unclogged it twice and gave up, I also noticed that it was not throwing the snow as far as expected.
Went to the garage, parked the Yamaha and pulled my Honda HS828WA and used it to finish my clean up. The difference was noticeable, it did not clog and also threw the snow at least 1/3 further (may have to do with the extra long chute and the double deflector)
I'd like to see how my HS1128TAS performs with this chute....... :blush:

:blowerhug:


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## guilateen02 (Nov 23, 2014)

Northwest RI here. Local news said said we received 13 inches. It was wet and heavy. I just put together an HS724 last minute. I had about 1.5 days to straighten out some problems it had. I installed some new Stens Poly skid because the rear mounted skids where shot with one ripped off taking the bolts with it. Well I think the skids are too wide because it had a tendency to ride up very easily. I sure got my workout trying to keep it planted down. 
Going to be really slippery tomorrow as it was raining and now it is 26 degrees and flurries again. Stay safe. 
Also to those with the spots dripping on the ground. It might just be the wet snow causing rust and or oil runoff. Probably from the chute collar or engine base /block area.


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## RedOctobyr (Mar 2, 2014)

Just finished clearing. WOW. We have about a foot (edit- I heard later that we got 16"), but it is wet, heavy, and really packable. I waited until the end to clear it. 

I had to go in 1st gear most of the time. Not so much because of running out of power (it's 10hp, 24"), but largely because it just couldn't process and throw the snow fast enough, so it would start piling up in front of the bucket. Both shear pins were intact, except for when 1 broke for no apparent reason  But I think the snow packed so easily that it didn't want to go into the impeller, and instead wanted to form into big snow chunks in front of the machine. 

I have chains on it, but I still disabled the differential for most of the time, to lock the axle for more traction. It was obviously difficult to push into the snow. 

This is the hardest the machine has had to work in the few years I've owned it. I don't think I've emptied the tank in one session before. Tonight I went through a little over 1 and a half tanks. I did get to help a few neighbors who were out shoveling, which was good.


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## Dauntae (Nov 10, 2016)

Well the first real use of my rebuilt Ariens 1027, Here is was snowing hard until around 12 then turned to rain and with 6+ inches of snow I knew I had to get it off the driveway and it actually did pretty well, Had to do it mostly in first gear and threw it decent but not nearly as far as when I first tested it. EOD was real heavy slush and definitely made the engine work as I could hear it slightly bog but just kept going, In the street going under the pile was water flowing down the street and when I hit that it reminded me of the Honda add someone posted of the honda throwing water LOL Thick stream of water shooting out as i just started laughing. I do have to say I was impressed that it only slightly clogged twice and cleared itself both times with a big glob of slush plopping out, I did however spray the chute with silicone spray just before because I have not done the impeller mod yet. Can't wait to get this one finished up and painted and ready for next winter.


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## tpenfield (Feb 24, 2015)

The storm was a bust in the greater Boston/Eastern MA are vs. the media hype.

We got 8-9" of heavy/wet stuff. Great for making a snowman. I think if the media had said, you will get 6-9" . . . maybe a foot in some areas, we all would have said " OK . . . typical storm" and went about our business :roll3yes:


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## Prime (Jan 11, 2014)

Yarmouth NS got 2 inch of snow which turned to heavy rain and high winds all night. Took all the new snow and most of the little old snow on the ground. Giving as much in fluries tonight as we got from the storm. Winter hates to let go.


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## MnJim (Jan 26, 2014)

I pushed all the snow in the driveway down to EOD and had enough snow to start up my Ariens, Think I started it once last year.

Be safe out there.


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## sscotsman (Dec 8, 2010)

Solid 2-feet in Rochester NY!
Still snowing at 8am Wednesday..hasnt stopped for about 36 hours straight..
The storm itself is basically over, we are still getting Lake Effect remnants though..
ikts supposed to stop this afternoon..

Our snow was very cold, light and fluffy though! all 24" of it..
we stayed well below freezing the whole time, so snowblowing wasn't bad at all..
I cleared the driveway once yesterday, once this morning, and there will probably a 3rd time this afternoon.

Scot


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## chrisexv6 (Feb 4, 2014)

Milford, CT here - got about a foot before it changed over to rain around noon-ish. Made the decision to go snowblow then, it was already wet and heavy but could have been a lot worse if I waited longer (as evidenced by all my neighbors doing it much later).

Plow came by at 9PM or so, I went to attack EOD right after they finished. Put a good spread of ice melt over most of my driveway and went to bed.

Woke up this morning to dry blacktop on 75% of my driveway, and 5 or 6 of my neighbors outside chipping, shovelling and swearing at their frozen EOD mess.


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## 69ariens (Jan 29, 2011)

sscotsman said:


> Solid 2-feet in Rochester NY!
> Still snowing at 8am Wednesday..hasnt stopped for about 36 hours straight..
> The storm itself is basically over, we are still getting Lake Effect remnants though..
> ikts supposed to stop this afternoon..
> ...


Scot, you got the jackpot. 
I got 11'' here,then sleet and then 4 hrs of light rain. The 721 toro was useless . I had to bring out the 926 to do all my walkway's on my plowing rt.


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## 524SWE (Jan 20, 2017)

Weatherpersons are calling for another 8" here in Syracuse area, I measured 20" in my backyard this morning, temp has stayed cold here, hasn't got above 20 last two days, have done my driveway 3 times. I did my neighbors driveway for first time this morning since storm started, EOD was 30+" high, my "rescue" snowblower blew right thru it, the 208cc OHV engine seems to have a lot of torque, never hesitated, governor kicks in and it's music to your ears.


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## sscotsman (Dec 8, 2010)

69ariens said:


> Scot, you got the jackpot.


Only on this forum!  and only so far..
Areas east of here, between Syracuse and Albany NY, got 36 inches..and there is one report of 42" out that way! three and a half feet..

and Lake Ontario is still pumping it out! she isn't giving up..
looks like the snow is going to remain steady for a full second day today..

Scot


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## sr73087 (Feb 9, 2017)

chrisexv6 said:


> Milford, CT here - got about a foot before it changed over to rain around noon-ish. Made the decision to go snowblow then, it was already wet and heavy but could have been a lot worse if I waited longer (as evidenced by all my neighbors doing it much later).
> 
> Plow came by at 9PM or so, I went to attack EOD right after they finished. Put a good spread of ice melt over most of my driveway and went to bed.
> 
> Woke up this morning to dry blacktop on 75% of my driveway, and 5 or 6 of my neighbors outside chipping, shovelling and swearing at their frozen EOD mess.


I'm in Trumbull and it was the same situation here. I'm glad I went out and did a final small cleanup last night around 830-9. I was able to walk right across the top of the snow this morning. Everyone I spoke to around here with subpar snowblowers had issues with the mess we got in the Southwest part of this state.


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## uberT (Dec 29, 2013)

We had a little rain last night and it got up 38F for a while. It really compressed the snow we got. It would have been a HUGE mistake to postpone clean up 'til this morning - - the stuff is rock hard now. I attempted to scrape the roof a bit - - that wasn't happening.


On my way to work this AM, I passed a Chevy with it's wheels dangling a foot off the ground. He must have tried to bash through the end of drive mess and didn't come close to breaking thru. In fact, he broke all the plastic bits on the front end of the car...


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## RedOctobyr (Mar 2, 2014)

Ugh, yeah. During the commute this morning I saw a bunch of people hacking away at stuff in their driveways, either stuff they didn't clear last night, or that the plows put back into their driveways overnight. 

One person had a plastic snow shovel (with a metal tip), chopping away at a big solid section, it didn't seem to be really doing anything. Looks like the wrong tool for the job. But at this point, I'd be a little concerned about even trying to use the blower, since it would be so solid. 

Clearing it last night was no picnic, but it sure beats trying to do it today!


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## Smolenski7 (Nov 24, 2010)

Here is a picture of the golden spot left on my driveway. It is still there this morning. It looks like gas to me, not sure how that would have leaked out so quickly though with out me noticing any change in performance. 

There were darker, much smaller spots to in another area of the driveway, but those are gone now. I'm not too worried about those, however. 










Sent from my SM-J320V using Tapatalk


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## RedOctobyr (Mar 2, 2014)

Can you put something (towel, etc) under the breather tube, to make it more obvious if something comes out of the tube while running? 

Does the spot smell like anything? Or, perhaps easier, is it oily? You could wipe it with a paper towel, then wait for the towel to dry, and see what's left on it. 

I guess my first thought wouldn't be that it's gas. Oil might seem more likely, but I certainly don't know.


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## Freezn (Mar 1, 2014)

Smolenski7 said:


> Here is a picture of the golden spot left on my driveway. It is still there this morning. It looks like gas to me, not sure how that would have leaked out so quickly though with out me noticing any change in performance.
> 
> There were darker, much smaller spots to in another area of the driveway, but those are gone now. I'm not too worried about those, however.
> 
> ...



Did you spray your augers/discharge chute with silicone or cooking spray prior to clearing the driveway? If so, maybe it's excess spray dripping off???


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## bkwudz (Jan 14, 2013)

Wow, that was the hardest my Ariens Pro 28 has had to work. Got 12" at home, Went right out last night around 6, it had just started to turn to rain, This stuff was heavy, EOD was huge, like cement. the pro powered through, but man did it work hard. Yesterday was also the first try with the new design of the armorskids. I had the old style and they sucked, rides up too much. Figured i would try the new design. Same thing, in wet snow like we got, they just want to ride up. It's too bad, they are so nice on uneven stuff, and grass and gravel. But it's not worth it if I have to fight the. Riding up. Took them off this morning amd put the stick skids back on, and went and did my parents. They had 6" and a lot of rain after... today it was a solid 4" of frozen snow....there were parts that the Pro 28 just woudnt push through. I had to chop it up a bit as I went along.


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## danmp (Nov 23, 2016)

I think will have some job tonight. I fell between 3-5 foot of snow here and it supposed to snow another 6-7" more inches today

This storm hit very hard here, many people died and many accident.


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## dhazelton (Dec 8, 2014)

Went through two tanks of gas. 20 inches of DENSE snow as tall as the bucket. Once I got one pass through I had to take tiny swaths as my 6 hp was really not up to that much. End of driveway was close to chest high. Drift cutters could have helped there. I think the pavement was still fairly warm is the base seemed wet and froze pretty quickly after I cleared it off.


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## redcon1 (Jan 13, 2016)

Here in south-central PA were in the 12-16" zone according to local weather, but the first 5 hours of the storm was sleet, keeping the totals way down.


By the time I went out to blow at about 4pm yesterday, the snow was a compact and heavy 9" with a layer of slush at the bottom. The 24" compact ran like a champ, throwing it far enough to clean my wide driveway base and chewing up the heavy EOD stuff.


Getting ready for Stella, with Stella


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## chargin (Mar 29, 2015)

This is interesting.


> The National Weather Service knew ahead of yesterday’s snowfall that the storm wasn’t likely to live up to its hype, but meteorologists stayed the course “out of extreme caution,” saying they didn’t want to confuse the public.


Weather models changed ? but meteorologists? forecast didn?t | Boston Herald

Oct 2015 I bought a roof rake.
I have yet to use it.


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## The Q (Dec 19, 2016)

sscotsman said:


> Solid 2-feet in Rochester NY!
> Still snowing at 8am Wednesday..hasnt stopped for about 36 hours straight..
> The storm itself is basically over, we are still getting Lake Effect remnants though..
> ikts supposed to stop this afternoon..
> ...


I`m about 50 miles east of you. Did the driveway twice yesterday, 6" and 6". Woke up this morning to at least a solid 12 to 14" more and it`s still snowing right now at 17:30. Wind picking up now also.


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## cranman (Jan 23, 2016)

I'm thinking that yellow spot is dog ****


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## jej826 (Sep 13, 2016)

We had 14"+ of a heavy mix of snow and sleet. My deluxe 24 blew right through it. It didn't even cough at the 25-30" at EOD. I'm happy with the machine..


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## 524SWE (Jan 20, 2017)

have done my driveway and the neighbors twice today, officially we had 21.6 at noon, been snowing all day, guessing we got another 6 and they're predicting 6 more tonight. As they say at McDonalds, I'm Lovin' It!


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## SnowG (Dec 5, 2014)

uberT said:


> snip
> 
> 
> On my way to work this AM, I passed a Chevy with it's wheels dangling a foot off the ground. He must have tried to bash through the end of drive mess and didn't come close to breaking thru. In fact, he broke all the plastic bits on the front end of the car...


Would have enjoyed watching that. opcorn: Nobody posted it yet on YouTube?


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## UNDERTAKER (Dec 30, 2013)

*Who Gets The Golden Defibrillator Award*

*I have not been watching the news or keeping up with who got the most snow, rain, sleet or even hail oot there on the east coast.*


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## Blosumsno (Dec 7, 2016)

Here in southeastern Pa. (NW of Phila.) We got around 6 inches of wet snow/sleet. The forecast Monday evening called for 18" in my area. I think the official total in my area was some 7 inches but I didn't see that much in my yard given drifting some parts of the driveway had 4 inches others a little more.

Snow showers ahead of the storm began around 9pm EDT Monday and when I awoke around 5 AM I could hear sleet hitting the windows. Fell asleep until about 7:45 at which time I still heard sleet. Continued to sleet most of morning with occasional changeovers to snow finally tapering off in early afternoon.

Seemed to me that much of the event was sleet.


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## JnC (Feb 21, 2014)

We got about a foot here in Nashua and about 10" in Bedford, MA, thanks to our wonderful town plow guy I was greeted with a 4 foot high wall of EOD when I got home from work. 

I didnt get home till 7 PM and by that time there was a bit of slush on the bottom of the pile and a crust of sleet on the top, so pretty much a nightmare scenario for any machine. My 1132 Honda usually doesnt even break a sweat when dealing with this amount of snow but due to the sleet on the top and slush at the bottom it had to put in a good workout, especially with the EOD. 

May be someone can shed some light on this matter, I live on a dead end street with a cul-de-sac. Our street is never plowed by the same guy yet every time it gets plowed I end up with way more EOD snow on my side of the street than the folks across the street from us on the other side. The plow guy enters the street with his blade angeled to pick up everything from one side and dumping it in the middle of the street, goes to the end of the street, turns and switches his blade and then on his way out picks up everything from the middle of the street and piles it on my side of the street. The other side of the street does have a side walk but the side walk never gets cleared and is pretty much covered with snow and useless through out the whole winter. 

The fact that I have the only fire hydrant available on the street adjacent to my property doesnt stop them either as usually the hydrant is buried under a mountain of snow as well. Even though the hydrant is clearly marked. The fire department folks usually come out after the storm to dig it out. 

I have thought about talking to him but it wouldnt really help as its always a different person plowing.


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## sscotsman (Dec 8, 2010)

The records from this storm, that I know of:

Binghamton NY - 35.3" (the most for any city in the storm's path)
West Winfield NY - 44" (a small town south of Utica NY)

Scot


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## AriensPro1128 (Nov 9, 2014)

JnC. When I lived in the city in Massachusetts the plow truck followed the same route each snowstorm. The first pass was down the middle of the street with the snow deposited on my side. Usually I had twice as much snow on my curb after the second pass as the people across the street. It was not fun at all. Now I am the last driveway on a dead-end road in NH and still have to deal with an inordinate amount of snow.


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## wow08816 (Feb 2, 2017)

Received a little over 18" of mixed snow in South Central PA. Initial 4" were quite wet, but once temps plummeted below freezing flakes turned to powder. This was the first year my wife operated a snow blower. The snow plows did an excellent job pushing "ALL" the snow off our roads into our driveways. Wall of snow at EOD was almost as high as my 5'1" Susie.


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## danmp (Nov 23, 2016)

This is the result of that storm here in Quebec city.

I took me 4h to blow that mess


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## uberT (Dec 29, 2013)

LOL! Dan, that's some serious snow you get there !!!!! We call that house-bound ('til spring) around here :smiley-char060:


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## danmp (Nov 23, 2016)

uberT said:


> LOL! Dan, that's some serious snow you get there !!!!! We call that house-bound ('til spring) around here :smiley-char060:



Yes that was a big one, one of the biggest for the last few years. I struggle with my wheeled ariens for the last 3 years and decided to trade it a tracked one. I'm glad I did. it make it easier to go through that stuff. It was not wet snow, but it was not light stuff.

I'm hoping that we will not receive many more like this until the spring( which is around late April here )


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## coastie56 (Feb 4, 2016)

Well all we got was about 2 inches over the last 3 days and nothing really stuck as the walks and drive are clear. I blame this on the fact that I found a ccustomer returned Troy Bilt 2840 for about 400 bucks off, and cleaned the jet to get it to run with the choke off LOL. This one has the 243 motor and heated grips...Yeah! Anybody know anything about that motor?


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## 524SWE (Jan 20, 2017)

Well! That was fun! Here's a screen grab from the 5AM weather. I live about halfway between Syracuse and Rome. Hard to measure in my backyard, lots of blowing and drifting, maybe 24" here. We've had 133" this year, just a little north of us on the Tug Hill Plateau they've had over 300", can't get the 'ol lady to move up there!


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## guyl (Jun 12, 2016)

Here in Montreal we got a good 40 cm (15 inches) and it was just a thick blanket of the loose stuff, which is the most fun to blow away. Just a nice full plume flying out of the chute.

Dan, we went to my daughter's place in Beauport on Sunday and came home Monday, happy that we'd be home by the time big storm hit. Wow!


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## danmp (Nov 23, 2016)

Guy, I actually live in north of Beauport. When I left home at 3am, we already got around 40cm and the snow stoppped around 5pm.

They was many abandonned car on road even in the night.


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## Smolenski7 (Nov 24, 2010)

RedOctobyr said:


> Can you put something (towel, etc) under the breather tube, to make it more obvious if something comes out of the tube while running?
> 
> Does the spot smell like anything? Or, perhaps easier, is it oily? You could wipe it with a paper towel, then wait for the towel to dry, and see what's left on it.
> 
> I guess my first thought wouldn't be that it's gas. Oil might seem more likely, but I certainly don't know.



After I took the picture, I scraped it up and through it in the street just in case it was gas. I didn't want it to melt, then stain my new driveway. I didn't think to smell it, I guess that would have been a good idea though. 

As far as the breather tube idea, I'll try it. I don't think it will show anything though, like I said before, the machine was great through out the whole storm. It worked really hard and proved to be worth the money paid.


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## uberT (Dec 29, 2013)

*Train in Rhinecliff NY:*

To me, this is kinda weird. You can see there is massive amounts of snow covering the track...wouldn't you step back when you see the train coming? And, I mean, WAY BACK !! That's dangerous. Shame on AMTRAK or whomever the operator is (MetroNorth?)


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## dhazelton (Dec 8, 2014)

uberT said:


> To me, this is kinda weird. You can see there is massive amounts of snow covering the track...wouldn't you step back when you see the train coming? And, I mean, WAY BACK !! That's dangerous. Shame on AMTRAK or whomever the operator is (MetroNorth?)
> 
> 
> https://youtu.be/R51jmndHEr4


I've been on the Beacon platform when the Amtrak train passes by. IT DOES NOT SLOW DOWN. It does 60 or 70 mph which is seriously dangerous in my mind with no gates of any kind to keep people /kids back.


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## dhazelton (Dec 8, 2014)

After the storm I saw bright blue spills in the paths that I cleared to my shed. That is incidentally where the deer decides to bed down since the grass was exposed. I knew it couldn't be from the blower so I googled 'blue deer urine' and yes - they can pee blue depending upon what they ate.


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## sscotsman (Dec 8, 2010)

uberT said:


> To me, this is kinda weird. You can see there is massive amounts of snow covering the track...wouldn't you step back when you see the train coming? And, I mean, WAY BACK !! That's dangerous. Shame on AMTRAK or whomever the operator is (MetroNorth?)


No, there is no shame for the railroad..
only shame for the idiots hit by the snow.

That was the morning after the storm..there were no tourists who actually might not understand how things work..
these were all seasoned commuters..they know many trains come through at full-speed without stopping, they see it every day.
They should have been smart enough to see deep snow, see a fast train coming, and put 2 and 2 together..they didn't, they are morons...no sympathy from me! 

Its no different than this:










If you are standing next to a puddle, and you see the car coming..who's fault is it when you get soaked? 

Scot


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## uberT (Dec 29, 2013)

Scot, many times we simply aren't smart enough to save ourselves. Perhaps a touch of the Darwin thing kicking in  I like the puddle splashing.




More snow this weekend !!!!


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## wow08816 (Feb 2, 2017)

Looked like standard operating procedure (express train not stopping at local stop). Snow on tracks is also standard as the lead car is equipped with cattle herders (designed to push and deflect). The folks who got sprayed were victims of their own ignorance to the laws of physics. If anyone was to blame it was the camera man. He obviously knew what was going to happen and filmed it from a safe distance and made no attempts to move the riders out of harm's way.. His morality justified the dramatic effects of his video over the welfare of the riders.

Snow plow drivers are a different matter. Some of them (like my brother-in-law) like to intentionally punish parked vehicles and spray inattentive bystanders (especially if these individuals are scantily or well dressed). Other than this slight character quirk, he (my BIL) appears to be a kind and gentle family man.


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## UNDERTAKER (Dec 30, 2013)

danmp said:


> This is the result of that storm here in Quebec city.
> 
> I took me 4h to blow that mess


*Just might have to bust out the NAPALM 4 that 1.:facepalm_zpsdj194qhk:mg::emoticon-south-park*


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## Bassguitarist1985 (Aug 22, 2016)

sr73087 said:


> I'm in Trumbull and it was the same situation here. I'm glad I went out and did a final small cleanup last night around 830-9. I was able to walk right across the top of the snow this morning. Everyone I spoke to around here with subpar snowblowers had issues with the mess we got in the Southwest part of this state.


Up north here past Waterbury, got 17-18 inches with much higher drifts. I went out with my Platinum 30" Ariens with cab, heated grips, front weight, and drift cutters about 1PM. Wind was whipping around like crazy. face mask and all for this round. Probably had 10" on the ground then. Went back out one more time 8:30 that night, way less wind, but with the John deere 42" SS. I got the pushing power with the rear weights/chains. Scraped the driveway down to the pavement and had no problem clearing. Flapper mod for the JD works amazing. Video is from a previous storm , but handles the heavy snow great! The next morning was tough because the plow came by, dumped more snow at the end of the driveway, and bashed into my mailbox, despite having a neon marker next to it showing the curb edge. Had very strong winds up here too, got the generator ready and everything, but underground utilities where I live now. No power loss. If 60mph gusts dont knock out power, pretty much nothing short of a category 2 hurricane will do it.

Bottom line, no problem at all with a storm this big. Its certainly not the biggest I've experienced. About 4 years ago Winter Storm Nemo dumped over 38" of snow on me when I lived in the Naugatuck Valley. Didn't have the JD at the time, but man let me tell you, thank goodness for that Ariens. 4 days snowed in, and the worst flu season too. The storm pretty much eradicated the flu since it could not communicate.


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## FearlessFront (Aug 18, 2016)

That was the most Treacherous type of snow I have seen in 20 years of removing this stuff. Here in N.J. we got about a foot, but that was not the issue. The stuff was so thick and so packed the bottom two inches were nearly impossible to get up. That night it froze the next day it was impossible to get up. We used chisels and literally broke the stuff up and scraped it off the pavement. We had to call it a day the second day shortly after starting because it was impossible to get up. It was 22 degrees, no sun, it wouldn't budge. Finally the next day around 1 pm it got up into the 40's and the sun was hitting it and it softened up a bit enough for us to chisel it up again. Later the machines started to move it again. But it was the worst I have ever seen. Snowblowers became worthless in the stuff at one point we could barely get it up with chisels, than the chisels were working and we could not use the snowblowers again until 3 days after the first day when it originally fell. It was really bad. The stuff plowed at the ends of the driveways were boulders all over the place that weighed anywhere from 30 to 300 pounds a piece. How do you contend with that unless you have a plow? You can't.


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## RickDangerous (Mar 27, 2017)

Great storm, did some snowboarding, snowmobiling and snow shoeing. And......it's the reason i'm a member of this site right now. Looking forward to tackling any snow next year with my blower rather than giving myself back issues.

I like exercise but they just don't make shovels for people my height (6'5)...


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## drmerdp (Feb 9, 2014)

> That was the most Treacherous type of snow I have seen in 20 years of removing this stuff. Here in N.J. we got about a foot, but that was not the issue. The stuff was so thick and so packed the bottom two inches were nearly impossible to get up. That night it froze the next day it was impossible to get up.


It was some thick gnarley stuff. My Honda did an excellent job of cutting through it though. The benefits of a track machine and getting lots of bucket pressure. Anyone with a toro powershift would have been VERY happy with their machine too.

It's nice to have a single stage machine to scrape the last little bit down to the pavement too. I'm a big fan of having both a single and dual stage machine. Especially since my driveway and less then perfect. Single stage is super useful.

Sometime in January while the rest of jersey was getting rain, I got 4 inches of frozen icy concrete. My neighbor couldn't believe I was able to use a snowblower on that stuff.


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