Snow Blower - Single-stage and Two-stage Snow Throwers

Single-stage and Two-stage Snow Throwers

Single-stage snow throwers use a single high-speed impeller to both move the snow into the machine and force it out of the discharge chute. The impeller is usually in the form of two or more curved plastic paddles that move snow towards the center line of the machine where the discharge chute is located. Single-stage snow throwers usually are light-duty machines. Small electric machines can be picked up manually to chew away deep snow.

In a two-stage machine, two mechanisms move the snow: an auger feeds the snow to a high-speed impeller, which blows the snow out of the machine. Two-stage snow blowers range from small machines of a few horsepower to very large machines powered by diesel engines of over 1000 horsepower (746 kW). The large machines are used for clearing roadways and airport runways, often by throwing the snow into trucks, which haul it away.

Two-stage machines for home use are usually self-propelled, using either large wheels equipped with tire chains or, in some cases, tracks. The auger drive on these machines are usually equipped with a shear pin. If a jam occurs in the auger, this pin will break, averting damage to the auger drive gears. The broken pin must then be replaced before the machine can be used again, generally a relatively simple process.

Snow throwers are usually single-purpose machines, though some have detachable front ends that can be replaced with other implements, such as a rotary tiller.