Photo: SnowWolfSnowWolf introduced the QuattroPlowHD, a snow plow for heavy equipment such as wheel loaders, backhoes, and tractors.
The company says the QuattroPlowHD is a larger version of the QuattroPlow, which SnowWolf introduced in 2016 for skid steers, smaller tractors and compact wheel loaders.
SnowWolf says the QuattroPlowHD gives operators the power to efficiently tackle four distinct functions with one piece of equipment. The company says it’s a high-capacity, hydraulic angle snow pusher, angle plow with wings, wide-angle plow with wings and back drag plow, all in one.
Operators can switch from one type of plowing to another in seconds without leaving the cab, according to the company, and no extra electric harnesses or controllers are required.
“In terms of ease, efficiency and value for our customers, the QuattroPlow was an absolute out-of-the-park homerun,” said SnowWolf co-CEO and research and development manager Jerry Holman. “We’re excited about applying the same technologies to a brawnier plow to give the same advantages to our customers who use larger machines for more extensive and challenging snow-clearing jobs.”
The company says the QuattroPlowHD is available in 10- and 12-foot lengths, and when the wings are fully extended on the 12-foot plow, it is 17 feet wide. The moldboard is 38 inches tall compared to the QuattroPlow’s 30 inches, and it weighs 280 lbs. per foot compared to 140 lbs. per foot for the smaller attachment.
The attachment’s wings rotate 165 degrees to make it a high-capacity hydraulic snow pusher when they are all the way forward, SnowWolf says. When the wings are all the way back, it is an efficient straight or angle plow with wings or back drag plow with significant containment and down pressure.
The company says the patented hydraulic smart valve gives operators complete control of the wings without removing their hands from the steering controls. When they angle the plow all the way to the right and hold for a few seconds, the smart valve shifts hydraulic fluid to the wing circuit and both wings move forward to the snow pusher position, SnowWolf says.
When they angle all the way to the left and hold, the wings move backward to the wing plowing or back dragging positions, and the company says the directions can be switched according to operator preference.
In the back-drag position, SnowWolf says the QuattroPlowHD carries more snow than an angle plow alone. Operators also can scrape and carry snow effectively backward without changing the machine’s orientation.
SnowWolf says it also incorporated 35-degree-angle tips on the QuattroPlowHD’s wings to provide greater carrying capacity while minimizing windrows caused by trickling from the ends of the plow, regardless of the direction the machine is moving.
SnowWolf says the QuattroPlowHD can oscillate up to 14 inches from level so the moldboard can follow the contours of the ground and remain in full contact with the surface nearly 100 percent of the time.
The QuattroPlowHD is a fully floating or full down-pressure system, depending on the conditions and an operator’s preferences. When it’s in full-floating mode, SnowWolf says the plow moves up or down thanks to horizontal bars that move forward or back through slightly arched slots in plates that are attached to the frame behind the moldboard.
“With the old, rigid design, an operator needed to dial it in perfectly when he set the blade down and control everywhere it went, up or down, as he was plowing,” Holman said. “If the ground fell away, like in a loading dock area, the plow sailed off into mid-air and missed all the snow. With our new system, the operator just sets the blade down and the plow takes care of the rest.”
With a loader, for example, the operator can program the return-to-dig circuit to lower and stop at the same elevation every time, SnowWolf says.
The new system also eliminates premature and uneven wear to the cutting edge, according to SnowWolf.
The company says the interchangeable mounting system makes it quick and easy for a dealer, contractor or fleet manager to move a QuattroPlowHD from one machine to another, either for different jobs or when a machine is replaced.
The system consists of machine-specific hooks that connect to a host machine’s mounting plate. To change from one style to another (i.e., one machine to another), the user removes four bolts, two on each side of the frame, slides one set of hooks off of the frame, slides a different set of hooks back on and replaces the bolts. The frame remains the same regardless of a machine’s mounting plate style.
SnowWolf says it has designed and manufactured hooks that connect to four different mounting plate styles: 3-point hitch mount, CAT-IT mount, CAT fusion mount and JRB mount.
Boss Snowplow introduced new Exact Path
Boss Snowplow recently introduced the new Exact Path, a drop spreader that the company says has an innovative design that precisely drops deicing material while protecting grass and landscaping.
Photo: Boss SnowplowThe company says the Exact Path is available in 2.5 cubic feet and 6.0 cubic feet capacities, and Boss says it offers three mounting options to fit UTVs, tractors and compact/sidewalk vehicles. With a stainless steel hopper and frame with a polyethylene cover, Boss says materials are kept dry and free-flowing. The company adds that an exclusive feed gate lever makes it easy to adjust material flow with no tools needed.
“The Boss Exact Path is a tool that we designed with the day-to-day challenges of snow and ice professionals in mind,” said Mark Klossner, marketing vice president for Boss Snowplow. “It focuses on solving the problems that contractors face when deicing sidewalks and walkways. Ultimately, improved tools like Exact Path help contractors stay ahead of the curve to increase profitability for their businesses and provide high-quality service to their customers.”
The Exact Path standard features include:
- 8-position adjustable feed gate
- Stainless steel hopper and frame construction
- Solid poly hopper cover with integrated tie-downs
- Top screen with bag splitter
- Enclosed 12-volt electric high-torque motor
- Variable speed control
The Exact Path attachment styles include:
- Category 1 3-point hitch
- UTV bed
- Toro Groundsmaster
- Compact sidewalk vehicles with a 2” slide-in receiver
Permeable tree surroundings installed with Porous Pave
As part of its continuing stewardship of the city’s urban trees, the Seattle Department of Transportation recently replaced 38 metal tree grates along the sidewalks of 3rdAvenue with permeable tree surroundings installed with Porous Pave XL.
Photo: Landscape Business“Tree roots had pushed the metal grates up from their interior frames in the tree pits,” said Sherry Graham, arboriculturist, Seattle Department of Transportation. “Uneven sections and gaps were a tripping hazard.”
With its recycled rubber content, Porous Pave says it gives flexibility to withstand freeze-thaw cycles, root expansion, and tree growth without breaking or cracking. The company says the paving material is slip-resistant, and the entire surface of the Porous Pavers allow rainwater and air to pass through down to the tree’s roots.
“Permeable surrounds with Porous Pave are tree-friendly,” said Brian Holers, certified arborist, Root Cause, LLC (Mercer Island, Washington), the urban tree care specialist who is installing permeable tree surrounds at several locations for the City of Seattle. “Installation requires less excavation and minimizes disturbance of the roots. You can spread and fit the material right up against the edges of tree pits and make it conform to the shapes of tree bases. These are significant advantages since the maples and little leaf lindens along 3rd Avenue are mature trees planted in 1991.”
The permeable tree surroundings were installed in January 2018. Once the old grates were removed from their frames, Holers and his crew poured 1.5 inches of Porous Pave XL on a ½-inch base of 5/8 crushed aggregate.
Averaging 25 square feet in size, the company says the gray color was chosen for the project to make the permeable pavement blend in with the adjacent sidewalks.
Solesbee’s introduces blade-mounted dozer rakes
Solesbee’s says it offers blade-mounted dozer rakes as an efficient solution for land clearing, raking brush and piling trees and branches.
With a c-curve design, the company says the rakes can roll brush and debris, which makes it easy to windrow material while minimizing the amount of dirt pushed with it. The company says the rakes also feature an extended upright with multiple holes to easily mount on nearly any dozer blade without customization.
Photo: Solesbee’s“Our dozer rakes are the most cost effective and convenient solution available,” said David Jenkins, president of Solesbee’s Equipment & Attachments LLC. “Since we design each model of our rakes to fit multiple dozer blades, we have them in stock and ready to ship to customers the next day. Most competitors take two to three weeks to specially design one rake to fit one dozer and they don’t include the components needed to mount the rakes to the attachments.”
The company says a qualified welder can install the brackets on the dozer in as few as two hours, and once installed, the company says it’s easy to manually mount and remove the rake as needed. For added versatility, additional bracket sets are available for use with multiple dozers or when upgrading to a new dozer.
The company says the rake is available with a full range of teeth for optimal cleaning in a variety of applications. All rakes feature 2-inch-wide hardened steel teeth for lasting durability in harsh environments. Customers can also choose from a variety of teeth quantities and spacing options, and Solesbee’s says standard teeth are 20 inches long with optional 14- to 24-inch lengths also available.
Additional mower models approved for PERC’s Propane Mower Incentive Program
An additional 69 mower models have been added to the list of OEM dealer-converted units eligible for the Propane Education & Research Council’s (PERC) Propane Mower Incentive Program.
This incentive program, according to PERC, offers up to $1,000 for each approved OEM dealer-converted unit or dedicated propane mower, and $500 for each qualified propane mower conversion kit.
The newly-added units include zero-turn, walk-behind, and stand-on models — 44 models from Ferris Mowers, 20 models from Snapper Pro and five models from Bradley Mowers.
PERC says all of these mowers can be converted by dealers using Propane Power Systems CARB- and EPA-certified propane conversion kits.
“Commercial landscapers are very brand loyal when it comes to their maintenance equipment, so it’s great news when we’re able to expand the list of models eligible for our popular incentive program and hopefully give contractors a propane option in their mower model of choice,” said Jeremy Wishart, PERC director of off-road business development. “Once contractors try propane mowers in their own operation and see first-hand the lower operating costs and increased productivity, we have no doubt it will be a long-term solution for their business.”
Greenworks introduces new eco-friendly pressure washers to independent dealer channel
Greenworks Commercial introduced their new “pro-sumer” oriented Greenworks Elite pressure washer lineup to the independent dealer channel.
Photo: Greenworks CommercialIndependently certified by the Pressure Washer Manufacturers Association (PWMA), Greenworks says both the 13A 1800 pressure washer and the 13A 2000 pressure washer models bring power, quality, and efficiency to the forefront.
“Pressure washers have traditionally been fueled by gasoline, which is economically and ecologically inefficient and, as we know, smelly and messy,” said Tony Marchese, director of independent dealers for Greenworks Commercial. “Greenworks Commercial’s all-electric Elite power system saves savvy users money and eliminates environmentally-harmful emissions. It really is a win-win for homeowners and the environment.”
Greenworks says both the Elite 13A 1800 and the 13A 2000 pressure washer models utilize a 13 AMP universal motor with a powerful 120V AC system. The company says both offer users the convenience of a 35’ power cord with ground-fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) technology built in to reduce risk of shock.
Greenworks says the 13A 1800 comes equipped with a 25’ high-pressure hose and delivers 1.1 GPM and 1800 PSIs of cleaning strength. The 13A 2000 model, according to the company, provides a 25’ uber flex hose and delivers 1.2 GPM and 2000 PSIs of maximum dirt and grime defeating power. Both models come with a 1-year tool warranty.
