By Kendry Lee
Learn about the benefits and drawbacks of driveway heating as well as why Heavenly Heat is the best choice for you.
Shoveling snow is a dreaded duty that can be a real pain in the neck, but it’s required for many people merely to get their car on the road. It’s no surprise that a radiant heating system, built just beneath a driveway’s surface to melt snow and ice, is becoming increasingly popular in frigid areas. If the notion of keeping your driveway free throughout the winter months appeals to you, keep reading to find out how these systems function, what’s required in installation, and how much they cost.
Driveways that are heated
Wintertime safety necessitates keeping your driveway free of snow and ice. A good shovel or snow blower can assist, but if you don’t deal with it right away after a snowstorm, people will walk and drive on it, compacting it and making it more difficult to remove. Slips and falls are more likely on a slick snow-packed surface.
Installing radiant heat in outdoor slabs has been common in commercial settings for more than 25 years, such as restaurant pathways and mall parking lots; it became popular in residential settings around 15 years ago. Heated driveways are useful for homeowners who don’t have the time or physical strength to clear snow from their driveways using conventional methods. A heated driveway will save hours of shoveling if you live in a location that gets more than a few light snowfalls during a normal winter.
When deciding whether or not to construct a heated driveway, consider your demands and budget, as well as the sort of winter you usually get.
Two Ways to Bring the Temperature
Homeowners have the option of installing either an electric or a water-based (hydronic) system.
- Electric systems: To keep the driveway clear of snow and ice, heating wires and mats, comprised of cables braided together in a grid pattern, are implanted beneath the surface. Damage and corrosion resistance is built into these cables and matting.
- Hydronic systems: This form of heated driveway system entails the installation of resilient PEX tubing beneath the surface of the driveway. The tube is then filled with a non-freezing water solution, which flows via a boiler, which is normally kept in the garage, to keep the temperature steady.
