In anticipation of another harsh winter, in the fall of 2014 the TIU Facilities Services staff started to investigate various options to better steward our winter resources and reduce the environmental impact that winter deicing materials have on our campus and our local environment. As a result of that investigation, the TIU Facility Services team decided to change the way we manage campus snow and ice.
Over the last decade, liquid (salt) brine has gained widespread acceptance with government agencies. Liquid brine applications have been proven to be safe, effective, save labor, very cost-effective, and better for our environment. Thus like many other agencies, facilities and contractors we began using liquid salt brine spray applications in our winter snow and ice management strategy with great success. Thus again this winter you will see TIU Facility Services staff and equipment applying liquid anti-icing (pre-event) and deicing (post-event) spray applications of liquid salt and calcium brine mixes.
The Salt Institute estimates that pre-event anti-icing with brine can be 10 times more effective in preventing ice from forming a bond with the pavement surface making it easier to remove snow reducing the time it takes to reach bare pavement. Post-event liquid brine has also proven to be more effective than granular salt alone in melting snow. It has been estimated that switching from granular rock salt to liquid brine for most winter events (those above very low temperatures) can bring about 67% less salt usage to do the same job. This means 67% less sodium chloride (salt) emissions which runoff into the local environment which include local lakes, ponds, rivers, and wetlands. Reducing bounce and scatter of granular rock salt with more direct application of liquid brine also means less infiltration and leaching into campus soil which kills nearby vegetation. Thus for winter events the TIU Facility Services team will be primarily using liquid brine. Traditional granular product will be available in 5 gallon buckets at most building entrances.
To manage more extreme temperatures we will switch percentages of sodium (salt) to calcium based liquids to melt snow and ice to temperatures as low as -20 degrees.
If you have any questions on our winter maintenance strategy or would like more information please feel free to contact Larry Temple at ltemple@tiu.edu or x7132
TIU Facility Services Snow And Ice Management Blog 