Remove snow first or after ice hits

[Diamondpilot]

Leave the snow. You are playing Russian Roulette removing it.

Chris

 

[RoyJackson]

Depends on the weather. If the temps are going to drop and you just got a couple of inches of wet snow with ice on top of it you could find all of it becomes ice. Otherwise I usually wait if I can. I know some people like to have a layer of packed snow but I like to scrape it as close as I can to the dirt so if things melt I get a dirt driveway not hard packed ice that I have to sand.

I've seen snow get pretty crusty after a freeze, but never freeze through (doesn't mean it can't happen though). That's why I like to clean up after all precipitation has concluded, if at all possible.
This also depends on the equipment one is using. A 12" snow may be insurmountable by a smaller, low HP tractor (so you have to take smaller bites or do the plowing before it stops).

 

[JimP]

Leave the snow until the icing is over. If the snow doesn't freeze through you can plow snow and ice together. If the snow does freeze through you can use your bucket to scrape most up. If you plow early and the ice freezes hard to pavement it is almost impossible to remove. Your stuck with putting down lots of sand and salt, waiting for the sun and driving on an ice rink.

 

[JDGreenGrass]

The questions is, should you remove a few inches of snow from the drive before an ice storm hits or leave it as a base so you can remove the ice easier.

Let it all fall, then clean it all up.:thumbsup:

 

[Scrounger]

I left it and it worked pretty well for me. Still a mess to deal with since the snow base had turned into a slush base. My BX had to work pretty hard to get it all cleaned up.