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I told my neighbor we are planning to shovel the driveway this winter instead of buying a snow-blower or hiring a plow service. She looked a little horrified and said "I think you'll regret it." The house we're renting does have a longer-than-average driveway, but my husband and I are both athletic and in good shape, so I think physically we should be fine shoveling. We are excited about actually getting out in the snow, so I was thinking of buying 2 really good snow shovels and it could be a fun outdoor activity for us... I also told my neighbor that shoveling will be like a rite of passage for me, my initiation into the "real winter club." She closed her eyes and shook her head.
I really don't want to spend the money on a snow-blower for now because we'll be (hopefully) buying a home next year, and who knows, maybe we'll end up in a place where a snow-blower is totally unnecessary like for example a condo or neighborhood with an hoa that covers plowing. I could be convinced to hire a plow service if you all tell me my neighbor is right and I am nuts to go the shovel route. Do any of you shovel? Or does everyone pretty much either have a blower or a plow service?
When we bought our house we shoveled the first year and trust me it gets old quick. Especially the hard packed stuff at the end of the driveway. Bought a cheap $450 Ariens blower for the following year and have used it ever since. All the people I work with hire a service and all's I ever hear is them complaining that, "the guy never showed up", "he did a crappy job", blah blah blah". For that reason I will never hire a service. I'd rather do it myself up to my standards.
The good thing about a blower is that if you end up not needing it you can just sell it. People are always looking to buy blowers around here. Honestly I really enjoying snowplowing my driveway. I look at it like mowing the grass, but snow lol.
When we bought our house we shoveled the first year and trust me it gets old quick. Especially the hard packed stuff at the end of the driveway. Bought a cheap $450 Ariens blower for the following year and have used it ever since. All the people I work with hire a service and all's I ever hear is them complaining that, "the guy never showed up", "he did a crappy job", blah blah blah". For that reason I will never hire a service. I'd rather do it myself up to my standards.
The good thing about a blower is that if you end up not needing it you can just sell it. People are always looking to buy blowers around here. Honestly I really enjoying snowplowing my driveway. I look at it like mowing the grass, but snow lol.
^ gt87 is right Ariens snow blowers are great. Many people have a plow service and also
have a blower to clean up. One thing I like about having a snowblower is you can spread the snow around, instead of a large pile.
For comparison, "last year" plow guys were charging $20-25 per trip, or about $225 for the season. I'm sure it's much higher this year
You guys are convincing me to go with the snowblower.
You could always give shoveling a try for 1 season. Maybe by next season you'll have a better idea on where you'll be by then. But if you're fairly certain you'll be in an actual house with a driveway I would just go ahead and get a blower. I would recommend a single stage Ariens personally. A lot of people go with a 2-stage blower (much more expensive) but I think that's overkill for most residential driveways. Unless you have a really long driveway of course. To give you an idea my driveway is 2 cars deep and 2 cars wide with an extra spot along the side of the house that I could fit 2 more vehicles in and I manage just fine with my single stage blower, even with a foot or more of snow.
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