I Finally Broke Down and Purchased a Two-Stage Snow Blower

For years, I’ve used a Toro corded electric single-stage snow blower to clear the driveway and the sidewalk in front of our home. The Toro snow blower worked, but it was very light and therefore could be somewhat difficult and time-consuming to use to clear heavy snowfalls.

In January 2016, a historic one day blizzard hit the area in which I live, dropping over twenty inches of snow. Initially, I shoveled the snow by hand because I didn’t think the Toro corded electric snow blower could handle the amount of snow, but after shoveling some of the driveway and a path through the back yard most of the night, I decided I had had enough of that. It took me another two days, about 8 hours each day, to finally clear the driveway and the sidewalk of all of the snow. I used a shovel to break down the height of the snow to be able to blow the snow with the Toro corded electric snow blower.

In January 2017 with the memory of the 2016 blizzard still fresh in my mind, I began researching two-stage snow blowers with the thought of possibly purchasing one. I ended up holding off making a purchase due to the cost, the fact that we don’t usually have heavy snowfall in our area, my dislike of storing gas in the garage, and my concern about the effects of using a snow blower on my spine. I have degenerative disc disease.

On Friday, January 03, 2025, the weather forecast called for 8 or more inches of snow to begin falling on Sunday night. I didn’t relish the idea of pushing the Toro corded electric snow blower through that much snow, so I once again began looking at two-stage snow blowers.

When I initially researched two-stage snow blowers in 2017, I decided on an Arians Compact 24 Auto gas-powered two-stage snow blower. However, this time I decided to also research battery-powered two-stage snow blowers on YouTube. I liked the idea of not having to deal with gas, oil, and maintenance. After much research I decided that a battery-powered two-stage snow blower would be too expensive because of the number of batteries that would be required to be able to clear our driveway and the sidewalk in front of our home.

We have a long driveway that can probably fit at least 6 cars, 4 single file and two side-by-side at the backend of the driveway. We have a side-load garage. The sidewalk in front of our home is also quite long due to the size of our property.

So, I looked at the Ariens Compact 24 Auto gas-powered snow blower again and I decided that it was the snow blower I wanted. I called a local outdoor equipment dealer that I discovered during my research in 2017 and I purchased the snow blower.

The purchase experience wowed me. The dealer agreed to deliver the snow blower by Saturday and they didn’t ask for payment up front. I was told I could pay by check when the snow blower was delivered. The cost would be $1,554.94, including assembly, delivery, and state and local sales tax.

I was told that delivery would be made between 1000-1200 on Saturday, so I got up early before getting in my full amount of sleep (I have an abnormal sleep schedule) so that I would be available to take delivery of the snow blower.

The guy delivering the snow blower finally showed up at about 1217. I was beginning to think the delivery wouldn’t happen. The delivery guy went over how to operate the snow blower and he also gave me a few use and storage tips.

The snow began late on Sunday night as forecasted and continued into Monday morning. There was a brief respite Monday morning and then the snow began again in the afternoon. We received about eight inches total where I live. I waited until about 2100 Monday night to go out and begin clearing the snow. It was still snowing when I went out.

The Ariens Compact 24 Auto worked like a charm. I’ve never operated a two-stage snow blower, so there was a bit of a learning curve to learn how to use it efficiently. The Ariens Compact 24 Auto weighs 187-lbs assembled, but it is well balanced and with the zero-turn feature, you really don’t notice the weight that much.

The snow blower ran out of gas before I was able to finish, but I was able to clear the entire sidewalk, part of the street in front of our driveway and mailbox, and most of the driveway in about 45 minutes. I think I could have completely cleared all of the snow if I had had more experience with using a two-stage snow blower. I used the Toro corded electric snow blower to clear the remaining snow from the driveway and the walkway to our front entrance.

In the past, it would have taken me hours to clear that much snow with the Toro corded electric snow blower. I’m very satisfied with the Ariens Compact 24 Auto snow blower. I should have purchased a two-stage snow blower years ago. Doing so would have saved me a lot of time, physical exertion, and body aches.

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