Commercial Property Snow and Ice Removal

Winter will be here before you know it! There’s no doubt about it – managing the snow and ice problems that face facilities come winter can be quite an undertaking. Let’s get you ready to tackle this upcoming winter season.

Handling the snow removal on a large scale property, making sure the facility continues to run, stays safe and accessible, while avoiding spending money that’s not in the budget, is no easy task and requires careful planning. We have the solutions that can make it a lot easier for property owners and managers. And now is a good time to establish a plan and hire a professional snow removal company for the upcoming winter season.

Innovative Maintenance Solutions can help learn about the different options available for winter snow removal, weigh the pros and cons, and help gain insight into how to best build a snow removal plan.

Below are some pre-season tips to consider for the upcoming snow season.
Five Pre-Season Snow Season Tips

1. Develop a comprehensive pre-season snow and  ice removal plan
   • Identify existing conditions and trouble spots
   • Establish a plan for how you will remove snow and ice and who will do so.
   • Identify when removal will take place in correspondence with when the snow falls, e.g. middle of the night snow fall – clean-up by 7 a.m.).
2. Weather Mats: place weather mats at all entrances to the building for a distance of 40 feet. These mats should be placed in both directions to catch snow and water when entering and exiting.
   • Periodically check weather mats to make sure they are in solid working condition and have not started to curl (this presents additional tripping hazards).
   • One of the best ways to give high-foot-traffic areas special attention is to use snow-melting mats on primary walkways, stairways, and entryways. These mats consist of two layers of slip-proof rubber, a central heating element, and a fully grounded power cord.
3. Machinery & Equipment: inspect all equipment from the last snowfall and develop a full maintenance makeover.
4. Salt: cannot stress the importance of purchasing sufficient salt well ahead of time and of managing its distribution wisely. Crucial consideration is to purchase the right kind of salt.
   • Rock salt is cheap, but only lowers the freezing point to 23 degrees.
   • Calcium chloride and magnesium chloride are more expensive, but prevent refreezing down to -20.
   • But note that even the best salt will make concrete crack and flake, kill landscaping near sidewalk edges, and increase the corrosion rate of steel.
5. Consider hiring a snow removal contractor.
   • Investigate the quality of their work, timeliness of work during a storm, equipment adequacy, experience, references and the ability to work with your property’s unique needs.
   • Create a contract for use with your hired contractor. Sign the contract before snow season and have the contractor sign it as well.

Another good resource is our January article about Why Snow Removal is Important for a Facility.

A good plan for your property will help reduce expenses, reduce the potential for slips and falls, and allow all year-round flexibility. If you’d like to learn more about what Innovative Maintenance Solutions has to offer in terms of snow and ice planning, call us at (317) 626-3727. We will be happy to provide you with a FREE Winter Service Evaluation.