7 Ways Your Team Can Effectively Plow Driveways this Winter , Filtered by tag: snow and ice management

Plowing residential or shorter commercial driveways is a huge source of business for many snow removal fleets.  Your drivers may have dozens to plow during a single sweep, making quality and efficiency a must. 

There are several ways you can prepare and properly execute quality plowing on your residential driveway accounts this season:

1. Preparation: Before the snow hits, make sure each of your drivers mark client driveways with snow poles or flags to clearly designate the lot’s edges. Setting up these markers also gives each driver the opportunity to survey each property and establish a snow removal plan. 
2. Communication: Be sure your drivers speak with each customer on their route to establish clear plowing expectations and determine the route’s priority accounts for snow removal. Discuss where the customer wants snow piled on their property and develop a removal plan accordingly. 
3. Equipment: Make sure you have the right size and capacity equipment to handle your residential accounts. Having a rugged and easy-to-use snow plow, like the Meyer DrivePro, will enable you to maneuver in tight residential spaces and helps your team plow more effectively and minimizes the risk of property damage. 
4. Methodology: Each job dictates the way your drivers plow; however, there are some snow removal best practices for clearing residential drives. Experts recommend that you clear the snow left by a city plow at the end of the driveway and the mailbox area.  To clear the driveway, windrow the snow to one side as you go up the drive, and then back drag the snow away. Finally, back into the drive and plow the snow in the corners at the end of the driveway or where the customer instructed. Be careful not to leave snow piled in the road.
5. Surface Consideration: Residential contractors need to be concerned with preventing damage to high-end surfaces like paver brick or stamped concrete. To limit the risk of damaging more fragile surfaces, use plows with rubber and poly cutting edges, which are designed to reduce noise while providing maximum protection to the surface being plowed. 
6. Timing: Each driver should plan their route to maximize their time and ensure convenience for the customer. Ensuring driveways are cleared before the start of the day and when everyone arrives home can have a big impact on contract renewals for the following year. 
7. City guidelines: Check with the city on snow removal guidelines and restrictions. Some cities have ordinances against pushing snow into or across streets and have limitations on the height of stacked snow.

Quality and timely plowing of your residential accounts has a big impact on customer loyalty and word-of-mouth recommendations for your company. Review company procedures with your fleet to help your drivers provide quality service and avoid any potential issues for your residential customers.