Meltsnow.Com Is Your "Professional Ice Melter"& Partner In Ice Control

It's a balancing act - balancing performance against cost. Salt is the least expensive and most effective deicer in 99% of the cases. However, it's not without adverse consequences, such as the negative impact it has on evergreens along the interstates.

The Problem With Salt For Melting Ice
Salt is often cut with sand because sand is cheaper than salt. But the sand offers no deicing benefits - only traction. Simply put, the sand dilutes the salt. Now here's the rub: Sand has recently been recognized as FAR worse for the environment than salt ever could be.

Sand plugs storm basins. The run off in brooks and streams inhibits flow and chokes vegetation. In other words, it interferes with the delicate balance of the ecosystem. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) enacted legislation called the Stormwater Management Act. This act attempts to address a variety of stormwater related issues stemming from stormwater runoff, oil/water separators, and sand interceptors.

This is where Meltsnow.com comes in. Since the law requires us to abandon abrasives, we will, within 10 years, manage snow and ice 100% by chemicals alone. This means that we need to make those chemicals much more efficient, use them more intelligently, and find ways to control their applications. We work toward this goal every day.

How Our Products Enhance Salt Better
Consider this: 300 lbs per lane mile (10' X 5280') of salt is generally accepted as the starting point in most situations. By adding only 8-12 gallons (per ton of salt) of our liquids, we can reduce the application to only 200 lbs. per lane mile AND still maintain the exact same level of performance. This technique was first documented by the “Marquette Study” nearly 30 years ago.

MeltSnow.com and Anti-Icing
The world of snow and ice management has changed, and you'll find us on the leading edge of those changes. Our anti-icing systems come with ground-speed controllers and carefully designed dispensing equipment that prevent over-treatment. Over-treatment is often the principle cause of problems with deicers, such as slickness or concrete damage - many times you can trace this back to over-treatment. We carefully evaluate each customer's needs and then make suggestions as to which products will deliver and what will work best for your particular environment.

MeltSnow.com and Deicing
Our liquid deicing products range from traditional chemicals like liquid calcium chloride, liquid magnesium chloride, and Liquidow to low-corrosion products, such as the new IceBan and Caliber. In addition to these well known and proven liquid performers, we stock and offer specialty products for applications that demand environmentally safe and bridge-safe products.

Our dry deicing products range from traditional deicers such as bulk rock salt and packaged halite to high performance deicers like MAG Pellets®, Peladow®, MAG Flakes®, DowFlake®, Calso98®, Freezeguard®, MagicSalt®, Thermocal®, and a range of specialty blended products as well as custom blends to your specifications. We have unique specialty products like our new calcium chloride nuggets, which is an innovation that only we offer. With the cal chloride nuggets, you get the boring and penetration properties of a pellet, but you don't get the "bounce and roll" problems since the egg-shaped nuggets stay where you put them, going right to work. Sometimes a spherical-shaped deicer is what you want, and, in some cases, bounce and roll is advantageous - we stock those products, too (such as Peladow®, potassium chloride, and MAG® product lines).

What You Need to Know About Deicers
Most de-icing chemicals are technically "salts" that work by lowering the freezing point of water below 32° F. Salts can damage plants in two ways:

• First, plants are harmed by direct contact with snowmelt containing deicers or in salt spray from roadways. Repeated shoveling or blowing snow that contains deicers onto nearby landscape plants will also increase the likelihood of contact injury. Direct contact can cause bud death and twig dieback resulting in the growth of twig clusters known as "witches' brooms." Evergreens exposed to salts can show symptoms as early as February or March, including needle flecking, yellowing or browning, and twig dieback.
  
  
• Second, by repeated yearly applications, the resulting build-up in adjacent soil may damage plant roots so they are unable to take up water. Plants' symptoms include wilting (even when soils are moist), an abnormal blue-green cast in the foliage, marginal leaf burn or needle-tip burn, and general stunting or lack of vigor. Over time, some clay soils may have their structure changed by extremely high salt levels and become unable to support plant life. You can water well-drained soils heavily to leach some of the excess salts out, but this will not work with fine-textured clay soils or soils with inadequate drainage. De-icing chemicals vary in their effectiveness as deicers and their potential for damage.

One Of The Best De-Icing Products To Use
Calcium chloride is the chemical most effective at extreme low temperatures. It's also less likely to cause corrosion or plant damage when applied correctly. Avoid using rock salt whenever possible. Urea (lawn fertilizer) can burn plants and lawns, if you apply too much. Urea is also likely to cause pollution in run-off waters during the spring melt.

Using Deicers Correctly
Don't use deicers to simply melt snow or ice. Use them as an aid to mechanical removal. All deicers need to be used after shoveling and sweeping has removed as much snow and ice as possible and after the threat of additional snowfall has ended. The deicer will melt down to the surface and allow manual removal of the final layer of snow or ice. Mix deicers with an abrasive, such as sand or kitty litter, so that you reduce the amount of chemical you're using and the abrasive can provide traction. Spread the mix evenly and clean up any clumps or spills. Avoid shoveling snow that contains deicers directly onto plants. Whenever possible, remove snow and ice manually and then spread an abrasive.

Protecting Your Landscape From Deicers
Advance landscape planning can minimize plant damage from deicers. Landscape plants differ in their tolerance to salt exposure. Some are highly sensitive while others are more tolerant. When planning new landscapes or redesigning existing ones, use relatively salt-tolerant plant species in areas adjacent to de-icing locations.

Make sure areas receiving snow and deicer have good drainage so a thorough watering in the spring can help flush the excess salts. Plant tolerance increases if the soil is rich in organic matter. Amend soils with organic matter such as compost or peat moss. Incorporating Gypsum into the soil may also help offset some of the negative effects of de-icing salts. Incorporate 10 to 20 pounds of gypsum per hundred square feet prior to planting in salt exposure areas.

Well-maintained landscape plants that are properly pruned, fertilized, and watered will be better equipped to withstand the stresses associated with exposure to deicing chemicals, but your goal should be to minimize the use of deicing chemicals always. That's where Meltsnow.com's know-how of performance deicers can help you achieve your objectives.

MeltSnow.com Cares About Safety
We have and entire line of environmentally friendly products that are state approved for use in zone-one watershed areas as well as areas adjacent to wetlands and fragile ecosystems. Safe for pets and your well water, our products deliver performance where you need it. Snow and ice management is a balancing act of trying to balance performance against adverse consequences. We present multiple options for each situation. We know there's no "silver bullet" that fits all snow and ice problems.

MeltSnow.Com Is Here For You 24/7
Free training, sales materials, literature, samples, and 24-hour support are all part of our commitment to back-up our customers and distributors. We're headquartered in Massachusetts, but we service the Northeast (NC, VA, MD, WV, PA, DL, OH, IN, NY, NJ, CT, RI, MA, VT, NH, ME, Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick). When you have a problem with any of our products or you need to place an order, we're there to help you through it, meet your needs, and find solutions to your challenges in snow, ice, and dust control. Whether it's 3 PM or 3 AM, a weekend or a holiday, our snow and ice-support teams are on call 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. We're there when you need us.

CONTACT US TODAY! 508.520.3900