With Stockholm enjoying its warmest New Year’s Day ever, and Switzerland having the driest December in 150 years, it’s not surprising that a winter-loving Austrian has developed a home snow-maker.
Christopher Hölzl, 25, began work on the project while a mechanical engineering student. 500 hours and lots of tests later, he had the design, using a garden hose and a fee hundred euros worth of technical equipment.
You can see the results above on his grandfather’s farm in Tyrol, where he’s created a six-foot castle, a circular party room with benches and champagne coolers and more. He expects it to survive until a late February melt.
After abandoning the idea of a snow cannon such as commercial ski resorts use, he switched to a “snow lance,” a vertically-inclined aluminum tube better suited for small spaces. That, plus the garden hose, a compressor and a pressure washer did the trick.
Hölzl has built 60 of the devices, and is offering them for sale. Ideal for a family planning a winter-themed party, or for local events.
