# HSS928ATD not good for wet snow



## vinnyNH (Dec 30, 2015)

2nd outing this season for my Honda HSS928ATD today. First time, it was quite icy with about 5 inches on the ground. I found that on my asphalt driveway where the bottom is probably iced up, the track kept sliding but it did OK. There was a bit of a learning curve (getting used to) vs my old Ariens where everything is manual crank. Going up hill in my yard however, the Honda is a winner. 

Today, the snow on the ground is only about 2 inches. This time, a lot of water as the bottom is mostly water. After about 10 minutes of using the Honda, I gave up. The chute kept clogging up. I have to keep clearing the chute. I am going slow and still it is clogging. I finally parked the Honda and used my 15 years old Ariens 1028. Did not clog once. 

Any idea on how to prevent the chute from clogging?

Thanks
Vince


----------



## SB83 (Dec 15, 2015)

The easiest thing (especially for a new machine) is a layer of car wax. But that becomes less effective as the paint starts to wear. A few of us here are trying a slippery chute lining material. It looks promising but i don't think anyone has had good test conditions as of yet. 

On my previous Honda (HS1132TA) the trick in these conditions was to go as fast as possible to keep the chute loaded up and blowing at all times. If I needed to interrupt blowing for any reason, I'd keep the auger engaged to clear as much out of the chute as possible.


----------



## Normex (Feb 21, 2014)

vinnyNH said:


> I have to keep clearing the chute. I am going slow and still it is clogging. I finally parked the Honda and used my 15 years old Ariens 1028. Did not clog once.
> Any idea on how to prevent the chute from clogging?
> 
> You might want to consider adding an impeller kit which helps a lot at not clogging. Just do a search as there are many threads here concerning this.
> Good Luck


----------



## nwcove (Mar 2, 2015)

have to agree with keeping the impeller loaded using more forward speed, it may not help in all conditions, but 2 " of snow/slush....feeding the impeller a bit more could help with clogging. jmo


----------



## jeffNB (Nov 5, 2015)

I have never had to stop my HS blower to unclog the chute. It has plugged and I just keep feeding snow into it. Eventually it will blast open.


----------



## Paul463 (Nov 4, 2014)

Normex said:


> vinnyNH said:
> 
> 
> > I have to keep clearing the chute. I am going slow and still it is clogging. I finally parked the Honda and used my 15 years old Ariens 1028. Did not clog once.
> ...


----------



## SnowG (Dec 5, 2014)

jeffNB said:


> I have never had to stop my HS blower to unclog the chute. It has plugged and I just keep feeding snow into it. Eventually it will blast open.


Same here, but mine hasn't plugged. I use Sailkote dry lubricant on my snow equipment.


----------



## Kiss4aFrog (Nov 3, 2013)

:welcome: to the forum Vince


A bit more speed and the impeller mod.


----------



## vinnyNH (Dec 30, 2015)

One other thing I just noticed to day is unlike the Ariens where the chute seems to be wide open to the impeller, in the Honda, there is a plastic thing that further reduce the opening from the impeller to the chute. Did my dealer forgot to remove something in that chute or is that supposed to be there?

As for the mod on the impeller, is there a downside to this? Just wondering because if it is so effective, how come manufacturers never implemented them in their production model or even come up with a upgrade kit for their existing model?


----------



## sciphi (May 5, 2014)

vinnyNH said:


> One other thing I just noticed to day is unlike the Ariens where the chute seems to be wide open to the impeller, in the Honda, there is a plastic thing that further reduce the opening from the impeller to the chute. Did my dealer forgot to remove something in that chute or is that supposed to be there?
> 
> As for the mod on the impeller, is there a downside to this? Just wondering because if it is so effective, how come manufacturers never implemented them in their production model or even come up with a upgrade kit for their existing model?


OEM's don't really do impellers like that since adding rubber paddles makes for another wear item, and more time/cost for assembly. Also, larger tolerances makes for less warranty issues when manufacturing mistakes inevitably happen. 

The nice thing about DIY'ing the impeller mod is that it ends up custom-fit to your specific machine. So if there's a manufacturing mistake or wear/tear, the DIY'er is able to take that into account.


----------



## SB83 (Dec 15, 2015)

vinnyNH said:


> One other thing I just noticed to day is unlike the Ariens where the chute seems to be wide open to the impeller, in the Honda, there is a plastic thing that further reduce the opening from the impeller to the chute. Did my dealer forgot to remove something in that chute or is that supposed to be there?


Ya, that's not right... Maybe it's for shipping. The square impeller outlet opens up into the round chute, but it's all metal with nothing for snow to catch on. No wonder it's clogging...


----------



## vinnyNH (Dec 30, 2015)

BTW, the square outlet looks like a plastic piece.


----------



## bad69cat (Nov 30, 2015)

+1 just stick the rubber on there and be done with it. I have never had a problem with the box store cheapo's after adding that. All my customers think I work miracles when their machine is chucking snow like it never did before.


----------



## SB83 (Dec 15, 2015)

vinnyNH said:


> BTW, the square outlet looks like a plastic piece.


It must be an insert. I'd just try pulling it straight out.


----------



## nafterclifen (Oct 14, 2015)

If I'm not mistaken, [email protected] has stated that the new HSS blowers come in a crate fully assembled. Aside from gas and oil, there are no parts or procedures that need to be added or removed. That "square piece" is there for a reason.


----------



## [email protected] (Nov 21, 2011)

so that square part appears to be part of the auger housing:










It's not part of the chute:









I will try and catch the engineer and ask for details. But, I am 99% sure it's not a packing piece or something that should be discarded.


----------



## SB83 (Dec 15, 2015)

This is what mine looks like with the chute removed. No plastic or obstructions here. Maybe it's just the photo angle, but this looks different to me than the photo that you uploaded. Note that mine is an HSS928TA (track) verses wheeled, so maybe they're different. I'd be surprised though. 



Bob


----------



## vinnyNH (Dec 30, 2015)

I think it is the same thing from different angle. My mistake on thinking that it is plastic. Attached is a picture from a different angle. Looks more similar to your picture. 

Thanks for checking it out.


----------



## SB83 (Dec 15, 2015)

Sure, my pleasure. What you show in that photo looks exactly right.


----------



## SnowG (Dec 5, 2014)

From looking at that photo: between the close clearance tolerances and the bend at the outer edge of the impeller, I don't see how or why one could fit an impeller kit. It probably wouldn't be better than stock.

I think one has to make a distinction between slush and wet snow. Slush isn't going to throw well with any snowblower. Wet packable snow will throw quite well.


----------



## mml4 (Feb 19, 2015)

"Paint" the inside of the chute with a liquid (acrylic) floor wax. Use several coats. Do the inside of the bucket and on the augers as well. Been doing this since the mid 1950's.Works like a charm!! Ever step on a freshly waxed floor that had some water on it?
Marc


----------



## vinnyNH (Dec 30, 2015)

mml4 said:


> "Paint" the inside of the chute with a liquid (acrylic) floor wax. Use several coats. Do the inside of the bucket and on the augers as well. Been doing this since the mid 1950's.Works like a charm!! Ever step on a freshly waxed floor that had some water on it?
> Marc


Any specific brand that you are using? I was looking at Sail-Kote but have not had a chance to try one yet. Floor wax might be less expensive.


----------



## mml4 (Feb 19, 2015)

Any acrylic floor wax sometimes called floor finish. I use the remnants of a 5 gallon can they used to wax the old asbestos type tile floors. Works great and will last at least a season. Put it on with a cheap paint brush as many coats as you like. When the surface stats to turn whitish you have enough. My father used a brand called KLEAR available in super markets.
Marc


----------



## wdb (Dec 15, 2013)

mml4 said:


> "Paint" the inside of the chute with a liquid (acrylic) floor wax. Use several coats. Do the inside of the bucket and on the augers as well. Been doing this since the mid 1950's.Works like a charm!! Ever step on a freshly waxed floor that had some water on it?
> Marc





mml4 said:


> Any acrylic floor wax sometimes called floor finish. I use the remnants of a 5 gallon can they used to wax the old asbestos type tile floors. Works great and will last at least a season. Put it on with a cheap paint brush as many coats as you like. When the surface stats to turn whitish you have enough. My father used a brand called KLEAR available in super markets.
> Marc


I've heard of offroad truck guys doing this to the underside of their vehicles to make them easy to clean up and to ward off rust.


----------



## tonysak (Dec 24, 2013)

I've always thought honda's could use more power, but are you sure your throttle is up all the way?


----------



## vasttracts (Jan 12, 2017)

Sounds like it's not an engine power issue. JeffNB has what sounds like a permanent fix. snowblowerforum .com/forum/honda-snowblowers/100538-hss928-clogging-%5Bsolved-%5D.html#post1085290
Honda should send redesigned replacement chutes to all owners.


----------

