Snow-Melting Controls

Step 4: Selecting a Control System

In today’s resource-conscious market, energy efficiency is paramount. Given that a snow-melting system will consume considerable energy while operating, it is important to only operate when snow or ice buildup is a risk.

This is one of the primary advantages that an electric snow-melting system has over a hydronic (hot water or glycol) system. Thermal fluid systems must run, to some degree, even when snow is not present, so as to ensure that the fluid does not freeze, whereas electric systems only need to be active when conditions call for heat.

The recommended control scheme is to have a snow-sensor work in series with a slab-sensing thermostat. Thus the snow-sensor activates the system at the first sign of cold weather in conjunction with precipitation, so that the slab begins to warm up to a temperature appropriate temperature for melting snow (typically 5-8 degrees Celsius). At this point the slab thermostat will deactivate the system, cycling on and off to maintain the melting point until the snow-sensor-controller has determined that the precipitation event has finished.