Winter is right on our heels—and for those of us in the cooler climates, that means snow is always a possibility. If you’re worried that snowy weather may spell trouble for your artificial turf field, take a breath; we’ve got your back! At Capitol Turf Pros, we are experts in helping clients maintain ideal, lush looking turf all year long, so follow along and find out how to develop your winter season strategy.
Ready for leading commercial turf and sports turf solutions for your business in the Maryland or DC area? Contact Capitol Turf Pros online today to get started!
The Challenges
Essentially, the challenges are that you need snow gone if the field needs to stay play-ready, and, if left as is, the snow can pose blade bending and breakage risks that won’t look pretty come springtime. In many ways turf, can take care of itself, but it may need help dealing with drainage. If you need to keep the field active in the winter months, you need to know how to remove the snow safely and without breakage.
Keep Fields Play-Ready
In order to minimize trouble, snow should be managed regularly, both to discourage ice formation (a real headache to remove) and to minimize the tools needed to get the job done. Heavy load machinery, bladed plows, and other heavy equipment should not be on a sports turf field at any time.
Ideal snow removal tools include:
- Snow blowers – Powered mounted or even handheld snow blowers are the ideal option but become somewhat ineffective during massive snowfalls or for considerably large fields.
- Round-bladed plows – Using a low-weight rounded plow (or a standard plow with a blunting attached to the blade) can help remove snow that has piled too high for a blower or team of blowers to manage.
- Chemical solutions – Ice should never be removed by heavy tools. In a frozen state, the blades are very vulnerable to breaking, so snow melters are recommended. Be certain to consult the product manual for any specialized notes on chemical reactions to melters.
How to Maintain Seasonal Fields
If you’re just looking to maintain through the late and early seasons, then your job is a bit simpler. All of the above information applies if you wish to maintain your turf, however, in most cases, snow can be left to melt on its own or with the aid of underground heating systems (if you’ve got the budget for it). The most critical point here is to ensure your drainage system stays free of debris, snow, and ice. This will help keep things manageable as the snow melts and reduce problems with a waterlogged infill and potential mold problems.
Install Sports Turf from Capitol Turf Pros in the Montgomery County Area
This is absolutely a bare-bones look at your snow management basics, but we’ve put you on the right track! Get in touch with our synthetic turf experts if you have any other turf maintenance questions.
For more turf solutions, or to learn more about our commercial turf products, call (240) 454-3794 or contact a Capitol Turf Pros expert online today!
