A Calgary chinook can swing temperatures 15 degrees in a single afternoon. Snow melts into water at 2pm, then refreezes into solid ice when the sun drops. That melt-by-day, freeze-by-night cycle is the number one cause of icy driveways here — not the snowfall itself.
Why shoveling alone doesn't fix it
Once meltwater refreezes into a bonded ice layer, a shovel just skates over it. Prevention beats removal: surfaces cleared before the melt have nothing to refreeze.
What actually works
- Clear early and down to pavement, so there is less snow available to melt.
- Use a pet-safe ice melt on walks and steps after clearing — it lowers the refreeze point through the night.
- Break up downspout ice where roof meltwater drains across the walk; that strip refreezes first.
Pet-safe ice melt is bookable as an extra on any of our snow visits — applied to walks and steps after clearing.