Five ways of beating the promised snow and ice

If the weathermen and women have read the runes correctly we’re in for a taste of winter this week so here are five handy tips for getting through the worst of what mother nature’s Nor’easterlies has to hurl our way.
And remember if you can’t find what you’re looking for in these five suggestions we’ve pages on our web site with suggestions for beating the snow and ice.

They say if you’re in a hole stop digging but here’s a shovel to make sure you don’t get in a snow hole in the first place.
The Garant Large Canadian Snow Shovel/Pusher is designed to cope with the heaviest of falls and to keep the areas around your house or business safe for visitors.
An ordinary garden spade or builders shovel simply is not as efficient as one of these shovels which is wide and deep and can cope with a decent load each time you use it.
Designed and made in Canada where they know a thing or two about snow it can also be used as a pusher to simply shove the stuff to one side, something a garden spade can’t do.
It is light and extra long resistant to corrosion and the handle is the handle is made of ash.
With a 45 cm wide shovel a good load can be shifted each time and this is secured to the shaft by a simple locking mechanism.
Delivery is free the next working day and it costs £19.95 compared with the maker’s recommended cost of £39.95.
Well that’s the snow cleared away but now you need to make sure it doesn’t hang around if it comes back and the easiest way to do that is to a spread snow and ice melt specialist product or rock salt.
And the easiest way to do that around a small area is the MD 60LB Drop Spreader.
This little machine is simplicity itself but will allow you to spread the product evenly without having to slide it off a shovel with the resulting uneven covering.
The hopper can take 60 lb of salt or ice melt and remember that come the Spring it can also be used for spreading fertilisers or grass seed.
The spreading width is 56 cm, or 22 in, ideal for paths and restricted areas around the house.
A lever on the handlebar allows you to vary how much is actually spread.
The machine costs £49.95, compared with the maker’s recommended price of £79.95.
It is delivered free the next working day and has a one year maunfacturer’s warranty.
With the pressure on schools and small businesses to stay open and win the battle against the winter weather here’s a package which offers most of the tools and products you will need to keep small premises and bigger houses up and running.
Our own Winter Snow & Ice Treatment Package has our own MD brand walk-behind spreader, 10 bags of Magic Ice Melt and as a bonus gift and large Garant Canadian snow shovel.
At the heart of this package is the spreader with its corrosion proof hopper which can take 80 lb so you can spend more time working and less filling it up.
This makes it ideal for forecourts or car parks and yards.
You can adjust the flow rate via a handle and the spreading width is up to three metres meaning it can deal efficiently and quickly with quite large areas.
Pneumatic tyres with deep treads give a good grip when it gets cold and when not in use the handle can be folded down to take less storage room.
The LNT Magic Ice Melt is a modern and much more efficient way of clearing snow and ice. It is biodegradable and also non toxic making it safe to use near animals and plants and it will not corrode metals meaning it is safe to use near vehicle.
It is very free flowing unlike other products meaning clogging is less likely. The 10 bags of ice melt means the package can cover 2000 sq metres.
When you buy this package you can also buy extra snow melt, ice melt and shovels at special prices.
The cost is £299, substantially cheaper that if it was bought individually. And delivery is free.
But when the stuff does come down in quantities the only real way of clearing it is a snow blower and one equipped for clearing large areas is the MTD ME 66 Snow Blower / Thrower a 2 stage self-propelled machine.
This model is designed to clear large areas swiftly and efficiently with a 66 cm clearing width and is very easy to operate.
The two stages mean that the snow is first collected via a revolving auger and then blasted away via the exit chute with a powerful impellor.
At its heart is a 277 cc Snow Thor engine designed for the job, with an electric start to make life easier when it’s freezing.
The auger inside the hood has a working height of up to 53 cm in order to handle really heavy snow falls.
The auger is fitted with sheer bolts to prevent serious damage should you hit something really solid. And snow skids at the front mean you can fitch the working height depending on the surface.
The 16 in wheels have heavy duty tyres for great traction and the engine has four forward and two reverse gears. The gear lever is on the control panel and the exit chute can be rotated through 180 degrees and the pitch adjusted with a joy stick.
The blower is delivered free the next working day and there is a one year maker’s guarantee.
It costs £999, and that’s £300 less than the manufacturer’s recommended price.
And finally a machine for clearing really serious amounts of snow.
The Al-Ko BF-5002R Two-Wheeled Snow Plough is German engineered and powered by a Briggs & Stratton engine built to use less fuel and to be easy to start.
The metal snow blade has a clearance width of 85 cm with the bottom fitted with a rubber strip to clear right back to the surface.
And it can be easily adjusted to clear to either left or right.
Deep patterned tyres mean it can keep on the move in even the most challenging conditions and there is a reverse gear to make driving easier if you get into a tight space.
You can also buy snow chains giving even better grip and the machine can be used throughout the year with the addition of a sweeper attachment to clear twigs and litter.
There are other attachments to increase the flexibility of this machine even further.
It costs £1099 compared with the maker’s recommended price of £1188. Delivery is free within two to three working days and there is a one year manufacturer’s guarantee.