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Green options for dealing with winter ice
By E.E. Kane
Posted in: Home
Nobody wants global warming and melting polar ice caps, but on wintry mornings that present slippery footpaths, it's tempting to wish for a warming spotlight in your neighborhood.
Options for dealing with winter ice range from environmentally harmful (inexpensive rock salt and its blends) to earth-friendly yet backbreaking (chopping and shoveling). Some alternatives to these extremes are greener than others.
- Calcium chloride is easy on your plants, but harmful to pets. It is metal corrosive and will stain shoes and carpets. It works well in colder climates (to -22°). Magnesium chloride is more earth-friendly, with a -13° minimum effective temperature (MET).
- Ethylene glycol or propylene glycol products won't hurt pets' paws, but are harmful to lesser life forms (plants and aquatic life).
- Calcium magnesium acetate (CMA) is biodegradable and effective to varying METs. Turns ice to a watery mush.
- Potassium acetate is also biodegradable, but is more expensive and less effective in extreme cold.
- Sand and fine gravel provide some traction without chemicals.
- Anchor plastic tarps on walkways before an ice storm. When your car has to stay outside, use the same idea for windshields by placing plastic mats on the glass every night. No more ice scraping!
