# Fluid Film, Sno-Jet, silicone, etc.



## Paulie139 (Sep 25, 2017)

How often and when is it advised to apply the lubricant of choice to the machine?


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## SKT_33 (Sep 6, 2017)

I just bought some Ariens Sno Jet spray as well. Havent used any of this stuff before so not sure how often people use it and when they apply. Following this topic.


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## Paulie139 (Sep 25, 2017)

Thank you, SKT-33, for the bump.


Can anyone tell us how often these products should be used (once a month, twice a season, before every snowblower use, etc.) and when (10 minutes prior to snowblowing, an hour before, once at the start of the season, etc.).


Thanks


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## nwcove (Mar 2, 2015)

...top secret tip...shhhhhh......cooking spray from the dollar store. apply before moving snow.....a can goes along way. !!


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## 10953 (Sep 4, 2017)

wd40 or anything with teflon in it. next storm do it again


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## d3500ram (Feb 5, 2017)

When I bought my new Ariens, I also got a can of the official© Ariens™ can of slippery stuff®. 



I figure I will start new with OEM licensed© products™ and then use alternates such as cooking spray. I coated the new sheet metal before using. I guess it depends on how wet and often the snow is. Rather than a time frame perhaps a usage factor might be more appropriate. I am going to spray it down after every 6 uses or so. On average that is about 3-4weeks for me.


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## Paulie139 (Sep 25, 2017)

nwcove said:


> ...top secret tip...shhhhhh......cooking spray from the dollar store. apply before moving snow.....a can goes along way. !!


As I already posted in another thread, (http://www.snowblowerforum.com/forum/ariens-snowblowers/119001-ariens-snowblower-cover.html), I'm already having to try and keep Otis, my 100-pound Rottweiler away from the machine when he's in the garage with it - I can see him going right to town on the tracks now. So cooking spray may not be my best choice here. I certainly don't want to encourage him. 

I guess if I stayed away from the butter-flavored....


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## Freezn (Mar 1, 2014)

Silicone spray auger bucket, impeller housing, and discharge chute before and after each use. That's my routine.


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## Kielbasa (Dec 21, 2013)

Meguiar's Gold Class Paste Wax. Inside area of the deflector, chute, impeller fan, impeller area, bucket, augers, gear box, gear box shaft and most importantly... the exit hole. One time over the summer will do you wonders and I usually do the inside of the chute and exit hole before every big storm. It will also help you with cleaning the machine after a storm. That elbow grease that you put it to her by doing this will benefit you after a storm. 




This photo is when I was just about finishing up clearing out almost 5' of snow out of the apron and in to some of the street. Notice all of the inside areas of my machine.


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## Paulie139 (Sep 25, 2017)

Kielbasa said:


> Meguiar's Gold Class Paste Wax. Inside area of the deflector, chute, impeller fan, impeller area, bucket, augers, gear box, gear box shaft and most importantly... the exit hole. One time over the summer will do you wonders and I usually do the inside of the chute and exit hole before every big storm. It will also help you with cleaning the machine after a storm. That elbow grease that you put it to her by doing this will benefit you after a storm.


I was thinking the same exact thing - simple car wax - thank you!


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## Kielbasa (Dec 21, 2013)

Like I said, there is some elbow grease needed and I do usually hit a knuckle on one of the augers and give a finger a little cut or slice, but to me the hard work is well worth it at the end of a storm.


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## dr bob (Dec 12, 2015)

^^^ +++ on the paint prep. I use a pro equivalent to Meguiars NXT paint sealant on everything that's painted. All the outside painted stuff, plus the impellers and augers, plus the insides of the bucket and the chute. It gets "renewed" in the bucket and chute a couple times during the season. I think I've used the chute-poker a couple times in it's life so far. As Keilbasa shows in his picture, snow and muck just don't stick to it.

I do the same with snow shovel blades. It makes it a little tougher to hold a scoop of really dry powder, otherwise it's a lot better than non-treated. I do need to put the shovels out to chill before using them too. Used to use WD-40 on the shovels. Didn't seem to last very long.


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## Kielbasa (Dec 21, 2013)

I personally do not like using options that are wet and gooey on my machine for better exiting snow.


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## Paulie139 (Sep 25, 2017)

I've seen some people put car wax along the rocker panels of their cars just prior to winter and not buff it out - they just leave it. It doesn't look great and might take a little, or maybe a lot, of elbow grease to get off what's left come spring but would it protect the paint more or can it be harmful to the paint if left on like that? Would that be something to consider doing on a snowblower's auger housing, auger, impeller & chute? 

I don't think leaving the wax on, unbuffed like that, would necessarily make the snowblower's surfaces more slippery - which, I'd think, is the goal here.


Thoughts?


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## uberT (Dec 29, 2013)

I've tried all sorts of things and didn't find anything that lasts very long. I've used car waxes and ceramic coatings, etc.


I agree with the suggestion above: apply some sort of (cheap) spray prior to every use


I think I bought something at HD called "Snow Shooter" a couple years ago. It wasn't a lot of $$$ and I think the bottle is still 50% full. PAM should work, too.


I have not tried un-buffed paste car wax. No reason it can't be demo-ed.


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## jermar (Dec 10, 2014)

"I've seen some people put car wax along the rocker panels of their cars just prior to winter and not buff it out - they just leave it." This is a bad idea! That unbuffed wax will attract all sorts of dirt & grit. When they wipe it off in the spring, it's like wiping sandpaper across your paint. The new coatings are much better and are worth the additional cost. If you try a coating for your car, you might want to use some on your snowblower. I did, but I still use cheap silicone tire shine on the blades & chute. The coating keeps the outside looking new.


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## Paulie139 (Sep 25, 2017)

jermar said:


> This is a bad idea! That unbuffed wax will attract all sorts of dirt & grit. When they wipe it off in the spring, it's like wiping sandpaper across your paint.


I had my suspicions as to why this was not a widely utilized practice. Thank you for chiming in!


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## Sid (Jan 31, 2014)

A few years ago in Brooklyn, during one of those '60s storms, I poured a gallon of floor wax on top of the snow on a sidewalk, then I ran the sig machine through it. It worked great.
Sid


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## guilateen02 (Nov 23, 2014)

Depending on the type of snow fall you get ( I receive Worcester snowbelt) an overly slippery auger and or bucket will want plow in the snow or it just slides off the augers without pulling it in efficiently. Ive had it happen to a 924 series Ariens. Two identical machines and the refurbished one was leaving a messy trail and I had to really slow into the snow or else the augers would kust sit there and cut slices into the deep snow. And yes the augers were on correctly.


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## Kielbasa (Dec 21, 2013)

Maybe you are moving a long too quickly then?

On my 1971 Ariens 910995, there is absolutely no back up of snow or any trail of snow after waxing the inside area. But of course, I am a first gear user to keep everything coming in and going out at a steady evenly flow. 



guilateen02 said:


> Depending on the type of snow fall you get ( I receive Worcester snowbelt) an overly slippery auger and or bucket will want plow in the snow or it just slides off the augers without pulling it in efficiently. Ive had it happen to a 924 series Ariens. Two identical machines and the refurbished one was leaving a messy trail and I had to really slow into the snow or else the augers would kust sit there and cut slices into the deep snow. And yes the augers were on correctly.


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## dr bob (Dec 12, 2015)

Seems to me that augers really need to slip/slice through the bucket snow to move it towards the impeller. The easier the augers move through the snow, the better. Ditto moving the snow across the inside of the bucket -- the easier it moves into the impeller, the less effort it will take for the same net work. For the impeller, the faster the snow flies off the blades, the better.

In a past life I spent time working on screw conveyors in a soap factory. When stuff sticks to the screw (= augers) or the conveyor wall (= barrel) net throughput slows a lot. Depending on what the soap was sticking to, the motor current would go up or down. Still it was less flowing through if anything was sticking.

I used to use WD40 and PAM on snow shovels. I took to waxing them with car paint sealant, and I leave them out in the cold for a while before I start shoveling, else risk a melt-and-refreeze layer that I get to lift with every shovel of snow. Cold and slippery seems to be the best. Same with the machine by the way. It lives in the heated workshop, but sits outside running at idle for a few minutes before attacking any snow.


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## Bob E (Jun 9, 2014)

We need some of this stuff :devil:


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