We use two types of snowmaking guns. One uses compressed air mixed with water at the gun (which is really just a tube with a small nozzle at the end) to atomize the water into particles small enough to freeze quickly. The other "airless" type uses an electric fan in a 5 foot long by 2 ½ foot wide tube that pushes an air stream into which small particles of water are sprayed by dozens of tiny nozzles on the rim of the tube. (Fan guns aren't completely "airless"; there is a small on-board compressor that helps to atomize the water at the nozzles.) If we just sprayed water straight out from a hose, without atomizing the water, it would be like rain water droplets that are too big to freeze before they hit the ground, which would then freeze on the ground as ordinary ice. The colder and drier the air, the more snow can be made at each gun since more water can be introduced into the outside air mass because it can freeze faster. In 2006, about 70 "airless" fan guns and about 80 "air" guns can operate at one time at Snow Summit alone. Bear Mountain operates about 45 fans and 90 air guns respectively. (We actually have several types of air guns, but they all function basically the same way.)

A number of both types of guns are mounted on towers, from 6 to 20 feet high. While they can't be moved to put the snow exactly where desired, they produce more snow than guns close to the surface because there is more "hang time" for the water particles to freeze before they hit the ground.

Fan Gun Technology

The newest fan guns are almost completely automated. Each has an on-board computer with a weather monitoring station that assesses the snowmaking conditions nearby and then adjusts the water flow when conditions around the gun change (temperatures, wind and humidity frequently vary from place to place and from time to time around the mountain). While our crewmen continue to check these new type guns periodically, their constant adjustment to changing conditions means much greater efficiency and more consistent quality.