Posted on 02/07/2022 2:10:22 AM PST by Jonty30
OMG, get off yer butt and shovel some snow, if the snows too deep pays some kid to do it for you, if it’s really deep get someone with a blade on their pick up to clear the snow…what we need are multi million dollar solutions to fifty dollar problem /s
You might as well just shovel. It would be less work and might only be effective for small amounts of snow.
For larger amounts and really cold temperatures, it’s not going to make any difference.
Besides, the idea is to clear the sidewalk. Melting the snow on it is more likely to cause it to ice unless it dries completely before freezing temperatures are reached.
You cannot sweep water off concrete.
Shoveling can get you right down to bare concrete with a miniscule layer of snow left which the sun can then quickly melt.
That makes more sense. You need some form of an active system. I don’t see a passive system having any energy to melt the snow. As others mention, when it snows there’s usually no sunlight.
I did build a prototype “salt water” system a few years back. I took some PVC pipes, drilled some holes, glued them, etc., resulting in a few pipes perpendicular to the driveway. They were connected to a tank with salt water, just gravity fed. Of course I had plans for “snow sensor” and active control of valves, pumps and automatic water/salt refill :) ...but the first attempt was just a manual value.
Did it work? I’ll say ‘yes’ - for a first level prototype. It would clear a chunk of the driveway. Of course taking the learnings and putting in the time to address the failings is time I don’t really have...but I thought it had promise.
That said, if you plan for geothermal during construction then that’s probably a much better way to go. I’m not sure how to do that after the fact without tearing everything up.
“I used to live in North Dakota, where temperature drops were severe.”
I once parked at a ND rest area for the night. Glancing at my outside thermometer told me it was 27°, not too bad.
I woke up at about 3 a.m. and had to use the mens room. Glanced at the outside temp and saw -16°. A 43° drop in roughly 5 hours.
That was something to me.
Don’t spread salt on concrete as it will eat holes in the concrete. Use Ice Melt which is actually fertilizer.
Unless you have an active geothermal spring, you would need a deep well tyhat would collect water whichi is warm enough or would accumulate heat from a heat pump to melt the smow. I would bet that the watre would have to be at leat 5 degrees C above freezing to get it done. But ithe required water temp would vary depending n where you happen to live.
Interesting idea.
I saw a guy with a greenhouse using air-based geothermal, somewhere further out west - but did experience snow/cold weather in winter. He’d put a length of pipe, maybe 200ft or so (snaking around an area) several feet underground. With a simple fan based system he was able to keep a warm enough temperature year round and grow fruit/veggies.
It appeared that with enough sq.ft. of tubing underground the earth could raise the temp of the air several degrees throughout the winter. That said, the air intake to the system was from within a greenhouse, which would of course heat up during the day.
...just wondering if something similar could keep just the surface layer of a driveway a few degrees above freezing, might have a shot.
He has a very lightweight waxy oil that he can quickly "spritz" right over the concrete with a backpack sprayer - "Pfffft" as he quickly spray from one side to the other. It fills the pores in the concrete, and people can still walk on it just fine. When the ice comes, he sends his guys by with the flat shovels. A couple of scrapes and it's clear. The ice just lifts right off. I forget what the product is called but it works great, especially on elevated steps that get freezing air underneath.
All the landscape maintenance companies where there's any regular cold temperatures know about it and use it.
One might suggest that you contact a professional supply house such as SiteOne (formerly LESCO) or Ewing's if you need a referral.
...just wondering if something similar could keep just the surface
layer of a driveway a few degrees above freezing, might have a shot.
**********
Cost of installation/operation may be the most critical factor. But
i’d guess it could be done fairly easily at orginal construction.
move to florida...
...or maybe visit one of those 'voodoo' types down in Florida, and see if they can actually make "global warming" real...
;>)
Most of us have black asphalt driveways... once they’re covered in snow it doesn’t matter what the color is, metals and everything else have their own heat retention measures, so its not solely the black paint.
For my own shack, I usually go out and sweep snow with a broom before it gets too deep. Sometimes have to repeat the process but it’s so much easier than shoveling. I’m rather petite and under 100 pounds. If it calls for a shovel I call for a male.
For other properties, I have noticed that surfaces like concrete and asphalt don’t give the snow anyplace to go, but bricks and other pavers with spacing will allow a lot of it to drain into the earth (and some warmth is coming up as well). Those spaces also offer access to vegetation, which gets annoying in summer, but that’s not a big job, nor are little weeds likely to cause anyone to trip and fall.
I find it off-putting, too, but folks here in PA often use clay cat litter, and more will do so when the stores run out of salt.
Flamethrower?...
Yep, the natural solution and quick acting.
Sorry, but the city owns the sidewalks. Never going to happen.
What they do in the cities if NH is spray a Calcium Chloride liquid on the streets prior o the snowfall.
They drive around with tanker truck. You can see the lines on the road prior to storms.
Calcium Chloride is naturally a liquid at temperatures above 100 degrees. That is why it is difficult to store left over bags over the summer. It will melt in the bag and clump up into a solid mass after the temperature decreases.
Spray your sidewalk with Calcium Chloride prior to it snowing.
Then the ice/snow will melt on contact or at least not freeze to the surface.
Also, Calcium Chloride will not harm your grass or shrubs.
I have 40 year old azaleas on the side of my side walk. I only use CC on that surface. I use rock salt on my driveway.
CC also works at lower temperatures than either Magnesium Chloride or Sodium Chloride(rock salt).
On the way to a party one night my buddies and I were all sliding on our boots down one of those sloped snow covered sidewalks. I fell backwards and hit my head. Apparently, I never lost consciousness. I say apparently, because to this day 38 years later, I do not remember the next 6 or 7 hours. Until, I woke up in the college infirmary with the nurse taking my blood pressure. We continued onto the party, but when I did not remember falling down, they took me in.
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