5 Ways to Deice Your Driveway

Has winter weather turned your driveway into a skating rink? Here are 5 of the most effective ways to deice driveways and walkways with tips on how to prevent ice from accumulating in the first place.

1. Rock Salt

The most common way to deice your driveway is to use rock salt. We drop about five million tons of the stuff every year to prevent our driveways, steps, and sidewalks from becoming mini skating rinks. The benefit: it’s cheap and available everywhere. The downside: it contains cyanide and chloride, making it dangerous for plants and pets.

2. Heat Mats

In-ground heat mats are a means of deicing your driveway for people who are building a new house or are about to replace their driveway. But for most everyone else, they’re prohibitively expensive.

3. All Natural and Green Products

A number of deicing products on the market are advertised as all-natural or environmentally friendly, but even those can be corrosive, expensive, or just plain ineffective. Calcium magnesium acetate, for example, is biodegradable, but it only deices when the air temperature is -3ºC or warmer.

4. Sand

Sand or gravel are good for creating traction, making icy surfaces less dangerous to walk across, but they can create a sloppy mess of driveway and clog up storm drains during a thaw.

5. Shovel Regularly

As with most things, there’s no easy way out when it comes to deicing your driveway. The most effective method—one that is green and works 100 percent of the time—is to prevent snow from building up and turning into ice in the first place. That means shoveling snow as soon as the white stuff hits the ground, even if it involves venturing out mid-storm.

Beware of Black Ice

Although snow can make winter driving difficult, it's not the real threat. Icy roads are one of the top causes of car accidents in the United States, and cause hundreds of deaths each year. It's easy to lose control of your car when the roads are icy and is difficult to gain control again. There aren't any fool-proof ways to avoid black ice, but you can certainly protect yourself by understanding and knowing how to deal with this seasonal issue!

• Know where to expect black ice

  Black ice is generally formed when light rain or drizzle falls on a road surface that is below freezing and is most common at night or in the early morning when temperatures are at their lowest. Maine's Bureau of General Services suggests watching out for bridges and underpasses, road areas shaded by the sun, or low-lying areas that may have standing water or runoff from nearby melting snowbanks.

• Look for black ice (when you can)

  If lighting conditions are right, a driver might be able to spot ice on the road. If the majority of the road you are driving on appears to be a dull color except for one section that appears to be shiny, odds are, the glossy area is ice. Keeping headlights on might help provide that visible shine.

• Check your tire tread

  Use the penny test to check treads — if you can see Lincoln's head, get new tires! If not, you're good to go. For more car preparation tips like this one, follow our blog to the Winter Auto Safety Checklist.

Here are some tips to help you regain control of your car if you're sliding on black ice:

1. Stay calm.

2. Don't make sudden movements, you would only lose more control.

3. Do not hit the brakes.

4. Try to keep the steering wheel straight.

5. If you feel your car sliding right or left, make a gentle turn in the SAME direction you feel you're going.

6. De-accelerate slowly by lifting your foot from the gas pedal.

7. If you can shift into a lower gear.

8. If you still cannot gain control of your car, try to steer into an area with low impacts like a snowbank or empty field.

9. Find a safe location to park your vehicle as soon as possible.

Hopefully, you now feel better prepared to brave the winter ahead!