Indoor-Outdoor Radiant Heating:

In Pennsylvania, winter arrived early last year to deliver a one-two punch. A blast of frigid cold was followed swiftly by rain that froze fast to trees, driveways, sidewalks and anything else that didn’t have the ability, or sense, to get outta the way.

Thick ice accumulated everywhere as armies of municipal workers and homeowners toiled away on the front lines. Their weapons of mass destruction: salt, chemicals, plows and heavy ice blades. Alas, all those beautifully crafted, stamped, stained and sculpted concrete surfaces were chipped, cracked and chemically attacked.

But it doesn’t need to be that way. Your craftsmanship can be protected easily, and the home and business owners that you work for have the right to know about it. The answer is a technique that’s been hard at work indoors for years: radiant heat. It’s also a great companion to exterior concrete. Why not flick a switch and melt those blues and backaches away?

Snowmelt technology is, essentially, radiant heat applied to outdoor surfaces. There are few differences between the two heating techniques, and both can be used to heat low- or high-mass concrete surfaces to melt ice and snow, keeping surfaces safe and clear of icy accumulations.

For decorative concrete surfaces — especially those that are stamped with a pattern — snowmelt technology works like a champ and preserves surface treatments intact. As you know all too well, snowmelt chemicals, solutions, salts, blades, scrapers and blowers can quickly take the finish off your best work.