I bought this unit to replace my Snow Joe 622U1 that blew apart and would not be warrantied by Snow Joe. I just used it to remove 6" of snow this past weekend so I will do a first impression review.
The GreenWorks 26032 carries a 4 year warranty as opposed to the Snow Joe 622U1 which has only a 2 year warranty. Reading the manual of the 26032 I was not able to find any exclusions other than damage due to wear and tear. As stated above Snow Joe informed me that the black housing plastic is not covered under the warranty for the 622U1. Whether this applies to Snow Joe's newer models I'm not sure.
Some people were complaining that the factory wrapped the handles in plastic and then assembled everything. This makes it impossible to remove the plastic unless you unscrew everything. This isn't really a big deal and is merely an aesthetic complaint. I tend to be picky so I loosened a few nuts and screws so I could remove all the plastic wrap.
Others complained about the smell of the snow blower. The smell is actually coming from the rubber wheels and is not unusual. It dissipates after a while and within a few minutes our cats were playfully jumping in and out of the empty box.
The unit appeared to be packaged very well and nothing was damaged during shipping. It was shipped to me in the factory packaging.
Out of the box the entire unit appears to be very sturdy for what it is.
The handle assembly on the GreenWorks is MUCH beefier than the Snow Joe 622U1. It also feels like it is just a tad bit longer which is good for someone 6ft like me. There is a foam grip and time will tell how long this will last. The thing I love most about the handle on the GreenWorks is that all I need to do is loosen the handle bolts and un-clip the auger rod and the entire assembly can be folded forward for transportation. I take the snow blower to my Mother's house in the trunk of my car so this is a big feature to me.
The on/off controls are pretty simple. Someone complained that they wouldn't be able to easily manipulate the handle when wearing gloves. I tried it with winter gloves and didn't have an issue whatsoever. Basically, the way it works is that you slide a switch left and it pushes the handle out of the switch housing so you can squeeze it and activate the auger. When using the blower I tend to keep the handle halfway depressed to save time. My electric lawn mower uses the same type of switch.
The auger is a bit smaller than the 622U1 but it is also combination of steel and rubber so it should be very strong. Like the 622U1 the GreenWorks uses nylock nuts to hold everything together so I would STRONGLY suggest you check them before each and EVERY use. If those bolts let loose the auger will surely punch a hole through the case of the unit. Nylock nuts are notorious for loosening when exposed to freezing temps.
The discharge chute on the GreenWorks isn't quite as good as the 622U1 but seems to be a bit stronger. On the 622U1 you can adjust the angle that snow leaves the chute. The GreenWorks has this ability as well but as soon as snow hits the deflector it goes to the fully upright position. The 622U1 was a little bit better at not doing this. The 622U1 would eventually deflect but not as easy as the GreenWorks. Also out of the box it was very difficult to turn the rod that rotates the discharge chute. I put some petroleum jelly on the mechanism and now it rotates very smoothly. GreenWorks could stand to do a little further R&D on their discharge chute. With the chute facing forward I was easily throwing snow 30ft. However, when turned to either the left or right a lot of the distance is lost. Turned full left or right snow was only throwing about 12ft or so. This is still plenty to clear a driveway.
The GreenWorks has a pigtail for the electrical connection which is critical when you're dealing with heavy gauge extension cords and vibration. On one occasion my extension cord caught fire while using the Snow Joe because the plug is molded into the handle. Combine a heavy cord, cold temps, and vibration and the cord is guaranteed to vibrate itself loose. This causes a voltage drop/current increase which makes things get really hot. The pigtail helps negate the vibration. As long as the cord is tied around the handle you shouldn't have any problems. Also on the handle is the reset button. If the unit overheats you can push the button to reset it. I'd recommend using a heavy gauge extension cord for the snow blower. I use a 10ga 100ft cord. The more you can keep the voltage from dropping, the more power you'll get out of the unit. I run mine off of a 20 amp circuit in my garage.
The wheels on the GreenWorks are very sturdy and much larger than the 622U1. This makes the unit quite a bit more stable and lets me not worry about breaking a wheel. The 622U1 wheels are only about 4" tall and are made of pretty thin plastic. Due to their size as soon as I would run them through heavy snow it would build up on the wheels and keep them from spinning. This makes it more difficult to push the unit. The GreenWorks wheels are a combination of plastic and rubber. I don't expect them to give me any problems.
I find the scraper on the GreenWorks to be a bit better than the 622U1. The GreenWorks unit does a much better job of scraping down to the pavement. Use this thing on rocks or dirt and you will certainly suck a lot of it up.
I took off the access panel and the auger drive pulley is built a lot thicker than on the 622U1. On my 622U1 this pulley shattered into dozens of pieces when the auger blade let loose. Also, the belt tensioner pulley is steel unlike the 622U1 which uses plastic.
The GreenWorks is definitely heavier than the 622U1. Some people might not like this fact but I am of the opposite opinion. The heavier weight is due to the more robust construction.
After my experience with the Snow Joe I will definitely not be buying another one of their products. The GreenWorks 26032 is just a much better built product.
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