Here in Soap Lake, Washington it is looking like we are going to have to gear up for freezing rain today. Weather forecasts are predicting freezing rain and one to three inches of snow on top of the slippery ice for the Soap Lake area.

Prevent Slips and Fall Injuries Due to Slick Walking Paths

Cover exposed walkways. There is nothing worse than trying to get out of the house to go to work after a nice freezing rain. This year, my main exit and entryway to the house is exposed to the elements. I have to walk across a wood deck and down a couple of steps. If that porch gets covered with freezing rain, there will be no getting out.

I decided that I’m going to cover the area with a tarp overnight. That way, tomorrow morning I can just shake the ice off the tarp and have a dry, non-skid surface to walk on.

Get traction grippers for your shoes. They don’t cost much and here in our area the best bet to find them is in Ephrata, at WalMart. These grippers are inexpensive, and work pretty well, but will ice up, so they are not completely fool proof. They are easy to use and you just slip them over your shoes.

Stock up on ice melt. Sometimes the ice melting products work great, but if it gets too cold, or the snow or ice buildup is too heavy, it won’t work very well. In cases of rain and snow mix, or freezing rain, the ice melting substance tends to wash away, or pool.

What to do When Car Door Freezes Shut

Caution: If roads are very icy or closed, driving conditions could be very dangerous. Please check your local authorities, and listen to a reliable news source for road closures. If they are saying to stay off the roads, following the instructions could save your life. 

When weather like this hits, it can be frustrating if your car door freezes shut. This is why it is a good idea to keep an extra jug of window deicer handy. Sometimes, just the dampness and cold temperatures are enough to cause your car door to freeze to the weather stripping around the edges of the door opening. When I know the bad weather is coming, I first try to eliminate the problems from occurring by covering my vehicle. But sometimes that doesn’t happen, and when I need to unfreeze my car door, the following technique works well for me:

• Use an empty beverage bottle, or other container you can just throw away afterward.
• Fill the container with window deicer.
• Starting at the top of the car door, pour a small amount of deicer into the crack where the door meets the rest of the car. If that seam is completely covered with ice, try using your windshield scraper to dislodge the ice so that the deicer can get into the seam.
• If you are not able to chip the ice away, just continue to slowly pour the solution around the area a little at a time. You may need to give it around five minutes to work. After giving it a few minutes, try using your ice scraper again. This may take some time, and repeat applications.
• Once you have cleared the top seam and it is free of ice, carefully pour more ice melting solution into the seam. Again, give it a few minutes to work. Continue clearing ice from around your door with your ice scraper, making sure the car door handle is also free of ice.
• Try the door. If it still won’t open, repeat the application of solution all around the door, door handle, and the top of the seam where it can drain downward toward the door latch.
• Wait for 10 minutes.
• Try the door again, and if necessary, give it one more application and wait another 10 minutes.

Usually, this works for me.