People who reside in areas of the nation where there are large ice and snow accumulations are well aware of the many advantages of rock salt. Rock salt was always available for anyone to help melt ice, offer footing and traction, as well as basically make slippery situations go away. But what may not be as commonly known is that rock salt and ice melts come in a variety of colors. We’ve seen it in purple, blue, green, and even pink variations. Some of these variations can be found in bags in almost any hardware shop and even in enormous mountains at snow contractor and government storage facilities. With plows and trucks spraying tons of salt across parking lots, roads, and highways, why does the color matter? Why are manufacturers even making ice melt products in different colors? Let’s take a look at some vibrant rock salt and ice melt solutions being employed.
Why does ice melt come in different colors?
Regardless to what color is used, spreading a colored ice melt helps with the visual recognition of treated ice spots. Colorant-treated ice melt assists in making sure you have ice melt coverage all over so hazardous untreated spots can be eliminated on places like stairways, pedestrian walkways, and parking lots, as well as industrial loading areas, where safety is of the utmost importance. This also applies to colored salt being spread on roads and highways. You want to make sure the salt is spread where it should be spread, and you can check to see whether any ends up somewhere it shouldn’t when color is added to the product.
When you apply colored ice melt on the driveway, you have a clear understanding of where ice melt has been applied. As a result, it is possible for you to walk in those areas, without having to worry about slip and fall accidents.
In recent years, there has also been an increase in the usage of brine solutions, either as a direct addition to rock salt or as a treatment on highways and roads prior to a snowstorm. Pretreatment prevents the ice or snow from forming fast at first and makes it simpler to remove the snow after it begins falling.
Additionally, brine solutions are simpler to use, penetrate fractures better, and cling to road surfaces better. By its very nature, rock salt tends to ricochet and land in places that are not meant for treatment. The use of color to aid in the aesthetic features of rock salt or brine application has grown in popularity and now is even necessary. Different colorant compositions are needed for the greatest results since the chemical formulation of rock salt and brine solutions are quite different from one another.
Why should you think twice before applying rock salt on a concrete driveway?
It is well known that the most frequent deicing agent in the majority of Northern America is rock salt or sodium chloride. Nevertheless, using it can be harmful to the cement you’re covering. This isn’t because the chemical is inherently destructive to concrete. Instead, it is related to the product’s actual functioning temperature.
Concrete seems smooth and solid from a distance, but it fact has millions of small pores all over it. You may even see this phenomenon in action during the hotter summer months by pouring water on concrete and watching it evaporate.
When utilizing sea salt as your preferred deicing agent in the winter, those pores, however, constitute a significant issue. There wouldn’t be an issue if the snow and ice on top of the concrete stayed frozen. However, you will need to apply some kind of deicer to make your driveway safe since having a driveway covered with ice is quite harmful to you as well as your property.
The issue with rock salt in particular is that it requires a certain temperature to function. Although rock salt is capable of functioning down to -6°F, its effectiveness decreases between 15°F to 20°F (-6.67°C). The issue is that when the rock salt melts both ice and snow it permeates the pavement pores as previously mentioned and saturates them.
While that procedure doesn’t provide an issue in the summer, freezing of the ice melt and rock salt is caused by substantially lower winter temperatures than those indicated above. The growing ice exerts upward and internal pressure which causes it to fracture, flake, and splinter as the temperature starts to rise once again. This process, which is sometimes referred to as “spalling,” seriously jeopardizes the structural integrity of the concrete surfaces.
Safe ‘n Sure Ice Melt Blend for your concrete driveway
If you are looking for the best-colored ice melt solution to be used on your driveway, you may think about using our green-colored Safe ‘n Sure ice melt blend. It has the ability to deliver better results than rock salt. For example, you can get the Safe ‘n Sure ice melt blend to melt snow at a faster rate when compared to rock salt. Moreover, it can deliver effective results at low temperatures such as -25 Fahrenheit.
The Safe ‘n Sure ice melt comes with a safety green color. With this color, it will be possible for you to see where the ice melt solution has been applied so you can make sure there is even coverage on surfaces. With even ice melt coverage, you will provide your customers with a safe path to walk on the driveway. In the meantime, it can break up ice while melting snow at a faster rate. Even if you are living in a region where you have to deal with extreme cold as we have here in Maryland, you may think about using Safe ‘n Sure. Based on our experience, it is something that we can highly recommend for individuals who are looking forward to making their parking lots, driveways, and sidewalks safe.
It will be possible for you to purchase the Safe ‘n Sure ice melt blend in two different variations. If you are planning to use it in a salt spreader, you may take a look at the dry version of Safe ‘n Sure. But if you are planning to apply it as a brine solution, you can find a pre-mixed solution as well with Safe ‘n Sure Liquid Brine. If you got specialized equipment that you can use to apply brine, this pre-mixed solution will be the best option available to consider. However, dry version is highly recommended when you are dealing with thick ice or snow.
Have questions or need a quote? Contact us today!