Potomac, Maryland is listed in Sperlings “Best Places” as a fabulous city to experience life, and raise your family. this picturesque community is brimming with good people, kind hearts and cold winters. Potomac averages around 19 inches of snow per year, during a period which lasts approximately 4 months, from the end of November to March. As a reviewer on Best Places remarked, “Winter, while it has some splendid “snow days,” goes on much too long”. While the winters are not markedly unpleasant, they seem long to many. This translates into 4 long months of shoveling and salting. As such, people are beginning to invest in new ways to keep their driveways and walkways free from snow and ice accumulation. The solution many are choosing is snow melt technology. East Coast Landscape and Design excel when it comes to helping you solve your snow removal issues. We employ trusted, licensed professionals to install heated driveways and walkways for many of the homes and businesses throughout Potomac, MD
Snow Melt Technology and You: What are the Benefits?
While winters won’t decrease in length any time soon, you can make their stay a bit more enjoyable by employing snow melt technology. Also referred to as outdoor radiant heating. Today, this technology is being used more widely than ever before, in both residential and commercial settings. Why? The answer is simple: Convenience and effectiveness. As far as snow removal goes, you can’t do better than outdoor radiant heating.
The process is simple. Once you notice the first sign of snowfall, you turn on the radiant heating system from an indoor control panel. This causes the heating system to warm the pavement. The second any ice or snow falls on the surface, it will melt. Therefore, you get zero accumulation. There are a couple ways to achieve this. You can either select from having an electric current run through metal rods, beneath your pavement, or you can have hydronic heating, where snow is melted by a warming mixture of water and antifreeze. Both these systems are embedded in the concrete, and installed underneath the pavement. As for cost, there is no set pricing, as you only have the system installed where you need it. This means that if you have a huge, long driveway, yet only require a small square footage of it heated, then that is all that you pay for.
Once the snow starts falling, no matter how often you shovel, it’s usually not enough. Soon after you clear a space from ice and snow, more accumulates. Indeed, it’s not uncommon for people to have to don the overcoat, boots, mittens, scarf and hat just to go out and shovel again, a few hours after they just finished.
While this is inconvenient, it can also be dangerous, especially for sedentary people. The mere act of shoveling increases the oxygen requirement of your heart, which means your heart must pump faster and harder to keep up. For a sedentary person to get up from a chair, and instantly begin to shovel heaps of snow, could increase their risk of exhaustion or even a heart attack.
Why Not Just Use Rock Salt?
Deicers such as rock salt and other chemicals may seem like the answer but they have issues as well. First of all, the coverage is not reliable. With these products, you only get a clear surface area where the deicer falls. These products also do not reach all the way to the pavement with accumulation, so their melting abilities are limited. Plus, you usually still have to shovel away the excess snow and ice anyway, especially if it’s a large snowfall.
Deicers such as rock salt and other chemical products are also dangerous to the environment, as the runoff increases the salinity of fresh water areas, and hurts vegetation. Not only that, these deicers are not kind your pets health or that of local wildlife. When it comes to your expensive paved driveways and walkways the effects of deicers can be devastating over time.
The sodium chloride of rock salt is known to erode and discolor concrete, and infiltrate the cracks in damaged, aged asphalt driveways and walkways. At East Coast Landscape and Design, we are well versed in the science of asphalt, concrete, masonry as well as experts when it comes to the electrical control design required in installing heated driveways and walkways for your Potomac, MD property. In other words, with our professional team backing you, you’ll get just what you want, where you want it.
Outdoor Radiant Heating, for Driveways, Walkways, and So Much More
Today, people are turning their unused outdoor yard space into fabulous living spaces; an extension of their home. Patios fitted with beautifully pattern stamped concrete, garden walls, stylish outdoor furniture and grills. While this living space sees much traffic during the spring and summer months, things begin to slow down once it gets chilly. However, with the addition of outdoor radiant heating to your patio, deck, balcony or area surrounding your hot tub, you’ll be able to use your outdoor living areas all year long! Feel like enjoying a freshly, barbecue pizza in the middle of January? Simply heat up your patio pavement, barbecue, and enjoy.
Conclusion
The benefits of installing East Coast Landscape and Design’s outdoor radiant heated driveways, walkways or patio areas to your Potomac, MD residential or commercial properties are great, indeed. Whether you want it installed on your entire driveway, walkway, patio, or only a portion, we can help make that a reality for you. We currently hold an A+ rating on the Better Business Bureau web site, are a member of Angie’s List and certified by Best Pick Reports, and also hold the following certifications:
- Interlocking Certified Paver Installers
- Certified Landscape Technician
- Certified Pond Installer
- Maryland Home Improvement Commission License
- Better Business Bureau
- Landscape Contractors Association
- Recommended Landscape Contractor “Washington Checkbook”
If you have any further questions or concerns, please feel free to contact us301-421-4141, you’ll be able to hear first hand, from trained professionals just what our services can do for you. We[‘ll be more than happy to assist you with a estimate request, or walk you through the process of heated driveway, walkway and patio installation.
