During harsh winter conditions, construction work becomes more difficult and dangerous, yet still as a contractor, you know deadlines don’t stop because of this weather condition. Winterizing construction sites means preparing the construction sites to safely work during cold or winter weather.
In this post, you will learn how to winterize your construction site to allow a safe working place during the winter weather. Also, get here for foundation repair lafayette in.
Educate And Protect Your Workers
Winterizing your construction site effectively, your workers must first be educated about the hazards of undergoing construction work during extreme weather. Also, make sure everyone is provided with Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) solely to be used in winter weather.
Ground Cover, Mulch, And Soil
Vegetated ground cover will be hard to establish when not in the growing season, grasses grow generally between March and September. You must implement alternate methods of soil stabilization during
Apply mulch on flat surfaces to protect bare areas, do ensure that you do not apply mulch on ice or snow-covered surfaces. You can either make use of netting or erosion control blankets to hold mulch in place to protect soil surfaces.
Lastly, you don’t want to have large areas of disturbed soil at this time, so make sure there are prepared finished areas for stabilization as soon as the construction is completed. Pick up loose debris, waste materials, and misplaced tools regularly to prevent injury or hazard on site.
Prepare For Freeze, Melt, And Thawing
You should know that some practices which require anchoring or being dug into the ground will be difficult when the snow comes and the ground is frozen. So, you will want to plan and install an erosion control blanket, slit fences, trenches, sediment filters, and any other measures that need to be in place before the ground gets frozen.
Also, put in place surface stabilization and sediment barriers to limit the movement of soil. This is to prepare for snowmelt conditions or thawing of the ground because as the cold temperatures increase, disturbed soil and bare area become muddy mess and soils may move downslope. Never make use of scaffolds, aerial lifts, or ladders during ice, snow, or wind downpour.
Plow Snow
When you plow snow on a construction site, ensure that when the pile of snow starts melting, you check for debris or dirt. Also, make sure you place snow stockpiles down the slope in a construction site, this is to avoid the flow of water that may be moving around the construction site.
Lastly, you must always inspect the site during the winter weather to ensure that places that may require additional or extra measures and repair and existing measures are maintained properly. Signs should be placed for slippery floors.
Maintain Functional Equipment
You need to be proactive before the winter weather commences. That is to say, all equipment, materials, and temporary structures must be secure properly to prevent them from damage. Store and secure equipment such as scaffolding, cranes, netting, ladders, chute, and other items that could shift during a storm.
Also, you need to understand that some equipment will likely get hit by the bad weather more than others. this is why you need to make sure that all equipment and vehicles are warmed up properly and inspected before you use them, this will ensure you know about their functional status. If any equipment requires service, do not make use of it until you have properly serviced or repaired it as the case may be.
