Tips To Help You Remove Snow From Your Gravel Driveway

Posted on: 9 December 2015

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When you have a driveway paved with asphalt or concrete, clearing snowfall from its surface is simple. You can scrape the snow with a shovel or plow, or blow it with a snow blower. But when all or any part of your driveway is covered in gravel, these methods do not work as well. The gravel on your driveway can get scraped up with a shovel or plow, displacing a large part of your paving material. Then a snowblower can suck up rocks, causing damage to your blower, yourself, or a nearby vehicle or home window. Here are some tips to help you easily and safely remove the snow from your gravel driveway.

Clearing Heavy Snowfall 

When you have a gravel driveway that needs to be cleared of a snowfall, there are several tools you can use to accomplish this task. For a heavier snowfall, you can use a Bobcat with a snow pusher attachment to scrape the snow from the gravel surface, without scraping away the rocks. The snow pusher attachment has a free-floating rubber blade that will slide over the gravel, to move the snow off to the side of your driveway.

After you have pushed the majority of the snow from your gravel driveway, there will most likely be a small amount of snow remaining on and around the gravel. You may also have compacted areas of snow from your shoe prints or the tires of a vehicle. For this compacted snow, you can apply an ice melt product to melt the hard-packed snow. If you are concerned with applying ice melt chemicals in your yard for the safety of your animals and children, you can make your own substitute solution. This solution is also safe to use on your concrete surfaces as well because its ingredients won't erode and damage the surface of your concrete.

To make a batch of ice melt alternative, you will need the following:

  • 2 teaspoons of liquid dish soap
  • 2 tablespoons of rubbing alcohol
  • 1 gallon warm water

Combine this together in a bucket, then scoop it with a cup and pour it over any ice and packed snow on your concrete or gravel driveway. The snow and ice will melt from your gravel and concrete without damaging the concrete.

Clearing Light Snowfall 

A second method to remove snow from your gravel driveway uses another Bobcat attachment; the angle broom. This attachment sweeps lighter snowfall from the surface of your gravel driveway without sweeping away the gravel. You can rent a Bobcat angle broom attachment comes in a width as small as 48 inches, to a larger width of 84 inches. However, keep in mind this method will not work as well on snow that is more wet. Heavier, more-wet snow can compact under the broom bristles, so the Bobcat snow pusher attachment would work better. 

If you own a leaf blower, you can use it as another method to clear light snowfalls from your gravel driveway without dislodging the gravel. then, if you are expecting a large amount of snowfalls, it can be helpful to clear the snow with your leaf blower every one to two hours during the snow storm. This keeps the snow from piling up into larger, harder-to-manage depths and the snow does not get a chance to compact into the gravel, so it is light enough for the blower to clear it away. As you work, make sure to clear the snow from the middle of the driveway to the outsides to help reduce the amount of work required to clear your driveway. 

Use this information to help you clearing snow from your gravel driveway this winter. For more advice, contact a business such as Summit Tool Rentals Division Of Wirtz Rentals.