Ice Removal Suggestions

i am with a mini ex or skiddie with a hammer. break it up but not down to the concrete. then put a head shaker on the mini and ou'la . simple.

What is on the pad to hit? anything? pipe's, etc.?

mini ex or skiddie with breaker. get it close then run a head shaker.

Post some pictures if you can so people can see what your talking about. I've seen an attachment that fits on the front of a grader that's like a scarifier but has spiked wheels for breaking up pack ice. The city here uses them on some of they're rural roads, I can't find any pictures of the attachment but without an image it's hard to for people to understand the problem.

What is the heaviest loader/grader you have? Or just a skidsteer? Sounds like U may need the right tool for the job. Still trying to get a visual of what these "Depots" look like. Pi$$ing in the wind trying to guess.. Sorry man..

On the Slope where we fill water trucks regularly in sub zero temps, It builds up thick frequently, but they just use a grader or loader with a ice grouser blade or attachment on the front and work the area. Chews it down quickly. Doubt a skidsteer would be heavy enough, but it weighted to the max with a narrow blade maybe..

Also if you can, get some Calcium Chloride. It will melt ice down to -25 below f. Not great for concrete in heavy applications, but would work.

I suppose you'd have to ask yourself if you're happy with the performance of the backhoes. Are they adequate or are they overkill? If they're overkill, you could try a 3-5 ton hoe with a ripper. Be careful who you send out there, though. You don't want to get a concrete repair bill in the spring.

How much traffic do these pads see? What about some preventive maintainence like putting down foundation blankets to draw the frost up? Can you divert the water somewhere before it turns into 18" of ice?

Why let the ice build up to 18"?

Some salt goes a long ways.

I wonder if a power rake on a bobcat and a sweeper would work.

Summit said:

What is on the pad to hit? anything? pipe's, etc.?

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most have a single drain in the middle of the pad. it is usually about 12" in diameter.

245dlc said:

breaking up pack ice.

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this isn't pack ice. its ice.

joispoi said:

I suppose you'd have to ask yourself if you're happy with the performance of the backhoes.

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the backhoes work pretty good. there are two pads per depot each about 20' x 24'. with the right operator he can load a backhoe, travel thirty miles to the site, and complete the removal in a day.

he chips with the hoe and pushes off with the bucket.

i would like to find a way to do this without having to start a semi truck. the backhoes work good but i would like something i can pull behind a pickup. it is so hard to get these trucks going and keep them going in our cold temps.

joispoi said:

How much traffic do these pads see?

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each depot loads out of two sides. at the busier depots there is almost always a line up of five or more trucks. so they are pretty much in use 24-7.

EGS said:

Why let the ice build up to 18"?

Some salt goes a long ways.

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we provide salt sand at each depot. we have about twenty yards delivered at a time. i am not absolutely sure but i think it is about ten percent salt. the truck drivers have a tendency to either not pay attention and over fill their trucks or not use their trailer vacs to drain their hoses. we spend a good part of December and most of January and February with temps below ten degrees Fahrenheit. so when they spill the water on the pads it doesn't have much time to do anything but freeze.

i will try to get pictures but the crews we have been sending this week don't have smart phones that can take pictures worth posting.

dsichewski said:

mini ex with hammer was my first thought.....what putting frost pick on the mini ex?

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That was what I was thinking.

120 sized excavator, quick coupler....frost hook, and 3' gummer bucket. done deal....not that hard of a deal?

on edit, just where you at? my son's inlaws are in the kenmare area, also have land near williston....you working for local drillers? or the wildcats?

We are based in Williston and work for ourselves. We work in underground construction, horizontal boring, water well drilling, agricultural irrigation, and have master electricians. We have stores in Williston, Sidney, and Miles City.

If the concrete is thick enough and been in place long enough i'd just choose the right time of day............. you should be able to slide a ''knife'' under the sheet and break it up in chunks........ chemicals and heat work but i can't believe they are efficient as sliding a piece of steel along the cement.................. providing there is just a little water interface there.

Well check out this link http://www.sah-ko.fi/raikomachines/polannemurtajat-eng.html I have been talking to the company and trying to get one for us at the mine watch the videos.

jimrr said:

If the concrete is thick enough and been in place long enough i'd just choose the right time of day............. you should be able to slide a ''knife'' under the sheet and break it up in chunks........ chemicals and heat work but i can't believe they are efficient as sliding a piece of steel along the cement.................. providing there is just a little water interface there.

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interesting though. how would we get the "water interface" though?

Hmm, so break the slab loose from the concrete, calcium or mag chloride is a lot heavier than water or ice. Can you drill down close to the slab with say a 1 inch auger every foot or two and pour a couple cupfuls of mag or calcium down each hole. That should make a little heat and start to creep between the ice and the slab, loosening the bond between the two. Both of those chemicals work down below zero but calcium is more in your neighborhood of -25F

Purely from a desk perspective, perhaps you could just bore holes on the uphill side and keep filling them with calcium and let it creep toward the drain, a couple random holes might show how far the creep has progressed. Might have to put some water in the holes to get the fluid volume up a bit.

fast_st said:

Hmm, so break the slab loose from the concrete, calcium or mag chloride is a lot heavier than water or ice. Can you drill down close to the slab with say a 1 inch auger every foot or two and pour a couple cupfuls of mag or calcium down each hole. That should make a little heat and start to creep between the ice and the slab, loosening the bond between the two. Both of those chemicals work down below zero but calcium is more in your neighborhood of -25F

Purely from a desk perspective, perhaps you could just bore holes on the uphill side and keep filling them with calcium and let it creep toward the drain, a couple random holes might show how far the creep has progressed. Might have to put some water in the holes to get the fluid volume up a bit.

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i like the idea.

just curious, has anybody ever tried a backhoe, excavator mounted vibratory plate on ice? i'm wondering if the vibration wouldn't break the bond of the ice to the concrete, shattering it...allowing it to be pushed off with a skid steer or other loader?

It has been really nice here the last week. We have been in the 20's and even a little in the 30's. We cleaned this one off a week ago and this is the build up we have seen in the nice weather. I think it gets a lot thicker than this.

i don't know why i can't get these to show up as regular pictures. sorry about that.