I am new to snow and ice areas to live.
Having a really steep driveway with nowhere to go but into a tree or into the lake I want to have some kind of environmentally good de-icing stuff.

I can park on my RV pad and walk down the stairs I just put in if I have to.
What is the best stuff. Thought about buying a Flame Thrower from my local store.

Check & see what is available locally at your home improvement stores. Good idea to stock up early. Around me usually once the ice arrives the shelves at the stores are already cleared out. Beautiful scenery.

In Southern CA mountains, salt is a no-no. They use volcanic sand (sharp edges that grip) spread on known problem areas--either slope or icy.
Traction plates? Not sure if that is the right name, but they are what is placed on the surface at a gate during construction. Similar to what they used to use (maybe still do) in the military.

Let it be known that I have had two instances that our Tahoe 4WD started sliding down hill. I credited that with the fact that 4WD is only on when the engine is running and the switch is in the right position. It both these cases, the only thing keeping the truck from sliding were the rear wheels which were on ice. Yes, that was a strange noise as the wheels slipped. Got the Oh-Oh thought in my head. Was able to get in the truck, start the engine, and move it safely to dry pavement.

Ever thought about mounting a powered winch at the top?

Where is this?

If you cannot use salt, then I would use the combination of snowblower and a power brush to get down to the pavement.

We are allowed to use salt, just prefer to use something environmentally safe if available.

We live on Norris Lake. Not that it ices up here regularly but just want to be prepared.

Heated driveway

I have thought about that. I have to replace the drive sometime. All depends on cost.

Would see how the first winter goes. In Chicago we maybe get 1 or 2 ice events a year. Guessing where you are at it would not be that common of a event. Have some environmentally safe melting product at home for when it happens & try to just stay home. When we get ice it is usually over in a day.

Looks like Chicago is a lot warmer than when I was raised in a NW suburb in the 50's. I remember lots of snow and streets that didn't clear for several days. No all-wheel or Four Wheel vehicles then. My dad didn't use chains or even studded tires, either.

Heated driveway is probably the best option overall. Yes, expensive, but if you are going to replace the driveway anyway, the materials probably are not that expensive.

Remember the ground is one huge heatsink. Takes a lot of power to heat a driveway. What source of heat would be used? Boiler? Hot water heater to pipes of some sort? Electric?

Or just put chains on your tires...

Talk with your neighbors & get there input on how they deal with it.

Big question is what direction does the driveway face?
If the picture you posted was taken in the morning you will be just fine with a good snowblower and let the sun melt the fine layer that remains. Might have to trim back the trees just a bit more to get more sunshine on the driveway.
If you took the picture in the evening your driveway faces northwest and you're going to have to make sure to clear it good, then maybe something like sand or kitty litter for some traction or even fertilizer as snow melt. Be really frugal with the amount of fertilizer you use and it will just soak into the lawn at the bottom of the driveway instead of running off into the lake.
Heated driveway? VERY VERY expensive. both to install and to run. This summer we had our yard totally redone and added an RV pad to the side yard. Only 760 total square feet added, on level ground with no tear out of old driveway and it was over $5000. And that was with the landscape contractor convincing the concrete guy to cut his profits since we were already about 25% above budget for the yard. I know when I redid my garage floor a few years ago the concrete guy said I saved about $5000 in tear out costs by doing that part myself.

At my latitude, snow melt radiant heat is figured around 120 BTU/sq ft (inside a well insulated structure would be around 30 btu/sq ft). You’re at a little warmer latitude so that might come down for you a little.

Either way, you’d be staring down a monster condensing boiler and a monster monthly gas bill to run it.

Get the snow off of it before you drive on it and let the sun do the rest. I doubt you’ll see enough snow down there to spend much time worrying about it.

That driveway is huge. If you don't already have a broadcast spreader I'd invest in one. Fill it up with salt or environmentally safe melting agent & spread.

1st big snow in Chicago this morning. 2-3 inches & still snowing. The fun begins.

Invest in a good telescoping snow brush ahead of time. Once the snow falls the shelves tend to empty quickly

I bought a super dooper snow prevention device last year and it worked well. No measureable snow all winter. I hope it works as well this year.


[img]http://mobileimages.lowes.com/product/converted/043033/043033586288.jpg?size=pdhi[/img]

In case that link doesn't work, it's a HUGE Craftsman snow blower.

Wow thats awesome. Have not seen one with tracks like that before.

I have an old school Toro single stage that i have had for over 20 years & it continues to do a good job for me.

If it ever dies I will have to look into something like that.

If the snow gets too deep I just break this out & enjoy

2 years ago i picked the track & what a difference that makes. No more ice issues for me.