Anyone who has never had to shovel snow by hand just has no idea of what a daunting task it can be. Most of the time it’s not fluffy and can in fact be more like shoveling sand.
So enter the small, light residential snow blower. It’s the only real solution to the “back breaking” prospect of shoveling snow by hand.
Now I like most people out there have just always assumed that there was just no other OPTION to the standard and often finicky gas powered snow blower.
Gas Motors in Freezing Weather are No Fun
Have you ever tried pull starting a small gas motor in freezing temperatures? After it’s been sitting idle for the better half of a year? It’s no fun!
So now enter the Toro 1800 ELECTRIC snow blower. So is it the real answer to avoiding the “blind rage” that can result from struggling with a gas blower that refuses to kick over?
Well the ads say it is. So then what about the negative reviews that you can find posted online? Who writes them?
I Tried Out the Toro 1800 Snow Blower
People do and let me say that after trying this machine out recently, I can tell you that it is definitely not for everyone in ANY type of snow conditions.
No doubt about. There’s a lot to be said for a snow blowing machine that’s packing a screaming, powerful gasoline motor that’s powering steel blades.
Just shove it into anything frozen, chunk snow, etc and it just chews it up and tosses it aside like its nothing. Even so, as stated above, gas motors do have their shortcomings. Not to mention that you have to keep a can of gas around your place. Not good if you have curious kids!
For Convenience and Lack of Maintenance
However; from what I saw and experienced when using the Toro 1800, it definitely has its place. Also for overall CONVENIENCE and “lack of maintenance”, gas snow blowers just can’t touch it.
I live in Lake Tahoe and let me say that we get our fair share of snow up here in the winter. So needless to say the Toro dealership in town has a pretty “solid and captive” client base.
Anyway they were the people who were kind enough to let me give the Toro 1800 a test run, after I told them that I was researching it for a buddies website.
The One I Tried Out Worked Just Fine
The one I tried worked just fine. No start up hassles like I’ve experienced all to many times with gas snow blowers. I just “flipped the switch” and away it went.
They did tell me that its important to use a heavy gauge extension cord. Particularly if its going to be over 50 feet. Thin cheap cords just can’t deliver the JUICE it needs.
The manager there also told me that since the 1800 electric snow blower has come out, they’ve been a popular selling item and have also had “zero complaints”.
Now for you folks who live in Alaska it may be a different story. However; for everyone else who doesn’t have to deal with “extreme snow conditions”, my feeling is that this machine will handle ANY residential snow moving task thrown at it.
More Reviews of the Toro 1800
With 4/5 stars average on Amazon it’s safe to say this is a quality prodct. Here’s what a few people had to say.
You only have to look at this 25 pound wonder to know its not a heavy duty snow blower. So don’t think it is going to do the job of a huge gas powered rig.
Having said that – I have a 50ft two car wide driveway. It flings 5 inches of snow off that driveway in 10 to 15 min. I love it. I cant wait for more snow. It should have no problem with a foot of snow. its like a high powered snow vacume
You just plug it in and go. No gas, no spark plugs, no oil, no tune up. I am often done before the neighbor has cussed enough to get his gas monster (with head lights) running. I have full confidence in this rig.
I liked mine so much I purchased one …for my brother…I have read people who are concerned with the power of an electric. The Toro has plenty of power and higher RPMs than a gas thrower. No blower works great in all condition. However in the snow we have had here in northern NJ it has no problem throwing snow 20 to 30 feet. I highly recommend this thrower. It is better than throwers in its class that and a little larger. But its not a match for a big rig. I have read some complain about small wheels. The wheels are just fine thank you! This blower will blow snow like crazy but It is not up to punching through the plow wall. I break up the plow wall with a shovel then blow it away. I calculate several inches of snow on my driveway weighs about 40 tousand pounds. This blower moves almost all of that and saves your back and heart for having fun in the snow.
Good Job Toro! Very convenient
I’ve been using this snowthrower for 5 years now, and it works ok, but has definite limitations. If you have a driveway that’s longer than 30 feet, then seriously consider buying a gas-powered one. To me, the hassles of using this snow thrower is balanced by the relatively few days of heavy snow where I live, and also by my dislike of maintaining gas-powered tools. Recommended with reservations.
PROS:
- Lightweight and compact, so can be stored in shed easily.
- Electric, so virtually no maintenance.
- The electric motor is surprisingly powerful.
- Simple to set up and use.
- Works very well with dry, powdery snow.
- Quality construction, and zero problems in past five years.CONS:
- Lack of torque and lightweight plastic construction means that it cannot handle compacted, icy, or wet snow. (This is when you feel like junking this tool.)
- There should be a mechanism that ‘locks’ the electric cord connection to the thrower, so that the cord doesn’t keep disconnecting.
- The handle should retract and telescope for leverage and also to facilitate storage.
- The tiny plastic wheels must have come from a toy factory. They provide no traction and are merely useless appendages.