You know I heard it over and over again in 13 years of servicing small engine equipment - "My blower is good" says the client or prospect! At the same time, the Blower looks like it is on life support! A simple glance and it tells me - help me....
This may sound a bit melodramatic but is not too far off the mark in reality... if people were treated this badly by others, it would be labeled abuse...
But sadly machines are machines and their owner are sadly sometimes both abusive and/or cheap! Afraid to spend a dime after the initial purchase and believing they know what it needs through the years...actually anything could be further from the truth! Blowers are not lawn mowers! They need attention yearly and need to be kept clean to be happy. To start, new blowers are not treated anymore with grease at the factory in the places they need to be lubricated... auger area, wheels, inner gears and chassis. You may wonder why...well its called Cost and manufacturers can save a bundle not having to buy buckets full of grease to do the job right! Sadly for you this means a machine which can lock up (gear shaft and even wheel releases), develop an auger vibration or worse, rust away within a number of short years as the steel thickness has also been reduced tremendously over earlier models.
Second, snowblowers do not have air filters like your mower... and worse, their carburetors are more complex and prone to particulate accumulation and pluggage. So gas has to be kept healthy throughout the season with fuel stabilizer or drained. The first option has gained in popularity over the recent years because with older models there is the chance of float stickage and gas running all over your garage floor! What would you do???? Probably panic because you would not know the problem or how to fix it... so treat your gas! Not treating your gas and leaving old gas will eventually lead to green smelly gas algae accumulation and coating and blockage of your carburetor emulsion tube or secondary emulsion channel...
Third, people often tell me they don't change their machine's oil yearly! I look at them like they haven't taken a bath in months and they smile! You don't leave the oil in your car there for 7 years so why do it to your power equipment??? Again, abuse - conscious or unconscious! Do you expect your machine to purr when the oil is as thick as molasses and as black as a witches culdron?? Your on borrowed time if you think so! Snowblower engines have not evolved like our car engines and are still like 56 Chevy type engines... they grind oil even after only 2-3 uses so change that oil yearly!
Fourth, you need to give concern to your blower's spark plug. You are starting in cold weather and you need a quality plug and a clean plug. Invest in a good quality NGK plug and change it every 2 season for optimum starting! Don't go more than 3 winters with the same old plug!
Fifth, your tires need attention... in 89% of the snowblowers I service, tire inflation is almost at flat level. Tires are deceptive, especially those with with long extending stubs. Measure your PSI before the season begins...preferably in Nov/Dec and inflate accordingly. Remember, if your tires are extremely under inflated, your doing a third more of the pushing necessary and if you have heart issues, your asking for the big one unconsciously! Better yet, trust a Professional! Ask them how many blowers they have serviced? If they can't claim 100's with an honest look, move to the next Professional! A proper snowblower tune-up should take 45 minutes to 1.5 hours maximum unless there are repair issues also involved.
So now you know why your machine needs maintenance yearly! A professional tune-up and yearly follow up care is best as the work is less following the main tune-up and should be properly reflected in the next years price.
P.S. Your Auger Belt needs attention if your machine is more than 3-4 years old. What is the use of having a snowblower if you can't throw the snow beyond 2 inches???? Yes, on some machines, proper adjustment can be made and on others, sadly a new belt is required. This is a difficult procedure and unless you are mechanical oriented, leave it to the Pro's! So start loving your machine, and it will reward you with many years of dependable service and not cry out from abuse and cost you even bigger dollars in the long run!
This may sound a bit melodramatic but is not too far off the mark in reality... if people were treated this badly by others, it would be labeled abuse...
But sadly machines are machines and their owner are sadly sometimes both abusive and/or cheap! Afraid to spend a dime after the initial purchase and believing they know what it needs through the years...actually anything could be further from the truth! Blowers are not lawn mowers! They need attention yearly and need to be kept clean to be happy. To start, new blowers are not treated anymore with grease at the factory in the places they need to be lubricated... auger area, wheels, inner gears and chassis. You may wonder why...well its called Cost and manufacturers can save a bundle not having to buy buckets full of grease to do the job right! Sadly for you this means a machine which can lock up (gear shaft and even wheel releases), develop an auger vibration or worse, rust away within a number of short years as the steel thickness has also been reduced tremendously over earlier models.
Second, snowblowers do not have air filters like your mower... and worse, their carburetors are more complex and prone to particulate accumulation and pluggage. So gas has to be kept healthy throughout the season with fuel stabilizer or drained. The first option has gained in popularity over the recent years because with older models there is the chance of float stickage and gas running all over your garage floor! What would you do???? Probably panic because you would not know the problem or how to fix it... so treat your gas! Not treating your gas and leaving old gas will eventually lead to green smelly gas algae accumulation and coating and blockage of your carburetor emulsion tube or secondary emulsion channel...
Third, people often tell me they don't change their machine's oil yearly! I look at them like they haven't taken a bath in months and they smile! You don't leave the oil in your car there for 7 years so why do it to your power equipment??? Again, abuse - conscious or unconscious! Do you expect your machine to purr when the oil is as thick as molasses and as black as a witches culdron?? Your on borrowed time if you think so! Snowblower engines have not evolved like our car engines and are still like 56 Chevy type engines... they grind oil even after only 2-3 uses so change that oil yearly!
Fourth, you need to give concern to your blower's spark plug. You are starting in cold weather and you need a quality plug and a clean plug. Invest in a good quality NGK plug and change it every 2 season for optimum starting! Don't go more than 3 winters with the same old plug!
Fifth, your tires need attention... in 89% of the snowblowers I service, tire inflation is almost at flat level. Tires are deceptive, especially those with with long extending stubs. Measure your PSI before the season begins...preferably in Nov/Dec and inflate accordingly. Remember, if your tires are extremely under inflated, your doing a third more of the pushing necessary and if you have heart issues, your asking for the big one unconsciously! Better yet, trust a Professional! Ask them how many blowers they have serviced? If they can't claim 100's with an honest look, move to the next Professional! A proper snowblower tune-up should take 45 minutes to 1.5 hours maximum unless there are repair issues also involved.
So now you know why your machine needs maintenance yearly! A professional tune-up and yearly follow up care is best as the work is less following the main tune-up and should be properly reflected in the next years price.
P.S. Your Auger Belt needs attention if your machine is more than 3-4 years old. What is the use of having a snowblower if you can't throw the snow beyond 2 inches???? Yes, on some machines, proper adjustment can be made and on others, sadly a new belt is required. This is a difficult procedure and unless you are mechanical oriented, leave it to the Pro's! So start loving your machine, and it will reward you with many years of dependable service and not cry out from abuse and cost you even bigger dollars in the long run!
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