Although snowfall is pretty rare amongst the majority of places in Australia, it does snow in some parts of the country. If you're a homeowner in the snowy areas of Australia, you may face the dilemma of how to rid your concrete walkway of ice and snow build-up without damaging it in the process.
If you have invested in a stamped or coloured concrete walkway, you are likely to cringe at the thought of using a metallic shovel to scrape off the snow. The good news is, there are many other ways of removing the snow without damaging your concrete paving. Read on to find out what some of your best options are!
1. Heated Snow-Melting Mats
These are electrically heating mats designed to prevent ice and snow accumulation on your walkway and around your home. They melt ice on contact. These mats are highly effective, are cost-efficient and won't damage your walkway.
Other than melting ice on your walkways, heated mats can also be used to prevent snow build-up. Perhaps the best feature of snow melting mats is that they are portable and you can use them in the much-needed areas to optimise snow removal.
2. High-Quality Plastic Shovel
Shovelling is a great alternative to using harmful chemicals to melt the ice on your walkway. However, it's important to use a high-quality plastic shovel instead of a metallic one to avoid damaging both your shovel and concrete walkway.
Make sure to shovel periodically as the snow falls to prevent accumulation. Waiting too long may lead to ice build-up, and warm conditions can turn this into a slushy and slippery mess. By shovelling the ice sooner, you will make things easier and safer for you, your family members and your pets.
3. Heated Walkway
Although it calls for a considerable investment, installing a heating system under your concrete walkway will effectively melt surface snow upon contact. This snow melting system uses either a line cable or electric heating coils that will save you the trouble of waking up early on a cold morning to shovel snow.
4. Other Great Options
If you are not ready to install a heated walkway or have no time to shovel snow every now and then, you can use coarse material, such as sand or wood chips. Although these alternatives will not melt the ice on your walkway, they provide great traction on potentially icy surfaces and will not cause any concrete damage.
Contact companies like Liquid Rock Constructions Pty Ltd for more information about concrete and the best ways to melt ice on your decorative walkway without damaging it.
Welcome! I started this blog because I want to help homeowners to identify problems with concrete structures on their property. By quickly recognising potential issues, you will be able to take steps to repair the concrete before things go badly wrong. I'm certainly no expert when it comes to this subject, but I have learnt lots of useful things from the contractor who came out to my home to complete repairs on a concrete wall. I've also done my own research into this subject at my local library and online. I hope you find the articles published here informative. Thanks!