Winter weather has officially arrived! For the safety and integrity of your parking structure, you need to create a snow removal and de-icing strategy that will take you through the season.
Most commonly, snowplows and de-icers are used to make parking garages usable during the winter months, but there are a few things you can do to make this process safer, easier, and more effective for your building.
Here are a few tips to create a winning strategy for your parking garage to eliminate snow and ice, while maintaining the integrity of your deck:
- Clearly mark all expansion joints on the deck to make it easy for the snowplow operator to see them as snow builds up.
- Protect your deck surface by adding rubber guards to the blades. This way the snow will be cleared, but you avoid directly scraping the surface.
- Find a safe place to store the snow. Piling it up on your parking structure can increase the weight beyond its approved capacity, so find somewhere close by to store the snow you remove from the structure.
- Use sand as another way to minimize slippery surfaces but be sure to protect your drainage system. When the temperature rises, the melting snow will take the sand with it down into your drains.
- Rinse the deck when the season ends so you don’t have residual salt and sand sitting on the deck for the rest of the year. This will make your parking garage look clean and help avoid any damage to the surface coating in your garage.
- Use the right de-icer. Some chemicals in de-icers can negatively affect concrete and reinforced steel, so choose a product that does the job without compromising your structure.
RELATED: Sustainable ice and snow management for your building
It’s important for your staff and guests to be able to use your parking garage during the winter, so creating a snow removal and de-icing strategy, while protecting the deck is an important part of your winter outdoor maintenance. Focusing on effective practices and using the right products will save you time, money, and a hassle this winter.
