How fast does a snow plow go

How to Windrow With the blade angled to the left or right side of the vehicle, make consecutive passes--each time throwing the snow forward and to the side.

Straight-Position In this position, the blade is positioned directly in front of the vehicle. How to Backdrag To remove snow from the edge of a building, raise the blade and drive forward to the building. Deep Snow In deep snow, raise the plow several inches off the ground to shear off the top layer.

Wet Snow The best advice is this: Once you start, finish the job. V-Plowing Tips. V Position In this position the blades are retracted toward the truck.

Scoop Position This position is used for carrying or controlling the snow- with the blades pushed out to form an inverted V shape. Angle-Position In this position the blades are positioned to either the left or right side of the vehicle. Straight-Position This position is normally used for backdragging-with the blades positioned directly in front of the vehicle. Deep Snow In deep snow raise the plow several inches off the ground to shear off the top layer.

Snowplowing Preparations. Before operating or servicing your BOSS Snowplow, you should become thoroughly familiar with the owner's manual. You should carry the following safety equipment for emergencies: a fire extinguisher, tool kit, tow strap, flashlight, flares, first aid kit, fuses for your vehicle, jumper cables, an ice scraper, lock deicer, extra washer fluid, a shovel and a bag of sand or salt.

Also, make sure you have warm clothes that include insulated underwear, a warm jacket, hat, gloves and sunglasses. NOTE: In case of an emergency, it is always a good idea to carry a cellular phone or two-way radio with you when plowing.

You should also carry a snowplow emergency parts kit that includes extra hydraulic fluid, hydraulic hoses, a pump solenoid, extra cutting-edge bolts and a trip spring.

You should check your vehicle's tire pressure, engine belts for cracks and tightness, hoses for leaks and vehicle fluid levels including the engine oil, brake fluid, transmission fluid, battery, radiator coolant and windshield washer fluid.

Examine the battery terminals for corrosion and make sure the connections are tight. Make sure the vehicle windshield wipers and defrosters are in good shape and working properly.

Check the vehicle headlights, brake lights and turn signals to be sure they are in good working order, and make sure your strobe light is working if you have one. Also, look under the vehicle for obvious signs for leaking fluid.

NOTE: You should never run out of fuel, so make sure your fuel tank is full before going out to plow. If you do not have a strobe light or backup lights, you should consider adding them to your vehicle to increase your own visibility, as well as making yourself more visible to others while plowing.

To comply with the federal requirements for front and rear weight distribution- and for good traction while plowing- make sure your vehicle has the proper amount of ballast. Ballast should be placed rearward of the back axle toward the tailgate of the vehicle, and it should be properly secured in place. Check your snowplow to make sure all bolts are tight.

Look for cracked welds and hydraulic fluid leaks. Make sure the plow lights and turn signals are aligned properly and are in good working order. Check your snowplow cutting edge. An over worn cutting edge can result in costly repairs to the blade later. Basic Plowing Practices. When transporting a snowplow, angle the blade to the right toward the curb. This will reduce the chance of catching a curb or a snowbank that could pull your vehicle into it. Never operate a plow while transporting it to and from a job site.

It's a good idea to keep the plow control turned off in order to prevent accidental operation. When transporting a plow, position the blade so as not to block the plow headlights or your vision. Do not exceed 40 mph when transporting a plow. Do not exceed 14 mph when plowing. When transporting a plow or while plowing, check the temperature gauge often. But if the sun is shining and the temperature is 20 degrees or more and expected to remain steady or to rise, then salt would be more effective.

The decision whether to plow or salt is made with great consideration and based on the latest weather information available. Plowing under the wrong conditions can create a polished street surface, resulting in dangerous glare ice. The decisions made by an experienced crew and supervisory personnel are critical. Snow plow operators take pride in clearing the streets on their routes as quickly and thoroughly as possible.

Driving a snowplow is demanding, tiring work. Common sense and good safety practices dictate that each driver should take a minute break every six hours. It is dangerous, both for the snowplow driver and the public, if a fatigued driver is behind the wheel of a snowplow.

It is in the best interest of the all concerned for the drivers to take occasional breaks. There are three reasons why you might see plows on the streets on snowless days. One is that every driver undergoes pre-season training. Skills must be sharpened and routes need to be learned and relearned.

The second reason is that the trucks may be scanning the city for secondary cleaning cleaning the streets where vehicles were parked during the plowing of the streets. The third reason is that the trucks can be sanding main break areas that are out of their view, or other problem areas. We don't use cinders because they don't work in all situations. On a hard surface like ice covered and snow packed road, cinders will either bounce off or be kicked out by traffic.

The potential for a medical emergency does not warrant priority treatment. Anyone needing an ambulance in a medical emergency should contact the Police Department where all necessary steps will be coordinated. The Central Business District is signed for no parking between 2 and 6 a. Other streets near the downtown area are posted for no parking 48 hours in advance for cleaning.

Any vehicles remaining on the streets after the 48 hours notice will be towed. There is a general prohibition against parking a vehicle on-street for 48 or more hours without moving the vehicle.

Vehicles may be ticketed more frequently during winter months to ensure that plows are able to plow streets adequately. Anyone leaving town for an extended time holidays, Spring break should find suitable off-street parking to avoid ticketing and towing. The Police Department coordinates all towing operations. When does my sidewalk need to be cleared and whose responsibility is it?

Snow that accumulates before noon on a sidewalk must be cleared by midnight the same day and snow that accumulates after noon on a sidewalk must be cleared by midnight of the following day. For snow showers that occur on more than one consecutive day, snow must be cleared by the above stated times or within 48 hours after the first snowfall began, whichever is sooner. Ice should be cleared or an abrasive salt, sand, etc. Learn more. Who do I contact if a city snow plow hits my mailbox?

The City is not responsible for mailboxes or posts which are damaged by snow thrown from plows. If your mailbox is struck by a City plow, please contact the Department of Public Works at DPW will review the damage and determine the responsibility of replacement. The City uses a standard design wood post and a standard design metal mail box for replacement.

Unfortunately, the City will not repair or replace decorative mailboxes and decorative posts. What if landscaping or irrigation in the right-of-way is damaged? Please do not landscape with rocks, bricks, timbers, shrubs or other items in the right-of-way.

Snow plows and sidewalk plows could cause damage and DPW does not repair or replace landscape materials. Some residents have irrigation in the right of way. Keep any irrigation heads away from the edges of the sidewalk. Sidewalk snow plow blades are a little wider than the sidewalk in some areas. Who do I contact if a City snow plow damages my lawn? If a City snow plow or sidewalk plow causes lawn damage, please contact DPW at Sod and grass damage is restored by city crews with top soil and grass seed in the spring once all the snow has melted.

What about people who are physically not able to clear sidewalks adjacent to their property? There are many snow removal contractors that can be hired to perform this service.

Ideally, neighbors will provide assistance to those who are unable to keep their adjacent sidewalks free of snow and ice. Mike Nelson Senior Member. Location Naperville IL. Our DOT here in N. Sparks are just flying off the blades!

Cool visual at night I also agree with the other guys. So many variables,demand different speeds. Location Connecticut, Missouri, Guam, Germany. A plus to plowing airfields! We use rubber blades on the runway so it takes a lot of the bumping and rough ride out of it. The only bad thing is when we're finished with the airfield and start picking up the slack after the street crews, you forget your not on a wide open airfield anymore and forget how fast your going until you hit that first set of train tracks all over this base and thats your que to slow down some!

Location stoneham,ma. It's nice to be able to go fast but remember you never know what will be in the road and if you hit it you will feel it and mayby damage your truck. But i try to stay around mph tranporting around mph. You never know what's under the snow unless it's a airport that is maintained very well.

Location Orillia On Canada. Plowing speeds Good information in all the posts - I agree that there are a lot of variables to this question, in my case the few lots I do are small and somewhat cluttered so I never get my speed up too high.

A lot depends on how well you know your lot too - even then the snow can conceal surprises! Yes, I've found a few "surprises"! Hello, I'm on the same grounds as guido, and say that speeds can go from 30 to 60 on open airfield can clear the ft by ft runway in under 15mins now with 6 trucks but dam if it isn't hard to adjust from a osh kosh with a 14 ft. One concern I have about high speeds is overspray though.

Way too many times, when you start hitting that 30 plus range, you can start getting some serious white out conditions on the windshield.

I still don't know how some of these DOT guys don't end up off the side of road. It's real common, especially with less experienced drivers, to end up 20 ft of your line when your windshield gets all smeared up from a sudden 'blast' of overspray. On the same lines, you never know what may be in front of you.

Hitting only a 2 ft tall wind row at a taxiway intersection, even in a osh kosh, can send the truck's rear end off into never never land when you start pushing high speeds. Plowing speeds Steveair: Read your post with interest - with regard to DOT trucks ending up off the side of the road, sometimes that's exactly what happens!

I am employed by a welding company and we get lots of work in the winter doing minor running repairs to the highway plows.