Monday, August 22, 2011

Doing Parking Facility Maintenance During The Winter

By Dorothy Dixon


During the winter as cars drive down streets filled with snow and slush, the ice build up underneath the vehicles and in the wheel wells. When they pull into public garages to park, conditions can develop in many areas that can make it hazardous for people walking from their cars and into the buildings. This can make it difficult for parking facility maintenance crews provide a safe environment without hurting the concrete flooring.

The problem with the puddles and water runoff is that when the weather gets below freezing, these puddles form back into ice. The conditions can deteriorate quickly and an unsafe environment can rapidly develop as the ice gets slippery.

The real danger is when people leave their cars and walk over the icy spots. There is a good chance that they can fall and serious hurt themselves. Sometimes they might seek legal help for injuries and, the next thing you know, they have filed a lawsuit to recover financial damages for the injury they sustained. The companies or municipalities who manage the garage will have to pay money that they probably were not prepared to pay.

The best solution is one of preventing the conditions that could cause this type of situation to arise to not begin. Becoming aware of where the primary locations are where this is a continual problem will help in addressing them right away. However, throwing salt down to keep things from freezing can also cause damage to the concrete flooring.

Salt mixes with water and turns into a liquid state where it can fall into openings on the concrete floor. Once there, it starts to weaken the concrete's structure, and cracking and flaking can result. Over time it will be necessary to repair and that can get expensive.

Using an ice melt that does not have the effect that salt does will help the parking facility maintenance crew take better care of the garage and keep it safe. This will also make the structure last longer without high costs to repair salt damage.




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