Popular Mechanics: Home Improvement

Spray-On Snow Removal

By Roy Berendsohn

A New England company says its spray-applied liquid is supposed to make snow and ice easier to remove.

A New England company marketing a spray-applied liquid says that its product not only prevents snow and ice from sticking to pavements but that, under ideal conditions, it will actually melt accumulations of snow up to 3 in. thick.The company calls its product Bare Ground and says the main ingredient in the liquid is a byproduct of corn processing.

The company's president, Ed Brookmyer, tells the story of how the product came to be: In the late 1990s, a pair of sharp-eyed Hungarian distillery workers noticed that runoff from their plant acted as a deicer. The two Hungarians investigated the phenomenon, isolated the component of the runoff that was acting as a deicer and then protected their work with worldwide patents. It turns out that similar products were also available in the United States, although they were used for other purposes—an additive in cattle feed is among the uses here. Brookmyer says that his company bought the rights to bring the product to market in the United States. He then contracted with a corn processing plant in Minnesota to produce the product for him.

Brookmyer explains that his company receives that product and blends it with other ingredients. This produces a solution with several unique properties, he says. First, the product prevents snow and ice from sticking to the pavement across a wide range of weather conditions. Brookmyer adds that the solution decreases the ability of snow and ice to bond to pavement for up to 14 days after application. Next, he says the runoff caused by melting snow from the treated pavement is beneficial in that the runoff acts as a fertilizer. Finally, because the product is a liquid, it is compact and easily stored. Brookmyer says that one gallon of the liquid is the snow-and-ice-melting equivalent of 50 pounds of rock salt. He adds that the material is efficiently applied with little or no waste.

A gallon costs about $10 and shipping is $5 to $6, depending on region. For information, contact Bare Ground Systems, 2 Central St., Framingham, MA 01701; 888-800-8356.

Copyright © Popular Mechanics 2001. Reprinted by permission.

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