WEN Snow Blaster

Product Description

Oh you poor East Coast bastards. I normally have no sympathy for the plight of my fellow men unless their plight somehow directly affects me, but as someone who feels being stranded in the house with his mama and then... [Read more]

Top Reviews

Very capable little machine - See photos
by cjr,Top Contributor: Brewing (5 out of 5 stars)
March 9, 2016

This thing had quite the first storm to prove itself in. About a month after buying it (and a LONG cold weather extension cord which was nearly as much) we received about 4 feet of snow just west of DC. Assembly was very quick and easy, about 15 minutes with no tools required. I plugged it in and here's what I learned:

I like:

I would say it can do about 10 inches of snow at a time. The most I pushed it to do was around slightly below 2 feet (snow was litterally up to the shoot's top!). It still moved the snow, but required bumping into the snow a few times before clearing the area. Still much easier than shoveling. It cleared my entire driveway in 3/4 passes going out periodically through the blizzard during the day (see photos!).

Throwing distance was plenty far to clear snow to the side of your average single family home drive way.

Very easy to turn on and adjust the shoot.

Clears powdery snow completely, no need to go back over with a shovel.

It's small and easily stored.

It never once shocked me or over heated, even if being continually used for 40 minutes.

I dislike:

It's basically all plastic. Time will tell how well it holds up. I already had a shoot clip break off after only my first pass (probably about a half foot of snow).

It's not as powerful as a gas blower, but it seemed to work just fine nonetheless.

It clogs easily if you let the snow melt a little. Slush and wet snow will be a challenge.

I learned:

Buy a cold weather and LONG extension cord. And know if you have an outlet near your driveway, other wise you'll hate this.

Know which way the wind is blowing and start on the opposite side of the driveway, blowing pointing with the wind. Otherwise you'll just cover up what you've already done.

I wrapped the powercord connection in some plastic to prevent it from getting wet. The idea of water and electricity together is scary.

Overall: Recommended. We bought our parents one as well. Know it's limits and use it proactively during a storm and you'll be set!
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21st Century Snow Blowing
by The Engineer (5 out of 5 stars)
May 27, 2018

My boss laughed when I told him how much the snowblower I had bought cost; being new to this task I thought to myself "hmmm is this a Mickey Mouse snowblower?" This year we got pounded with some copious snowstorms in New England and my WEN 5662 snow blaster handed them all well. When the snow is too wet, the snow blower may choke, but you can clear the snow with your hand. Coincidentally, some friends gave me a gas powered unit in top shape; the thing was noisy, smelly and it could not handle the snow like the WEN 5662 did!. Maybe I'm abusing it, but the WEN 5662 was even able to cut through the "wall of snow" that the plow leaves when it goes by. I'm extremely happy with the WEN: it's clean, it's quiet, it's effective and it was so cheap my boss laughed!
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If 6 inches is the norm, this is all you need UPDATE
by Jeffrey Peterson (4 out of 5 stars)
February 11, 2016

I'm an old school guy. Give me an old 2 stage snowblower and force your way through. Grunt, Grunt, Grunt... Sadly though, I'm getting older. Firing up the old metal beast is a killer, it over 150lbs and tends to take you for a ride more than you it [If you know what I mean] Add that in my state, 6 inches is the norm, the beast is not really not what's needed. So, I broke down and bought this WEN snow blower. This year we got a big storm dumping a total of nearly 2 feet in 24 hours. When I woke up, the snow was about 10 inches deep. This snow blower was new and right out of the box. I used my standard extension cord and hit the button. It sounds like a portable tablesaw while running. Not too loud. It threw the snow a good 10 to 15 feet and it seem to do it with ease. I did find one problem, the safety switch does not stay on and from time to time you will need to stop to reset the button. I personally feel the safety part of the switch is over kill. But I do like the switch being on the handle. I have a feel you know what I'll do next..... This thing is light enough to hang on the wall, which is truly great news! Things to remember, you should go out a few times, every 6 to 10 inches and if possible, blow with the wind. As for the beast, It will be sold to a younger man in the near future.... The WEN is all I "need".

Ps - If the plow goes by, wave and be nice. They are doing what is best for all - Not what's best for you.

UPDATE:
2017 I got about halfway through a 2 car driveway with only 2 inches of snow when the motor caught on fire. The yellow plastic housing is fine, so is the main unit. I had to open the unit to make sure the fire was contained and out before bringing the unit back into the garage. Sent WEN an email.... WEN replied to my email asking for the serial number, proof of purchase and my address. I sent it in and they replied that they are sending the parts. So far things are looking up. We are now at 3 stars. I'll update this again when parts arrive.

UPDATE:
1/17/2017 received the replacement motor assemble. But it's a used part? Except for being cheap, Why send used parts. I'm saving them money by not sending the unit back and doing all the work myself....? The good news is the the motor is in and snowblower is back together. I plugged it in and it sound normal. I'm bumping this snowblower to 4 stars. Thankful WEN sent the part, disappointed they sent a used part...
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Gets the job done without any strain on my bad back.
by Dave (5 out of 5 stars)
July 16, 2017

First off, I wasn't expecting this little unit to be able to work like the gas powered ones that are 600% more powerful and very heavy steel. That said, I am impressed so far. I used to shovel snow by hand. I have a 150' driveway and it was a MAJOR workout. I fractured my back and can no longer shovel snow. The first time I needed it we had 12 inches of heavy snow. I wasn't going to force it to try to clear it all in one pass so I just let it glide through the snow...first pass it cleared about 8 inches of the 12 on the driveway, hmm. Second pass, it cleared the rest without any issues. After 150' of clearing 12" snow the unit was still going fine. One week last we got another 12 inches of snow and once again, it cleared it without any problems. I guess the trick is to not expect it to clear it all in one pass if it is over 6 or 8 inches. It is so light and easy to maneuver, a second pass is no problem. I push it forward three or four feet, pull it back, and push forward a second time, done. It was not a strain on my injured back. That was the only two times I have used it. So far I am very happy with my purchase. This item is my fourth item from the WEN company and they appear to make good products. ( drill press, band saw, grinder, etc.)
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Great Product ~ Aweson customer support from WEN
by Zoee (5 out of 5 stars)
December 21, 2016

I could not be happier. At first I couldn't get it to start, I called WEN and left them a message to call me back. A tech called back a couple of hours later and it took him like one minute to tell me what was wrong with it and how to fix the problem.

He explained to me that sometimes during shipping that the start button gets stuck. He told me instead of pulling the handle bar back that I should push it forward firmly and release it, then to push the on button and pull the handle bar back like you normally would. On the first try the on button was stuck and he said try again with the normal starting positions. Wonders of wonders, when I pushed the button again, pulled handle bar back into the normal position it started right up.

Now for the true test. My driveway is 125' x 40' there was about 10 inches of snow not all powder either. Even taking three breaks, (I am kind of old and my back is shot) I was able to clean the entire driveway in 1.5 hours. It amazed me that dropping 150' of extension cord had no affect on the performance of the snow blower.

I wish I would have purchased one of these years ago, this was probably the best $97.00 I spent in 2016. Thank you WEN!
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This little Super Plastic Unit is Rockin my driveway
by Shoalie Louise (5 out of 5 stars)
January 21, 2017

Lets just say.... I was expecting Less! This little Super Plastic Unit is Rockin my driveway. Electric, (and the cords totally a pain to move about), but for the price, ~ Totally impressed with how its handles the load. Not so good on lots of ice, but have pushed into deep snow and can clear my drive in about 8 passes. Super easy to assemble and operate. Don't know how long this little party will last, but feel already I've gotten my money out of it as have used it almost everyday since purchase. As usual, Amazon & Shipping were Fantastic and Prompt. The box wasn't that big either. So, if your looking for a low range snow thrower, this unit turned out to be way way better than expected!! Thanks Again Amazon!!! Love it!! Had a question regarding Power Cord .. Took Some Pics, and Can see, have 2 cords connected.. Cord is kind of a Pain, But you never loose power ..
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Snow Joe vs WEN 5662 - Which one is better?!
by Hotel Sheets Direct (5 out of 5 stars)
February 18, 2018

I bought both a Snow Joe first as it was highly rated. It was I believe about $150 or so. I used it once, and initially installed it wrong so it gave me some issues but quickly resolved it. I later noticed that the WEN 5662 was only $99 so decided to buy that one too. The installation was a little more involved. Not hard, but just more parts are not already attached. Like the snow shooting part needs to be screwed on vs the SNow Joe pretty much comes all assembled except for the handle to turn the snow blow direction and a handlebar.

The WEN needs to assemble 2 of the handlebar parts, the direction knob/lever, and then the direction chute.

In terms of snow throwing performance..they are pretty similar with the Snow Joe maybe having a very slight edge.

I was a little annoyed to see that the Snow Joe, adjusts their pricing when there was a snow storm coming. For $99 vs $159..it is no argument, go with the WEN.

If I were given both for free...MAYBE i'd go for the Snow Joe..but they are pretty much equivalent.

Ease of Installation - Snow Joe

Snow Throwing Distance - Snow Joe

Construction - WEN - seems built a little better

Ease of Use - maybe the WEN, really a toss up..i seemed to have a lot easier time with the WEN, but could be that I have more experience now.

All in all they are really similar so it really comes down to who has the cheapest price between the 2.

So at the time of writing, the winner is the WEN for me. $99 vs $150
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Light and fast option for smaller driveways and walkways.
by Adam S. (5 out of 5 stars)
January 24, 2015

So far so good. First significant snowfall of the season 4-6" and it cleared our two car driveway and sidewalk in front of the house quickly. No complaints, and for an electric snowblower I thought it did a remarkably good job. Managing the cord is a little troublesome, but that would be true of any electric model. Had enough power to launch this morning's medium-wet snow a good 10-15 feet and cut the driveway clear time to just a few minutes. Other bonus.. Its light enough to easily pick up and move to another location. Make sure your cord is long enough.

Even handled the plowed salted slush at the end of the driveway (threw it just far enough away to be useful).

Update 1-28-15

With a little reluctance the WEN managed to clear the end of our driveway after the New England Blizzard of 2015. This was above and beyond the call of duty for this little machine. Technically the sixth largest snowfall in history for our area. We had 2-3 feet of base snow fall and 3-4 foot snow drifts blocking the end of our driveway where the plows had blocked us. There is no way the snowblower could tackle the base snow that fell without assistance (its mouth is only about a foot high). However, with a little ingenuity we made it work. We decided to clear one small area and then chop / drag the snow back with a shovel (not really shoveling, just a downward chop a foot or two at a time). We then used the WEN to blow the chopped up snow out of the way. This worked extremely well and we managed to clear our (2 car wide / 1 car deep) driveway in about an hour and a half. We went back out today and the snow was somewhat denser, yet we still managed to re-clear 4" or so of additional snowfall and the area where the plows had blocked us in. Additionally we cleared a 50+ ft path down our sidewalk the width of the machine using the same approach. I would estimate an additional 45 minutes to clear the sidewalk 18" wide.

Notes on heavy usage like this. This should be a no-brainer, but it got us... Make sure you don't have any other appliances running on the same circuit as the snowblower. The circuit we used was shared with our porch light and an interior outlet. We tripped the breaker not realizing we had another appliance going.

I unplugged the cord a handful of times by accident, oops, cords are inconvenient, but a good flexible winter cord goes a long way. Take a bite of the cord with your hand so you know when your out of slack.

The Snow Blaster does not like slushy snow. The chute clogged quickly in the slushy mix at the end of the driveway. Happened 3 or 4 times during our entire clearing. Not sure how the WEN will handle a really wet mix (probably not well), but the more dry and compacted snow wasn't an issue.

If the blower bogs down, use it as a cue to take smaller bites of snow.

Its small and light enough that I can bring it inside between runs and down a flight of stairs to the basement where it can dry off.

Extremely happy with our purchase. I was very nervous about not buying a gas single or dual stage for our driveway, but this was a great and affordable compromise that is small and lightweight enough to maneuver in some tighter spots. I feel like I got my money's worth out of the item after one storm, but considering the job it did during this Blizzard it has more than paid for itself. If your looking for something to clear a 100+ft 2 car driveway, you might want to consider a larger gas two-stage, but for smaller jobs or with a little creativity this will work in a pinch if you work within its limitations.
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Super cheap in price for a snow blower
by Roznos (3 out of 5 stars)
February 13, 2016

Super cheap in price for a snow blower, but works great!! Saved my back this winter. No complaints. Very easy to use and effective.

Editing my review from last year! This year, we've had more snow, and it's wet, and this is almost completely useless. Trying to get through 3 inches of snow and it clogs, and clogs, and clogs, and clogs, and the clogs are not easy to release. I takes me almost as long to blow snow as to shovel if it's wet. It's still easier than shoveling, but pretty frustrating. I will do 6 inches of dry fluffy snow like butter, but if the snow is heavy or wet in anyway, you're basically out of luck. I fought with it for an hour in my tiny residential driveway the other day before someone with a "real" snowblower finally came to my aide.

Consider what type of snow you normally get before purchasing.
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Worked for Chicago early Blizzard November 2018
by Cathy C (5 out of 5 stars)
November 26, 2018

I just purchased this snowthrower a few weeks ago. I previously had a single stage gas craftsman, that served its purpose for 12 years. I researched and read review for this and the Snow Joe-- I liked the idea of not smelling of gas and oil, having issues starting etc. But would it work in "Chicagoland snow?" . Today it was put to the test, 12" of the heavy, wet stuff fell yesterday into the wee hours of the morning. Just when I was going out last night to cut the cleaning in 1/2, the power went out ( no power/can't use snow thrower). So I was left to wait until this morning. It worked like a charm, started up right away. It's lightweight made it easy to maneuver. Yes, I needed to 'chop at it' since the snow was heavy and wet, plus twelve inches deep. But it was no more than my gas propelled single stage thrower also made me do. This is one of the best purchases I have made!

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