Electric 2-stage snowblower updates?

There was a good thread last year about whether electric snowblowers were ready for prime time, but it seemed the jury was still out – I am wondering if there are any updates on concerns about battery life, etc. In short, my morning schedule is now more hectic and I won’t have time to poke away at plow piles or deep snow with my 21″ 2-stroke single stage – I need a 2 stage that just clears the snow from my driveway and curbs like all my neighbors. It also happens that my mower just died, so I got to thinking about electric snow/grass to keep the batteries active. I do have a heated garage stall for batteries.

My driveway is paved and not that long (50ft?) but it is 3 cars wide the entire way, including the end. Are the electric 2 stage egos or toros ready, or should I just get a basic airens or toro gasser?

We have a similar driveway. My single stage Ego handled everything that Mother Nature threw at us except that near record-breaking, moisture-laden spring snowstorm. That one I had to shovel. I would think you would be OK with the two stage if the one stage could get us through winter rather easily. I’m very happy with the ego platform and have added several of their other power tools. All have been excellent.

Driveway is not quite as wide but is longer. Last year we bought a Snow Joe 15 Amp 18 inch electric, single stage, from Home Depot. It handled most snows except the really heavy stuff. One thing I dislike but the wife is okay with is dealing with the cord. We also use it to clear our deck. It works great for that.

2X on the Ego products. I have the single stage Ego snowblower and a couple of their other lawn tools and all work excellent. The only issue I see with an electric is battery life. What I mean is if it only takes 1/2 charge to clear the driveway, do you recharge the batteries or take a chance the other 50% charge will get you through the next snowfall. On the plus side storage is easier and you don’t have to worry about gas and not starting the next year after storing for the summer. Operationally I think the electric snowblowers work just fine clearing snow though. After moving to my new house the single stage Ego will not be big enough to work so I will be selling it if anyone is interested. Just PM me

I’m going into my fourth winter with the Toro Single Stage 60v, and love it. There was one storm that I had to borrow a neighbors gas two stage, and even that struggled, as that was the storm with like 16″ of heavy snow. I have a similar 3 car driveway, and usually get it done in under 2 batteries, one 6 ah that came with my mower, and one 7.5 ah that came with the blower. Most storms with less than 6″ of regular/light snow usually takes less than one battery.

EGO released a beast this year at 28″ and 2 12ah batteries and should handle anything MN winter can dish out.

bank account will take a big hit at over $2k though.

I have converted to electric for a few things. So far lawn mowers and snow blowers are still gas. My next mower will probably be electric but I cant say that yet about a snowblower.

What’s wrong with gas, they are to cheap and dependable?

I thought about going electric last winter, but ended up with a lightly used Toro 2 stage for $600. There plenty of deals to choose from in the $500-$800 price range, but you are better off buying in the spring than the fall from what I have seen. I think the higher end electric models are getting pretty good, but I couldn’t justify the cost differential.

I personally would avoid any of those cheaper single stage models. I have a few neighbors with them and if it snows more than 5″ they can be found awkwardly standing in their driveway pretending to shovel/snowblow just waiting for someone to swing over and bail them out.

The 40 x 40′ area right in front of our garage gets cleared neatly with a small gas Toro CCR 3650 that has snappy power. There’s no chance I’d trade it for electric as long as it’s running. It throws 8″ of snow with ease and weighs nothing. Many of the guys that do commercial snow plowing have one in the truck for sidewalks. They are easy to work on and cost maybe $300 used.

For the other 1200′ of driveway, we run everything down with our vehicles that’s 12″ or under. This saves me time I don’t have and helps to minimize piles (which then drift daily). It also keeps people from using our driveway as a turnaround or anything else off the main road.

suzuki wrote:

I have converted to electric for a few things. So far lawn mowers and snow blowers are still gas. My next mower will probably be electric but I cant say that yet about a snowblower.

same and as long as you can buy the same brand and thus use the same battery(s), electric makes alot of sense for things like leaf blowers, weedwhip, hedge trimmers, small chainsaws, etc… I love my Toro Super Recycler mower and single stage 4 stroke snowblower too much to swap out just yet…

I have a 4-stroke MTD 2-stage gas snow blower with a briggs & stratton engine and I will tell you honestly that when we get that heavy wet snow at the end of the driveway from the plow, mine can’t handle it. It came out like ketchup. A couple times I just let mother nature take care of itself and ran it over with my truck lol. If my gasoline 2-stage can’t do it, a battery one definitely can’t.

How well do the electrics blow the snow? Love to have one with such a small driveway and sidewalks to manage here in the city but the alley gets plowed in good, side of garage gets filled in quick so needs to be chucked up past the garage into yard.

My neighbor got the Toro 2 stage 60 volt 24 inch blower last year. I asked him about it and he let me do about half of his driveway. This model uses 2-30 volt batteries.

I would say it is very comparable to a 6 HP gasoline version and he had no trouble clearing his driveway all winter. The last snow that was super-wet and heavy forced him to do less than full swaths so he didn’t overload the machine, but I had to do the same thing with my 24 inch gasoline blower.

As most know, I work on a few snowblowers every year and basically batteries will eliminate the #1 issue the average owner has with snowblowers, which is not starting or running due to improper storage.

I also really enjoyed how quiet the electric Toro was. It’s not silent, but it’s way less noise than a gas version I’ve ever used and I wouldn’t feel the need to wear hearing protection as I do with all gasoline blowers.

IMO, it all comes down to are you willing to accept that eventually replacing batteries is, essentially, a maintenance cost of owning electric power equipment?

If having to buy new batteries is going to drive you crazy, then electric isn’t for you. I look at it like cordless power tools. Some guys still go off on rants and say no way are they going to buy cordless stuff because the batteries just die, but most of us love the convenience and many other advantages of cordless tools so we’re willing to put up with buying new batteries.

For me, I just don’t see the reason to go electric on these things yet. My problems with gas snow blowers is never being able to start them. Rather, it’s been other things breaking down such as the auger control, etc. So why move to something else when I know gas models work and work well?

Ariens…..electric start, fuel injection, & it throws snow 20 feet in the air. Snarls like a early 70s muscle car when it has to deliver torque.
Electric? Maybe for clearing the deck.