Plow snow before ice? AND asphalt vs gravel strategy?

[Sawburner]

Sawburner, how do you spread the grit? I have a pile of sand but don't have a spreader. I suppose I could try to dribble it out with the bucket.

With a shovel, get some in the bucket and shovel it out, mostly I use a 5 gallon pail and spread it from the pail. I burn coal so I have ash from that in 55 gallon barrels , I generally only spread it in the tire tracks and walk ways.

 

[Shawn T. W]

I use my BH for an "un-stucker"!

 

[Mossy dell]

Plowing before freezing rain is a recipe for a perfect ice rink. I try to clear snow only when the temps are well below freezing.

Is this the same in your opinion for paved or unpaved? I cleared my asphalt but held off on the gravel drives.

 

[bbxlr8]

Super Bowl Sunday I had about 1.5" of pellets that freezing rain fused into ice rink. I waited until afternoon to test and just broke out the sand for the steep part - still solid in the shady part of my deck 5 days later!

 

[mikester]

Is this the same in your opinion for paved or unpaved? I cleared my asphalt but held off on the gravel drives.

If I had a new asphalt driveway I'd probably give clearing first a try and hope the sun helps melt the ice quicker.

My driveway is gravel and is covered by a couple inches of ice by springtime and takes about a week of warm weather to melt. If we get a thaw-freeze I prefer to rough up the slush to give me some traction when it freezes up. If I try to scrape the slush off I usually end up with a beautiful ice rink!

Our county workers like to dump tons of salt on the asphalt roads until they turn white. Then they salt some more.

 

[Dchemphill1]

Sawburner, how do you spread the grit? I have a pile of sand but don't have a spreader. I suppose I could try to dribble it out with the bucket.

I take a bucket off ash and spread with a plastic cup. Where tire tracks are. Huge difference.

 

[RCW]

I put sand down again yesterday.

Probably sanded 4 or 5 times so far, but driveway is as icy as I've seen in a long time. Bet ice is 3-4" deep in places of the driveway. Got a lot of sand frozen up in it, but geez.....

Lately we get snow, then warms up enough to rain, then temperature goes back down to 10 degrees in a few hours....

We have 2-5 inches forecasted for today/tonight. Turns to sleet/freezing rain/rain Sunday morning and 45 degrees. Then back to 5-10 degrees and REAL windy Sunday night.

Not sure how I'm going to deal with that yet, if I do anything.

To add insult to injury, Weather Channel is saying "Blizzard-like" conditions are favorable for Wednesday/Thursday for our region.....

I'm ready for winter to be done....***

***Edit/Correction - - I'm ready for Maple sap to flow.....that means we have some extended thaws......also gives my neighbor some sap from our 200 taps on our property....

 

[TheOldHokie]

We have 1-3" down, with freezing rain forecast for tonight. Plow before the rain? Locals on NextDoor are debating, with most saying wait.

My prior experience inclines me to plow before ice. Our asphalt driveway is long and steep and located without good sun exposure. Sticky patches of melded ice and snow are bad. Thin remains of snow or a skim of ice will melt.

BUT my experience probably relates to our own drive: our daughter's and neighbors' drives I also plow are gravel. Maybe gravel is more forgiving of a snow pack topped with ice.

I have the same situation - my policy for decades is before.

Dan

 

[Donystoy]

It is a crap shoot when to plow. If the forcast is for six inches of snow with a chance of freezing rain then I wait until after so hopefully there will be just a crust on top with no ice on the bottom. If the six inches turns out to be only two inches of snow with more rain, then you have a mess that will be there until a thaw.

 

[#40Fan]

Alright, OP. What did you do and how did it turn out?