Techniques for Snowplowing a Driveway

Straight On

• The straight-on plowing technique works well if you are able to get your vehicles out of the driveway and you have no garage. It is the simplest of plowing techniques; you plow straight ahead and leave a pile of snow at the end of your driveway. Be certain the pile of snow is far enough away from your house to prevent basement flooding when the spring thaw arrives.

Angled

• The angled snow plowing technique is used when you have a garage or other structure at the end of your driveway that you do not want to block. Angle your plow blade so it diverts the snow to each side of the driveway. There is some clean-up shoveling required to clear any driveway doorways to your home, but this plowing method allows access to your garage during the winter.

Back-dragging

• It is not always possible to remove your vehicles from the driveway before plowing, especially if there is 12 inches of snow or more in the driveway. The back-drag method allows you to remove enough snow to get the vehicles out so you can use the straight-ahead or angled technique to finish the job. Back-dragging needs to be done in three- or four-foot long segments to avoid building up more snow than the blade can handle. Pull the plow up to the spot you want to start back-dragging, lower the blade down into the snow and back the snow out of the driveway.

Cornering

• Leaving large piles of snow at the entrance of a driveway is a hazard. You cannot see vehicles coming as you back out of the driveway, and the oncoming traffic cannot see you until you are sticking out into the street. This is why the cornering technique is important. In the cornering technique, the plow driver raises his blade and starts pushing the snow on either corner of the driveway entrance out of the way. Once the snow banks are down to car-window level, then the driveway is safe to use.

Gravel

• When plowing a gravel driveway, keep your blade one to two inches off the ground. You remove enough snow to make the driveway safe, but you avoid digging up the gravel.