Calcium chloride is an effective ice melt product that is faster and more effective than traditional deicing materials such as salt and abrasives. It has a low eutectic point and is effective at low temperatures.
Calcium chloride is an hygroscopic salt that absorbs moisture from its environment to lower the freezing point of water. Additionally, it helps melt ice faster than other deicing products on the market.
Ice quickly attracts moisture and forms a solution called brine when exposed to it, creating an explosive cascading effect. As this liquid melts everything it touches in seconds, creating an exponential domino-style effect.
Calcium Chloride Ice Melt
Attracts Moisture
Calcium chloride is an hygroscopic salt, capable of absorbing moisture from its environment and holding it there. This moisture lowers the freezing point of water, allowing ice and snow to melt quickly.
Solid calcium chloride’s deliquescent and exothermic qualities enable it to rapidly dissolve when exposed to water, creating a brine solution that melts ice more effectively than rock salt or other ice melting materials.
Therefore, this deicer can be applied before snow and ice accumulate on the surface for maximum effectiveness. However, it must be spread thinly and evenly over the area to achieve best results.
Ice melt has hygroscopic properties, which are beneficial to both your business and the environment. It helps prevent dust from forming, keeps your air clean, and safeguards plants and animals that live nearby.
Attracts Heat
Ice melt is a deicing product used on sidewalks, driveways and parking lots to prevent the accumulation of ice and snow. This helps reduce the risk of slip-and-fall accidents as well as injuries.
Ice melt products such as rock salt, magnesium chloride and calcium chloride come in a variety of strengths to meet different needs. Each is designed for specific purposes.
Calcium chloride, for instance, is an ideal choice since it works faster than rock salt and does not damage concrete or flora.
Calcium chloride also has the added advantage of drawing moisture from its environment, enabling it to quickly form brine that lowers water’s freezing point and melts additional ice when it comes into contact.
ComboTherm ice melt contains at least 70% calcium chloride, the highest concentration available in any competing product. This ensures that ComboTherm will keep performing even when temperatures drop to -25 degrees Fahrenheit.
Attracts a Secondary Melt
Calcium chloride is a hygroscopic salt that absorbs moisture and lowers the freeze point of water, making it an ideal deicing material in colder climates where rock salt may not be as effective.
Calcium chloride ice melt is exothermic, meaning it produces heat when in contact with water. When this secondary melt comes into contact with snow and ice, it quickly melts them away.
Rock salt cannot provide this advantage when temperatures drop; instead, use rock salt instead which will cease working at lower temperatures and refreeze when temperatures rise. This can be hazardous for driveways, walkways and other pathways near your home during the wintertime.
To regulate moisture, a measured amount of non-hydrated calcium chloride is added to a dry blend of solid ice melting agents, abrasives and absorbents. Once activated, this coating of calcium chloride hardens into an almost plasticlike mass on top of the melt base.
Attracts Chemicals
Calcium chloride is an hygroscopic compound, drawing moisture into a brine solution. This brine lowers the freezing point of water and melts additional snow and ice on contact.
This property of the chemical is crucial, as it allows it to quickly absorb enough water to change its melting point, making it a quicker-acting deicer than other deicers. Furthermore, you don’t need to apply as much volume compared to other deicers, making it more economical in use.
Calcium chloride ice melt has the additional advantage of working at lower temperatures than rock salt, the most popular deicing compound on the market today.
This allows it to be utilized during colder weather conditions when it is most needed for clearing away hazardous ice and snow accumulations.
How Does Calcium Chloride Compare to Other Ice Melt Products
Calcium chloride is a popular ice melt product that is effective in melting ice at low temperatures. It is more effective than traditional deicing materials such as salt and abrasives, melting up to eight times as much ice as salt alone within the first 30 minutes at 20F (-7C) following application.
Calcium chloride has a low eutectic point, which means it melts at much lower temperatures than salt. It is effective down to a temperature of -25 degrees Fahrenheit and is two to 13 times faster than other products. Pound for pound, calcium chloride melts twice as much ice as other deicers.
However, calcium chloride can be more of a pet and plant irritant than other ice melt products such as magnesium chloride. It is important to use calcium chloride in reasonable amounts to avoid harming plants and pets.
Some calcium chloride products also contain sodium chloride (salt), which can irritate pet paws.
Is Calcium Chloride Safe for Pets and the Environment
Calcium chloride is an effective ice melt that can be harmful to pets and the environment if not used properly.
While calcium chloride is considered safe for pets, it can irritate their skin and paws if ingested or if it comes into contact with their skin or fur.
Pets who lick their paws after walking on calcium chloride-treated surfaces can experience stomach upset, vomiting, and diarrhea. There is a risk of tremors and seizures when too much calcium chloride is consumed.
However, there are pet-friendly ice melt alternatives that contain calcium magnesium acetate or magnesium chloride instead of calcium chloride.
These alternatives are less harmful to pets and the environment and can protect a pet’s paw pads from skin irritation due to harmful chemicals. Safe Paw ice melter is an environmentally friendly, non-toxic alternative to rock salt that will not harm animals or plants.
Safe Paw ice melter is a non-toxic, environmentally-friendly pet-safe ice melt alternative to rock salt that won’t harm animals or plants, and, as the name suggests, keeps your dog’s paws safe.
A pet-friendly ice melter manufactured by Natural Rapport contains an eco-friendly calcium magnesium acetate formula that prevents skin irritation caused by harmful chemicals.
