Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) Discussions

I bought my Ariens HomeDepot back in 2005.  Sadly, this has been a disappointing machine from day one.  My previous thrower was a Sears 88799 9HP 27" and I never had a problem with it.  I was able to throw slush, wet snow, plowed crude, you name it.  This Ariens thrower always had a weak throw and would strugle with medium snowfalls.

Even though I always spray my throwers with WD40 before using,  this Ariens thrower had problems with even dry fluffy snow (10 or more inches high).  It would clog up and would not throw even hwne the chute was completely free.  Unit would not start throwing again until next day when all the micro bits of snow had melted off.   My problem with this thrower has only got worst.  Recntly we got 15 inches of very dry light snow.  The thrower stopped throwing half way thru clearing my driveway.  All shear pins are in tack.  I verified this by visual inspection and checking for loose play in the auger blades.  The auger blades are fixed and do not spin freely.  The impeller blade however does spin freely.  Is this normal?  How do I correct this problem.  Thanks in advance for any assistance.

Sounds like you might have two issues:

1. Impeller Spinning
   
   The impeller shaft is driven by a belt that goes from a pulley on the engine drive shaft down to a large pulley attached to the impeller shaft. On my Sears/Noma blower there is a flat spot on the shaft which a bolt on the impeller assembly presses against, thereby securing the impeller to the shaft. The shaft then continues on to a worm drive gear box which is used to drive the augers. In normal operation the impeller turns very quickly while the augers turn slowly so it can appear that the impeller is turning freely while the augers aren't. It could be that the belt has fallen off and it is therefore easy to turn the impeller. Since the augers turn so much slower they could be moving so little that you don't notice it. Hopefully that's the problem.
   
   If that wasn't it then it could be that the bolt that holds the impeller to the impeller shaft is loose or broken. Check to see if its broken or needs tightening. If that isn't the problem then it could mean the worm gear is stripped. This is unusual and is unlikely too happen with out the operator knowing about since metal gear teeth would have to be broken. That's the main reason for the shear bolts on the auger shaft.
   
   
2. Snow Not Throwing
   
   If there are no engine problems then this is almost always a problem with the tension of the belt that drives the auger/impeller system. If it is loose then it will slip and not drive the impeller. If it is only a little "too loose" then the auger and impeller will turn when they aren't under load or even under a light load. When a heavier load is put on the system such as lots of snow or wet/frozen snow the whole thing bogs down. To fix it you need to take the cover plate off and adjust the idler/clutch wheel position. The owner's manual should have the procedure. You want to get the belt tight enough so that it is barely slipping when the clutch is NOT engaged. That way when the clutch is engaged you have maximal friction and hence the most power being transmitted to the auger/impeller system.
   

Thanks for the responses so far.   I did download a copy of the owners manual.   SInce I have no broken shear bolts, I next checked the drive belts as recommended and discovered that the "attachment drive belt" was off the "attachment drive idler".   The belt looks pretty worn enough the blower was hardly used.  I have placed an order for replacement belts at a Ariens service center.   I am a little confuse as to how to support the snowblower frame for the belt replacement.   Do I tip it towards the handles and support it in this position or do I flip it away from the handles onto the auger chute?  Thanks again, I a trying to saty ahead of our latest snow storm due tomorrow afternoon.

I am able to store my Toro, with Tecumseh engine, forward on the auger housing...drained gas of course.  I would think most automotive parts stores or good hardware stores could match the belt

with blower in normal position on its wheels have a chair or other support ready to put under control handles for support, you are now ready to remove the two bolts that hold the machine together. Follow the manual yours may have a chute control cable and rod the needs disconnected too. It was good that you are using Ariens belt ,I did try a heavy duty belt from auto shop and the belt just did not make the grade.

I use one of those web ratchet loading straps to hold the traction and auger "halves" together while I take the bolts out. I can then use the ratchet to control how far open I let the thing go. I've found that once the old belt is off the engine pulley I like to open it wide up to get the belt off the auger pulley. I put the new belt on the auger pulley, ratchet the halves together and then put the belt on the engine pulley. It also helps to use a rubber band to hold the top most part of the belt together while pulling the halves together, that way the belt will go in under the brake shoe.

Thanks to all for responding to my inquiries.  Your help was greatly appreciated.

Did you get it fixed?

Yes.  I was able to replace and adjust the impeller belt.   Apparently my past weak throw problem was due to a defective belt.  It wasn't until the blower stopped throwing all together that the true source of my woes was revealed.  But thanks to all the helpful advice from this forum I was able to finally fix my snow blower blues.  My 1332LE throw better then ever and was able to handle all the every from deep powder to packed plowed debris.  I cleared out 8 neighbors' driveways and even blew out  the street cul-de-sac.  Thanks to all again.

wow,

I just had the same problem with my 1332le which worked great until I pushed it during a massive storm and burned out the belt.  I brought it two an incompetent shop twice and the belt started slipping.

I opened it myself and adjusted the auger clutch 'wheel thing' so that it pushes harder against the belt and it has improved alot, but I think some belt damage has been done by it being too loose and I don't think the shop used a good belt.

So I know what this machine is SUPPOSED to do.  We just had about 12-14" in NJ, of wettish, but not slush snow.  Right now I smell burning belt when only cutting about 16" and it only throws about 4 feet using the slowest forward speed.  If memory serves i should be able to cut 32" inches at 2nd speed with snow flying out pretty darn strong and no belt damage or burning.  Is that what you are seeing now?