Well I got an additional three inches overnight but finally cleared all that I could after another 4 1/2 hours of work.  Not perfect but it will have to do.  I hope the next system headed our way isn't as severe because the present mounds are high leaving little room for new snow.  Hurry Spring! 

 Charlie,what brand is that commercial blower and what do they cost?

Fichy, the 302-cc is small compared to other comparable machines.  Have you found this to be a problem? 
 
Jack, Good luck finding the Toro that Fichy recommended.  The only one I could find near me was at the Home Depot (1) in Kingston NY (40+ miles away).  Prices varied from $1499 at authorized dealers to $1649 at Home Depot.       

Snow came off all the roofs except the back lean and I expect that to come tomorrow if it is above 30. The JD 580 took care of it pretty good so hoping I do not gave to get the big tractor out. I also hope it comes off fast a n.v d ends up on the ground and not the porch. Lake effect the weekend.........

I'm not very experienced on snowblowers. Grew up on farm tractors and a Ford 25 hp lawn tractor bolens motor with front end blower attachment. That thing was a beast.
My downfall was replacing it with a troy built walk behind in 80's Hated the piece of junk and tremendous time a snowblower took to clear our property. For driveways and such they are fine but for clearing large areas , it's very time consuming.
From that point I basically paid a plow service 400 per year . It was pretty sweet having a truck coming and be done with things except basic shoveling.
In 2007 I bought a Yamaha 450 atv grizzly with plow and winch off the showroom floor for 5k cash. That machine has paid for itself in 100 fold utilizing wood, deer, fishing and trail rides. I realize they are more $$ now but still, after 14 years later, mine runs and works like new.
Given that said, I just bought a cheapskate craftsman snowblower for $600.
Its only meant to tidying up or in emergency.
$2,000 ( after tax ) seems like a hefty coin to pay for a machine that might get used 4 months a year to a homeowner.
My thoughts is it would take pretty much 5 years to recoup the investment, not counting labor and struggles.
If it were me in a position of costs over pain, I'd hire a plow service

I have two reason why I do it myself. 
First is the driveway I had installed about 5 years ago is lined with Belgian block.  The last thing I want or need is a plow guy destroying/knocking loose block.  Second reason is a plow guy leaves behind 1-2" of packed snow that the blade doesn't pick up leaving me ice to contend with and the added expense of having it salted/sanded.  Each major snowfall costs me $150-$200 if it's plowed/salted/sanded. 
 
With the thrower I can get down to bare pavement which lessens the amount of ice I have to contend with.  Being retired I have the time to do it myself at my pace.  The day will come when I will have to wave the white flag of surrender but not yet!
 
The machine I use is a 28" 2 stage Cub Cadet 528 SWE with electric start.  MTD (Murray Tractor Division) makes Cub Cadet, Troy-bilt and a few other machines.  It's okay but wish I had a bigger (wider) machine.  I put an Arnold snow cab on which is a God send in windy conditions.
 
Fichy, I don't know if you checked my link but Toro's engines are made in China by Loncin and have been since 2011.  Most of Toro's machine are USA made the rest are made in Mexico. 
A few years ago I was in the market for a zero turn lawn tractor and went with Toro MX 5050 because it had a heavy duty welded cutting deck as opposed to cheap stamped metal.  I have an acre and a half which takes approximately 1:15 to cut.  A few issues with the machine but overall not bad.

I have a Honda,two stage,self propelled,and it runs on tracks.I bought this after I moved into my house about 20 yrs ago.I have a LOOONG drive with a 300 ft hill and then it circles around my 4 car garage and then it goes down the hill to the street.The first winter I had a plow service,and had the same issue with skim ice.So I went with the blower and it is a great machine,but this storm was bad and I.m too old to spend more than 4 hrs. out there.

I don't know about weights, but it does have chains. 
Jack, you might talk to a few plow guys and see if they will plow a little slower and with the feet removed or set  so the cutting edge actually hits the pavement consistently.  In a big storm they will have to plow twice . If I was doing it by contract, I ate the cost, as I usually had it figured in, if by the storm, they may charge almost double. That's a pretty long driveway . The bill gets pretty hefty by the end of the year.  Maybe you can find a caretaking business or a handyman/laborer that you could pay by the hour to run your machine.   I've heard that those Hondas are very good. I had a customer  in Manchester, Vt. ,in  the snow belt , that used a John Deere  20 hp garden tractor with a blower on it for a large driveway. I swapped the mowing deck out every Spring and Fall for him when he got a little too frail to wrestle with it.  My neighbor uses a Kubota  of the same size. Neither have a cab, but you can get those, too.  HT mentioned loving the set up like that his family had. The largest walk behinds I've ever seen are Graveleys. They work well, but the new ones are very expensive , near what you'd pay for a garden tractor. 
Sick as I am, I still tolerate the cold well and can walk a good distance. That  will change, God knows when. 
Screw piling snow, I want to go catch a steelhead.

Again, I'm not well versed on a snowblower except one dosen't work well for my application. My parking and drive areas are all fill gravel. Lots of areas to clear. Used to take me days of frustration and breakdowns so plowing is way to go go here.

Well as I sit here the snow is coming down again!! However this one is going to be a dusting,3 -6". it won't be much but it still is a pain!    

Yesterdays quick hit dropped about 4".  Apparently more snow on the way tonight into tomorrow and again Thursday into Friday.  Old man winter finally decided to show up in the last two weeks.  Lol
Daylight is slowly gaining ground, daylight savings March 14.  

Probably 4" down and snowing hard as I type.  Not supposed to move out until this evening so another 2-4" could add to the total.  
"Nothing left to do but smile, smile, smile."
 

A weak system passing through tonight, a dusting up to 2" expected.  Perhaps another system coming Sunday.   

Every other day we get 2-4",it is getting very old,COME ON SPRING I'M READY!!!!!!

Another 4-5" of heavy concrete like snow fell Monday.  The thrower struggled to shoot this slop so I did most of my driveway the old fashioned way.  
A good melt going on with today's temps in the 40's.  Mud season isn't far behind with the temps climbing over the next week to ten days.