Choosing the Right Snowblower For Your Beach House
It’s not a problem for those of us in the southern part of the country, but as you move north you can certainly run into some snow. Even as far down in the Outer Banks it happens from time to time. It’s important to be prepared for the inclimate weather, particularly because we won’t always be there to take care of it and we’ll clean the snow quickly when we do find the time. Snow left unremoved can cause problems as it freezes and thaws over the course of the summer, potentially causing all sorts of problems that it would be better to just avoid in the first place.
Aside from basic shovels, boots, hats, and other cold weather gear, a snow blower is central to your winter cleanup arsenal. How do you pick the right one for your house though? It’s not quite the same as what you will need for your primary residence for a number of fairly obvious reasons. You might not need as much power, or you might need more. Don’t worry, we’ll take the time to guide you in the right direction for this article.
The Big Question: How Much Snow?
The most obvious question and certainly the most pertinent to choosing the right snow blower is how much snow you expect to get on your waterfront property. If you’re fairly southern and only get snow from time to time, and it’s often not that heavy, then your requirements are going to be far different than someone who has a property up on the coast of northern Maine.
For regions down south where the snowfall is less common and usually not too bad, you’re probably best off with a lighter-duty snow blower as it’s more than sufficient to get the job done. The good news is that you’ll save some money compared to your northern snowed-in counterparts. You’ll want to consider mainly single-stage snow blowers, though you can also look at two-stage models if you want a little help pushing the machine along.
In this size range you can also take a look into some electric snow blower options, which are particularly convenient for vacation homes as they will work without keeping gas on site. The last thing you’ll want to do is make a trip to the gas station when you’re already on a time crunch to get your vacation home squared away.
For those of us up north where snowfall can be heavy, a two-stage snow blower is a must at the bare minimum. Look for two-stage snow blowers from trusted brands like Ariens, Honda, Husqvarna, and Troy-Bilt. As long as you stick to the veterans, you really can’t go wrong with a two-stage. However, if you’re farther north than most and you often end up in the thick of it, you may want to consider springing for the even larger, more powerful, and more effective three-stage snow blowers. This feature is essentially an extra auger that spins more quickly to help break up the snow so that it can be thrown more effectively by the main auger.
Hopefully you don’t need to use a snow blower that often at your beach house, and you can spend more of your time enjoying it. However, things happen and we have to take care of them so it’s important to be ready. If you need any additional guidance on picking your snow blower get in touch, we’ll be happy to try to help you out.