One of the more common concerns people have when thinking of getting a snowplow for their ATV is how well it actually works for plowing snow. How much snow can it handle, and how does it really perform in the more challenging plowing conditions?
I myself was on the fence on whether I should get a plow for my ATV or if I should add some more cash and get an ATV snowblower instead. I did a little research to help me decide, and I will share my findings in this post.
So how well do ATV snow plows work? An ATV snow plow works really well for almost any depth of dry snow or for moderate to low depths of wet snow. It’s fast, maneuverable, and great for sidewalks. However, for deep and heavy snow, you will probably be better off using a heavier machine or a snowblower .
There is definitely a need to elaborate a bit on the short version of the answer above.
How well an ATV snow plow actually works depends on many factors such as what you are comparing up against, what you are planning to achieve, what kind of snow conditions you typically get where you live, and what realistic alternatives you have to choose from.
Related: 3 Best ATVs for Plowing Snow; Buyers Guide
Dry snow weighs almost nothing. A breeze of wind will move it on the ground. With powdery snow like this, it doesn’t really matter how deep the snow is. It doesn’t weigh anything so that the ATV can handle it.
However, you may find it a bit challenging to keep all of the snow in front of the blade. As you speed up, the powdery snow will overflow the plow blade, so that you need several passes to move all of it.
If you expect a lot of plowing in conditions like these, it’s a good investment to upgrade your plow with a rubber deflector that mounts on top of the blade. This will allow you to plow snow in depths near the height of your blade without overflowing issues.
Most places get these kinds of conditions with really deep and light snow only a few times each year. Instead, it’s the more challenging conditions that become the deciding factor whether an ATV snow plow is the right choice for you.
This is where things start to become a bit more challenging. The wetter and more compact the snow gets, the harder it will be to plow. This is true with all snowplows, not just with ATVs.
In most cases, the ATV plow will have no problems with a couple of inches of even the heaviest stuff. When depths start reaching 6-8 inches, the bike’s relatively low weight starts showing in the form of less than optimal plowing performance.
Tires may start spinning, and you may find that it’s struggling to keep the blade all the way down to the ground.
The compact snow will lift the plow blade so that you need to go back for a second pass. But then you also need to tackle the snow-packed by your tires from the first pass. To prevent the blade from lifting, you can install a so-called down-force kit.
The only problem is when the snow is deep or wet; the front end wants to push to whatever side the blade is angled.
Having a 4×4 quad is a must.
For more inspiration on what you can do to prevent your tires from spinning, I recommend you head over to this article about the best ATV weight for plowing snow.
Real snow storms with several feet of snow are the most challenging. When you expect more than a few inches of heavy snow, you simply have to go out and plow during the snow.
Now, this is what I call winter!If you wait until after the storm has finished, you may find yourself facing more than the ATV can handle efficiently.
If you put some effort into it, you will eventually tackle deep, heavy snowfalls as well, but it takes much more time and will put a lot more strain on the equipment.
So as you probably understand by now; Whether an ATV snow plow is the right choice for you depends a lot on what kind of snowfalls you expect to get.
There is a huge difference between having 20×2 inch snowfalls and having 5 heavy snowfalls of a foot or more with snow. For the latter, and if you don’t want to go for a plow halfway through the storm, you should consider looking for other alternatives.
Keep in mind that the blades on ATV snow plows are relatively narrow (50inch is considered average) compared to plows built for trucks or tractors. This means that you will not move as much snow with each stroke as you will with the others.
For 2-3 homes, a few hundred yards of a driveway, and few mid-sized parking areas, the capacity should be more than enough. But if you plow many wide roads or huge parking lots, other alternatives with wider blades and heavier vehicles are better.
On the other hand, few if any machines can compete with the speed, maneuverability, and nimbleness of an ATV. These abilities compensate quite a bit for the lack of pure pushing power.
Over time, this has the results evening out a bit.
It’s almost like comparing a race car to an SUV. The SUV can bring more people than the race car, but it will need twice the time to get there (as long as we leave speed limits out of the equation!).
This especially comes true where there’s not much space, like in small driveways, between buildings, and on sidewalks. You’ll find that areas like these often need to be left unplowed when using a truck or any larger size machine.
After some practice with the ATV, you will be able to «dance» around and have these areas free of snow in no time!
ATV snowplows are not very good for piling snow, plain and simple.
If space is a limiting factor so that the snow needs to be piled through the winter, you might as well start looking for other options right away. A snowblower or a tractor with a front loader is my top recommendation in this case.
But if you are not too tight on space, you can stack up quite a bit of snow as long as you plan accordingly. Ideally, it would be best if you pushed the snow out over the brink of a small hill or into the ditch of a road or a parking lot.
It’s crucial that you push the snow far enough at the beginning of the season, so you have room for more on top or at the back of the pile.
You will not be able to move the snow pile with the ATV as soon as it has frozen solid.
The plow will dig in as soon as it is lowered too low on soft grounds like unfrozen dirt and gravel roads. Most plows are fitted with flotation shoes to prevent this from happening, but this is simply not enough in the softest conditions.
When the ground freezes solid, however, you should have no issues on hard surfaces like pavement and concrete.
You need to expect to go through a learning process before you can master your ATV and plow to its maximum potential. Beginners may feel they struggle a lot, even with smaller depths of snow. But this will get better over time for sure.
Another aspect to consider on the «user experience» side of things is the lack of protection from the elements. Suitable clothes and heated grips are a must if you want to avoid freezing your nuts off!
Last but not least, plowing with an ATV is a lot of FUN!
For many buyers, this is the deciding factor for choosing an ATV plow over, let’s say, a snowblower.
Unless the snow depths are too challenging, or the weather is not too bad, you may expect quite the joyful experience of doing something that otherwise is seen as quite a daunting task.
Related: Are ATV Plows and Plow Mounts Universal or Model-Specific?
Understanding how well an ATV snow plow actually works may be a bit easier when we compare it to its most relevant alternatives.
A snow blower is a lot slower than a snowplow but will handle much deeper snow.
You can pile snow where you want it, but when the snow is light and dry, it seems half of it will fly back straight in your face. Don’t get me wrong, I love my trusty Toro, but my cheeks are often quite red after a job well done.
Using a snow blower can also be quite exhausting. Not as bad as using a shovel, but more than riding an ATV with a plow.
For larger areas as long driveways, a snow blower will simply be too slow to handle the task efficiently.
For me, this is the best option as the task on hand is clearing several feet of snow when I get up to the cabin. I’ve found it to be the perfect combination of snow removal capacity and portability (I need to bring it there on a trailer).
Rammy offers some fantastic snow blowers for ATVs.As soon as the snow removal job is done, I can use the quad as transport from the main road and all the way up to the cabin.
You can get both plows or snow blowers that you can attach to your lawnmower tractor. But this ride is a lot less nimble, runs slower, and can be used only on smooth surfaces. Most of them lack 4×4, so the tires will spin as soon as snow depths get above an inch.
If you own a small farm or any other type of bigger property, this may be just as good an option as an ATV with a plow.
The front loader enables you to pile snow more efficiently, and the heated cabin will be very nice to find on the coldest days.
The extra weight ensures that you can handle most plowing situations. Even when plowing icy and compacted snow.
It is, however, quite a bit slower and can’t get to the tightest spots.
How much snow can an ATV plow?
Most ATV snow plows should be able to plow 6-8″ of light snow. When the snow is wet, however, this number is significantly lower.
Are ATVs good for snow plowing?
ATVs are great for plowing tight spaces with a lot of obstacles. They can handle moderate amounts of snow but do not work so well with wet and icy snow. They are usually good enough for most homeowners.
What about moving dirt with an ATV?
If you’re up for some light landscaping in the warmer seasons, the ATV plow may be just what you need to get the job done. Leveling sand, dirt, or gravel should be no problem as long as you don’t dig in too much at the time.
However, I would not use it grading longer dirt roads, as this can be very rough on the quad.
What Kind of Job Are You Doing?
The type of job you plan on doing will play a huge part in the type of plow you chose. Generally, if you are plowing a heavy amount of sidewalks, which are very narrow, you’re going to want a smaller plow. You’ll want a plow that will clean the entire area without going over the edge of the sidewalk. BOSS offers a four foot ATV plow that is ideal for sidewalk use. Wider UTV snow plows are more equipped for residential, short driveways. If you are looking to plow more rugged terrain, such as a long camp drive, you might want to consider a v-plow as it can more easily break trail and cut through ice.
ATV Vs. UTV
As noted above, the type of job you’re doing is going to help determine the plow you get. Odds are, it has already also determined the type of machine you have. If you’re on a municipal snow removal team, you’re probably got, or are going to want, a heated UTV cab for many hours on the job.
With the larger UTV, your options for a snowplow will be different than those of an ATV. Generally, the bigger the machine, the bigger a plow you can use with it. Once again, if you’re doing a lot of sidewalk work, you’ll probably have an ATV which means you’ll want a smaller, narrower plow.
Straight or V
There’s no doubt, both plows are tough. Straight blades are very popular as they are generally lighter and less expensive. However, the V-plow can handle snow in a very different way than the straight blade. Because of the arrowhead configuration of the V-plow it can slice through frozen snow more readily than a straight blade. Stacking snow is also a tad different, as you can put the V-plow into scoop mode and direct exactly where the snow will go.
Lift System
There are three main types of lift systems that are available for ATV or UTV plows: manual, winch or direct lift. A manual or winch lift systems may be fine if you only have one or two homes or jobs to do.
Both of these options will require you to manually angle the plow left, right or straight, and with the manual lift system, as its name states, you will have to raise and lower the blade by hand. If you are a medium to large sized contractor or municipal team with a sidewalk crew, you will want to consider a direct lift hydraulic plow. By having the hydraulic system, it eliminates the need to get off of the machine to angle or lift the blade. This makes a usually cumbersome job faster and easier to do. It also minimizes the risk of slipping on the ice as it reduces the time off of the machine.
Plow Materials
There are two options to choose from when it comes to the different plow materials: steel and poly. Both materials are tough and up for the job, however, there are typically two schools of thought when it comes to choosing a plow material: the slick, corrosion resistant quality that poly has and the rigidity and durability of steel. Snow and slush will slide off of a poly blade with ease and a steel blade provides excellent value while providing a durable, rigid blade to slice through snow.
Again, both materials are up for the task and BOSS offers various commercial grade snowplow applications in both materials.
Ease of Use
You should always consider ease of use when picking out any snowplow. If the plow isn’t going to be easy to attach or control, you won’t enjoy working with it very much. You should watch for the type of attachment system that the plow utilizes. If the plow is hydraulic, you should be mindful of the type of controller it is equipped with. BOSS offers the easy to use, RT3 attachment system for select plows. The SmartTouch 2 controller is available for all UTV applications and BOSS’s ATV controller feature an easily accessible handlebar mounted controller. You should also look into whether the hydraulics are standard or are an additional package to add to your plow. BOSS offers fully hydraulic lift and angling standard on each of its ATV and UTV plows.
Consider the Seasons
One major aspect to consider when adding a plow to your ATV or UTV is the changing of the seasons.
Most likely, you’ll want your ATV or UTV to be trail compatible again come summer. When purchasing a snowplow, look at the undercarriage and whether you’ll have to remove it during the warm months of the year. All of BOSS’s applications offer exceptional ground clearance so that in most circumstances you won’t have to remove the undercarriage at all during spring and summer and can still ride the trails with ease.
There are numerous uses for ATV and UTV plows, from residential driveways to municipal sidewalks all the way to personal use for camp or cottage drives. When you go out to purchase an ATV or UTV snowplow, remember to keep these areas of focus in mind.
Selecting single-stage snowblowers is not at all difficult - in fact, they are inherently quite are of the same type. But if we talk about the choice of equipment with higher characteristics - everything is more complicated here. After all, options open where more, and it is important to understand with the greatest accuracy what kind of technique and with what features will be the most productive and appropriate in your operating conditions.
Yes, in in particular, snow blowers of this types can be both wheeled and tracked. And with a choice between the first and The second option might be problematic. So which snow blower should you buy? nine0003 , and for which case Is it better to use one or the other?
In general, both equipments have their own common features, which are also worth specify. So, snow throwers for both work at a distance, approximately 15 meters. If compare snow blowers of both types in terms of their functioning, then in both cases, it can be noted that all work is carried out in two stages. First one works notched screw, and then comes the turn of the impeller, which actively rotates. Both equipment options have powerful engines - from 5 to 13 hp. Both types of equipment can be used on complex and large territories, like a snow blower for the house, for an area of \u200b\u200bseveral square meters, such an aggregate is not suitable, because its operation would be unprofitable.
They are all self-propelled, very heavy, because in the first place it is the weight that allows them to successfully cope with packed snow. In fact, there is only one difference: in the system movement, in the wheelbase. Everything else nine0003 tracked snow blower turns out to be about the same as wheel option.
Despite the similarity of such equipment, it should be understood that wheel snow blower and crawler model have different specifics applications. This is due to their different dynamics. If we consider a self-propelled snow blower with tracks, in First of all, you need to pay attention to its high permeability. He can work perfectly on hillocks, on uneven terrain, if there is stairs and curbs - for him there are practically no impassable areas. And because it should be chosen specifically for such territories where other equipment will not easy to get the job done. If you decide to watch a video about snow blowers, you can see personally how efficiently such a unit works and moves.
But there is also a downside in his dynamics: for example, he turns out to be not too maneuverable. This can be problematic in certain situations, although use of equipment within the framework of large territories this the disadvantage is completely invisible. nine0005
If we compare snow blower prices , the caterpillar model will be more expensive. This is quite natural, and once again emphasizes the expediency of its acquisition specifically for complex territories, and not for the usual ones.
Wheeled options turn out to be the most adapted for a more or less even terrain, and if there are no special obstacles in the territory, they can be bought boldly. They will please you with greater maneuverability than the “tank”, and will allow perform quick snow removal. nine0005
Our consultants will be happy to help you choose model that is right for you, and if you have already made their choice in favor of one or another snow blower, then in this case make your purchase in our store and get high quality equipment that will serve you for a long time! We offer equipment at competitive prices prices, and provide it with all the documents in a short time.
Husqvarna wheeled and tracked snow blowers.
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