Brown Rock Salt/Grit for ice, snow, melting - 23kg Bag

Product Information

Department for Infrastructure (DfI) road gritting staff are on standby 24 hours a day to monitor and react according to the weather conditions. The Traffic Management Act 2004 (England) requires authorities to do all that is reasonably practicable to manage the network effectively to keep traffic moving. In meeting the duty, authorities should establish contingency plans for dealing promptly and effectively with unplanned events, such as unforeseen weather conditions, as far as is reasonably practicable.

The Department for Transport carries out regular audits of local authorities to monitor salt levels. Councils in the UK are responsible for about 225,000 miles of road. It would cost hundreds of millions of extra pounds to grit all roads. Also, many roads are simply too narrow or too steep for gritting lorry to navigate. Instead, councils try to find other solutions like supplying local grit bins for residents, liaising with parish councils and community groups to grit more residential or remote areas and working with farmers to clear rural areas. Given the scale of financial and other resources involved in delivering the Winter Service it is not reasonable either to – provide the service on all parts of the network; ensure running surfaces are kept free of ice or snow at all times, even on the treated parts of the network.Routes to large schools are gritting priorities for councils as they know how important keeping them open is both in terms of continuity of teaching for pupils and avoiding costly and disruptive childcare for parents. It's either the headteacher or the local council which makes the decision to close a school. It is not a decision taken lightly and advice from the emergency services will be considered, as will the weather forecast. Reasons to close a school include dangerous road conditions nearby, a shortage of teacher who can safely make it in or problems with vital supplies such as heating or water. Schools appreciate it can be a huge inconvenience to parents but the safety of pupils and teachers are the primary concern. Employers have a duty of care to their employees and customers that might be at risk from hazards and risks related to the employer’s activities. In the case of ice and snow both employees and 3 rd parties (i.e. customers) may need to cross from the public highway onto the Employer’s property where there might be snow, ice or both. A failure to identify this as a risk may leave the employer exposed and employees or 3 rd parties at risk of slipping.

Customers slip on the outside floor at client premises i.e. the car park, path to the entrance or reception This normally happens during prolonged snowfall when the sludge, caused by previous gritting and traffic flow, starts to wash older grit away and so risks the road surface freezing. Rain will also wash away salt. Ahead of a sub-zero night, gritting ideally needs to take place after rain but before freezing as grit spread on ice needs to then be worked into it by moving traffic to make it thaw. The often very small window of opportunity may be missed, or a surprise downpour may take place after a road's been treated so councils will re-run an area if needed. Councils sometimes have to contend with ‘freezing rain' – supercooled rain which falls when the surface temperature is below zero, freezing on impact – which means they may need to re-grit areas. There are 2 ways in which you can return items that have been delivered direct from one out approved suppliers. choose if you need to cone off higher risk areas or areas of the car park that are further away from the entrance that are not required. If you need to direct people, visitors, employees, 3 rd parties away from ungritted/unsalted areas use clear signage. Different signs will be available from signage suppliers. TrainingIf warning cones are used, remember to remove them once the hazard has passed or they will eventually be ignored.

Section 41(1A) – "a highway authority is under a duty to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that safe passage along a highway is not endangered by snow or ice." Frost and ice form when water freezes. Grit spread on roads and pedestrian areas mixes with any moisture and creates a saline solution. Saline solutions freeze at a lower temperature than water, so frost and ice doesn't form on the road, even though the temperature is below freezing for water. It's for exactly the same reason why salty sea water freezes at a lower temperature than fresh water. The actual freezing point of a saline solution depends on the salinity (strength) of the saline solution. Grit/Salt needs to be spread at the right time as salt doesn’t work instantly – and it’s not intended to melt large quantities of snow or ice. It needs sufficient time to dissolve into the moisture on the floor (so best early in evening before the frost settles and/or early in the morning before employees arrive). No. The grit doesn't directly melt snow as it firstly has to mix with the snow to form a saline solution and lower the melting point. If snow is predicted, grit is spread in advance so when the first snow falls it can start to mix with grit to create a saline solution, which can reduce the build up (accumulation) of snow and prevent the formation of ice.

Placing grit on top of snow which has already fallen has limited benefits. Ideally, snow should be cleared before grit is applied to the road or pedestrian area. When is the best time to spread the grit? Section 150 puts a responsibility on the highway authority to clear snow from the highway, but only if it is causing an obstruction. Pull along salt spreader i.e. pulled by a small tractor unit like a ride on mower or a vehicle (useful for a school or large delivery or logistics areas) Put in place a procedure for removing leaves at regular intervals; you might even consider removing the offending bushes or trees altogether. Rain water Remove the top layer of snow first. Use a Snow Scoop and/or Yard Brush to remove fresh, loose snow so that grit can be directly applied to ice.

Fallen leaves that become wet or have started to decay can create slip risks in two ways, they hide any hazard that may be on the path or they themselves create a slip risk. Treatment of roads and pedestrian areas with grit is carried out to prevent frost and ice forming and reduce the build up of snow to help provide a safe passage on the highest priority roads and pedestrian areas. How does grit prevent frost and ice forming? Most of the salt is mined in Cheshire. The main supplier is Salt Union, which can produce 6,000 tonnes per day. Cleveland Potash, in Middlesbrough, produces salt as a by-product of its main operations and usually produces about 3,200 tonnes per day. This year about one in 10 councils have arranged contracts with salt suppliers abroad, but this approach would not be a practical solution for all councils. Gritting should be carried out when frost, ice or snow is forecast or when walkways are likely to be damp or wet and the floor temperatures are at, or below freezing. The best times are early in evening before the frost settles and/or early in the morning before employees arrive. Salt doesn't work instantly; it needs sufficient time to dissolve into the moisture on the floor.The 2010 Quarmby Review on Winter Resilience recommend English highways authorities set a ‘winter resilience benchmark' for councils of 12 days/48 runs-worth of salt ahead of each gritting season (October 1 to late March 1). The Department for Transport says these recommendations should be adopted. Any activity where employees must walk outside on employer property to get into work or during their working day