As the winter seasons come and go, it’s essential for those in the business of making sure our roads are clear of snow and ice and essentially keeping us safe to know which ice melt products to use in each scenario. It may be tiresome or even inefficient to handle a variety of different ice melt solutions in your repertoire. Some have more effect than others, and some are better for the environment or a client’s property. Unfortunately, when you ask which is the best ice melt product overall, there isn’t one that works explicitly as a wonder-all in the ice melt business.
As a snow & ice management professional, your job is to get snow melted and convert ice back into water – and you often have large areas to cover. You cannot be worried if your ice melt will drive a customer crazy or break down infrastructure because it was too harsh. In the worst case, you had the wrong type of ice melt, and it didn’t do a good enough job. Thus, the roads are still icy, and people are looking at you to handle and resolve it. Time is money, and your reputation is also at stake, so you need a solution you can trust that won’t betray you at the worst times.
The best preventative ice melt solution
Since we have the technology to know what the weather will be like in advance, we can do a bit of preparation before having to start using any heavy-duty ice melt. One of the best solutions out there on the market is not even ice melt, but an excellent pre-ice solution that you can use to do the job more easily the next day. That’s where Liquid Brine comes in. Liquid Brine is a must-have for your snow and ice removal company, as it will help reduce and manage your costs and labor time while still doing an excellent job with eliminating ice.
What you can do is pre-treat roads, highways, driveways, or whatever is on your route with liquid brine before the wintery weather occurs, and it’ll help with the process. Remember that Liquid brine itself isn’t enough to eliminate the ice, but it will help make total snow and ice removal much easier later when you put down rock salt or another type of ice melt on top of the brine. Consider this similar to applying a coat of primer before actually painting a wall.
Always make sure, whatever your preference, that you’re stocked up on liquid brine, as not only is it low cost, but it won’t be swept away by the wind and lose its efficacy like some of the more solid options will do to you.
The ideal solution when you only want to break down the ice
Here in the Mid-Atlantic Region, we use a good amount of ice melt products to combat winter so we have to consider the harshness of the salt we are using. Just remember if it has the word “chloride” in it, it’s salt-based, and salting the ground can cause some damage. But you need to make surfaces safe and non-slippery, right? You have a job to get done and need that right balance of getting it done without causing large amounts of property damage. That’s where the lightest form of ice melt comes in handy: magnesium chloride. This mixed product is another staple you want to have with your primary supply of ice melt, especially when you know there’s vegetation underneath that ice sheet.
Magnesium chloride has lower salt content than other types of ice melt, but still enough to handle melting down the ice down to the level of -13 degrees. With liquid brine in your arsenal and magnesium chloride by your side, you have the perfect duo to fight that ice without harming the earth. The worst-case scenario is that you’ve oversalted a playground or someone’s lawn, and you didn’t use the appropriate type of salt, and it will destroy and ‘salt the earth,’ making it hard for things to grow back. Not with Magnesium chloride, which is also not as toxic as some everyday household cooking items!
Your furry neighbors will also appreciate it, as we all know that dogs love snow almost as much as they love food. So regardless of whether it’s your pets, or your young ones playing in the snow, if there’s magnesium chloride-based ice melt being used, it’ll be a lot safer for them than some of the other options out there available. It’s also the best option for communities and neighborhoods, where they shovel their driveways and need a bit of help when it gets extra cold. These can also be a safe option when you get some jobs removing ice on commercial rooftops.
The toughest ice melt around
Sometimes it doesn’t matter about the preparation or saving the vegetation, but it comes down to needing something to de-ice those highways instead to prevent unnecessary accidents. In those cases, you go for the most challenging available option on the market, and you load up your army of trucks with Calcium Chloride Flakes: DowFlakes. Nothing else will help as much to remove the ice, except when warm weather comes back months down the line.
This tough stuff melts ice the fastest out of all available options. They come in big flakes that are heat-generating and fast. You’ll be able to see results in as little as 20 minutes and notice how fast your job got done. But, with this highly concentrated ice melt, be sure to handle it with care. Use it in small doses and precariously as it packs quite a punch.
In the end
It’s always important to prepare for whatever scenario or job comes your way. Ice melt has a decent shelf life, so if you stock up for one season and don’t run out, don’t worry about the snow, and subsequently, the ice will come back. That’s why it’s always good to have plenty of stock for the situation versus just the most cost-effective or best overall generic option. The flexibility of having choices with ice melt will, in the end, help manage your costs and keep up your effectiveness, leading to the next job.
If your business is located in the Mid-Atlantic region we can help! SISCU has three locations in Maryland to serve you. Our customers come from Washington DC, Baltimore, Virginia and Southern Pennsylvania to pick up quality ice melt, salt and dust control products! Contact us for details!