Snow clearing options

[rdfact]

For just a few times a year, buy each of your Subi drivers one of these.

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[Heimkehr]

A quality two-stage snowblower, as a one-time investment, has much to recommend it.

I'll also respectfully echo the need to give the Subie drivers the additional training necessary to improve their comfort level and competence when driving in adverse winter weather conditions after they exit the property and are on public roadways.

 

[Steph1]

They can literally drive in your tracks. I’d go with an atv with a plow before even considering anything else, but second would be to contract the snow removal.

 

[TopGunViper]

The way our driveway is setup, we get about 3 foot drifts across our driveway. I just use the Jeep driving forwards and backwards on our whole driveway until it’s flat and then our minivan can safely get out.

 

[S2k Chris]

A quality two-stage snowblower, as a one-time investment, has much to recommend it.

My FIL gave me a 1986 Ariens when I bought my first house in 2008. It died in the Snowpocalypse storm of 2011. I went out and bought a new one, figuring it the new one made it another 25 years (and I’m halfway there and it’s mint) I’ll be ready to be done with snow by then anyways.

 

[Heimkehr]

My FIL gave me a 1986 Ariens when I bought my first house in 2008. It died in the Snowpocalypse storm of 2011. I went out and bought a new one, figuring if the new one made it another 25 years (and I’m halfway there and it’s mint) I’ll be ready to be done with snow by then anyways.

Ariens is a good brand.

My Hondas have been pay to play, but they make a doddle of any snowfall, no matter the consistency or accumulation.

 

[C.Sco]

They can literally drive in your tracks. I’d go with an atv with a plow before even considering anything else, but second would be to contract the snow removal.

If I make enough tracks parallel to each other, essentially flattening all the snow between the first set of tracks, then that would work. But as someone who has driven a subaru over a set of jeep tracks before, unless the snow is light powder, the snow between the tracks can be an issue if it's heavy or hard snow.

 

[autotragic]

If I make enough tracks parallel to each other, essentially flattening all the snow between the first set of tracks, then that would work. But as someone who has driven a subaru over a set of jeep tracks before, unless the snow is light powder, the snow between the tracks can be an issue if it's heavy or hard snow.

When the snow starts flying salt the driveway, it makes snow removal way easier and will even melt a good amount of it. Hell I throw the salt over the snow and it does a halfway decent job. The local feed and seed sells 50 lb bags for like $8.

 

[SBLACK502]

Get a backpack blower that landscapers use. I use mine every year and never had an issues getting snow off my driveway

 

[Twisted10]

snowmobile?

 

[DarthAWM]

One phone call...

 

[Aussicon]

There are always better options

 

[Atomic-Mouse]

There are always better options

Thats why I bought this 12 ft plow and 12 ft wing, after a few storms I put heavy ice chains on all four tires.

I use my tractor for small storms though, the loader is just overkill for a few inches and if you aren’t careful it will plow up a full cubic yard of lawn without even a grunt. I also have an 8 foot blower for the second tractor.

After plowing with either of these it’s really hard to go back to a little pickup truck with a plow.

 

[6.2Blazer]

I don't think you would have any issues mounting one of the light duty version front mount plows on the Jeep. Those are especially made for this application of only using a few times a year. Plowing a driveway at 10 mph a few times a year isn't going to hurt anything. Sure, a plowing snow is "harder" on a vehicle than just driving it down the road, but so is towing a trailer or going fourwheeling with it. If you go out on the Rubicon trail every weekend and flog the vehicle you will beat it up......but if you run some mild fire roads a few times a year there is no issue. Most of the comments about plowing snow being rough on vehicles comes from people with commercial contracts that spend weeks worth of time plowing parking lots and such each winter, and time is money so you move as fast as possible. That is a LOT different situation than putting down a driveway a few times.
Not sure about the pull behind style when you get a couple of feet of snow. Keep in mind the vehicle is trying to go through 2' of fresh snow while pulling a huge pile behind it. Commercial snowplow drivers who use drag plows also have front mounted plows. They either use the front plow first to at least open up a path, or use both at the same time. That means the front plow is at least clearing most of the snow so the truck itself it's not trying to make it through deep virgin snow. The rear plow is meant to mainly clear up any remaining snow left by the front plow.

 

[AndySpill]

Pull behind -

Plow

and

Sleeve hitch

Curious Paul:

I see the plow can be rotated 180 degrees. Do you tend to angle the plow away from the vehicle, pull your vehicle into the driveway (engine first) pre-snow fall and then back out pushing the snow, or are you more inclined to angle the plow towards the vehicle, having backed into the driveway pre-snow fall, and drive forward pulling snow from behind...or maybe it's conditions specific. TIA.

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