During the summer of 2007, Mount Snow spent $3.5 million installing 101 brand new, SMI Polecat fan guns. The result: we were the first ski area to open in Vermont for the 2007-08 season, complete with top-to-bottom skiing and a terrain park on day one. All season long, we stockpiled huge base depths that kept our slopes open until April 27, 2008.
So, of course, we’re installing more. Over $5 million dollars will be spent this summer to install over 150 additional fan guns. When we open for the 2008-09 season, Mount Snow will have 250+, the most new-technology fan guns on the entire continent of North America. No lie.
Fan guns are the kings (or queens) of efficiency. First, they are energy-efficient. Each gun has its own on-board air compressor, eliminating the need to pipe in air from diesel-powered compressors at the base area (we’ll say “bye bye” to our 16 diesel compressors this year, saving the earth from 200,000 gallons of diesel exhaust). Second, they are time-efficient. Fan guns blow more snow, in less time, than traditional air/water guns. Third, they are water-efficient. Fan guns blow tiny water droplets high into the air. The “hang-time” allows the droplets to crystallize and fall softly to the ground as dry, fluffy snow. The technology is most effective on wide, cruiser trails, such as Snowdance and Standard. Even in borderline temperature ranges near the freezing mark, fan guns outproduce air/water guns.
The Snowmaking Process
Snowmaking is pretty simple, really. Water is sprayed through a nozzle dotted with tiny holes. The resulting mist freezes. Voila: snow. “Well why can't I just do the same with my garden hose in the backyard?” some might wonder. The answer is air. And here is where the art of snowmaking begins.
By carefully monitoring and controlling the balance of compressed air and water that mix at each snowgun, snowmakers are able to not only keep snow coming out of our guns (as opposed to water or ice, which is what your backyard experiment would yield), but also to control the consistency of the snow. By adjusting the ratio of water and air being fed into the snow guns, snowmakers can make heavier snow if they are building a base or lighter snow if they are resurfacing. Water and air, by the way, are the only ingredients in our snow. Mount Snow does not add any chemicals or additives of any kind.
The next question people usually ask is, “Why don’t you start making snow as soon as the temperature drops below 32 degrees?” The answer: humidity. Snowmakers refer to it as the “wet bulb,” which is a measurement of the temperature and humidity ratio. For optimal snowmaking, a low reading on the thermometer isn't necessarily enough – the wet bulb must also cooperate. In general, dry air, temps between 10 and 20 degrees, and no wind are a snowmaker’s perfect conditions.
While sometimes we do take advantage of favorable weather to make snow during the day, most snowmaking is done at night. Not only can our snowmakers move quickly and more efficiently, but the new snow has a chance to dry out before skier traffic hits it in the morning. When you take that first run of the day on snow that has been made and groomed the previous night, and you hit the bottom with a big grin on your face, we know we got it right.
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During the summer of 2007, Mount Snow spent $3.5 million installing 101 brand new, SMI Polecat fan guns. The result: we were the first ski area to open in Vermont for the 2007-08 season, complete with top-to-bottom skiing and a terrain park on day one. All season long, we stockpiled huge base depths that kept our slopes open until April 27, 2008.
Snowmaking is pretty simple, really. Water is sprayed through a nozzle dotted with tiny holes. The resulting mist freezes. Voila: snow. “Well why can't I just do the same with my garden hose in the backyard?” some might wonder. The answer is air. And here is where the art of snowmaking begins. 
The next question people usually ask is, “Why don’t you start making snow as soon as the temperature drops below 32 degrees?” The answer: humidity. Snowmakers refer to it as the “wet bulb,” which is a measurement of the temperature and humidity ratio. For optimal snowmaking, a low reading on the thermometer isn't necessarily enough – the wet bulb must also cooperate. In general, dry air, temps between 10 and 20 degrees, and no wind are a snowmaker’s perfect conditions.