When the temperatures drop in the winter, everyone begins to imagine the picturesque sight of their lawns being blanketed in snow.
However, the beauty of snow and ice comes with a catch. Not only is your lawn covered in snow, but so is your car, your driveway, and your sidewalks.
All of which are going to need to get cleared of the hazardous snow and ice.
Recognizing that ice and driveway snow removal may be time-consuming and sometimes dangerous, we’ve compiled a list of 9 hacks to eliminate snow without hiring our residential snow removal service.
Make Your Own Ice Melt
Whether you’re an avid DIYer or find that you’ve run out of ice melt in the midst of a storm, we have a recipe to make some yourself.
To make the salt solution combine one teaspoon of dish soap, one tablespoon of rubbing alcohol, and 1/2 gallon of water in a bucket. Stir until the soap and alcohol are completely dissolved.
To use, apply to shoveled areas that are likely to ice over.
Schedule Snow Removal
This may sound like a no-brainer, but it will make all the difference for your back this winter.
Establishing a routine for light shoveling every one to two hours prevents snow from accumulating to the point of being unmanageable.
Not only could the un-shoveled snow turn into ice, but if it piles up too much it will be extremely heavy to shovel.
So, our biggest tip? Stay proactive and keep clearing that snow away.
Shovel Comfortably
To stick with the theme of preventing back pain (can you tell we’ve shoveled a lot of snow in our time?), here’s another useful tip.
Take some time to look into the variety of specially crafted snow shovels the market has to offer.
Nowadays they have shovels with multiple different handles, some for gathering snow and others for lifting and tossing.
Many of these snow shovels even include a footrest to provide that extra boost for breaking up tightly packed ice and snow.
If it keeps you from seeing your chiropractor the next day, it’s probably be worth the investment.
Use Cooking Spray
You heard that right- cooking spray can do more than keep your fruit cake from sticking to the pan this winter.
Wet, heavy snowfall makes shoveling more of a chore than it has to be. Applying cooking spray to the shovel will help prevent snow from sticking to your shovel.
Before putting the snow shovel away in the garage, make sure to clean it thoroughly.
No-shovel Snow Removal
If you don’t have a shovel handy (or just really want to find a way around shoveling all together), consider using a tarp.
You can also shop around for tarps and melt mats specifically designed for this if you don’t have a regular tarp already handy.
This trick is particularly useful as a car snow removal tool, but you can also use it to prevent snow from sticking to your front stairs, driveway, or sidewalks.
When the snow stops falling, you can remove the tarp to reveal a space free of snow and ice.
Utilize Your Leaf Blower To Remove Snow
Charge up your leaf blower and put it to work this winter!
Using your blower to remove light snow from steps, walkways, driveways, and vehicles is an easy hack that’ll save you time and energy.
This technique is most suitable for light, fluffy snow and will not work well with wet snow.
Spread Sand Or Gravel
Here’s another snow removal hack that will make your life a bit easier this winter.
Identify the areas where you will be shoveling and disperse gravel, wood chips, and straw as a pre-emptive measure for better traction.
This will help prevent you from slipping and falling while you clear away the snow.
Make Snow Rolls
Snow removal doesn’t just have to be boring and troublesome.
Create some massive snowballs by using the snow roll method to clear your driveway. This is perfect for those who want to entertain their kids or just want to unleash their inner child!
The only downside to this method is it may not always be an option. The snow rolling technique will only work with wet snow that packs well.
Smart Snow Blowing
If you want to ditch the shovel, pull out the big guns and use the snow blower.
To make your snow blowing experience as efficient as possible, try out this method:
Start from the center of the driveway and guide the snow toward one side. Then, perform a U-turn, proceed along the opposite side. Continue alternating until the driveway is clear of snow and ice.
This method reduces the need for frequent changes in the chute’s orientation and usually eliminates the need for a second round to clear the driveway of snow and ice completely.