Electric Snow Blowers

Corded electric snow blowers are the cheapest way to stop shovelling. There is no battery to charge and no fuel to buy, the motor never loses power as a pack drains, and the machine runs as long as you are willing to stand behind it. For a city lot, a townhouse driveway, a set of steps or a back deck, a corded machine does the job for a fraction of what a gas one costs.

The cord is the whole decision. You are tethered to an outdoor rated extension lead, so your working radius is fixed and part of every pass goes into keeping the cable out of the auger. Fifteen metres is comfortable, thirty is workable with a heavy gauge cord, and beyond that voltage drop starts costing you motor power. Use a cord rated for outdoor winter use and match the gauge the manufacturer specifies rather than reaching for whatever is on the shelf, because an undersized cord runs hot and robs the machine.

These are single-stage machines. The auger contacts the ground and throws in one motion, so they belong on paved surfaces and handle roughly the first twenty centimetres of snowfall. They will pick up stones on gravel, and they will stall in the wet compacted bank at the end of the drive.

If the cord is the problem rather than the price, battery snow blowers give you the same clearing behaviour untethered. If depth is the problem, step up to two-stage machines. Check that anything you plug in outdoors in winter carries a recognised certification mark, and read what the Electrical Safety Authority says about using extension cords safely in cold weather. See the snow blower buying guides before you settle on a clearing width.