7 Handy Snowplow Accessories to Make Your Winter Easier
Tired of being stranded in your own driveway and determined to do something about it, you’ve purchased a snowplow.
You’re just a beginner with the idea that you’ll be able to dig out your driveway after a snowfall—hello, self-reliance. And maybe you’ll help your neighbors out too. Nothing too fancy. You’re not planning on making a business out of it—at least, not yet.
But that doesn’t mean you’re not open to making your work easier by grabbing some snowplow accessories.
With that in mind, here are 7 snowplow accessories you can use to upgrade your plow.
Get ready to plow snow in style.
1. Snowplow skid shoes
We cover skid shoes in depth here, but if you want the short version, we have you covered.
Skid shoes attach to your snowplow to raise its cutting edge. As a result, your plow is less likely to bulldoze gravel, loose stones, grass, and dirt—you know, those things that aren’t snow and that you'd rather leave where they are.
Even if you don’t have a gravel driveway, using snowplow shoes can still be a good idea. Since your plow blade is prevented from scraping the ground, it experiences less wear and tear. For you, that means you won’t have to replace your plow’s cutting edge as often.
A new blade for your plow can be quite expensive, so investing in some skid shoes can help to save you money. It can also help you save the time and labor that would have gone into replacing your plow blade.
2. Snowplow blade guides
Our next handy snowplow accessory is blade guides.
While they may look similar to driveway markers (more on those below), you'll likely run into a bit of trouble if you try to use one for the other.
Snowplow blade guides get attached to the top of your plow. Since, unlike your plow, they extend up past the hood of your vehicle, they will help you as the driver know exactly where your plow is relative to its surroundings.
With a pair of blade guides mounted on your plow, you won’t have to be as worried about clipping a garbage can and sending trash flying everywhere. (Trust us, that’s a very unpleasant situation to be in.)
So, if you’re a beginner and a little apprehensive about driving with a snowplow mounted on the front of your vehicle, we recommend getting some blade guides to ease a little of that anxiety. They certainly can’t hurt.
3. Snowplow lights
Winter means snow, but it also means fewer hours of daylight. Those two factors combine to create limited visibility, which is a bit of a problem when you're plowing snow.
To combat this, you can get light kits for your snowplow. There are a couple of types of snowplow lights you might be interested to know about.
Auxiliary lights
Whether you’re plowing snow early in the morning before work or later in the evening when you get home, you’ll likely wish you had a little more light to work with. Mounting auxiliary lights on your plow will help.
Auxiliary lights often use halogen bulbs or LED bulbs. There are pros and cons to both options.
LED bulbs typically provide greater visibility and are more energy efficient. However, since they don't produce much heat, they can collect snow, posing problems for a plow operator.
Halogen bulbs, on the other hand, produce heat, which helps to keep them from accumulating snow and ice. The trade-off is that you won't have quite as much visibility.
Warning lights
Depending on where you're plowing, you may want to consider purchasing warning lights for your snowplow.
Warning lights are less about helping you see better and more about helping other people to see you. They typically use LED bulbs and may flash or burn steadily. They're also available in different colors, some of the most common being amber, white, green, and blue.
Before attaching warning lights, make sure to check local laws to make sure you and your snowplow are in compliance.
4. Blade extension wings
If you own either a straight blade or a v-plow and wish you could increase your snowplow’s reach, you’re in luck. Next on the list of helpful snowplow accessories: blade extension wings.
Extension wings like the ones sold at The ROP Shop can increase your snowplow blade’s width by 20 inches. Wider reach = more snow cleared at once = less time spent plowing = more time spent doing things that don’t involve shivering in the cold.
Make sure your plow is compatible with the extension wings that you purchase. Not all wings are suitable for every plow.
5. Snowplow dollies
This next snowplow accessory doesn’t go on your plow per se, but it’s still a helpful one.
Think about it: in all likelihood, your snowplow won’t be mounted on your vehicle year-round. (And if you do live in a climate where you’re plowing snow all twelve months of the year, you have our sympathy.)
But what do you do with it once you take it off for the year? Well, you should do a bit of maintenance on your snowplow, but we mean beyond that.
That’s where snowplow dollies come in. These handy tools make transporting your snowplow easier (thanks, wheels!) and help to preserve your plow while it’s in storage by protecting it from corrosion and other damage.
It’s not good for your plow to be stored on the ground for the months it’s not in use, and snowplow dollies provide an excellent solution.
6. Snowplow controller
You should have gotten a controller when you first purchased your snowplow. Likely this was either a handheld model or a joystick controller.
However, you should know that just because it came with your snowplow doesn’t mean it’s your only option.
If you struggle to use your current controller for your snowplow, finding it confusing or just downright inconvenient to operate, you may be able to swap it out for a different style.
There are pros and cons to both types, so it’s worth testing out both (if you’re able) to find out which one makes the most sense to you.
Staying in control of your plow is crucial, and that’s much easier if you feel extremely comfortable with your snowplow controller. If your current one isn’t working for you, there’s nothing wrong with switching it out for one that you feel confident using.
Make sure to check compatibility before purchasing a new controller for your snowplow.
(P.S. If you like the layout of a handheld controller but aren’t over the moon about the “handheld” part, you can get a controller mount to free up your hands.)
7. Snow deflectors
You may notice that as you plow, an unsettling amount of snow flies up onto your windshield, limiting your visibility and creating more work for your already busy wipers.
Snow deflectors can help with this. They attach to the top of your plow’s moldboard and hang over it, keeping the snow that you’re plowing from flying up over the top and into your windshield.
Bonus item: driveway markers
They may go in the ground instead of on your snowplow, but driveway markers are extremely helpful when it comes to snow removal.
If you’re interested in plowing snow without damaging your equipment or landscaping, having a bundle of these at your disposal will go a long way. Plus, modern markers are made out of fiberglass (instead of wood like back in the day), making them lighter, more reflective, and easier to install.
Grab some driveway markers to install before winter comes. If you really feel like treating yourself, you can also get a handy installation tool so that you don’t have to use a drill to create pilot holes for your stakes.
Don’t forget to check out our 10 tips for using driveway markers effectively.
You have your list of plowing accessories. Now what?
Did one of these items catch your eye? If you have questions, feel free to reach out to our customer service team to find out more details about our selection of snowplow accessories.
You can also browse our snowplow replacement parts if your plow is in need of some DIY repairs.
Plus, if you’re ready to learn more about how to conquer snow this winter, we're here to help. Check out more of our snow removal blogs:
We also offer other Rugged U resources to help you DIY and get back to the outdoors.
Whatever way you choose to snowplow, we wish you the best in the coming snows. Stay safe out there!
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