Lawn roller on snow??

Mar 14, 2005 14 Replies

I was wondering about the idea of using a lawn roller to pack down snow in my driveway instead of blowing or plowing. I the old horse and sled days that is how it was done - the horses pulled these giant wooden rollers to pack the snow down.



So would a lawn roller work? I don't have one to test.


paul oman



It'd work great if you want an ice rink. Pressure will cause the snow to melt, then refreeze.

Think about what happens when you drive on snow in your driveway.

In the "old horse and sled days", they would have gladly used a snowblower if one had been available.

BB

"It'd work great if you want an ice rink. Pressure will cause the snow

to melt, then refreeze.

Think about what happens when you drive on snow in your driveway. "

Exactly. In fact, about a week ago, we got about 3 inchs of snow, which would have been marginal to even bother with here. I checked the forecast and concluded that it was more likely to linger for a couple of days, so I got the blower going.

Yes, but that made it easier for the sled to slide, if they cleared the roads down to whatever the "summer surface" was, a sleigh wouldn't slide very well, would it?

Jeff

the

Are you putting runners on the family car?

Depends if you mindt the car going down the driveway straight or sideways.

The problem is that once you compress the snow it stands a good chance of becoming an ice sheet. Unlike snow, with lots of porosity, the ice will take much longer to melt. Like maybe from one snowstorm to the next.

Gary Dyrkacz snipped-for-privacy@comcast.net Radio Control Aircraft/Paintball Physics/Paintball for 40+

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"Paul Oman" wrote

Read this first:

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But do you have a horse?

I haven't shovelled a driveway in 40 years ( How I wish I had a driveway to shovel) but when I had one, it was over 100 feet long. I just shovelled paths for the tires.

Now, my townhouse neighbors are fanatics. They shovel the full width of the sidewalk and all the show from around their cars. I think it is a waste of time. (I don't even shovel behind my car. I madke sure no one is there, and it's fun gunning the motor and getting out.

Meirman

-- If emailing, please let me know whether or not you are posting the same letter. Change domain to erols.com, if necessary.

This is your lawn roller.

(image of an egg being cracked into a hot frying pan)

This is your lawn roller on snow.

Any questions?

Sure it'll work, just get the ice skates ready after the first freeze. At least you'll have a nice place to play hockey.

That is because int the old "horse and sled days" they used sleds which by custom have skis and not wheels -- so compacting the snow made a good sledding surface. In fact, today's ski slopes use the same concept except that the roller is huge and pulled by a tractor like machine rather than horses.

If you plan on navigating town by ski or snowmobile, then I would recommend rolling over ploughing or snow blowing. If you plan on using wheels, then removing the snow seems more prudent.

You could have your horse poop hot ones and melt the snow.

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