Rear snowblower storage advice ?

[RoyJackson]

Once winter is over, I park the blower on wood blocks (under the skid shoes and parking strut) until needed. Fluid Film is sprayed on the chain and other areas.
Outside storage has never resulted in any issues other then the paint fading. I bought the blower used so I don't know how old it is, but I've had it for 5 years.
I'd love to have a pole barn or something, but I don't, and I don't expect to have one built.
The only implement that is stored inside is the wood chipper

 

[KennyG]

I used 2 Harbor freight dollies and screwed 1x4's over the top of them to make one solid 6' dollie. Works great for my blower.

When I had a rear blower, I did the same and it worked well. The HF dollies aren't great, but from a cost perspective they can't be beat and they do work. Obviously this only works on concrete because of the small wheels.

 

[Cycledude]

Thanks for all your replies.
Each Harbor Freight dolly is supposedly rated for 1,000 pounds, my 72 inch snowblower is supposed to weigh 540 pounds. Mine is equipped with hydraulic swivel and tilt chute which probably adds another 40 pounds so probably weighs closer to 600 pounds.

If I ever figure out exactly how to build this thing I might build it soon, if not it’s fine just sitting next to the wall until next fall when it’s needed again.

 

[Captain Dirty]

The larger diameter the wheels, the better it rolls, all else being =.
Use hardwood, or enough 2x4s.
For concrete, use a Hard tire/wheel; soft compound harder to roll.
Make it big enough; those HF ones look too small.

Since the OP has put off the need till another season, he will have all summer to contemplate possible solutions.

Engineering considerations. The preponderance of the blower's weight is on the skid shoes or blower edge. (My blower's parking strut ends in a 3" x 4" sheet metal (18 ga?) pad; skid shoes are 8" diameter, 1/4" thick plate.). Irregularities in the floor (cracks or debris) and the dynamics of movement may transfer most of the blower's weight onto one caster (or a few if you use multiple dollies). I suspect the advertised ratings of casters is close to the failure limit so the sellers can advertise higher numbers. You would have to apply your own safety factors; I suggest 2X for the casters plus 2X for dynamics = 4X. Caster wheels come in a wide variety of configurations. Generally larger diameter, wider tread, harder material mean greater weight capacity, but there are trade-offs on maneuverability, rolling resistance, longevity, cost, and just plain practicality.

I store my blower outside on side-by-side pallets and have learned to put boards under the skid shoes and perpendicular to the pallet slats to distribute the weight more evenly.

 

[Captain Dirty]

I doesn't see big sense to screw casters for all pallets you use. IMHO much better is to use pallet trolley ["pallet jack" in US]

Good thought. Suitable pallet jacks could cost from a few to several hundred dollars, equal to or exceeding the cost of lumber and casters, but the pallet jacks would be multi-use. Never-the-less, there is a learning curve for maneuvering pallet jacks. I have witnessed inexperienced operators fight with them and spill the pallet loads; experienced users are a pleasure to watch as they shoehorn pallets into incredibly narrow slots.

 

[PILOON]

Shucks, lacking shop floor space, my blower sits outside.
BUT I store it on blocks of wood, spray paint (yes rattle can) and bare metal as rust sure likes to grab snow/ice and clog things up.
Oh and it is 10-12 years stored that way and very very little signs of rust anywhere.

When I first bought it used I sand blasted, primed and sprayed it with quality enamel and so far has held up very well. OK, a few chips on the enamel finish but negligible rust.
Interesting is that the primer has no chipping, only the enamel finish.

 

[KennyG]

Thanks for all your replies.
Each Harbor Freight dolly is supposedly rated for 1,000 pounds, my 72 inch snowblower is supposed to weigh 540 pounds. Mine is equipped with hydraulic swivel and tilt chute which probably adds another 40 pounds so probably weighs closer to 600 pounds.

If I ever figure out exactly how to build this thing I might build it soon, if not it’s fine just sitting next to the wall until next fall when it’s needed again.

The 1000 lb rating is wildly optimistic. However, my snowblower was similar in weight to yours and with two dollies it was fine. I see the dollies are currently $13 each and if you have a couple of spare 2x or 1x boards laying around and a few screws it will take about 15 minutes max to figure this out and put it together.

 

[Helogabals]

Good thought. Suitable pallet jacks could cost from a few to several hundred dollars, equal to or exceeding the cost of lumber and casters, but the pallet jacks would be multi-use. Never-the-less, there is a learning curve for maneuvering pallet jacks. I have witnessed inexperienced operators fight with them and spill the pallet loads; experienced users are a pleasure to watch as they shoehorn pallets into incredibly narrow slots.

I used to think, that "jack" is something to lift with. With "trolley" you ride around This one is more for moving rather than lifting.

I am not a farmer, i am coming from industry. In factories that is primary means of transport for all kinds of junk. In efficient factory it is considered as "deadly sin" to leave any kind of goods directly on floor. Everything MUST be on pallet, so if needed man can take that jack and haul those goodies forward in max 10 sec.

That jack is pretty handy, normally it can lift 2000 ... 2500 kg. so to put on forks some wooden blocks and lift compact tractor is easy-peasy
Here most basic, with manual pump it will cost 200....250 €, if good brand - 300...350 €
If they are with electric lift AND drive - 1500 €. If they lift up to 5 ... 6 meters - even 10k €

 

[muskoka kubota guy]

I have a wheeled pallet type of thing that I need to remove my front mount blower. I disconnect the driveshaft and remove all the bolts attaching blower to the frame, the blower drops to the pallet, I roll it back and away from the tractor, then pick the whole thing up with rear forks, and store it outside under cover. Run the process in reverse in the fall.

 

[Amvcane]

Here is a cradle I made out of a found dolly a few years ago. Blower weighs a little over 400 lbs and with a swepted floor you can roll it around with one hand. With the blower still on the tractor roll the dolly under it and add what ever you need to cradle the blower.