Warranty Question
I recently bought an ST227P snow blower and for the first time I barely finished clearing the path and the Augers stopped working. I noticed a burnt smell after a few sparks and with a little research I pin pointed that the issue was with the Auger Belt (part no: 581 83 24-01 IMPELLER BELT) having slipped off. The belt is frayed and am also suspecting some anomaly with a small broken piece of metal lodged in between the Shoulder Bolt and the Pully (ASM Engine). I understand that belts are not covered under warranty but this is pathetic and rather disappointing. I have purchased 3 Husqvarna products in the past year and especially through this storm period, I am unable to use this expensive pile of metal.
What is Husqvarna doing about this? I have seen several posts on the company webpage and other forums complaining of the exact same issues. 
Answer
After a little more troubleshooting I am very surprised to see what I have found:
1. Impeller bolt was completely LOOSE. I pulled it out WITHOUT turning it on the threads.
2. Both the impeller and drive belts are frayed.
3. Pulley edges are shaved by the idler arm bolt.
What other damage has been caused to this machine that I cannot see?
DISAPPOINTED!!!!!!! What would consumer protection say about this? Has anyone else had this experience? You can check your belts very easily. Husqvarna has posted great videos on how to do this. I am a big fan of Husqvarna but is this a quality slip up?
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I actually had a similar issue with my brand new ST224P. Ran fine first time I used it, Saturday. Then Sunday it ran for like 10 minutes and stopped throwing snow. I checked it and the belt snapped off.
I actually contacted Husqvarna and they told me this is a known issue and they issued a TSB on it. They send me an auth code to have my local dealer pick it up, repair it, and return it under warranty.
Not the way I wanted to start out with this product, but saves me a trip to the dealer or attempting my own repairs.
I do think they should be contacting owners, not waiting for failure (which obviously will come on a snowy day). But they do react quickly to the complaint.
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The same thing happened to me on Sat. 1/23/16. Purchased St 224 SnowThrower in Oct. Ran it a couple of times before and including day before storm. I went out during middle of storm to stay ahead of the accumulation. I cleaned my driveway @ 10 x 30. My wifes driveway 10 x 20, then started to clear the sidewalk across the street. I used 1 tank of gas filled tank and it ran for @ 10 miniutes I noticed a rubber burning smell right before it quit. I removed the belt cover in the middle of a blizzard under a carport, I HATE SNOW! Needless to say the belt jumped the pully and is frayed just like yours. I put it (the belt) back on and it's so streached out there's not enough tension when the auger clutch is engaged. Called 2 dealers 1 said 1 week for new belt and 1 said a couple of days. This is what I got for $850.00. WTF. Thank you very much for your post I thought it was me, and not a design screw up. Will be calling Husqvarna tomorrow. Good luck with your pile of orange metal your not alone!
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I have the same problem!! I purchased my ST 224 on December 1, 2015 and used it for the first time on January 24, 2016. After an hour and a half of use it stopped throwing snow. Following the troubling shooting info, I discovered that the Auger Belt was frayed and broken. I bought this product because I have a Husqvarna blower and trimmer and they are excellent, however, I am extremely disappointed in the ST 224. This has to be a design flaw. Thank you for your post. I am contacting Husqvarna immediately.
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I bought a Husqvarna ST224 snow blower Nov 2014. I used it 5 times and it worked great before the auger belt broke. Turns out it was my fault because after perfectly clearing 27" snow fall Jan 2016 (property 100'X40') I did not run the machine for 3-4 minutes (as the owner's manual tells you to do) or clean out the auger/impeller area after job was done. Instead I just turned off the machine and put it in an unheated garage. The next day the auger and impeller froze over so when I tried to use the machine the auger belt shredded and burned.
The authorized dealer told me that a small amount of ice or snow can prevent the auger/impeller from spinning, this can happen even if the machine is running especially if the snow is heavy and wet. Make sure the chute and impeller/auger are clear of snow otherwise the engine/pulley runs but the belt shreds because it is not spinning the auger assembly. I spent $799 for this machine plus tax and delivery and was disgusted with this machine when it happened, but as I said it was my fault. If machine stops throwing snow, turn it off clean auger/impeller area and chute, if you leave the machine run and continue to try to throw snow the belt will shred. I'm not saying that this is the case with everyone who is having trouble with this machine, but hopefully this will save you some aggravation in the future.
I found a great video on you tube that demonstrates exactly how to replace the auger belt. Husqvarna sent me a auger and drive belt free of charge, also bought another auger belt from Sears on line. Took approx. 1/2 hour to change auger belt and machine is working fine again. Suggest you watch the video and read the owner's manual before doing job.
My drive belt is OK but in case I have problems with it down the road, does anybody know of a video that shows how to replace the drive belt for this machine?
PS: I just spoke with Husqvarna factory, there is a service bulletin on the ST 224. They gave me a incident # and told me to bring the machine into a factory authorized dealer.
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The same exact thing happened to me in the storm last weekend. The snowblower ate up the snow like a pro for 15 minutes and then nothing from the auger. Inspected the belts and saw that the impeller belt was frayed. So disappointed. The amount of money that you pay for this machine and now I can't even get the replacement parts for almost two weeks. Contacted Husqvarna and they said it was under warranty and to take it in to be fixed. So inconvenient. AND had to call back to get the ONLY belts I could find online, from them. So now I'm waiting for the belts to be delivered as it would have taken the warranty shop over two weeks to get the part and fix. Not happy. Worst experience ever and Husqvarna has done nothing to alert anyone that this happens. Also shocked to see that the belt replacement instructions are so close to the front of the manual. Doesn't that tell you that this is an issue or happens more frequently than it should? I will surely fix and sell this ST224P right away. Worst product ever.
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All, my Snow Blower was taken into the local Husqvarna dealer and here is what they found. The pulley bolt came loose with the vibration and as a result I experienced what I discussed above. This is inline with my observations.
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st224 is very bad machine
i will never again buy a husqvarna
it will defenitly breakdown say 10 inch or snow or higher
the auger stops work.bolts are intact. product is built wrong
when i call warranty they say they do not do anything and call dealers nearby who cover warranty
what a shame ..only good thing is the colorful machine which does not take any load
i will get a different machine
3 snow cleanings resulted in 2 impeller belts
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