Nov 20, 2008 11:25 pm US/Eastern
Best Products To Melt Snow & Ice On Sidewalks
(KDKA)
Sleet, freezing rain and snow - whatever comes down - you have to clear it from your sidewalk and driveway.
KDKA's Jon Burnett is looking at the best ways to get the job done.
There are hundreds of products on store shelves that can melt snow and ice.
While all the choices can be confusing, understanding the differences can help when you hit the hardware store.
Traditional rock salt is cheapest, but there are drawbacks:
- It doesn't work when temperatures fall below 22 degrees
- It's harmful to vegetation
- It can damage concrete
"That seems to be the concern of most of our customers," says Doug Satterfield, of Rollier's Hardware. "If you have concrete it's not advisable to use rock salt. It's best to use your potassium chloride or calcium chloride products, they are safer."
Potassium chloride is also less harmful to vegetation and works in temperatures down to 12 degrees.
In extremely cold temperatures, the best and most powerful ice melter is calcium chloride, which works down to minus 25 degrees. Calcium chloride will melt snow and ice the fastest, but you'll pay for it.
"When you get into potassium and calcium chloride, these things can run two three times more, but they're safer on concrete and they work in lower temperatures and you tend to use less of the product. It goes further," says Satterfield.
If you have pets, experts says look for pet-friendly options that won't burn their paws. But wipe off their paws when they come inside so they don't lick the chemicals.
"I caution people, even though it says pet safe, I still wouldn't want my dog or cat ingesting it. I still wouldn't want it sitting on their skin," says veterinarian Dr. Mike Hutchinson, of Animal General Veterinary Hospital.
But if you want to be as safe and as environmentally-friendly as possible there's always plain old sand.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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