Snowblower Versus Shovel: Safety Tips and Humorous Results

Snowblowers are a great convenience, especially if you have a big driveway or a lot of sidewalks to keep clean. Unlike a trusty snow shovel, which can be ready at a moment's notice, a snowblower requires regular maintenance and, generally, a special fuel mix. After relying on a shovel the past three winters, I recently bought a used snowblower from a trusted neighbor. He offered some good advice:

1) Most snowblowers require a gas/oil mixture, and the precise proportions are often written on the snowblower. If not, go to the manufacturer's web site. Without the correct fuel mix, you might not only have a stalled snowblower, you could end up with a permanently dead one.

2) Label a plastic gas container as "snowblower only," so you don't accidentally put this mix into your lawnmower.

3) At the end of each season, empty the fuel from the snowblower. The most convenient way to do this is to let it run dry. If that's not possible, two people can tip it and empty the remaining fuel into the plastic gas container, using a funnel. Never empty extra fuel onto the grass or into the street/local sewer drain.

4) Have a knowledgeable person check the snowblower before you use it each year. It may need a new spark plug or other tune-up attention. (In my neighbor's case, he could do this. In my case, I put a small ad in the community paper, and a kindly man checked it out for $20. You want to be sure the snowblower starts before you need to use it.)

To my neighbor's advice, I would add:

5) Read the instructions! You will likely have to "prime" the engine (similar to a lawnmower, you gently punch a hollow, rubber-like 'button,' for lack of a better term). There may also be a choke to pull out. If these concepts are foreign to you, it's all the more important that you read the instructions. If you don't have them, check out the web site or ask to read a neighbor's instructions. If it's the same brand, instruction will be similar.

6) Get your muscles ready to pull the cord to start the snowblower. You may have one with an electronic ignition. That's great, but sometimes when it's really cold you'll find the electronic start doesn't work, and the muscles will come in handy.

Snowblowers and shovels each have advantages. The shovel may be hard on a back, but it's easy to use and costs little. The snowblower works faster, but requires maintenance to work well.

Credit: Elaine L. Orr

Copyright: Elaine L. Orr