In the Midwest, snow buildup is a typical element of commercial property maintenance. While melting snow on your commercial property is generally a positive thing, what happens to all of the surplus water and how does it affect your business?
Any melting snow on your property should, in theory, lead to water running into a nearby drain. However, snow can melt just for temperatures to drop, resulting in a slushy, slippery, and potentially hazardous mess.
Figure 1ANON/ PEXELS IMAGES
- Melting snow can block your drains
Most people just lay snow on top of drains to melt, assuming that the snow would turn into water and run happily down the drain. There will be no place for extra water to pass if there are too many snow heaps right over your drains.
Worse, before it gets a chance to travel down the drain, this melted snow may freeze again, resulting in a film of ice covering your drains.
That water, on the other hand, may readily freeze, forcing more water to flow somewhere else, such as beneath a pavement or a nearby sidewalk, where it can cause harm by freezing and unfreezing.
When water freezes, it expands. So, the most dangerous side effect of cold weather for your drains and sewers is that the frozen water will put pressure on and crack or burst your pipes. Especially if the pipe in question is located in your home, this can cause serious structural damage and cost a lot to fix.
- Melting snow can damage your plants
Figure 2 PHOTO CREDIT: finegardening.com
Melting snow can destroy any nearby plants that you’ve spent a lot of time and money cultivating, in addition to causing drainage difficulties. The earth surrounding the root system can freeze in extremely cold temperatures, reducing or stopping water absorption.
Evaporation rises when the temperature warms and the ground remains frozen, causing discolored or “burned” vegetation to emerge. The injured leaves are mostly concentrated on the plant’s side facing the wind, where evaporation is the most intense. It’s critical to ensure that melting snow doesn’t harm your plants. Some snow removal crews use too much salt, which is toxic to plants and can even kill them.
This is caused by salt that has collected in the snow and has found its way into the plant’s roots. Eco-friendly ice killers are the best answer because they won’t harm your commercial property’s plants while also protecting your investment.
- Melting snow can lead to flooding in the Spring
Depending on how much snow falls in a particular year, there may be a substantial volume of water that has nowhere to go when the weather warms up. The effect of snowmelt on potential flooding, mainly during the spring, is something that causes concern for many people around the world. As a consequence, you may encounter flooding in the spring, which might result in costly damage. This problem may be avoided by removing snow before it has a chance to melt entirely.
Because the ice has blocked traditional drainage techniques, water may make its way into the basement of the commercial property if only a section of the yard has thawed and the remainder has not.
Figure 3PHOTO CREDIT: thekickassentrepreneur.com
- Melting snow gives the removal crews clues about problems.
It is obvious people have more important things to do than look at their property’s rivers of melting snow. However, the removal crews keep a careful watch on them.
They tell them things like whether or not one has drainage issues that they should address in the spring. One probably has drainage issues if one has an ice-skating rink on their lawn, pools of water at their entry, or heaving and cracking pavements.
- Building and Property Damage
Figure 4PHOTO CREDIT: restorationmasterfinder.com
When the temperature rises, the worst snow damage might occur. Snow melt can seep into your basement through microscopic gaps in your foundation, causing damage to your walls and floods. Repeated cycles of melting and refreezing can cause fractures in your foundation, which can become worse over time.
Then there are the health risks associated with snow and cold weather. Cracking is unavoidable when ice develops on concrete sidewalks and parking lots. Roofs might fall or ice dams could form, causing damage.
In conclusion, prevention of the effects of melting snow is the best option. Sometimes, snowing is unexpected and therefore, it is better to be ready than to inccur costs when doing repairing after damages have already occurred.
Before the snow comes, do a pre-season walkthrough with your snow removal provider to ensure they know exactly where to put snow piles for good drainage – and where not to put them. It’s critical that your snow removal company understands what they’re doing so that your snow doesn’t wind up in the wrong spot. Snow removal is a part of commercial water management.
