37A Blower - snow getting stuck

AC, if you don't know when the coolant was last changed, you might want to do a full flush and fill - and then you won't have to worry about compatibility issues.

Tim

I put my 37A blower & 212 to work last weekend first time after picking up the blower 4 months ago. In CT, we had 6-7" snow followed by few hours of sleet & rain. The snow repeatedly got stuck in the chute. After trying to clear the chute few times, I pushed the snow treating blower as Plow.

Is wet snow getting stuck quiet common? I did experience it with my stand alone snow blower, but, it was less frequent! Any suggestions on how to make wet snow not stick to inside of Chute? Should I apply 'used oil' inside chute to make it slippery...etc?
Any suggestions appreciated. Or should I switch to Plow instead of pushing the snow with blower when wet snow?

Never seen snow pack inside any of my deere brand tractor mounted blowers. Is it rusty in there? Are you operating the engine at it's true rated RPM ?

Best way to make sure chute doesn't clog:
-Run full throttle at all times.
-No excessive rust build up on chute. Make sure it is smooth, give a coat of paint if necessary.
-Adjust speed accordingly to handle amount/type of snow. Auger should be full but not overfull to effectively throw the snow.

We had 6" and I was running 2nd gear, first notch on variator and I had no problems throwing 15'+. At the end of driveway where plow berm was, I had to slow down & take like half width to throw the heavy stuff.

Some guys spray chute with PAM, teflon, or other stuff, but I haven't had the need. I did add belt to auger to close up gap between auger & chute.
Here's link showing the belt addition to auger w/ pics and fellow member Roger H. blowing snow without any mods.
http://www.wfmachines.com/discus/messages/17/270078.html
John

I have a 46 thrower on my 420 and can get my pinky between the paddle and housing, getting that gap to be smaller will help unless you get a rock in there which is why people have used belting

wet heavy snow never throws far for me but its enough to clear my snowbank all of these years

also check your RPMs as too low you wont move the snow far

John Johnson pretty much covered it...especially the housing being full but not too full.

There's a learning curve to running these rigs, at least there was for me....learning the proper speed and feed as you go along depending on snow condition to get the farthest throw possible.

Yes, wet snow is the worst. I sometimes have had to 'push/plow' the first path clear, clear out the chute, then take the next path at half width...or less if it's really deep. I've had to take small bites just a foot or two in, starting with the thrower raised, then at ground level, back and forth to get that first path cleared. But I live in lake effect country where we frequently get a foot of wet snow.

I am employing the use of mud-flap; nylon reinforced paddles bolted onto my blowers auger and I can operate at 2/3rd throttle and have not had any problems. I do this in lighter fluff. I can operate at a slow or fast travel speed and the blower isn't effected in terms of how full the housing is with the introduction of snow.

That is my only mod other than extending the discharge chute about 8 inches.

Not quite picking up on the suggestion that travel speed must be adjusted to keep the blower's housing filled with snow to achieve maximum throw. I have plenty of throw. I'm not in any sort of competition. Besides, the wind blows the snow around so much so that it is a moot point.

Wife filmed my recent morning operation with a mounted blower. It is not mounted on the 212 at the time but I could direct you to view it if I knew how. It is on facebook.

Thanks for all the suggestions folks. We had about 15" dry snow Tue and I got better at blowing it. The chute is a short one and has few rust spots (which I will attend to in summer). Haven't checked the RPM yet, but, always running at full throttle with attachments. What I learnt is letting it run half track... snow to the width of half augur (instead of burying the blower in snow).

awww man. I take my 400 and just go like a bat. I like the snow to spill over the top and go as fast as I can.It boggs some, but it takes in the snow and keeps it flying. The 212 won't quite take it in so fast w/o lugging down. It will slow down to the point you can count the revolutions of the auger paddles by watching the snow exit the chute in surges.

A mechanical marvel. Try moving snow with a shovel that fast. I did. Couldn't even come close. Thus I don't mind slowing down with the 212. It is still impressive.

A friend lives in CT and said he has six inches.

ID,
You don't have to wait until summer to get your machine running better. If you can take a piece of steel wool and just smooth out the rough rusty surfaces on the inside of your chute just that little expense and some elbow work will gain you quite a bit even with the wet stuff. As Anne eluded to above there is a learning curve to running the blower and as others said run the motor at WOT. Seat time helps and you will get better. With the snow blower mounted was the first time I actually heard the governor on the motor kick in. I miss having that tractor and snow blower.

Last year was the first I ran my blower on my old 212. Had much the same result. Spent a lot of time unclogging the discharge chute. What I found was it worked much better when I really loaded the blower. I had to adjust the speed of the tractor such that the engine just started to bog, then it would throw the snow without problem. Once the load lightened up, it would plug up. This was with wet heavy snow.

This year I have used the blower one on my new to me 214. Never did clog, but the snow was also light and dry. I had about 4" on the ground, and was running in 3rd with the variator about half way.

Thanks for the tips folks... and the usual humor in some! Sorry, I was away for 10 days - visited India - and came back on a snowy day. Tried the blower today, but, switched to Plow to clear the wet stuff. I like to go back to blower after I attend to all the valuable tips from here.

I have been using SlipPlate spray from NAPA the last couple of years and I have had almost no issues with plugging. SlipPlate is like a graphite paint that you spray on like spray paint. I now coat the inside of the blower to include the auger and the chute. SlipPlate is awesome and I think coating the chute adds a little throwing distance to the blower. I sand down any rusty area's and paint them. Then cover the area with the SlipPlate and don't worry about clogs anymore

Everyone else has given good suggestions for getting the most out of the37A.

I would only add, remember it's a thrower, not a blower. A blower will almost always do a better job, but of course they are more expensive and heavier.

I've never made any modifications to mine, and I'm happy with it. Just learn to adjust to snow conditions, and glance over at your shovel occasionally and grin.