Pretreatment: Another Way Xtreme Snow Pros Keeps Your Property Safe

Most business owners today are unaware that snow and ice pretreatment is possible without laying pounds and pounds of salt on the ground. By pretreating properties, we are able to get out in front of the storm, keeping your property safer and your management costs lower.

What is pretreatment?

Pretreatment quite simply means proactively approaching snow and ice management today. By applying our pretreated liquid down before winter weather has a chance to settle, we prevent the bond of snow and ice to the pavement when applied before the storm.

It’s more than simply salting beforehand – like many companies will do. Different weather conditions call for different kinds of pretreatment. It’s not a one-size-fits-all solution.

For example, salt-based applications are the most effective on freezing rain and sleet. The salt chemical properties react with the water to cause it to melt. Our salt brine ‘Combat-Ice Enviro” solution is one that is catered for the environment without the harmful salty side effects. However, if two feet of snow is expected at your property tomorrow, laying down our melting liquid will give our crew a 1 to 2-inch head-start on keeping the snow from locking to your pavement.

Why pretreat?

If you don’t pretreat your commercial property, it could take up to 4x the material to combat against the already fallen weather. The longer it takes us to treat your property, the more hazardous conditions become, and the higher your management bill. Plus, the hazardous conditions are conducive to personal injury problems, leaving you with a never-ending legal nightmare.

Pretreatment is just another way we’re here to keep you and your clients safe this winter. Consider pretreatment for sparing your bank account, the surrounding environment, and your patrons every day this year.

A closer shave for Old Man Winter

Xtreme Snow Pros has staked its reputation in the Metropolitan area on innovative methods of snow and ice removal. From converting old military vehicles into winter warriors to ascending to the technological high ground with drones, Xtreme Snow Pros is always looking for an edge in its New Jersey operation.

In the case of plows, it’s a literal edge being sought.

Xtreme Snow Pros has introduced new plow technology to the snow pusher fleet with Live Edge Technology. Live Edge employs spring-loaded plates that adjust to uneven terrain and removes more snow than traditional plows.

In ancient civilizations, man used crude blades designed for hair removal, but the technology has evolved. There now are commercials promising the closest shave with blades that undulate across the contours of necks, jaws and shins, leaving silky patches in their wakes. Live Edge, essentially, is like a modern razor for roads and parking lots.

Consider concrete and asphalt the skin of your property. Layers of this material make it possible for roads and parking lot to be passable when seasonal elements rain down on it. Vehicles and commerce depend on the these tough skins.

Much like skin, it has certain sensitivities. It can only take so much before it chaps and crumbles. Conventional snow plow blades are much like the ancient tools used to carve smooth skin out of thickets of hair. A sure sign over the last half century that a man was running late for work were the crimson and white patches of tissue dancing around their Adam’s apples.  While cuts and razor rash were accepted for a while, technology moved forward to blades that flex against the surfaces they’re clearing.

Live Edge Technology on Xtreme Snow Pros’ snow pusher trucks mark the evolution of plow technology. It allows for more efficient and expedient removal of snow and ice. Businesses and daily commerce simply cannot afford to wait for the old technology to get the job done.

Live Edge reduces the nicks and gouges once accepted as part of the process, too. It traces along the contours of the concrete or asphalt without creating potholes or wearing down the surface unnecessarily.

A solution to chemical dependence

Using chemical deicers came to prominence in the 1950s and 1960s. Snow removal methods have become dependent on chemical deicers such as rock salt. This is because plow technology could only do so much before Live Edge came along and removed the layers salt and other chemical deicers were intended to remove.

Research has caught up to the times and shown the environmental impact of chemical deicers.

In 2015, Lake George, NY, one of the beautiful vacation destinations in the southern Adirondack Mountains, worried deicers such as salts used for snow removal posed an environmental threat to the lake’s salt levels. In Spring 2015, an effort to prevent any further salt pollution of the freshwater lake, which “had tripled over a generation,”  led to a reduction of in the use of road salts.

The Lake George area, instead, depended on the use of Live Edge while reducing road salt use by 40 percent.

The environmental concern for Lake George is that the sodium and chloride pockets in the lake and groundwater concentrations could make the water too toxic for people, wildlife and plants to consume.

Xtreme Snow Pros strives to provide environmentally friendly commercial snow removal solutions to the Metropolitan Area, and Lake George is a working example of what needs to be done to preserve the integrity of the environment.

From the commercial client angle, relying less on deicers such as salt, reduces the need for pavement repair, saving your bottom line.

For asphalt, some road salts sink between the cracks in the surface. This can exacerbate the freeze-thaw cycle, leading to greater damage to the asphalt. In the case of applying salt to concrete, the salts can sink into steel-reinforced concrete and corrode the rebar and threaten the integrity of the structure. This is much the same way road salts eat away at the metals used in automobiles. Every year, vehicle owners must be vigilant in washing the chalky layers of salt from the vehicle’s bodies or else have their investments of $20,000 or more reduced to rusted heaps before they’ve paid for them in full.

Technology has not advanced to the point salt is an obsolete tool. Road salt assists in preventing the accumulation of snow and ice after the plows have passed. Restricting the amount of salt or snow-sapping abrasives, such as the old standards of sand or cinder, will improve the health of the environment and that of automobile owners across eastern Pennsylvania, northern New Jersey and southern New York.

Live Edge Technology is one more step toward winter independence from chemical deicers. For that, Xtreme Snow Pros is proud to be at the forefront of more efficient snow removal. Check out Metal Pless to learn more about Live Edge Technology.

Shock & Awesome

Bulking up for winter draws magazine’s attention

It’s called “severe duty” for a reason. Class 8 vehicles are as big as you can go, and Xtreme Snow Pros is building fleet of these monsters to tangle the beastly job of winter.

Weighing more than 33,000 pounds, Snow Pros’ severe-duty trucks are military-grade stuff. For the past three years, owner Chris Marino has slowly acquired military equipment, making his New Jersey company one of the few commercial snow removal services in the Metropolitan Area that is thinking big.The Xtreme Snow Pros team converted these behemoth’s into powerful additions to the Ringwood, NJ fleet.

In September, it caught the attention of Snow Magazine, a publication dedicated to the snow removal industry and its innovations. Marino discussed with Snow’s MIke Zawacki the purpose of going big against winter storms.

“The cost savings is incredible,” Marino told Zawacki. “They’re severe-duty grade, so you don’t get the luxuries people are used to in equipment. However, for what we’re doing with them, that does not come into play.”

The vehicles are used, but Marino said the military meticulously services the vehicles to keep them in fighting shape.

“We’ve bought trucks which the military paid over $300,000 for, and we acquired it for $14,000,” Marino told Zawacki. “The truck had only 14,000 miles on it.”

Acquiring vehicles built to do all the heavy winter lifting

In three years of collecting military-grade equipment for the war on winter weather, Xtreme Snow Pros has purchased 6 trucks, including the Oshkosh M1070, which was designed to haul around military bulldozers, armoured personnel carriers and the United States’ main battle tank, the M1 Abrams, which weighs anywhere between 54 and 62 tons. The truck allows Xtreme Snow Pros to transport its own critical assets during storms.

Also added to the inventory are 11 trailers and bladders for storage of liquid deicers.

Attaching Snow Pros to the military’s mighty machines goes back to Chris Marino’s childhood interest in the armed forces’ equipment.

“I like what it stands for and how unique each piece of equipment is,” Marino said in his interview with Zawacki. “Likewise, I’m always looking for ways to save money on equipment that we can purchase for our business, being that this is our single-largest expense.”

The process of finding the right vehicle for the fleet takes some research, but Marino told Zawacki plenty existed for the online auctions used to purchase the equipment. “When we buy, we try to keep it within a certain distance so we can pick up these purchased items with our own trucks, but we have also used online sources that specialize in trucking,” Marino said.

If you’re considering raising your own fleet of military marvels for snow removal through auction, Marino offered one caveat to Snow Magazine.

“Read the overview of the trucks and don’t get caught up in the bidding process. … I learned a lesson by buying a truck with tons of parts missing. I was caught up with the idea of winning and did not see this.”

Read the rest of the interview on Snow Magazine’s site here.

Big show primes Xtreme Snow Pros for winter’s big storms

 There are two ways you can approach snow, on the ground and--in the air?

Xtreme Snow Pros has decided to take flight with the implementation of drones this year. Owner Chris Marino traveled from New Jersey with his son to one of the snowiest provinces in eastern Canada for the Montreal Expo Grands Travaux in April.

This heavy machine exhibition showcased some of the most cutting-edge snow removal technology in the world, including truck- and loader-mounted plows and snow blowers, salters, sanders, de-icers, spreaders and anything else repellent to snow.

So many toys, yet too little time at this two-day show.

The expo also included educational seminars presented by the Snow and Ice Management Association.These provided industry insights such as managing snow in the tight confines of cities.

Going abroad seeking better solutions for the Metropolitan Area

If anyone in North America understands snow, it’s the Canadians. The average snowfall in across eastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Downstate New York adds up to 24 inches each year. That’s about knee high for the average adult male. The entire province of Quebec registers around four times that amount, about 106 inches. That’s the equivalent of a 10-story building. With this disparity in snow fall, it’s natural that manufacturers in Canada may put more of an emphasis on bigger is better when it comes to their snow equipment.

So, commuters in the Metropolitan Area aren’t exactly tunneling their way to work under a mountain of snow, but even an inch is enough to wreak havoc from Philadelphia to Brooklyn. The equipment available stateside grossly underestimates the desire for efficient commercial snow removal.

The disadvantage for the competitors who don’t attend this international shows is that they aren’t typically exposed to these manufacturers in the United States. Chris and Xtreme Snow Pros don’t believe in half measures when it comes to clearing tons of powder. Xtreme Snow Pros routinely seeks innovative solutions that effectively push aside the inconveniences of winter so you can get on with your day.

Clearing the ground by taking to the air

In addition to kicking around specs with plow manufacturers, the drones Chris and his son scouted are one way Xtreme Snow Pros plans to get ahead of next winter.

The drones give our crews a new perspective on documenting sites previously unavailable. This allows them to anticipate challenges for our clients and collect information on existing damage to sites.

It wasn’t all about the snow tech in Montreal for Chris. Having his son by his side perpetuated a family tradition spanning three decades. Chris used it as a learning experience for his son, whom he hopes will one day take over the family business.

“I am trying to pass on not only spending quality time but introduce him at a young age to all the different parts of the business,” Chris said. “I’m trying to express to him that when you’re in business, don’t just look locally at your competition. Look globally.”

XSP is preparing for winter with new (cool!) equipment

At Xtreme Snow Pros, we like the challenge of purchasing used equipment that we can repurpose to make functional for our winter operations. By reusing equipment, we put ex-military vehicles to good use and add a touch of “green” to our white winters. Our projects are not only earth-friendly and exciting, but also revolutionary. Our repurposed vehicles add a unique spin on an ordinary snow operation. Here are a few projects we are currently working on:

We’re in the process of converting an Oshkosh M1070 into an equipment mover for our logistics division. The machine was previously used for carrying tanks into battle; now, we can utilize the resource to move equipment during storms. This incredible piece of equipment can pull up to 240K pounds.

This project is an explosive addition to our fleet. Previously used to transport military missiles, this trailer has been repurposed to be a mobile brine-making machine. The trailer will be used to produce up to 5,000 gallons of brine per hour – an innovative resource to add to our snow operations.

Our snow team will be ready to go, day or night, this winter thanks to one of our latest projects – a snow command center. Previously a mobile electronics workshop, the snow command center will be equipped its own power source and computers and be used by our team to coordinate efforts within a specific region during storms.