Snow Removal Tools and Methods of Snow Removal

Sometimes the right tool for the job is not the immediately obvious choice. Below are some items that can help you take care of unique or tricky situations or offer you an unusual way of taking care of the snow removal job.

Secondary Grips

Some curved or straight handle shovels allow for a second grip to be installed around halfway down the length of the snow shovel, providing excellent leverage and helping to prevent back injuries while scooping large piles of snow. Some brands of snow shovels provide these attachments standard or for purchase at a low cost. It is important to be moderate when using this tool, however. It can be very tempting to use the extra leverage it provides to lift heavier and heavier piles of snow – but that is an easy way to injure yourself!

Hand Snow Pusher

With a long, wide-loop handle reminiscent of a push lawnmower, a wide metal or plastic scoop attached to the front, and some models possessing two tough plastic wheels, the snow pusher is a tool best suited to clearing a wide, flat space covered with a light amount of snow. This tool requires no bending or scooping, and is very easy to use if clearing an evenly level path, deck, or driveway. However, it does little more than push snow to one side or another, meaning if you need to move snow to a different area this is not the tool for the job. With its added limitation of only being able to clear light (less than a few inches) of snow, it also is not recommended for those in areas that receive heavy snowfall.

Snow Sleigh

While its name brings to mind childhood winters and hot chocolate by a fire, snow sleighs are in fact a heavy-duty version of the hand snow pusher. Its handle design is very similar to the snow pusher, much like a lawnmower handle. The difference is that the snow sleigh has a large, flat scoop in place of the wheels and small scoop of the pusher. It is made to slide across flat surfaces, collecting snow and pushing it to one side. It also provides a serious snow capacity upgrade from the pusher, with the ability to take on heavy, wet snow piled several inches high, if necessary. One drawback is that it may take more strength to operate than the pusher, and by that token, may lead to a greater risk of injury.