Steep driveway ideas

BillTex · 10-24-2024, 07:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bear Islander

I had this problem about twenty years ago at my business. The solution was an electric driveway mat covering twenty feet of driveway near the bottom. Having it at the bottom allows you to brake to a stop on dry pavement. It also gives you the chance to get some speed to carry you up the driveway.

Electronic sensor detects the snow and turns mat on at the beginning of a storm.

The mat is cheap but install will cost you. However it will be a lot cheaper than buying a tractor. And it will work MUCH better.

Interesting idea. I did some research, looks like these are fine for a couple of inches of snow but get overwhelmed with deep snow. Also $$$ to run?!

Maybe a good size snow blower is the way to go.

Re; rope tow. My Wife did suggest a chair lift or similar. To those who mentioned lifts (above) can you point me to more info? Are these similar to handicap stair lifts?

Thank you.

Descant · 10-24-2024, 11:24 AM

I use Heatrak mats for my walkway. Low amperage and negligible cost to run. https://heattrak.com/ They make mats for driveways, but not a lot of info about steep slopes. I turn the switch on when it starts to snow and they keep up. Waiting and trying to remove snow after the storm is not a good result. You could probably use Nest or similar to set up remote control.

If you watch enough episodes of This Old House, you'll see them jack up a house and replace the stone rubble foundation with new, panel type support. Use the spoil to raise the bottom of the driveway to get from 18 degrees to maybe 8 degrees. Run a track down to the water and store your boat in the new basement. BTW, TOH never talks about cost or budget, so this stuff is easy enough to do, but cost is unknown. Lots of houses in flood zones are getting this "raising" instead of "razing".

10-24-2024, 11:24 AM	#2
Descant Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Merrimack and Welch Island Posts: 4,597 Thanks: 1,418 Thanked 1,705 Times in 1,109 Posts	Heatrak I use Heatrak mats for my walkway. Low amperage and negligible cost to run. https://heattrak.com/ They make mats for driveways, but not a lot of info about steep slopes. I turn the switch on when it starts to snow and they keep up. Waiting and trying to remove snow after the storm is not a good result. You could probably use Nest or similar to set up remote control. If you watch enough episodes of This Old House, you'll see them jack up a house and replace the stone rubble foundation with new, panel type support. Use the spoil to raise the bottom of the driveway to get from 18 degrees to maybe 8 degrees. Run a track down to the water and store your boat in the new basement. BTW, TOH never talks about cost or budget, so this stuff is easy enough to do, but cost is unknown. Lots of houses in flood zones are getting this "raising" instead of "razing".