It’s August. The sun is shining. The temperature’s hot. Everyone’s wearing shorts and t-shirts.
So it’s the perfect time to talk about winter property maintenance.
The past few winters have been particularly harsh with extremely cold temperatures and excessive snowfalls. For many property maintenance managers, the super-tough winters exhausted their winter budgets far earlier than expected.
There’s no reason to expect that this winter will be any less challenging than previous winters.
Even though it may not look like it outside, property managers should start thinking about their winter groundskeeping budgets now to ensure they have enough to cover all costs, expenses and services, such as:
snow removal truck
SNOW REMOVAL
This is probably the biggest expense property managers will have to incur through the winter. But it’s also the most important, too.
Commercial snow plowing ensures that your properties are kept clean and accessible. This means that anyone walking on them will do so on safe, clear pathways.
Keeping walkways and parking lots free of snow not only makes properties stay attractive over the winter, it can also protect owners and managers from any liability from a slip or fall because they’ve taken the initiative to secure a snow removal contract in advance.
BULK SALT
This has been one of the biggest pain points that property managers have faced over the past few years: a shortage of bulk salt to use to fill salt bins located throughout various properties.
Sometimes, a salt shortage can become so bad that it just doesn’t impact the city of Toronto or the province of Ontario. It can be a continent-wide issue as municipalities and service providers alike hunt high-and-low for salt.*
*Source: The Globe and Mail
In fact, the City of Hamilton is going to spend $40-million over the next five years to guarantee they have enough salt to cover all their needs.+
+Source: cbc.ca
All this means is that it’s wise to allocate a certain part of your budget for bulk salt procurement. The earlier you place your order for bulk salt, the less likely it will be that you won’t have it when you need it most.
DEICING SERVICES
Right now, the only ice anyone is seeing can be found inside a nice, tall drink.
But in the winter, there’s ice everywhere. And trying to chip it away is usually ineffective.
Many property managers overlook deicing because they think snow plowing will do the same thing. However, deicing is a specialized service because:
It involves careful application of a specialized compound
It removes that thin layer of ice that’s usually found once snow is removed
Deicing is a crucial component to any winter property maintenance program – and should be budgeted for accordingly.
GET A FREE QUOTE ON WINTER MAINTENANCE SERVICES
Once you’ve set your budget for winter, the next step is to see what kind of services – and how much – you can get with it.
A FREE quote from Garden City Groundskeeping gives you all the information about our effective and efficient snow removal services. It’s a smart way to ensure your winter budget covers everything you need.
