Winter is here again, and unfortunately so is the snow that is piling up on your driveway!
It is never a great feeling to wake up in the chill of the morning, rush through your routine and just before you leave for work, see all the snow that’s blocking your path. So much for a stress-free morning, am I right?
Removing snow from your driveway is no easy task. It can take a heavy toll on your body as well as a significant amount of time out of your day.
However, driveway snow removal doesn’t have to be as much of a hassle as you believe it to be. Driveway snow removal can be easy when you learn how to manage it in a way that can be quick and efficient for you.
Here at Exscape Designs, we can provide you with simple alternative solutions that won’t disrupt your daily groove.
Does Vinegar Melt the Ice on a Driveway?
The simple answer is yes. Using white vinegar is a great alternative to rubbing alcohol as it isn’t harmful to your animals or plants.
All that is required is to add equal parts vinegar and water into a spray or regular bottle. If the ice is pretty thick and doesn’t seem to be melting, you can always add more vinegar.
Even though this method is effective, it can be quite difficult in practice as there is no traction to help you scrub off the ice. Adding wood ash to the mixture will easily solve this problem. In fact, wood ash also has the ability to stop new ice from falling during the next snowfall.
To utilize wood ash, here’s what you can do:
- Take about two cups of wood ash from your fireplace.
- Put it in a gallon of water and let it sit overnight.
- On the next day, take out any debris left floating at the top and pour it into the bottle with your vinegar. Be sure to avoid keeping any of the sediment that has built up.
- Stir it well with the vinegar and you’re good to go!
Half the struggle of removing snow is the ice that’s underneath it. By using vinegar as a de-icer, you can significantly cut the time and effort spent on your driveway snow removal as it already does most of the work for you.
How to Remove Snow From Your Driveway Without a Shovel
You heard right, driveway snow removal doesn’t always have to involve the laborious act of shoveling heavy heaps of snow.
It doesn’t have to involve owning an expensive snowblower, either!
Here are 6 easy tricks to remove snow from your driveway.
1. Use Magnesium Chloride as De-Icer
Magnesium Chloride is the newest and most effective deicing salt out in the market today according to the New York Landmarks Conservancy. It has consistently proven to melt snow and ice until temperatures reach -13 degrees Fahrenheit.
Magnesium chloride salt also releases 40 percent less chloride into the environment than either rock salt or calcium chloride, making it much more environmentally friendly compared to other chemical de-icers.
If you’re considering a more powerful but environmentally friendly option for driveway snow removal, magnesium chloride is a worthy candidate.
2. Bring Out Your Leaf Blower
Your leaf blower isn’t just a power tool only deemed useful during the fall season. It can also offer a simple and useful solution that is sure to blow all of your driveway snow removal troubles away– literally.
Fresh snow is light and fluffy, so a gust of powerful wind will have no problem blasting the snow right out of your driveway. But be kind and avoid giving your neighbors an unwanted blizzard!
Keep in mind, this works best when you have under three inches of snow. You can always come back out once it has accumulated again and repeat the process as needed.
At Exscape Designs, we provide quality snow removal services. If you’d rather leave it to the professionals, we’ve got you covered!
3. Get Out Your Vacuum
A trusty wet/dry vacuum is another powerful, low-effort way to clear up your snowy driveway.
Simply suck up the snow and dump it in another location. Make sure you are a courteous neighbor and deposit it in a common area or in neat piles on the sidewalk.
Alternatively, you can turn the vacuum onto “exhaust” mode and turn it into a blower. Just point it in an appropriate direction and blow the snow away.
4. Melt Snow with Hot Water
We all know what snow’s worst enemy is– heat.
Melting snow with hot water is one of the more preventative methods used for driveway snow removal. It can eliminate the need to shovel as well as manages the amount of snow that collects on your driveway.
This alternative works best in warmer winter temperatures and all you have to do is connect a sprayer hose to an indoor hot water spigot. After the snow melts, you can also sprinkle on some sand to add traction to any ice you may invite.
5. Wear a Sock Over Your Shoes
You might be wondering how wearing socks over your shoes could help with driveway snow removal, but you’d be surprised!
Wearing socks over your shoes doesn’t necessarily eliminate snow, but it acts as a great sidekick.
The soft fabric of your socks provides excellent traction while you remove snow, ultimately preventing you from potentially slipping on the ice and hurting yourself.
This is an easy and cost-effective way to put your safety first, so go on and give it a try!
6. Consider a Snow Melting System
Although this is a pricier option, the cost of tearing up and repaving your driveway due to snow weathering is an even bigger, reoccurring expense.
Invest in the sustainability of your driveway by installing a snow-melting system as your driveway snow removal solution. You can either choose an electric or hydronic system to create a heated area beneath the finished surface.
This is similar to how radiant heat flooring works underneath the tiles of your home. The heat warms the surface of the driveway from underneath and melts snowfall on contact, leaving no trace of snow or ice in sight.
Driveway Snow Removal You Can Count On
Although these are excellent alternatives in ensuring an easy, low-cost solution to your driveway snow removal, they still involve some time and effort on your part.
Sometimes to get the job done, you need backup.
At Exscape Designs, we provide fast and efficient driveway snow removal services that will take care of all the hard work, so you don’t have to.
Contact us today and we’ll be sure to make your snowy winter a little less snowy this season.