Types of manual snow shovels
Over the years, everything changes, and such a device for removing snow as a shovel is no exception. The stores offer a wide range of it.
The buyer can purchase a conventional or mechanical shovel. All types of hand tools have both advantages and disadvantages. Let's give them a detailed description.
Tips for choosing
Snow removal is a physically demanding task. Therefore, the shovel should be small and light. Plastic is considered the ideal option. But different shovels are optimal for each situation:
- plastic equipment copes well with fresh, loose snow
- It is easier to remove compacted snow with a metal shovel
- For regular work at home, a snow blower made of plastic or wood is suitable
The photo of a snow shovel for the home shows several criteria that you should pay attention to when choosing:
- Tray size. Depending on physical capabilities, it is selected individually. The best option is a wide rectangular shovel with a side of 40 cm.
- Tilt angle. During operation, the rolling scoop acts as a lever, which significantly speeds up the process. The optimal tilt is -25°.
- Weight and size of the cutting. Selected depending on individual preferences. The ideal option is shovels with a telescopic handle.
- Sides. Their presence on the shovel scoop holds the snow while working.
Plastic
The most popular type of shovel. Due to the ergonomic handle and large capacious bucket, the tool is convenient to use.
Among the advantages of a plastic shovel is its light weight. However, there are some disadvantages of this device.
A plastic shovel has a short service life, as it is highly susceptible to mechanical wear.
Tree
Such a unit is accessible to every person, because it can be made manually. We make a ladle from a sheet of plywood and nail it to a wooden handle.
However, the material does not have durability, and therefore will not last more than a season. Due to exposure to moisture, the plywood peels off.
As a result, it may break even during operation. The advantage of wooden shovels is their low cost.
Aluminum
Handheld device for universal use. The shovel is easy to use, as it is light in weight and has excellent strength.
Proper balancing of the blades ensures an even load on the bucket.
In this regard, the service life of the device increases. Anyone can afford such a shovel, since it has an average cost.
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Other materials
In addition to the previously mentioned materials for the production of cutting shovels, the Russian market also offers alternative options.
Thus, titanium is used for the production of shovels. It is similar in weight to plastic.
But as far as strength is concerned, it is difficult to compare with other materials. The price of such equipment is high, but you can use it for a long time.
Auger Shovel
For removing snow that has not yet been compacted, a manual unit with a twisted auger attached to a bucket is perfect.
The operating principle of this device is not complicated. While pushing the shovel, the auger rotates. Due to this, the snow is thrown out of the inventory.
Based on the speed of the pushing movement of the shovel with the auger, the snow extends beyond up to 30 cm. Therefore, cleaning even a small area will require maximum effort from a person.
For example, manufacturers of Forte auger shovels are characterized by a working width of 56.8 cm. The collected snow comes out under pressure from the right. The weight of the equipment is no more than 3.82 kg.
Do-it-yourself auger shovel for snow removal
The tool can be made in 2 versions - manual and mechanized. For the first you will need:
- Make a semicircular snow receiving chamber from galvanized steel, in the upper part, closer to one of the edges, cut a hole for the outlet pipe. The sidewalls must be strong enough to hold a shaft - a pipe or rod with a diameter of 2 cm. They can be made of moisture-resistant plywood or textolite.
- Weld strips to the shaft onto which blades made of thick rubber or sheet steel will be attached.
- Attach the hubs to the sidewalls.
- Equip the shaft with bearings.
- Insert the finished auger.
- Install the outlet pipe.
- Attach a handle.
A shovel with an auger for snow removal can be considered ready.
Rubber for the blades will come from a conveyor belt.
When making a screw, you should maintain an equal distance between the blades (spiral pitch) and choose the correct direction of rotation.
If you install a homemade shovel with an auger on wheels, snow removal will become more efficient. It can also be adapted to a walk-behind tractor and the process can be mechanized.
Do-it-yourself power tools
The basis of the unit is a frame welded from a corner or pipe - the mechanism itself will be supported on it. The frame is mounted on wheels or runners - they can be made from a block and sheathed with thin tin, plastic, or use a watering hose with a large diameter, cutting it lengthwise.
A motor from a walk-behind tractor or an engine with a power of 5-6 kW, revolutions up to 1500, is installed on the frame. The drive is carried out by a chain reducer using bicycle sprockets.
The auger is made of a pipe, 4 metal blades of such a size that they rotate freely without touching the walls of the snow receptacle. A plate is welded in the center of the pipe, which serves as a shovel for prying off the snow mass. Two blades should be directed in one direction, two - in the opposite direction, towards each other.
The box is made of 2 mm sheet metal. Blades can also be made from it. The shaft is inserted into the holes on the sides of the box and connected to the sprocket.
A nozzle is made in the center of the snow receptacle (the hole should coincide with the throwing blade), and to it there is a pipe onto which a sleeve is put to remove the mass to the side. The finished structure is fixed to a frame with wheels or skis.
The handle is welded, the engine is bolted, a sprocket or pulley is put on the shaft, and a belt or chain drive is tensioned.
DIY two-stage auger snow blower
The manufacture of this unit is quite complex. It is often used as an attachment to a walk-behind tractor. The presence of a rotor with blades improves the capture of snow mass and increases the distance of its release to 13-15 m through the sleeve.
An auger snow blower is assembled, as in the previous case, then a rotor is assembled, the body of which is made from a cylinder, for example a gas cylinder. Then it is connected to the snow blower box in the nozzle area. The rotor is assembled from a shaft with bearings and an impeller with blades according to the diagram below.
The finished attachment is attached to the walk-behind tractor by a bracket on the frame, and the drive is carried out by belts and pulleys.
The speed of a walk-behind tractor with a snow blower should be 2-4 km/h. The range of the snow mass will depend on the rotation speed of the auger.
It is advisable to manufacture such a complex structure in cases where large areas have to be cleaned annually.
Snow removal device on wheels
It is worth noting that models of shovels on wheels can be equipped with a motor. Moreover, the price of such devices will exceed the cost of mechanical shovels. For this reason, there is low demand for this type of units.
When looking at manual snow blowers, they are all classified according to certain features listed below.
A category of models that have two pairs of wheels. Popularly, such models are called “mini bulldozers.”
Manufacturers of such mechanical shovels have taken into account all the nuances. The devices are equipped with a metal blade, which makes it possible to adjust the angle of snow collection during operation.
A simple action mechanism equipped with two wheels. In appearance it resembles an ordinary wheelbarrow found in every country house or garden.
Basically, such models do not have any special functions compared to the previous type of mechanism. However, operating this shovel will not be difficult.
One of the modern types of mechanical devices is a design called “snow wolf”. The main difference between the mechanism and previous analogues is its appearance. A shovel is a wheelbarrow that moves on one wheel.
The device is moved by a person. This option is suitable for medium volumes of snow, since the bucket made of polymer raw materials has good strength.
Screw
Auger shovels are a combination of a conventional hand shovel and a bucket-mounted helical auger. The operation of such a device is simple - when you push the shovel, the auger begins to rotate and carries the snow outside the shovel.
Depending on the speed of pushing the shovel, the snow is squeezed out to a distance of 5 to 30 cm. Therefore, cleaning even a small area exceeding the width of the shovel will require a fair amount of effort. This shovel works well with snow that has not yet compacted.
How to choose a snow shovel
Snow removal is hard work. Therefore, the manual unit should not be heavy or large in size. The best material for making a shovel is plastic. However, under different circumstances, inventory may vary.
Here are some tips for choosing a snow removal unit:
- A plastic shovel is easy to clean fresh snow with a loose consistency;
- It is easier to clear the area from compacted layers of snow with a metal shovel;
- For daily household use, a plastic or wooden shovel is suitable.
The photo of a snow shovel for the home shows the main criteria that play an important role in its selection.
Tray size. It all depends on the desire of the person himself. Often people opt for a wide rectangular shovel.
Tilt angle. When clearing snow, the roll of the scoop acts as a lever. The work thus progresses faster. Suitable inclination is -25°.
Weight and size of cuttings. The choice is made at the request of the person himself. A shovel equipped with a telescopic handle would be a suitable unit.
Sides. Thanks to their presence, the snow remains in the shovel until it is thrown out.
Advantages and disadvantages
Before you buy a shovel and start working with a mechanical device in the snow, study the pros and cons.
The disadvantages of shovels for removing snow and clearing ice with an auger include:
- high price if we are talking about an auger shovel for the site with a factory drive, wheels and high-strength galvanized auger for cleaning;
- the need to move the shovel through the snow, if it is not a device with an electric or gasoline engine;
- inability to work with ice cover with a shovel with a plastic auger, not galvanized or metal.
But the device also has advantages:
- long-term operation of a shovel with an auger on the site, especially if it is equipped with a high-strength snow scraper and a wide bucket;
- quickly clearing snow from a large area, especially if there are wheels;
- you can work with a device with an auger on the site with minimal effort - you don’t have to waste physical effort throwing away snow with a bucket, as you would have to work with a homemade simple shovel when cleaning the area;
- mobility of the snow removal tool, which allows you to move it, even if the size is large.
Each manual or mechanical model has subtleties that should be taken into account when choosing a tool for clearing snow from an area.
How to make your own shovel
If you don’t have enough money to buy snow removal equipment, don’t be sad. Below we will describe what you can make a shovel from with your own efforts, using available tools.
The easiest way is to make a shovel with your own hands from plywood and OSB. This option is considered the easiest and least expensive.
You can use a well-known baking sheet as a scoop. It will definitely be found in every home. All that remains is to think about what to make the ladle out of. For these purposes, a piece of stainless steel sheet will be useful.
So, regardless of the choice of snow removal equipment, remember, it should be purchased before the first snows. Wear gloves when clearing snow. Proper use of a shovel will make it possible to use it for domestic purposes for a long period of time.
What's better to buy?
When choosing a mechanical shovel, you should take into account all the details:
- Scope of proposed work.
- Quality and quantity of snow.
- Place of storage and maintenance of tools (if we are talking about electric shovels).
When purchasing a tool, you must keep in mind that a shovel with an electric drive is capable of clearing accumulations of loose snow no more than 25 cm thick. But a conventional auger shovel will have a hard time coping with a layer of snow more than 15 cm thick.
Any type of mechanical auger device is designed to clear snow from an area of no more than 50 square meters. m. If you purchase a tool to clean paths, then it will be enough to buy a regular auger shovel. To clean wider areas, where snow has to be shifted several times, it is better to use an electric shovel, since the ejection of snow mass will increase to 5 m.
If preference was given to an electric tool, then there are two options: models operating from a battery or an outlet. The first type of device is more convenient due to mobility, but the battery significantly increases the weight of the tool. Electric models operating from a 220W power supply are lightweight, but their use is associated with a limited carrying length.
So, when choosing a snow removal tool, it is recommended to focus all your attention on their advantages and disadvantages. Therefore, everyone must independently decide on the advisability of purchasing a particular model.
