You’ve moved into one of our wonderful senior communities, and now cold temperatures have come. One of the key selling points for moving here was that you wouldn’t have to shovel your own snow.

Yeah!

But is there anything else you should be doing?

Well, just because snow removal is taken care of for you, it doesn’t mean that you can sit back and let everything happen automatically. There are one or two things you should probably do now to be ready for the snow and ice.

Let’s go over these, just in case you’ve forgotten.

Winter Weather Reminder!!

Cold temperatures are here

And with those freezing temperatures, comes ice. This should have been taken care of about a month ago, but if you still have any water hoses still attached to your outdoor water spigots, detach them now.

It’s far too easy for water to get trapped in those hoses. When that water freezes, it can really mess with your water spigots, especially if it’s the water spigot that is physically attached to your garage. The last thing you need is a broken water line in your home.

Parking concerns

Especially when you’re still moving into your house (even if it’s been three years now) that garage can be a little cluttered with boxes and who knows what. If there’s any way you can get all of your cars into your garage before the snow comes down, you’ll be better off for it.

Yes, the snow crews will shovel your snow for you, but if you’ve got a car in the way, it means that they can’t clear all the snow as effectively.

If, because of a car getting in the way, snow is allowed to remain on your driveways, it could eventually turn into compacted ice. Not only is this dangerous for you, especially when getting in and out of your car, but it provides more opportunities for the concrete to get damaged, causing it to chip up.

Ice melt: Friend of Foe

Ice melt is a bit of a two-edged sword. A little bit might be helpful now and then for safety, but the more of it you put onto your driveway or sidewalk, the greater likelihood of damaging your concrete.

Sometimes a new snow crew will overdo the ice melt, and we’d like that reported whenever possible, but often homeowners will overdo their own ice melt also. Please remember that when it comes to ice melting products, the more you use, the more your concrete will chip, even if the labels say that they don’t hurt concrete. The chemicals themselves might not hurt it, but the freeze-thaw cycles that they cause, will.

And whatever you do, NEVER use SALT. Salt will definitely destroy concrete. I’ve seen it take over two inches off of the top of entire driveways and sidewalks.

Heat tape

If you’ve been worried about power bills, and have been holding off on turning on your heat tape, remember that you want it on and working before the first snowflake falls. If your roof collects snow before you turn on your heat tape, then the heat tape is just going to tunnel a small hole in it, rather than keeping your gutters clear.

If you want to limit the icicles and the subsequent ice patches that form on the concrete below them, please turn on your heat tape before the snow falls. To learn more about heat tape, read my article on heat tape. Not only will the ice patches on your concrete cause more chipping, but it can be more dangerous to walk on.

Be Prepared

There’s not a ton of work you need to do in order to be prepared for winter, but these are a few things you really ought to be aware of. Utah is known for the greatest snow on Earth, but with that snow comes ice.

As they say, an ounce of preventions…

And if by chance you get a light dusting of snow, but don’t see any snow crews out, keep in mind, that they usually wait until there is about 2” of snow before coming to plow.

Anyhow, enjoy the winter. Don’t let a small whoopsie turn an otherwise pleasant and festive time of year.