Magnesium chloride is one of the most effective snow and ice removal solutions available out there for you to consider. You can use this snow and ice removal solution to end up with highly effective results. However, we often see how people who try to purchase magnesium chloride ice melt solutions end up confused about which variation they should try since magnesium chloride ice melt comes in various physical forms like flakes, pellets, and pastilles. In this article, we are going to review them in detail and share the differences with you along with suggestions on when and why you might choose one over another.
What Is Magnesium Chloride Ice Melt?
First, let’s take a close look at all the details relating to magnesium chloride ice melt. Magnesium chloride is a substance that occurs naturally. It has 34% chlorides & 18% magnesium when it’s in commercial grade. As mentioned, magnesium chloride ice melt is available in a variety of sizes, shapes, and forms. It could manifest as pellets, liquid, flakes, or pastilles, for instance. Due to its little chemical effect, ice melting is indeed a particularly promising use for it. Compared to other ice melt choices, its gentle impact makes it perfect for use on the majority of outdoor surfaces and plants.
Unless it’s blended for different results, magnesium chloride melts ice effectively in extremely cold temperatures down to -13 degrees Fahrenheit. This makes it a top choice for northern climates like in the Midwest, Northeast, and Mid-Atlantic regions. The nice bonus with magnesium chloride ice melts is that they provide outstanding performance while having a very low impact on the environment. Even common table salt and baking soda are more corrosive and more toxic than magnesium chloride ice melts!
How Does Magnesium Chloride Ice Melt Work?
Using magnesium ice melt in any shape or form has positive effects on melting slippery ice. Magnesium chloride with “bore” into the frozen surface quickly and easily. By weakening the binding of ice to the surface, it produces a brine which makes it easier to remove the snow and ice off roads and walkways.
Magnesium chloride, when tested, melts ice swiftly and effectively. This is because magnesium chloride is hygroscopic, which means that it absorbs moisture. When it is spread on icy surfaces, it will disintegrate into a brine by absorbing the moisture in the air, which causes the overlying ice to melt. It makes cleanup simpler since it leaves little to no residue.
When you are using magnesium chloride ice melt, you will be causing less pollution when compared to sodium chloride. That’s because the amount of chloride that gets released into the environment is lower.
Compared to other eco-friendly ice melt solutions, magnesium chloride can successfully melt ice at temperatures as cold as -13 degrees Fahrenheit. This makes it possible to remove snow and ice very quickly.
What are magnesium chloride PELLETS?
Magnesium chloride pellets have a spherical shape in form and are effective for melting ice. They are designed to work nicely with most salt spreaders to rapidly cover a big surface area. Their round shape makes mag pellets bounce and travel before settling on the ice. This needs to be kept in mind. If you want the ice melt application to sit down and not move in a small or specific area, this might not be the best choice for you. However, if you are trying to cover large areas, the round shape of mag pellets help with spreading it in wider paths. In other words, consider the application area and wind when deciding if you should choose magnesium chloride pellets.
What are magnesium chloride FLAKES?
You may also consider using magnesium chloride flakes as another highly effective ice-melting solution. Mag flakes are just like they sound – flat inconsistently shaped flakes with the same chemical content of other magnesium chloride ice melt products. Mag flakes are a popular commercial ice melt option.
You can easily go ahead and apply magnesium chloride flakes from most spreaders. The advantage of using flakes versus pellets is that flakes don’t bounce or roll off hard surfaces. After the application, you can rest assured that magnesium chloride flakes will basically stay where they are spread. Therefore, you may think about using magnesium chloride flakes in front of your commercial building or residential property entrance, along with smaller areas where you don’t want the product to move after it leaves the salt spreader. Depending on the severity of weather conditions, you may come across the need to use magnesium chloride more than one time in an area. Always adhere to the instructions that you can see on the package to receive the best results.
To get the most out of magnesium chloride flakes, you will need to think about combining it with other dry products available out there. Make sure that your final product can help you with managing ice and snow quite effectively. For example, you may think about mixing magnesium chloride flakes with sand, rock salt, and some other abrasive materials. You can also think about calling magnesium chloride flakes a great solution available out there to create a brine-like solution. It can provide some unique benefits to you at the time of getting rid of ice.
You can usually find magnesium chloride flakes to be one of the most popular and best-performing ice melt products available out there. If you want to melt ice at quite low temperatures such as -13 degrees Fahrenheit, this would be a great option to consider.
What are Magnesium Chloride Ice Melt BLENDS?
Magnesium chloride is a popular element to use in many ice melt blends. For example, we carry Hot Melt which is 80% sodium chloride and 20% magnesium chloride. This blend just makes it even harsher on melting ice, while still maintaining some environmentally-friendly characteristics. Other examples of magnesium chloride blended products include Cool Blue Ice Melt Crystals and Safe ‘n Sure Ice Melt Blend.
Things to keep in mind when using magnesium chloride ice melt products
Despite the numerous advantages of magnesium chloride, there are certain warnings that you should keep in mind. Only 48% of magnesium chloride is active in ice melt products, which means there is more water in it than magnesium chloride. It could deteriorate and lose its potency with time. After a little length of time, it stops melting and dissolves swiftly as calcium chloride.
Compared to other ice melters like rock salt, magnesium chloride is more expensive. It might add up if you need to clear a lot of snow and ice. In colder climates with temperatures lower than -13 degrees, it isn’t as effective. In colder weather, you’ll need an additional option if you require a deicing solution.
If you have specific questions or if you are located in the Mid-Atlantic region and you’d like to pick up your ice melt products 24/7 before, during or after the storm, we are here to help! Just call us at 301-986-6900 or fill out the contact form below to email our team.